A bunch of us affiliated with the winery got together last night for perhaps the best pot luck I've ever attended. Homemade pickles, butternut squash and cheve tarts, provencal beef stew, cous cous with butternut squash, farro with chantrelles and spicey delicata squash rounds, asparagus with garlic and parmasean, homemade tart tatain and chocolate tart. I'm feel full just remembering all the goodness.
Of course, there were wines involved, pretty much all excellent but different in style, some more pleasing to me than others. For whites, a 1996 Amity Rieling Willamette Valley with petrol aromas and tangy, fresh flavors. A 2003 Jaboulet Crozes Hermitage Blanc "Mule Blanche" that showed the heat of the vintage with lovely, round apple and honey flavors. It perhaps could use some acid, but it was delicious.
For reds, a bevy. The 2006 Thomas Pinot Noir Dundee Hills, restrained for the hot vintage, pretty cherry and slight animal notes. Young and delicous. The 2006 August West Pinot Noir Graham Family Russian River Valley was spicy and fragrant but very lush and broad in the mouth, maybe too much soo. The 2002 Elk Cove Pinot Noir Wind Hill was mature, perhaps a bit early but still delicious and one of my favorites of the night. Then a 1989 Tualatin Estate Pinot Noir that was still rich and a bit woody but lovely, with time to go if you happen to have any (not likely I'm guessing).
Moving away from pinot noir and Oregon, the 2002 Domaine Tempier Bandol classic was predictably young, a little bretty, but so lovely, peppery and raspberries, animal but nicely balanced. The 2006 Unti Grenache Dry Creek Valley was so California, spicy and woodsy smelling but so lush and rich on the palate, good but not my style. Then a 2003 Tedeschi Amarone that wasn't as huge as the hot 2003 vintage would suggest. I love this producer and this basic bottling is always more authentic to my taste than the Monte Olmi "cru" bottling. No barrique here, or at least you can't tell. Certainly raisiny, but that's Amarone. Nicely fresh and lithe, I like this.
Finally, one couple brought their homemade Nocento walnut liqueur that was dark brown, intense and simply wonderful. One of the couple is a terrific winemaker, so it's not surprise, and I want to try more of this. Wow.
All told, a great dinner and evening. Happily I was modest on my wine tastes, but not on the food intake. Talk about food hangovers. Yikes.
November 22, 2009
November 19, 2009
Cinderellawine.com
I don't have a lot of rules in life, but one is that any reference to Cinderella in pop music is strictly forbidden. The whole concept of Cinderella makes me a little ill. Just seeing the name makes my stomach turn a bit. Apologies if that's true for you.
Nevertheless, wine internet king Gary Vaynerchuk of the Wine Library in New Jersey is behind a site launched last month called Cinderellawine.com. The idea is that one ridiculous value in wine will be offered per day. Why that awful name? The deal ends at midnight, east coast time anyway. Maybe a little earlier it turns out. For us on the west coast, each evening there's a new deal to consider. Read more about the site on Wine Berserkers.
What's tonight's deal? How about Guiseppe Mascarello's 2003 Barolo Monprivato for a little less than $39? Not cheap wine, but for a cru Barolo of that level, that price is a giveaway. Buy three and you get free ground shipping. All that I can't resist.
Yes, it's 2003, the notorious hot vintage all over Europe. But I've been more pleased with 2003s from Italy's Piedmont region than just about anywhere else in Europe. Call me naive for tolerating ripe nebbiolo. I don't care. I'm sure this is terrific wine. Remember, buy producers, not vintages...even in 2003. Well, sometimes. Guiseppe, I'm in your hands.
So, if you're like me, be careful if you check Cinderellawine.com each night. Sickening name, but there are absolutely sick deals.
edit - I see now that when a "Cindy" wine sells out, it turns into a pumpkin. Really? A pumpkin? That should be banned.
Nevertheless, wine internet king Gary Vaynerchuk of the Wine Library in New Jersey is behind a site launched last month called Cinderellawine.com. The idea is that one ridiculous value in wine will be offered per day. Why that awful name? The deal ends at midnight, east coast time anyway. Maybe a little earlier it turns out. For us on the west coast, each evening there's a new deal to consider. Read more about the site on Wine Berserkers.
What's tonight's deal? How about Guiseppe Mascarello's 2003 Barolo Monprivato for a little less than $39? Not cheap wine, but for a cru Barolo of that level, that price is a giveaway. Buy three and you get free ground shipping. All that I can't resist.
Yes, it's 2003, the notorious hot vintage all over Europe. But I've been more pleased with 2003s from Italy's Piedmont region than just about anywhere else in Europe. Call me naive for tolerating ripe nebbiolo. I don't care. I'm sure this is terrific wine. Remember, buy producers, not vintages...even in 2003. Well, sometimes. Guiseppe, I'm in your hands.
So, if you're like me, be careful if you check Cinderellawine.com each night. Sickening name, but there are absolutely sick deals.
edit - I see now that when a "Cindy" wine sells out, it turns into a pumpkin. Really? A pumpkin? That should be banned.
November 18, 2009
2007 Badia Alle Corti Montepulciano d'Abruzzo
What's the best cheap red wine I've had in months, possibly this whole year? The 2007 Badia Alle Corti Montepulciano d'Abruzzo, hands down. This might even be better than my longtime favorite from this DOC, the basic bottling from Masciarelli.
There's nice freshness here, with a deep perfume that's typcial for this region and good, savory and sweet and surprisingly complex for such inexpensive wine. The cherry fruit flavors have the classic leather, meat and roast almond notes that make this much more interesting than simply fruity wine, so nice with a warm plate of pasta or lasagna.
Some people might find this "dry," but to me the rich savory notes and bright acidity are like bacon compared to the simple pork chop of so many domestic red wines in this category. There's a place for pork chops, but bacon is the stuff of life. Here, the depth and savor of a wine with cured flavors like this one make for much more interesting drinking and pairing with food than simple oaky, fruity wine so common to our store shelves. Locally, this goes for as little as $8. That's absurd value, if you want it.
