Having distinctive piquancy, as racy wine. It was first
applied to wine, and, according to Cowley, comes to us from the Spanish
and Portuguese raiz (root), meaning having a radical or distinct
flavour; but probably it is a corruption of “relishy” (French,
reléché, flavourous).
Rich, racy verse, in which we see
The soil from which they come, taste, smell, and see
Cowley.
Source: Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, E. Cobham Brewer, 1894
