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Spanish to English translations [PRO] Wine / Oenology / Viticulture
Spanish term or phrase:Crianza
This appears extensively in the Glossary, but there is no clarification of its use as a Category of wine: Crianza (as opposed to Reserva or Gran Reserva)
Explanation: Crianza wines are in their third year.Reds have spent at least 12 months in cask. Whites 6 months. Sometimes "crianza" also means ageing (EU Rule 2009).
On the other hand, if it is for a contract to supply wine or some sort of technical document where precision is important, perhaps "wine classified as 'crianza' by the responsible authority" would be an appropriate way to phrase it. As Margaret mentions, it is a classification used in Spain and there isn't a direct equivalent in English.
Even "reserva" doesn't really have a direct translation. Whilst it might be tempting to use "reserve", the latter is not protected in certain markets (e.g. the US, see below) and so doesn't carry the same meaning as in Spain where "reserva" meets a certain specification.
I think the way you would handle this depends on the context. You haven't said anything about where the word appears, but here are a few situations;
if it is a menu for wine-lovers, use "crianza", as it is reasonable to assume they know what this means. Changing it around might give people reading the menu the wrong impression. Similarly, if you called a cava a champagne, wine buffs would not be happy, and might think the place either didn't know much about the products they're offering, or were trying to pass off a cheaper product as something else.
On the other hand, if it is a menu for a general tourist type of place, perhaps you could use "oak-aged". Depending on the context, the amount of time may not be that important...I asked a few Spanish friends, and only my father in law (who worked for 30 years as a chemist in the wine and food oil sector) mentioned the amount of time it spent in the barrel. Everyone else more or less told me it was "better than roble, and cheaper than a reserva"...adding specifics about how long it spends in the barrel might be adding information which a Spanish reader is not getting from the source text.
Justin, there is no English term because it’s a classification only used in Spain (possibly also in South America, but not in France, USA, Italy...). I would NOT translate it. In general, by Spanish law, these are the minimum ageing times, in months, for red wine in order to use the distinctions (whites and rosés are shorter):
Crianza = 24, 6 of these in oak barrels (rest in bottle) Reserva= 36 months, 12 in oak barrels Gran Reserva = 60, 18 in oak barrels.
However, some regions, like Rioja and Ribera del Duero have additional requisites. Both state 12 minimum months in oak barrels for Crianza, for example, and also specify what kind of barrels can be used.
Keep in mind that these times refer to when the bottle may be sold on the market. It’s great for the consumer, because you know that the wine is at a good or optimal point to drink when you purchase the bottle. It’s bad for the producers because they have to sit on a lot of stock before they can sell it. If you keep a crianza that’s been aged for at least 12 month in barrels for another year, it’s essentially equivalent to a reserva. So the distintion refers to when the bottle was put on the market.
As a linguistic question, I think you don't need to translate the term, and should use "Crianza" in English, but perhaps consider adding an explanation if needed. Essentially it means a wine that has been aged, but not for as long as a reserva or gran reserva. For a bit of context as to your thinking, how are you handling reserva and gran reserva here?
Aged for a minimum of two years, with one of those spent in oak casks.
Explanation: This is the Decanter wine magazine definition:
Crianza The literal translation is ‘bringing up’, which makes sense given that these wines are one step on from ‘joven’ in Rioja terminology. Crianza wines must have been aged for a minimum of two years, with one of those spent in oak casks. Read more at https://www.decanter.com/spanish-fine-wine/read-spanish-wine...
Lisa McCarthy Spain Local time: 11:41 Native speaker of: English PRO pts in category: 75
Explanation: Crianza wines are in their third year.Reds have spent at least 12 months in cask. Whites 6 months. Sometimes "crianza" also means ageing (EU Rule 2009).
Sofia Bengoa Spain Works in field Native speaker of: Spanish PRO pts in category: 4 1 corroborated select project in this pair and field
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