There's nice freshness here, with a deep perfume that's typcial for this region and good, savory and sweet and surprisingly complex for such inexpensive wine. The cherry fruit flavors have the classic leather, meat and roast almond notes that make this much more interesting than simply fruity wine, so nice with a warm plate of pasta or lasagna.
Some people might find this "dry," but to me the rich savory notes and bright acidity are like bacon compared to the simple pork chop of so many domestic red wines in this category. There's a place for pork chops, but bacon is the stuff of life. Here, the depth and savor of a wine with cured flavors like this one make for much more interesting drinking and pairing with food than simple oaky, fruity wine so common to our store shelves. Locally, this goes for as little as $8. That's absurd value, if you want it.
November 17, 2009
Elevage and Thanksgiving
In my recent post wrapping up the 2009 Vincent Cellars harvest, I wrote that elevage had begun. Elevage is what winemakers call the time from the end of primary fermentation at harvest through to bottling. In the case of pinot noir, that's typically one or two years where the new wine cures into a finished beverage.
During elevage, red wine is typically in wood barrels, occasionally being moved from barrel to barrel to aerate the wine and draw it off its sediment. In some situations, red wine undergoes malolactic fermentation in tank before barrel aging. Otherwise, during elevage the only time wine is usually not in barrel is when barrels are combined and wine held in tank to mix properly mixing prior to bottling.
Malolactic fermentation tends to happen pretty quickly after new wine has been fermented. "ML" fermentation is the natural process where sharp malic acidity in new wine ferments into softer, creamy lactic acid. Before ML, red wine usually tastes sharp and raw. After, the wine tastes more finished and rounded, adding more roundness and polish through further barrel aging.
A few weeks now from harvest, my new wines in barrel are beginning their ML fermentation, which should be done in a month or two. ML is helped by warmer than usual cellar temperatures, so the barrel room is kept near room temperature until ML is finished. Then things are cooled down, the new wines sulfured and left to age quietly in a chilly cellar.
Each barrel is topped up every couple of weeks, to account for evaporation that slowly takes place during elevage. The first topping just happened, and it was significant as the newly filled barrels quickly soaked up about a liter of wine each. Topping regularly is key to keeping the wine from turning to vinegar, and happily the amount of wine needed to top your barrels each isn't nearly so much as here at the beginning of elevage.
Tasting the barrels is also essential as you go through harvest. A key thing we're looking for at this point is reduction, which is a fancy way to say "stink." You know how some things, like a sleeping bag, need to be aired out every once in a while, to somehow magically get rid of stinky aromas and otherwise freshen things up? Wine's like that. Wines in barrel sometimes start to smell funky, and usually moving the wine from its barrel into another fresh barrel and help air it out and let some funky, "reduced" smells air out and go away. Sometimes things get more complicated, but that's more complicated than we need to get into here. We don't wash the wine, but like you would wash a really stinky sleeping bag, there are things to do in the winery to help a really stinky wine regain its freshness.
All in all, it's a great time for winemakers. Harvest is done, and it was a great harvest at that. Everyone I talk to is legitimately excited about the quantity and quality of the 2009 harvest here in the northern Willamette Valley of Oregon. No marketing shtick there. Just honest passion about a successful year.
Now everyone's getting ready for Thanksgiving open houses, the traditional time for Oregon wineries to open their doors and host crowds of happy tasters. Blends are being assembled for wines soon to be bottled. Open house crews are being scheduled. Those who aren't already living it up on holiday in France (ehem, Scott Wright!) are planning their travels. Winter pruning crews are probably sharpening their tools but waiting until the new year to get to work.
And I'm collecting names for my mailing list and looking at a ton of tasks to complete before spring, all exciting and just what I want to be doing. None the least of which is planning for harvest 2010. It's never too early.
During elevage, red wine is typically in wood barrels, occasionally being moved from barrel to barrel to aerate the wine and draw it off its sediment. In some situations, red wine undergoes malolactic fermentation in tank before barrel aging. Otherwise, during elevage the only time wine is usually not in barrel is when barrels are combined and wine held in tank to mix properly mixing prior to bottling.
Malolactic fermentation tends to happen pretty quickly after new wine has been fermented. "ML" fermentation is the natural process where sharp malic acidity in new wine ferments into softer, creamy lactic acid. Before ML, red wine usually tastes sharp and raw. After, the wine tastes more finished and rounded, adding more roundness and polish through further barrel aging.
A few weeks now from harvest, my new wines in barrel are beginning their ML fermentation, which should be done in a month or two. ML is helped by warmer than usual cellar temperatures, so the barrel room is kept near room temperature until ML is finished. Then things are cooled down, the new wines sulfured and left to age quietly in a chilly cellar.
Each barrel is topped up every couple of weeks, to account for evaporation that slowly takes place during elevage. The first topping just happened, and it was significant as the newly filled barrels quickly soaked up about a liter of wine each. Topping regularly is key to keeping the wine from turning to vinegar, and happily the amount of wine needed to top your barrels each isn't nearly so much as here at the beginning of elevage.
Tasting the barrels is also essential as you go through harvest. A key thing we're looking for at this point is reduction, which is a fancy way to say "stink." You know how some things, like a sleeping bag, need to be aired out every once in a while, to somehow magically get rid of stinky aromas and otherwise freshen things up? Wine's like that. Wines in barrel sometimes start to smell funky, and usually moving the wine from its barrel into another fresh barrel and help air it out and let some funky, "reduced" smells air out and go away. Sometimes things get more complicated, but that's more complicated than we need to get into here. We don't wash the wine, but like you would wash a really stinky sleeping bag, there are things to do in the winery to help a really stinky wine regain its freshness.
All in all, it's a great time for winemakers. Harvest is done, and it was a great harvest at that. Everyone I talk to is legitimately excited about the quantity and quality of the 2009 harvest here in the northern Willamette Valley of Oregon. No marketing shtick there. Just honest passion about a successful year.
