oaky

adjective \ ˈō-kē \

Updated on: 20 Apr 2018

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

—

oakiness

noun

Recent Examples of oaky from the Web

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. 2017
Chardonnay This traditional California chardonnay has a crisp and oaky finish.

— danielle tullo, Cosmopolitan, "I Tried Target's $5 Wine and Never Want to Drink Anything Else Ever Again," 20 Sep. 2017
The Cabernet Sauvignon was the least offensive: slightly less alcoholic than the blend, slightly less oaky than the Chardonnay.

— marian bull, GQ, "Is The Game of Thrones Wine Actually Good? We Tried It," 13 Aug. 2017

These 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.