{"id":3895,"date":"2012-04-12T07:18:50","date_gmt":"2012-04-12T12:18:50","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu\/nll\/?p=3895"},"modified":"2012-04-12T07:38:31","modified_gmt":"2012-04-12T12:38:31","slug":"leesy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu\/nll\/?p=3895","title":{"rendered":"Leesy"},"content":{"rendered":"

I've been collecting wine tasting notes as part of an exploration of evaluative language, and have learned some new words as a result, among them leesy<\/em>.
\n
\nHere are some examples from the Beverage Tasting Institute<\/a>:<\/p>\n

Exotic, leesy<\/strong> yeast, cream, and golden apple nose.
\nHeady, leesy<\/strong>, creamy, honeyed nose.
\nLush, leesy<\/strong> brown spice aromas show an integrated oak accent.
\nPerfumed, leesy<\/strong> talc and sweet citrus nose.
\nBroad, waxy, leesy<\/strong> aromas show a subtle honeyed quality.<\/p>\n

Or these from Wine Enthusiast magazine<\/a>:<\/p>\n

Yellowing and leesy<\/strong> in character, with a deep, brooding style.
\nThere's a strong leesy<\/strong>, cheesy note on top of apple and peach fruit, …
\nIt has a wonderful leesy<\/strong> texture that enlivens the palate, …
\nStarts off a bit nutty and leesy<\/strong>, with those aromas balanced by white peaches.<\/p>\n

The OED tells us that lee<\/em> is \"The sediment deposited in the containing vessel from wine and some other liquids\", noting that the word is \"Obs.<\/em> exc. in pl.<\/em>\"<\/p>\n

But the derived form leesy<\/em> is not in the OED as yet, nor in MW<\/a>, nor in other dictionaries I've tried. Wordnik\u00a0finds no definitions<\/a> but gives plenty of winetalk examples from here and there. The glossary of cooking terms at recipetips.com\u00a0explains leesy<\/em> as<\/a><\/p>\n

Descriptor of a wine that possesses a rich aroma and\/or flavor that is a direct result of the wine resting on the lees. Lees are the solids, a result of fermentation, that are found on the bottom of a vat. These solid particles are comprised of grape skins, pulp, and yeast.<\/p>\n

This seems to be a relatively recent addition to the vocabulary of winetalk — thus it's not in Michael Broadbent, Wine tasting: a practical handbook on tasting & tastings<\/a><\/em>, 1976; nor in\u00a0John Gottfried and Patricia Gottfried, A wine tasting course: the practical way to know and enjoy wine<\/a><\/em>, 1978. On the other hand, it's also not in Ronald Jackson, Wine Tasting: A Professional Handbook<\/a><\/em>, 2009, which nevertheless does explain that<\/p>\n

Slow, continuous effervescence is favored by prolonged contact between yeast lees and the wine. After several months, yeasts autolysis (self-digestion) releases cell-wall constituents (colloidal mannoproteins) into the wine. The weak bonds formed between carbon dioxide and these proteins are thought essential to the production of a steady stream of bubbles following opening.<\/span><\/p>\n

A glossary from Wine Magazine<\/a>, published 2004, gives<\/p>\n

Leesy<\/strong> – creamy richness imparted to wine from sitting on the lees (dead yeast cell deposits after fermentation), most obvious in white wines and bubblies.<\/p>\n

A Wine Magazine article from 7\/29\/2002<\/a> has<\/p>\n

Two things stood out he said: complexity of the nose with far more toasty biscuit, lime and leesy<\/strong> autolytic character coming to the fore and the long drawn out, lingering limey acidity \"which you don't get with MCC\".<\/p>\n

Lots of vigorous bead. Leesy<\/strong>, cheesy nose – hint of sourdough bread.<\/p>\n

Leesy<\/strong> apple nose with some lemon notes.<\/p>\n

And a Beverage Tasting Institute review from 4\/1\/2002<\/a> reads:<\/p>\n

Deep yellow-straw hue. Generous, leesy<\/strong>, smoky nose. A sharp entry leads to a racy, medium-bodied palate with good cut. Taut, clean, and angular. Drink now.<\/p>\n

Those are the earliest example that I've found, in a few minutes of searching.<\/p>\n

So apparently\u00a0leesy<\/em><\/em> was not in general winetalk use as of 1978, but had become a normal descriptive term by 2002 or so. Can someone document its history over the intervening 24 years?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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