I often joked in my former places of employment that they should have books of all the financial acronyms that were used to facilitate process and conversation. OND, which I for years confused with OMD (Orchestral Maneuvers in the Dark, remember them!?), is “October, November, December,” the critical back quarter of the sales year for wine.

EBITDA or “Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization,” scared the hell out of me before I finally had the courage to ask a colleague, and BYTM (better you than me) was what was replied when I said that I didn’t know.

In the world of connoisseurship it seems that the more you explore, the more maddening acronyms, words and measurements there are. In wine law and country appellations we have GI’s (Geographical Indications), AVA’s (American Viticultural Areas) and the ab fab Spanish DOCa (Denominación de Origen Calificada) with that little ‘a’ at the end being muy cool. From TBA (Trockenbeerenauslese) in German wines to VSOP (Very Special Old Pale) in Cognac, these word puzzles are rampant. But this phenomenon is not unique to wine and spirits. Continue reading »