You've been pronouncing your favourite wines all wrong - an expert explains how

03 February 2023 , 12:20

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Thousands of people struggled with wine pronunciations each month (Stock Photo) (Image: Getty Images/iStockphoto)

For many of us, there is no better way to start the weekend than cracking open a nice bottle of red on a Friday night. Not all of us are well-versed in grapes and specific regions, but the majority of wine fans will probably feel fairly self-assured when pronouncing the names of their favourite tipple.

Unfortunately, new research from language training company Preply may well shake your confidence a bit in this area, which found Pinot Noir to be the most commonly mispronounced wine.

Approximately 2,380 people per month search Google to find the correct pronunciation of this light-bodied red wine, despite its widespread popularity. Sauvignon Blanc was found to be the second most Googled pronunciation, resulting in around 1,620 searches for the beloved herbal-flavoured wine each month.

Familiarising yourself with the origin language of your favourite wine could help (Stock Photo) (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

In third place is Cabernet Sauvignon, with an average of 1,260 wine lovers searching for the correct pronunciation each month, despite this again being among the most widely ordered tipples.

As previously reported by 7News, marketing specialist and language expert at Preply, Yolanda del Peso, has explained that you can master pronunciations by making yourself familiar with the origin language of your wine of choice.

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For example, to an English speaker, the full-bodied Spanish red Tempranillo would be pronounced 'tem-pruh-NILL-o'. In Spain however, where the wine originates.

In accordance with Spanish language rules, however, the 'LL' sound is pronounced as a 'Y', meaning you would pronounce Tempranillo as 'tem-pruh-NEE-yo'.

You can check out a list of the top 20 mispronounced wines - and their correct pronunciations - below:

1. Pinot Noir - PEE-noh nwar
2. Sauvignon Blanc - soh-VIN-yohn blan
3. Cabernet Sauvignon - kab-er-nay soh-VIN-yohn
4. Pinot Grigio - PEE-no-GREE-jo
5. Champagne - sham-peyn
6. Bordeaux - baw-DOH
7. Chianti - KEE-ahn-tee
8. Riesling - rees-ling
9. Merlot - mer-loh
10. Prosecco - proh-SEHK-koh
11. Rioja - REE-oh-hah
12. Burgundy - BUR-guhn-dee
13. Sangiovese - SAN-joe-veh-see
14. Tempranillo - tem-pruh-NEE-yo
15. Gewurztraminer - ga-VERTZ-trah-mee-ner
16. Vermouth - VUR-muhth
17. Chardonnay - shar-dah-nay
18. Shiraz - schuh-RAAZ
19. Syrah - see-rah
20. Sancerre - son-seuh

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Julia Banim