SINCE 1828
oaky
adjective
\ ˈō-kē
\
\
Definition of oaky
1
of wine
: having the characteristics of being aged in oak casks
an oaky chardonnay
2
: of, relating to, or having many oaks
an oaky forest
Keep scrolling for more
Examples of oaky in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Some of the wines that did not make our top 10 were clumsily oaky. — Eric Asimov, New York Times, "Chardonnay, the Oregon Way," 14 June 2018 By the 2000s, many of the producers who had adopted French oak had moderated their use, so the wines no longer had the extreme oaky character of some of the previous vintages. — Eric Asimov, New York Times, "2014 Barbarescos: Triumphs and Question Marks," 8 Feb. 2018 The ideal accompaniment would be dry, intense and structured enough to stand up to the rich beef, but not powerfully fruity or oaky. — Julia Moskin, charlotteobserver, "The art of the beef stew | Charlotte Observer," 10 Apr. 2018 Recipe: Darina’s Shepherd’s Pie And to drink ... The combination of braised duck, potatoes and parsnips calls for a hearty red wine that nonetheless is well structured but not oaky. — David Tanis, New York Times, "A Take on Shepherd’s Pie, Straight From the Farm," 9 Mar. 2018 Other 2014s that were worth noting were the elegant Castello di Neive; the tannic Vallegrande from Ca’ del Baio; the subtle, earthy Ceretto and the somewhat oaky, but balanced Sottimano Pajoré. — Eric Asimov, New York Times, "2014 Barbarescos: Triumphs and Question Marks," 8 Feb. 2018 But how do cheap American wines get their oaky taste? — Gar Joseph, Philly.com, "Cheap Buzz - Red Wines: New Oak or Neutral Oak?," 4 Oct. 2017 Wine drinkers are especially wary of oaky whites, according to Jason Jacobeit, wine director at Bâtard restaurant in New York. — WSJ, "How Oak Makes—Or Breaks—A Wine," 20 July 2017 Historically, only the best wines tasted like barrels, because winemakers would splurge on new barrels for them, while the more affordable wines would be aged in older barrels that had already lost all their oaky flavor. — Gar Joseph, Philly.com, "Cheap Buzz - Red Wines: New Oak or Neutral Oak?," 4 Oct. 2017These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'oaky.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Keep scrolling for more
Comments on oaky
What made you want to look up oaky? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).
Test Your Vocabulary
What did you just call me?! A Quiz
-
- If a member of the audience describes your speech as bombastic, does that person mean it is:
Test your vocabulary with our 10-question quiz!
TAKE THE QUIZ
Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.
TAKE THE QUIZ
Share oaky
Resources for oaky