Now everyone's getting ready for Thanksgiving open houses, the traditional time for Oregon wineries to open their doors and host crowds of happy tasters. Blends are being assembled for wines soon to be bottled. Open house crews are being scheduled. Those who aren't already living it up on holiday in France (ehem, Scott Wright!) are planning their travels. Winter pruning crews are probably sharpening their tools but waiting until the new year to get to work.
And I'm collecting names for my mailing list and looking at a ton of tasks to complete before spring, all exciting and just what I want to be doing. None the least of which is planning for harvest 2010. It's never too early.
November 15, 2009
2001 Loosen Riesling Auslese Wehlener Sonnenuhr
Talking with a friend recently about German riesling, I was reminded about the great 2001 vintage. For me, 2001 was the revelatory year for me regarding the riesling of Germany's Mosel Valley and beyond.
In particular, I remember a trade tasting in spring of 2002 that I was able to attend at the warehouse of then-importer Ewald Moseler, featuring newly bottled 2001 rieslings from several Mosel producers in Ewald's deep portfolio. Among them were the wines of Ernie Loosen, head of legendary producer Dr. Loosen.
Those 2001s were in general exceptional. My only complaint was that most Kabinett bottlings were a bit heavy and sweet, instead of light and lean. I remember Ewald telling me how many of them were havested at Auslese ripeness levels, which seems good in theory but not as good in practice. Such ripe year Kabinett seem to lack the acidic cut of "real" Auslese in those vintages.
Thinking again about 2001, I got out a half bottle of 2001 Dr. Loosen Riesling Auslese Wehlener Sonnenuhr. Wow, what gorgeous riesling that's still young but already showing some signs of maturity. Light gold in color with a strong pineapple and mineral, then green apple and some emerging petrol aromas. This smells sweet and ripe, but not dessert sweet. Then the flavors, ripe and rich green and golden apples, pineapple and simply excellent acidity that those Kabinett seemed to lack. There's great length and purity, I love this and am glad to have a little more waiting down in the basement.
In particular, I remember a trade tasting in spring of 2002 that I was able to attend at the warehouse of then-importer Ewald Moseler, featuring newly bottled 2001 rieslings from several Mosel producers in Ewald's deep portfolio. Among them were the wines of Ernie Loosen, head of legendary producer Dr. Loosen.
Those 2001s were in general exceptional. My only complaint was that most Kabinett bottlings were a bit heavy and sweet, instead of light and lean. I remember Ewald telling me how many of them were havested at Auslese ripeness levels, which seems good in theory but not as good in practice. Such ripe year Kabinett seem to lack the acidic cut of "real" Auslese in those vintages.
Thinking again about 2001, I got out a half bottle of 2001 Dr. Loosen Riesling Auslese Wehlener Sonnenuhr. Wow, what gorgeous riesling that's still young but already showing some signs of maturity. Light gold in color with a strong pineapple and mineral, then green apple and some emerging petrol aromas. This smells sweet and ripe, but not dessert sweet. Then the flavors, ripe and rich green and golden apples, pineapple and simply excellent acidity that those Kabinett seemed to lack. There's great length and purity, I love this and am glad to have a little more waiting down in the basement.
Aging beer: Abyss vs. Top Sail, and more
Though I'm mostly interested in wine, there's a place for serious beer in this blog. Last night I attended an annual winter beer and cheese gathering hosted by my friend and blog reader Dudley. The event attracts local brewers, vintners and regular folk like me, though I guess I've moved into vintner category.
When I arrived the crowd was packed around a dining room table full of mostly west coast U.S. beers and domestic cheeses. My contributions were 22oz bottles of 2007 Deschutes Abyss and the 2008 Top Sail Reserve from Full Sail Brewing. I paired them with an Oregon produced Perrydale cheese, recommended by Steve's Cheese in NW Portland.
I was curious to see how the Abyss ages, and how it compares to another oak aged beer in the Top Sail. I've heard the the Abyss, for all its youthful intensity, might not necessarily improve with age. Sure enough, I found the roasted coffee and chocolate tones in the 2007 Abyss to be a bit muddled with age, especially compared to a 2009 edition of the Abyss at the tasting that showed better to my taste. The 2007 was no slouch. It's still very enjoyable. I'm just not sure it requires or rewards aging. It think it's better to enjoy these bottlings in their exuberant youth.
In comparison, the 2008 Top Sail -- purchased nearly two years ago on release in early 2008 -- showed beautifully. There was much more nuance in the aromas and flavors, without the heavy roasted notes of the Abyss. Instead, lots of sweet bourbon caramel and spice, thanks to aging in bourbon casks. I thought this might make the beer a little vulgar and obvious, but there was no denying the delicious flavors and long finish. Matched with the slightly fruity and caramel sweet Perrydale, which the Abyss trounced, the Top Sail was excellent. I think you could hold this beer longer still, but it's already in a great place. I'll look forward to the 2010 release that I imagine should be out around the new year.
Otherwise, the gathering was an excellent chance to taste intense beers and sample a wide range of impressive domestic cheeses. Another great match with the Perrydale was a 2008 (I believe) Goose Island Bourbon County Stout from Chicago. It was black as night, roasty and rich, but impeccably balanced. I would think the Perrydale wouldn't have stood up, but the pairing worked.
Finally, someone brought a magnum of the 2003 Anchor Christmas Ale, but it seemed a little tired to me, especially compared to a delicious 2009 edition. This is another beer I find not so great with more than a year of age. Thanks Dudley for another great event.
When I arrived the crowd was packed around a dining room table full of mostly west coast U.S. beers and domestic cheeses. My contributions were 22oz bottles of 2007 Deschutes Abyss and the 2008 Top Sail Reserve from Full Sail Brewing. I paired them with an Oregon produced Perrydale cheese, recommended by Steve's Cheese in NW Portland.
