Terroir is essentially the geographical, environmental and climatic elements of grape-growing (that allow the same grape grown in two different places to make two completely distinct wines).
Here is a non-exhaustive list of elements that make up terroir:
- Soil type
- Hours of sun in a day
- Amount of precipitation
- Type of terrain
- Elevation
- Direction and angle of vineyard slope
- Amount of wind
- Proximity to bodies of water
- Difference between daytime and nighttime temperatures
- Etc.
As an example, NZ sauvignon blanc and its telltale aromas of gooseberry, grassiness and occasionally cat pee (!) is a completely different wine compared to the citrus and minerality-driven Sancerre, i.e. sauvignon blanc from the Loire Valley in France.
Recent Comments