Most commonly mispronounced wines and how to say them
- Three French wines top the list as the most commonly mispronounced.
- Cabernet Sauvignon is the most commonly mispronounced wine with 45,270 searches seeking for its correct pronunciation each month.
- Pinot Noir and Chardonnay also see a high volume of searches from people uncertain of their pronunciation.
- Language expert says following the phonetic rules of the language of origin is key to getting them right.
With so many different kinds of wines out there, lots of people are probably saying the names wrong without even realizing it.
Chardonnay is easy enough for most to say, but what about the sweet Gewurztraminer or the earthy Sangiovese?
Turns out, it’s not just a few people messing up – thousands go online to check if they’re saying their favorite wines right.
In celebration of National Drink Wine Day which is held on February 18th every year, the research team at language learning website Anna Spanish, dug through google data to find which wine names prompt the most searches for pronunciation help.
The top contenders for the most mispronounced title are, perhaps unsurprisingly, French. Cabernet Sauvignon is the most commonly mispronounced wine in the world with an average of 45,270 people searching for pronunciation guidance on Google each month.
It’s closely followed by Pinot Noir in second place with 43,580 average monthly searches and Cabernet Sauvignon in third place with 29,520 searches.
Data also revealed that Pinot Grigio and Merlot followed closely in fourth and fifth place, with 17,150 and 13,530 searches each month by wine lovers searching for the correct pronunciation each month.
Other commonly mispronounced wines include Malbec (mal-bek), Prosecco (proh-SEHK-koh), Sangiovese (SAN-joe-veh-see) and Riesling (rees-ling).
Language expert Anna Latorre from Anna Spanish says the key to approaching tricky wine pronunciations is familiarizing yourself with the common phonetic practices of the language of origin.
Sauvignon Blanc, pronounced ‘soh-VIN-yohn blan’, has a few letters which should be silent when said aloud, as does Cabernet Sauvignon: ‘kab-er-nay soh-VIN-yohn’.
For Tempranillo, Spanish pronunciation rules apply, with “ll” sounding as a “y.”
Same goes for Albariño “ahl-bah-REE-nyoh” where ñ” represents a palatal nasal sound, which is like the “ni” in “onion.
In the Italian wine “Sangiovese,” the “gio” is pronounced as “joe,” not with a hard “g” or silent “i,” as might be tempting for English speakers.
The 25 most commonly mispronounced names, along with with a handy cheat sheet of how you can say them.
| Rank | Wine | Search volume | Correct pronunication |
| 1 | Cabernet Sauvignon | 45,270 | kab-er-nay soh-VIN-Yohn |
| 2 | Pinot Noir | 43,580 | PEE-noh nwar |
| 3 | Sauvignon Blanc | 29,520 | soh-VIN-yohn blan |
| 4 | Pinot Grigio | 17,150 | PEE-noh GREE-jo |
| 5 | Merlot | 13,530 | mer-loh |
| 6 | Malbec | 12,570 | mal-bek |
| 7 | Prosecco | 10,130 | proh-SEHK-koh |
| 8 | Sangiovese | 9,690 | SAN-joe-veh-see |
| 9 | Riesling | 9,340 | rees-ling |
| 10 | Viognier | 9,190 | vee-ON-yay |
| 11 | Rosé | 8,380 | Roe-zay |
| 12 | Chardonnay | 8,130 | shar-dah-nay |
| 13 | Shiraz | 7,620 | schuh-RAAZ |
| 14 | Syrah | 3,950 | see-rah |
| 15 | Pinot Gris | 2,960 | pee-noh gree |
| 16 | Tempranillo | 1,240 | tem-pruh-NEE-yo |
| 17 | Zinfandel | 843 | zin-fan-del |
| 18 | Gewürztraminer | 640 | ga-VERTZ-trah-mee-ner |
| 19 | Carménère | 528 | kar-may-NEHR |
| 20 | Sémillon | 520 | SAY-mee-yon |
| 21 | Grüner Veltliner | 490 | grew-ner velt-LEE-ner |
| 22 | Chenin Blanc | 440 | shu-nan blon |
| 23 | Grenache | 320 | gruh-nahsh |
| 24 | Nebbiolo | 290 | neh-bee-ow-low |
| 25 | Albariño | 150 | ahl-bah-REE-nyoh |
Methodology
The research team at Anna Spanish analyzed Google data to find out which wine names have got people people seeking pronunciation guidance online the most.
To do this, researchers compiled a list of over 80 popular wines and analyzed the number of searches for each wine combined with terms like “how to pronounce Wine”, Wine pronunciation” and “how to say Wine”.
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Author: David Keech
David Keech is a retired teacher and works as a sportswriter, sports official and as an educational consultant. He has reported on amateur sports since 2011, known as 'KeechDaVoice.' David can be reached at [email protected]