I was curious to see how the Abyss ages, and how it compares to another oak aged beer in the Top Sail. I've heard the the Abyss, for all its youthful intensity, might not necessarily improve with age. Sure enough, I found the roasted coffee and chocolate tones in the 2007 Abyss to be a bit muddled with age, especially compared to a 2009 edition of the Abyss at the tasting that showed better to my taste. The 2007 was no slouch. It's still very enjoyable. I'm just not sure it requires or rewards aging. It think it's better to enjoy these bottlings in their exuberant youth.
In comparison, the 2008 Top Sail -- purchased nearly two years ago on release in early 2008 -- showed beautifully. There was much more nuance in the aromas and flavors, without the heavy roasted notes of the Abyss. Instead, lots of sweet bourbon caramel and spice, thanks to aging in bourbon casks. I thought this might make the beer a little vulgar and obvious, but there was no denying the delicious flavors and long finish. Matched with the slightly fruity and caramel sweet Perrydale, which the Abyss trounced, the Top Sail was excellent. I think you could hold this beer longer still, but it's already in a great place. I'll look forward to the 2010 release that I imagine should be out around the new year.
Otherwise, the gathering was an excellent chance to taste intense beers and sample a wide range of impressive domestic cheeses. Another great match with the Perrydale was a 2008 (I believe) Goose Island Bourbon County Stout from Chicago. It was black as night, roasty and rich, but impeccably balanced. I would think the Perrydale wouldn't have stood up, but the pairing worked.
Finally, someone brought a magnum of the 2003 Anchor Christmas Ale, but it seemed a little tired to me, especially compared to a delicious 2009 edition. This is another beer I find not so great with more than a year of age. Thanks Dudley for another great event.
November 11, 2009
Cowan Cellars and "Florida" Jim Cowan
There are several stories of internet wine geeks making the leap into commercial production. The common one, if anything like this is really common, is a younger guy following his passion for wine, leaving the day job and, with significant help from contacts made in the online wine community, committing himself fulltime to learning the craft of winemaking on the job and starting his own business. The best known examples include Andrew Vignello of A.P. Vin, Jamie Kutch of Kutch and Jeff Ames of Rudius, all Calfornia-based producers.
I've written about the exceptional story of Ray Walker, who's taking things a step further by moving to Burgundy to produce his Maison Ilan wines from the Cote d'Or. I'm hesitant to include myself among such characters because I'm not leaving the day job anytime soon. But it's clear that without the online wine world fueling my interest and providing lots of great industry contacts, I don't know how I would be doing what I'm doing in launching my own wine label Vincent.
Then there's Flordia Jim Cowan, an online wine legend whom I've only had the pleasure of meeting once several years ago here in Portland. Florida Jim first came to my attention in the 1990s on the original incarnation of the Wine Spectator discussion forums. Along with a merry band of travelers from all over the country who came together for Russell Bevan-led "Bacchus Wine Tours" in Napa and Sonoma counties, Jim developed into a serious wine geek known for frequently posting modest but nuanced accounts of the wines he drank and food that accompanied them.
Somewhere around the late '90s Jim experienced a palate shift away from the most lumbering of California wines to more lithe and perfumed wines of France, Austria and elsewhere in Europe, wines that often cost a fraction of what he previously preferred. What a great thing, no? Actually, there was some surprising backlash in the online community. Was Jim under the spell of geeky wine snobs who disdain overoaked wines with erudite condesention? These world class bargains Jim wrote about - would he turn his back on them a year from now as he appeared to do with wines he previously favored?
Of course, the suspicions were as unfounded as they were off base. Jim's an independent thinker and that wasn't changing. He called them as he saw them, and it made sense that his evolving taste in wine might marry with another aspect of himself that we knew well online -- his writing. So gone were the notes of Napa cabernet, and in came reports of cru Beaujolais and Austrian gruner veltliner that I, for one, found deliciously inviting with their nuance and delicacy.
Years passed and Jim's reports of wine and food and life with wife Diane as they traveled between homes in Florida and western North Carolina became internet favorites. I met Jim on one of his well documented road trips with Col. Bob Couzzi across the U.S., visiting online wine friends and sharing wines from all over the world. Jim's travels often led back to California, and as his old friend Russell Bevan himself made the leap from internet wine geek to serious wine producer, Jim began working harvest and learning the craft himself. Jim also connected with Steve Edmunds of Edmunds St. John, whose atypical California wines because Florida Jim favorites. You can't learn from a better source than Steve Edmunds.
Back to present day and the lastest post from Florida Jim on life after his latest harvest in northern California. This is classic Florida Jim, and if you find it interesting, dig around the archives of that or several other internet wine forums for more. Or try this link. Today's post inspired me to document here what I know, or think I know, of Jim's journey in wine. Jim has a way of simply conveying the essence of his experience, what's important and meaningful to him, without much fluff. His Cowan Cellars wines -- syrah and sauvignon blanc from the Dry Stack vineyard in the cool Sonoma country AVA of Bennett Valley -- sound reflective of their maker. I've yet to try them, but look forward to an opportunity. Maybe you too?
I've written about the exceptional story of Ray Walker, who's taking things a step further by moving to Burgundy to produce his Maison Ilan wines from the Cote d'Or. I'm hesitant to include myself among such characters because I'm not leaving the day job anytime soon. But it's clear that without the online wine world fueling my interest and providing lots of great industry contacts, I don't know how I would be doing what I'm doing in launching my own wine label Vincent.
Then there's Flordia Jim Cowan, an online wine legend whom I've only had the pleasure of meeting once several years ago here in Portland. Florida Jim first came to my attention in the 1990s on the original incarnation of the Wine Spectator discussion forums. Along with a merry band of travelers from all over the country who came together for Russell Bevan-led "Bacchus Wine Tours" in Napa and Sonoma counties, Jim developed into a serious wine geek known for frequently posting modest but nuanced accounts of the wines he drank and food that accompanied them.
