Designation (Greek syn = together, onyma = name) for words or terms that have the same or similar meaning but differ in sound. For example, "Weinhauer, Weinbauer and Winzer" or "Besenwirtschaft, Buschenschank, Heckenwirtschaft, Heuriger and Straußwirtschaft" or "Böttcher and Küfer" or "Keltern and Pressen". Words with exactly the same meaning are rare; often there is a difference in sense or value. For example, "Kopf and Haupt", "Heim and Wohnung", "Bild and Gemälde", "Blatt and Laub" as well as "Rebstock and Weinrebe".
Especially with very Old Vines and in many countries widely spread grape variety, there are 30, 40, 50 or more mainly country-specific synonyms for a variety and its subspecies. Grape varieties with over 100 synonyms include Beba, Blaufränkisch, Garnacha Tinta (Grenache Noir), Kadarka, Mazuelo, Plavay, Riesling and Traminer. Often these are grape variety groups, under which subspecies (nearly identical clone or mutation), but also similar, closely related, yet Genotype independent varieties are summarized. Examples include Lambrusco, Malvasia, Muskateller, Pinot, Refosco, Trebbiano and Vernaccia.
In the past, you needed a wealth of encyclopaedias and specialist literature to keep up to date in your vinophile professional life. Today, Wine lexicon from wein.plus is one of my best helpers and can rightly be called the "bible of wine knowledge".
Prof. Dr. Walter Kutscher
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