terroir
[ter-wahr; French ter-war]
- the environmental conditions, especially soil and climate, in which grapes are grown and that give a wine its unique flavor and aroma: the high quality of the region’s terroir.
- Also called goût de ter·roir [goo duh ter-wahr; gooduh ter-war] /ˈgu də tɛrˈwɑr; gudə tɛrˈwar/. the unique flavor and aroma of a wine that is attributed to the growing environment of the grapes.
- the conditions in which a food is grown or produced and that give the food its unique characteristics: grass-fed beef with an Idaho terroir.
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Origin of terroir
< French: literally, ‘soil, land’
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for terroir
Contemporary Examples
So I was happy to see that the European theory of terroir was in action, promoting with pride the qualities of a specific region.
These are the standard selling points of the craft-distilling movement, with its locavore lingo, terroir talk, and handmade hype.
Yes, cheeses can have terroir just as wine can, but when it comes to cheese, regionality is oftentimes overlooked.
But the real identity of these cheeses lies not in their names, but in the terroir, in their origin.
The methods of production used in the U.S., although correct, abandon the entire idea of terroir and regionality.
terroir
- winemaking the combination of factors, including soil, climate, and environment, that gives a wine its distinctive character
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Word Origin
literally: soil
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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