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Fallverantwortlicher

Glossary entry

German term or phrase:

Kellermeister

English translation:

cellarmaster

Added to glossary by Edwin Miles
Apr 26, 2016 08:28
8 yrs ago
3 viewers *
German term

Kellermeister

German to English Art/Literary Wine / Oenology / Viticulture 19th century champagne production
I would like to find out if there was a standard word used in 19th century English in the field of champagne production for what would today be called a "cellarmaster."

The context is a recently written champagne-related novel set at the very end of the 19th century. The German word is consistently "Kellermeister," as in: Jeder **Kellermeister** macht ein Mysterium daraus, in welchem Verhältnis er die Trauben miteinander verschneidet.

The problem I'm facing is that:
1. "Cellar master" or "cellarmaster" has apparently only been in use since 1955 (Merriam Webster).
2. "Cellarer" doesn't work; it specifically refers to a monk responsible for provisioning, not a wine specialist
3. "Chef de cave" works, but it already appears separately in the text, so I am looking for an alternative. Also, "chef de cave" perhaps sounds strange when used too often.
4. "Winemaker" feels too broad!

So any suggestions apart from these are more than welcome. Thanks in advance!
Proposed translations (English)
4 +1 cellarmaster
3 +3 Master of assemblage
3 Champenois
2 butler

Discussion

Jonathan MacKerron Apr 26, 2016:
have you entertained "master blender"?
Edwin Miles (asker) Apr 26, 2016:
@ Ramey. It does take place in the Champagne region, but the Champenois are really the people who employ the cellar masters to make their champagne for them. The Champenois tend to be the ones who own the vineyards, cellars and equipment, and who pay all the bills and whose name appears on the bottles, but the profession of "chef de cave" is more specialised than the role of the Champenois.
Steffen Walter Apr 26, 2016:
@ Andrea Yes, this does sound better than my suggestion.
Andrea Garfield-Barkworth Apr 26, 2016:
Would something like "master of assemblage" work, just as an alternative to Chef de cave?
Steffen Walter Apr 26, 2016:
(Wine) blender Could '(wine) blender' be an option in this case?
Jonathan MacKerron Apr 26, 2016:
butler stems from the old French "bouteillier"
Ramey Rieger (X) Apr 26, 2016:
Hi Edwin So the novel does NOT take place in the Champagne area? (Champagnieros - hi hi)
Edwin Miles (asker) Apr 26, 2016:
Thanks Marion. In the text, the two expressions – "Chef de cave" and "Kellermeister – are used more or less interchangeably. But "Chef de cave" comes up a dozen times in the novel, and "Kellermeister" about a hundred and fifty. Using "chef de cave" so often strikes me as a overdoing it, hence the search for an alternative.
Thanks for the glossary. I already knew it, and can recommend it to anyone confused by or interested in all the specialist terminology that surrounds champagne.
Marion_J_W Apr 26, 2016:
'Chef de cave' Since Champagne originally comes from the Champagne region in France I think it doesn't feel strange to use a French term.
Perhaps this helps: http://www.champagneguide.net/information/glossary

Proposed translations

+1
4 hrs
Selected

cellarmaster

Google Ngrams shows this word being used towards the end of the 19th century. And aside from that, it just seems the obvious choice to me, regardless of when it was first used.

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Note added at 4 hrs (2016-04-26 13:21:11 GMT)
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Here are the actual hits if you're interested. Basically, Webster's is wrong!
http://www.google.com.ar/search?q="cellarmaster"&tbm=bks&tbs...
Reference:

http://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=Cellarmaster&year_start=1800&year_end=2000&corpus=15&smoothing=3&share=&direct_url=t1%3B%2CCell

Note from asker:
Thanks, Phil. I was not familiar with ngrams before, nor with searching Google for a specific time frame. Websters certainly does appear to be wrong on this.
Peer comment(s):
neutral Cilian O'Tuama : has keys to the dungeons
10 hrs
Huh?
agree milinad
15 hrs
Something went wrong...
4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer. Comment: "Thanks, Phil, and for the reinforcement that one can't always trust a dictionary (at least M-W) when it comes to etymology."
25 mins

Champenois

Note from asker:
Thanks, Ramey. Champenois refers to the champagne makers of the Champagne region generally, and unfortunately not to the person with the specific task of mixing the wines to make champagne.
Something went wrong...
+3
2 hrs

Master of assemblage

Just as a more descriptive alternative to Chef de cave.
Note from asker:
Thanks, Andrea. I went with "cellarmaster" after all, based on the information Phil came up with that suggests the etymology of "cellarmaster" goes back much further that Merriam-Webster seems to believe. Also, considering how often the term is used in the book, "master of assemblage," being quite an eye-catching expression, would become too conspicuous or overpowering after a while (though I might use it as alternative once or twice).
Peer comment(s):
agree Steffen Walter
1 hr
Thans Steffen
neutral philgoddard : This gets hardly any hits.
2 hrs
agree Ramey Rieger (X) : A votre santé
4 hrs
Thanks Ramey
agree Cilian O'Tuama : sounds good
13 hrs
Thanks Cilian.
Something went wrong...
1 hr

butler

According to my 1897 Muret-Sanders.
OED "A servant who has charge of the wine-cellar and dispenses the liquor. Formerly also, one who hands round wine, a cup-bearer. He is now usually the head-servant of a household, who keeps the plate, etc."
For modern audiences perhaps "wine butler".

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Note added at 1 hr (2016-04-26 10:26:11 GMT)
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Both the 1897 Muret-Sanders and 1891 Flügel's D-E dictionaries proffer "butler"

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Note added at 2 hrs (2016-04-26 10:29:06 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

MW Unabridged:
"1 : a manservant having charge of the wines and liquors
2 : an officer of a royal household who was originally the supplier of wines"

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Note added at 5 hrs (2016-04-26 14:12:08 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

"master blender" googles well in conjuction with "champagne"
Peer comment(s):
neutral philgoddard : This is someone who makes champagne.
3 hrs
You're right, doesn't fit in this context.
Something went wrong...
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