Somewhere around the late '90s Jim experienced a palate shift away from the most lumbering of California wines to more lithe and perfumed wines of France, Austria and elsewhere in Europe, wines that often cost a fraction of what he previously preferred. What a great thing, no? Actually, there was some surprising backlash in the online community. Was Jim under the spell of geeky wine snobs who disdain overoaked wines with erudite condesention? These world class bargains Jim wrote about - would he turn his back on them a year from now as he appeared to do with wines he previously favored?
Of course, the suspicions were as unfounded as they were off base. Jim's an independent thinker and that wasn't changing. He called them as he saw them, and it made sense that his evolving taste in wine might marry with another aspect of himself that we knew well online -- his writing. So gone were the notes of Napa cabernet, and in came reports of cru Beaujolais and Austrian gruner veltliner that I, for one, found deliciously inviting with their nuance and delicacy.
Years passed and Jim's reports of wine and food and life with wife Diane as they traveled between homes in Florida and western North Carolina became internet favorites. I met Jim on one of his well documented road trips with Col. Bob Couzzi across the U.S., visiting online wine friends and sharing wines from all over the world. Jim's travels often led back to California, and as his old friend Russell Bevan himself made the leap from internet wine geek to serious wine producer, Jim began working harvest and learning the craft himself. Jim also connected with Steve Edmunds of Edmunds St. John, whose atypical California wines because Florida Jim favorites. You can't learn from a better source than Steve Edmunds.
Back to present day and the lastest post from Florida Jim on life after his latest harvest in northern California. This is classic Florida Jim, and if you find it interesting, dig around the archives of that or several other internet wine forums for more. Or try this link. Today's post inspired me to document here what I know, or think I know, of Jim's journey in wine. Jim has a way of simply conveying the essence of his experience, what's important and meaningful to him, without much fluff. His Cowan Cellars wines -- syrah and sauvignon blanc from the Dry Stack vineyard in the cool Sonoma country AVA of Bennett Valley -- sound reflective of their maker. I've yet to try them, but look forward to an opportunity. Maybe you too?
November 09, 2009
Odds and ends
Nothing so pressing for a full post, so let's hit it three dot style...
There's another train wreck over on the Robert Parker bulletin board today with unspecified allegations of additives in zinfandel and unreported blending in pinot noir. Of course these things happen, but it gets tiring seeing insinuations that such things are common, without proof, then endlessly beat to a pulp in an alleged defense of one's character. Have the proof but don't feel comfortable divluging online? Don't bring it up online. Especially if you don't want to risk your brand. You can really help yourself by being online, but here's an example of a pretty classic pitfall you need to watch out for...
Found a crazy sale at a local Whole Foods (NE Fremont) this past weekend. Single vineyard Produttori Barbaresco from 1999 and 2001 for $25, half bottles of Dom Ruinart Champagne Blanc de Blancs and Rose for $19, even a few bottles of 1999 Grange for $150, which is ridiculoulsy cheap for that label. I don't play at that level, but the Produttori is gone and most of the Ruinart too. Lots of other things but nothing quite so interesting to my mind, but it's all still there if you're in the area...
Dumpster diving continued...the local Hollywood Grocery Outlet has some Cameron Hughes bottlings for $5 or so. Hughes buys bulk wine around California and bottles them by "Lot" to sell at Costco and the like for $10-$15 usually. People seem to love the wines. The 2006 Cameron Hughes Lodi Petite Sirah Lot 70 wasn't bad, especially for marinating steaks. Typical oak and fruit profile, but for party wine this could be a hit. Then there's the 2002 Mount Langi Ghiran Shiraz "Cliff Edge" from Victoria, Australia, for $8. Not bad, not bad at all for a budget wine from a storied producer. White pepper aromas and mature syrah notes, pretty full bodied and chunky flavors. Call if plonk because it's at the G.O., but bargain hunters should love it...
Finally, do 15% alcohol on the label and Louis/Dressner Imports go together? Apparently so, on the 2000 Clos de Caveau Vacqueyras "Lao Muse" from the southern Rhone. This $50 luxury cuvee (Dressner? really???) from an all organic producer is aging nicely, with broad ripe aromas and flavors, lovely earth and red fruit flavors and some sweet notes of maturity. With the price and ridiculously oversized bottle, I expected the wine to be inky black and over the top, probably sporting lots of new oak. But Dressner doesn't let you down. He picks good stuff and this is translucent and, though aged in barrique, very nicely integrated and "real" tasting. Not sure what happened to this bottling or if Dressner even carries this producer still. But Lao Muse is the real deal...
There's another train wreck over on the Robert Parker bulletin board today with unspecified allegations of additives in zinfandel and unreported blending in pinot noir. Of course these things happen, but it gets tiring seeing insinuations that such things are common, without proof, then endlessly beat to a pulp in an alleged defense of one's character. Have the proof but don't feel comfortable divluging online? Don't bring it up online. Especially if you don't want to risk your brand. You can really help yourself by being online, but here's an example of a pretty classic pitfall you need to watch out for...
Found a crazy sale at a local Whole Foods (NE Fremont) this past weekend. Single vineyard Produttori Barbaresco from 1999 and 2001 for $25, half bottles of Dom Ruinart Champagne Blanc de Blancs and Rose for $19, even a few bottles of 1999 Grange for $150, which is ridiculoulsy cheap for that label. I don't play at that level, but the Produttori is gone and most of the Ruinart too. Lots of other things but nothing quite so interesting to my mind, but it's all still there if you're in the area...
Dumpster diving continued...the local Hollywood Grocery Outlet has some Cameron Hughes bottlings for $5 or so. Hughes buys bulk wine around California and bottles them by "Lot" to sell at Costco and the like for $10-$15 usually. People seem to love the wines. The 2006 Cameron Hughes Lodi Petite Sirah Lot 70 wasn't bad, especially for marinating steaks. Typical oak and fruit profile, but for party wine this could be a hit. Then there's the 2002 Mount Langi Ghiran Shiraz "Cliff Edge" from Victoria, Australia, for $8. Not bad, not bad at all for a budget wine from a storied producer. White pepper aromas and mature syrah notes, pretty full bodied and chunky flavors. Call if plonk because it's at the G.O., but bargain hunters should love it...
