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Decant
To decant wine is to pour it slowly from the bottle into a crystal or glass container in order to remove the sediment. One usually decants only some mature red wines such as Italian Barolo and Port. When decanting a wine a candle flame is often used to illuminate the bottle neck to reveal the sediment. It is very important not to heat the wine. Is it possible to decant a fine red wine into a plastic container? Not in my presence.

Degree Days
The total number of degrees above 50F during the growing season. For example, each day with a 75F degree high adds 25 degree days to the season total. California is divided into 5 regions, Region I encompasses areas of 2500 degree days or less. Region V encompasses areas of 4000 degree days or more. This scale was created by the University of California at Davis in the 1930s to help determine which grape varieties to plant in a given area.
Demijohn
A demijohn is large (5 gallon/20 liter) glass container used to store or transport wine.
Diurnal difference
The diurnal difference is the arithmetic difference between the maximum daytime temperature and the minimum nighttime temperature. The greater this difference, the better the grapes preserve their acidity. There can be a wide diurnal difference in relatively cool wine areas, such as Champagne, as well as in essentially hot ones, such as Idaho.
Downy mildew
Downy mildew is common vine disease, often occurring in warm, humid growing conditions.
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