REFERENCE
Nobody should be scared to order a bottle. Here's how to say 41 of the grape, region, and cellar words that trip people up — in plain English, with the stressed syllable in CAPITALS. No phonetic alphabet to decode.
Gewürztraminer
guh-VOORTS-trah-mee-ner
Viognier
vee-oh-NYAY
Rioja
ree-OH-hah
Sommelier
suh-mel-YAY
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41 words across grapes, regions, and wine styles — 19 grapes, 12 regions, and 10 styles & terms. Search for the one you need, or browse by category.
A saline, citrusy white from Spain's Atlantic coast. The ñ is 'ny'.
The big, structured red behind most serious Bordeaux and Napa bottlings.
A dark, herbal Bordeaux grape that thrives in Chile.
The world's best-known white grape — steely in Chablis, buttery when oaked.
An aromatic, lychee-and-rose white — the classic wine-list tongue-twister.
A juicy, red-fruited grape at the heart of Châteauneuf-du-Pape and rosé.
Austria's peppery, citrusy signature white.
A plush, dark-fruited red that found its home in Argentina.
A dark, meaty southern-French red — the 'M' in a GSM blend.
The tannic, rose-scented red behind Barolo and Barbaresco.
The silky, light-bodied red of Burgundy. The 't' is silent.
An aromatic white, bone-dry to sweet. 'REES', not 'RICE'.
Tuscany's bright, cherry-and-herb red — the grape of Chianti.
A crisp, zesty dry white — grapefruit and cut grass.
The same dark, peppery red grape — 'Syrah' in France, 'Shiraz' down under.
The savoury red grape of Rioja. The double-l sounds like a 'y'.
A zesty coastal-Italian white, great with seafood.
A full-bodied, peachy white from the Rhône. The 'g' is silent.
A ripe, jammy, high-alcohol red — California's calling card.
Light, gluggable Gamay reds just south of Burgundy.
The benchmark region for Cabernet/Merlot blends. Silent 'x'.
Steely, unoaked Chardonnay from northern Burgundy. Silent 's'.
The everyday Grenache-Syrah reds of the Rhône Valley.
Both a grape and a place — the 'ci' is a soft 'ch'.
A richer white-Burgundy appellation. Not to be confused with Pouilly-Fumé.
Concentrated, mineral reds from steep Catalan slopes.
The Atlantic-Spanish home of Albariño.
Spain's most famous red region. The 'j' is a throaty 'h'.
Flinty Loire Sauvignon Blanc — the classic oyster white.
Loire Chenin Blanc, from bone-dry to lusciously sweet.
Oregon's Pinot Noir country. It's 'Willamette, dammit' — stress the middle.
The dry style of Champagne and other sparkling wine.
Spain's traditional-method sparkling wine.
Traditional-method French sparkling wine made outside Champagne.
A specific blend or batch — often a producer's flagship bottling.
The top vineyard classification in Burgundy and beyond.
A US Bordeaux-style blend — it rhymes with 'heritage', not 'garage'.
Italy's fresh, easygoing sparkling wine.
The restaurant's wine expert. Silent final 'r'.
The 'somewhere-ness' of a wine — its soil, climate, and place.
A light, faintly spritzy young Portuguese white. 'Green wine'.
Each entry shows a plain-English respelling with the emphasised syllable in CAPITALS — no phonetic alphabet to decode. These are the widely-taught pronunciations an English speaker will be understood using; native French, Italian, German, Spanish, and Portuguese pronunciations vary, and stress is approximate. When in doubt, lean on the emphasised syllable and you'll be close. Last reviewed 2026-08-26.
Worried about getting it wrong?
Don't be. Even sommeliers disagree on native versus anglicised readings, and staff will know what you mean either way. Lean on the CAPITALISED syllable, and you'll be understood — confidence beats perfection.
Now you can say it —
Get to know the grapes behind the names, or see which wines are sweet, dry, or somewhere in between.
Say it 'guh-VOORTS-trah-mee-ner', with the stress on the second syllable ('VOORTS'). It's a German word — the ü is roughly an 'oo' sound and the 'w' is said like a 'v'. It's an aromatic white wine that smells of lychee and rose petals.
It's 'vee-oh-NYAY' — three syllables, stress on the last, and the 'g' is silent. Viognier is a full-bodied French white grape known for peach and apricot aromas.
'ree-OH-hah'. In Spanish the 'j' is a throaty 'h' sound, so it's never 'ree-OH-jah'. Rioja is Spain's best-known red-wine region, made mostly from Tempranillo.
'REES-ling', with an 's' sound like the word 'reese', not 'RICE-ling'. It's a German grape that makes everything from bone-dry to lusciously sweet white wine.
'suh-mel-YAY' — the final 'r' is silent, as in most French words. A sommelier is a trained wine professional, usually the person who runs the wine service at a restaurant.
Not really — staff and friends will know what you mean, and even wine professionals disagree on native versus anglicised pronunciations. These respellings are simply the versions you'll be understood using; the point is confidence, not perfection. Lean on the emphasised (CAPITALISED) syllable and you'll be close.
Know what to open tonight — and never miss a wine at its peak.
Add the bottles you're curious about and Saignée keeps your cellar, tracks each wine's drinking window, and helps you pair from what you own. Free Taster: up to 100 bottles — no card.
Free Taster: up to 100 bottles · 20 AI scans · 10 pairings / month
Free forever · No credit card