Finally, do 15% alcohol on the label and Louis/Dressner Imports go together? Apparently so, on the 2000 Clos de Caveau Vacqueyras "Lao Muse" from the southern Rhone. This $50 luxury cuvee (Dressner? really???) from an all organic producer is aging nicely, with broad ripe aromas and flavors, lovely earth and red fruit flavors and some sweet notes of maturity. With the price and ridiculously oversized bottle, I expected the wine to be inky black and over the top, probably sporting lots of new oak. But Dressner doesn't let you down. He picks good stuff and this is translucent and, though aged in barrique, very nicely integrated and "real" tasting. Not sure what happened to this bottling or if Dressner even carries this producer still. But Lao Muse is the real deal...
November 06, 2009
2006 Crowley Chardonnay Maresh Vineyard
After tasting the oh my god good 2007 Kelley Fox Wines Pinot Noir Maresh Vineyard, I came home to homemade butternut squash soup, wheat levain and apple, gruyere and walnut salad for dinner. With that Dundee Hills inspiration, what else to try but the 2006 Crowley Chardonnay from the same Maresh Vineyard (pronounced Marsh).
Tyson Crowley's a friend, but I'll still recommend his wine because it's that good. 2006 was a warm year, and this wine is large scaled compared to the more taut 2007. Still, this is fresh and delicious Oregon chardonnay, with sweet cream and golden delicious apple aromas, a soft texture and bright apple, mineral and subtle oak flavors. I loved this one with dinner and on its own afterward. The 2007 is in the Portland market still. For around $20, it's a bargain in top quality Oregon chard.
Tyson Crowley's a friend, but I'll still recommend his wine because it's that good. 2006 was a warm year, and this wine is large scaled compared to the more taut 2007. Still, this is fresh and delicious Oregon chardonnay, with sweet cream and golden delicious apple aromas, a soft texture and bright apple, mineral and subtle oak flavors. I loved this one with dinner and on its own afterward. The 2007 is in the Portland market still. For around $20, it's a bargain in top quality Oregon chard.
November 02, 2009
Southern Oregon Wineries Tasting last night at the Governor
Where was everybody? I went to the Southern Oregon Wineries tasting last night and didn't see anyone there I know, aside from a couple of producers. There was a good crowd though. Lots of happy tasters, some totally blitzed.
The event featured more than two dozen producers from the Umpqua valley and south to the Rogue and Applegate valleys. There was some pinot and chardonnay, but the typical line up was some mix of viognier, syrah, merlot, cabernet sauvignon, tempranillo and red blends. Overall the wines were hit and miss, with some unexciting but perfectly decent wines amid some pretty exciting, very well made wines. I'll hit the highlights here as I saw them. I didn't try everything, by any means, so if I don't mention producers who were there, it's not necessarily because I didn't like the wine.
From Abacela, the 2008 Albarino was nervy and fresh and the 2006 Tempranillo Estate was nicely structured if a little alcoholic. I can see why this winery has such a cult following. The wines have personality and are generally very true to their varieties, many of which they painstakingly pioneered here in Oregon.
I'd never heard of Folin Cellars out of Gold Hill, but I enjoyed all three wines they poured. First, the 2007 Estate Viognier was true to the variety and fresh. The 2006 Estate Syrah was nicely varietal with meat and gum notes. The best wine for me was the 2006 Estate Tempranillo, nicely varietal with tobacco and berry notes. None of these wines showed excessive oak and seemed relatively restrained. Definitely check these people out and see if I'm crazy or on to something.
Girardet's 2008 Baco Noir was my first example of this grape, I think. It wasn't stellar but a lovely drinking wine with nice acidity and balance. I'd definitely try this again.
Quady North is doing some great things out of Jacksonville. The 2007 Viognier was nice and floral, though this variety can be a little over the top for me outside of the northern Rhone. The 2007 Syrah 4,2-A was my favorite, a low oak, gamy syrah that I've tried before and liked just as much. The 2006 Arsenal (Cabernet Franc) was California huge, and very good in that idiom. By the way, the name comes from guns, not the Gunners of north London. Chelsea fans rest easy. Finally, I had a special syrah bottling that I didn't get the name of. Like the Arsenal, it's not my style, but very nice in the big, rich idiom. Herb Quady manages a bunch of vineyards down south and he's obviously got a nice touch in the cellar too.
Another new name for me was Rocky Knoll out of Medford. I really liked their 2005 Rocky Knoll Claret, with good structure and coil, this wine had a cool profile and seemed nicely balanced and worth cellaring a bit. So many southern Oregon reds can be a bit too softly structured for me, but this was a bit more taut and upright. Apparently from vines planted in the 1970s with fruit that was sold until 2005.
I'd never tried wines from Spangler in the Umpqua Valley, but the Petite Sirah is a nice example of the variety. Dark and dense, perhaps a bit monolithic but you don't drink petite for nuance. This is authoritative, robuse petite sirah and quite good.
Trium has a great label, but again I'd never had a chance to try any wines until now. The 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon was nicely textured with fine tannin and good cassis and mineral flavors, not too soft, just right. Good wine.
Finally, Troon Vineyard from Grants Pass had a bunch of wines and a big crowd. I tried only the 2005 Old Vine Meritage and it was big and rich but obviously well made and without too much polish for my tastes. Some of the cabernet blends at this tasting were just ho hum, a little soft, sort of herbal, but this was serious stuff. Sure enough, Herb Quady of Quady North (yes, part of the Quady family of CA Central Valley wine fame) is the winemaker. Herb seems like the real deal and a terrific guy. I'll have to check out more of these wines.
Events like these always have a downside, especially late in the event hours when I was there. At one table, an obviously drunk, overly made up person came up, poured out a glass into the water pitcher and haltingly asked for "your highest...end wine." The expensive stuff gets you messed up just as easily as the cheap stuff, it seems. I backed away from the table and hoped the producer could cut her off without creating too much of a scene. Talk about a no win situation. Overall, this was a fun event and it looked like there were lots of wine buyers, which had to make the drive home a little better for the producers.
The event featured more than two dozen producers from the Umpqua valley and south to the Rogue and Applegate valleys. There was some pinot and chardonnay, but the typical line up was some mix of viognier, syrah, merlot, cabernet sauvignon, tempranillo and red blends. Overall the wines were hit and miss, with some unexciting but perfectly decent wines amid some pretty exciting, very well made wines. I'll hit the highlights here as I saw them. I didn't try everything, by any means, so if I don't mention producers who were there, it's not necessarily because I didn't like the wine.
From Abacela, the 2008 Albarino was nervy and fresh and the 2006 Tempranillo Estate was nicely structured if a little alcoholic. I can see why this winery has such a cult following. The wines have personality and are generally very true to their varieties, many of which they painstakingly pioneered here in Oregon.
I'd never heard of Folin Cellars out of Gold Hill, but I enjoyed all three wines they poured. First, the 2007 Estate Viognier was true to the variety and fresh. The 2006 Estate Syrah was nicely varietal with meat and gum notes. The best wine for me was the 2006 Estate Tempranillo, nicely varietal with tobacco and berry notes. None of these wines showed excessive oak and seemed relatively restrained. Definitely check these people out and see if I'm crazy or on to something.
Girardet's 2008 Baco Noir was my first example of this grape, I think. It wasn't stellar but a lovely drinking wine with nice acidity and balance. I'd definitely try this again.
Quady North is doing some great things out of Jacksonville. The 2007 Viognier was nice and floral, though this variety can be a little over the top for me outside of the northern Rhone. The 2007 Syrah 4,2-A was my favorite, a low oak, gamy syrah that I've tried before and liked just as much. The 2006 Arsenal (Cabernet Franc) was California huge, and very good in that idiom. By the way, the name comes from guns, not the Gunners of north London. Chelsea fans rest easy. Finally, I had a special syrah bottling that I didn't get the name of. Like the Arsenal, it's not my style, but very nice in the big, rich idiom. Herb Quady manages a bunch of vineyards down south and he's obviously got a nice touch in the cellar too.
Another new name for me was Rocky Knoll out of Medford. I really liked their 2005 Rocky Knoll Claret, with good structure and coil, this wine had a cool profile and seemed nicely balanced and worth cellaring a bit. So many southern Oregon reds can be a bit too softly structured for me, but this was a bit more taut and upright. Apparently from vines planted in the 1970s with fruit that was sold until 2005.
I'd never tried wines from Spangler in the Umpqua Valley, but the Petite Sirah is a nice example of the variety. Dark and dense, perhaps a bit monolithic but you don't drink petite for nuance. This is authoritative, robuse petite sirah and quite good.
Trium has a great label, but again I'd never had a chance to try any wines until now. The 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon was nicely textured with fine tannin and good cassis and mineral flavors, not too soft, just right. Good wine.
Finally, Troon Vineyard from Grants Pass had a bunch of wines and a big crowd. I tried only the 2005 Old Vine Meritage and it was big and rich but obviously well made and without too much polish for my tastes. Some of the cabernet blends at this tasting were just ho hum, a little soft, sort of herbal, but this was serious stuff. Sure enough, Herb Quady of Quady North (yes, part of the Quady family of CA Central Valley wine fame) is the winemaker. Herb seems like the real deal and a terrific guy. I'll have to check out more of these wines.
Events like these always have a downside, especially late in the event hours when I was there. At one table, an obviously drunk, overly made up person came up, poured out a glass into the water pitcher and haltingly asked for "your highest...end wine." The expensive stuff gets you messed up just as easily as the cheap stuff, it seems. I backed away from the table and hoped the producer could cut her off without creating too much of a scene. Talk about a no win situation. Overall, this was a fun event and it looked like there were lots of wine buyers, which had to make the drive home a little better for the producers.
October 30, 2009
With harvest done, elevage begins
This evening saw the final wine go into barrel, the last fermenter cleaned, everything tidied up and put to bed for the season. For the Vincent project anyhow. There's lots more going on at the winery. I'm just glad to say my wine is safely in barrel and now elevage can begin.
Yes, elevage, the name of this blog, the education of the wine. It's the time between primary fermentation at harvest and bottling a year or more later, when the wine undergoes its malolactic fermentation and essentially "cures" into finished wine, much like aging meat or cheese.
A common question is, "when is the wine ready to bottle?" The simple answer is when it tastes right, and perhaps when you need the space and the barrels for more wine next year. Determining when a wine is ready to bottle is a personal decision, a matter of taste and style you are looking to present. I figure most of this wine will be bottled just before next year's harvest, in part for space issues and to have wine ready for people to drink. But mostly, because I think the wines of 2009 will not make for old bones in the cellar, so they'll likely reward an earlier bottling. We see how they taste as we go, but a year from now I expect to have some delicious wine in the bottle just about ready for market.
To celebrate, I enjoyed a lager from Hopworks Urban Brewery here in Portland, courtesey of their keg bike that showed up across the street for a party celebrating the handmade bike show this weekend. Two kegs on a long, gorgeous, delicious bike. What will Portlanders think of next?
Yes, elevage, the name of this blog, the education of the wine. It's the time between primary fermentation at harvest and bottling a year or more later, when the wine undergoes its malolactic fermentation and essentially "cures" into finished wine, much like aging meat or cheese.
A common question is, "when is the wine ready to bottle?" The simple answer is when it tastes right, and perhaps when you need the space and the barrels for more wine next year. Determining when a wine is ready to bottle is a personal decision, a matter of taste and style you are looking to present. I figure most of this wine will be bottled just before next year's harvest, in part for space issues and to have wine ready for people to drink. But mostly, because I think the wines of 2009 will not make for old bones in the cellar, so they'll likely reward an earlier bottling. We see how they taste as we go, but a year from now I expect to have some delicious wine in the bottle just about ready for market.
To celebrate, I enjoyed a lager from Hopworks Urban Brewery here in Portland, courtesey of their keg bike that showed up across the street for a party celebrating the handmade bike show this weekend. Two kegs on a long, gorgeous, delicious bike. What will Portlanders think of next?
October 28, 2009
That much closer to the end of harvest
Today's the first quiet day in almost a month for my Vincent wine project. After getting ready for the grape harvest, bringing pinot noir grapes into the winery, fermenting the grape juice into wine, then draining and pressing the contents of all three fermenters, all that's left is to let the new wine settle for a few days, then put it into a variety of French oak barrels.
So far, seven of nine barrels are full of wine from fermenters drained and pressed last week. Yesterday saw the last fermenter drained and the skins loaded into the press to squeeze out the remaining wine. Today, there's nothing to do but wait until tomorrow when those lots of wine are put into barrel. I expect the free run wine from that last, one ton fermenter to give me 2 barrels of wine plus a little extra. Yield isn't an exact science. One of the earlier barrels isn't quite full, so that can be topped off with a few more gallons. Any remaining free run wine and all the press wine from this lot will go into a variable capacity steel tank.
We'll use that last bit of wine to top off the barrels over the coming year. Wine slowly evaporates in the barrel aging process, so every couple of weeks each barrel needs to be topped up with about a half bottle worth of wine, depending on the humidity level in the barrel room. The idea is that we'll end up with about nine barrels of wine, or 225 12-bottle cases, meaning I better get focused on finding eager wine drinkers. You interested? Let me know and I'll put you on my list for next spring when I'll send out my first offer. Write me at vincentfritzsche [at] yahoo [dot] com
So far, seven of nine barrels are full of wine from fermenters drained and pressed last week. Yesterday saw the last fermenter drained and the skins loaded into the press to squeeze out the remaining wine. Today, there's nothing to do but wait until tomorrow when those lots of wine are put into barrel. I expect the free run wine from that last, one ton fermenter to give me 2 barrels of wine plus a little extra. Yield isn't an exact science. One of the earlier barrels isn't quite full, so that can be topped off with a few more gallons. Any remaining free run wine and all the press wine from this lot will go into a variable capacity steel tank.
We'll use that last bit of wine to top off the barrels over the coming year. Wine slowly evaporates in the barrel aging process, so every couple of weeks each barrel needs to be topped up with about a half bottle worth of wine, depending on the humidity level in the barrel room. The idea is that we'll end up with about nine barrels of wine, or 225 12-bottle cases, meaning I better get focused on finding eager wine drinkers. You interested? Let me know and I'll put you on my list for next spring when I'll send out my first offer. Write me at vincentfritzsche [at] yahoo [dot] com
October 25, 2009
Five barrels of pinot noir
I have my first five barrels of pinot noir tonight, all free run wine from the Domaine Coteau vineyard on Walnut hill. Two fermenters worth, and they taste pretty promising I think. The press wine from this lot is still to come, and the free run and press wine from my one ton of Zenith vineyard pinot. That's finally dry and showing some size, which should be a hit with many tasters. All done Thursday? Let's hope so.
October 24, 2009
Totally negative
All three fermenters of pinot noir are in negative territory, meaning below zero on the brix scale. Brix measures soluable solids in grape juice, most of which are fermentable sugars. Even though it's not exactly right, we think of brix as the measure of sugar. As sugar gets converted to alcohol during fermentation, brix drops. Because of a few things, including the presence of alcohol, brix actually gets into negative territory before a wine is completely "dry," meaning it has no more fermentable sugar. So "going negative" is good because fermentation is almost done.
One big worry of winemakers is a stuck fermentation, when fermentation ends before all the sugar is gone. That can lead to all kinds of problems, so going negative means you're almost home safely. Not quite there, but close enough to get excited. When everything you're making is negative, it means you're definitely close to the end of the hard work of harvest and that's really exciting.
Yesterday two of my three fermenters were drained and the skins pressed. Now there are three bins of wine to settle. One for each fermenter, and a third for the press wine. Tomorrow those will all go into barrel. Tuesday the last fermenter will get drained and pressed, and probably Thursday into barrel. Put bungs in all the barrels, wash up everything, and harvest will be officially done. Exhale.
One big worry of winemakers is a stuck fermentation, when fermentation ends before all the sugar is gone. That can lead to all kinds of problems, so going negative means you're almost home safely. Not quite there, but close enough to get excited. When everything you're making is negative, it means you're definitely close to the end of the hard work of harvest and that's really exciting.
Yesterday two of my three fermenters were drained and the skins pressed. Now there are three bins of wine to settle. One for each fermenter, and a third for the press wine. Tomorrow those will all go into barrel. Tuesday the last fermenter will get drained and pressed, and probably Thursday into barrel. Put bungs in all the barrels, wash up everything, and harvest will be officially done. Exhale.
October 20, 2009
Near the end
The crush of crush is past peak, like nearly every fermentation in the winery. Just looking around it's obvious. Space on the floor is opening up as bins begin to be drained, the pomace pressed, the new wine settled before being put in barrel. Workers have a bit more room to move around. Things aren't done, not at all, but there's progress and surely plans are afoot for an end of harvest celebration in a few weeks.
The wines for my project look to be safely in barrel in one week. Pressing for the first two fermenters is scheduled for Friday, the third on Sunday. Those first two are both "negative" meaning they're just about dry, when all the sugar's gone and the wine is made (though hardly finished). The trick now is to push them to completion as they've slowed considerably and the temperatures have dropped into the 70sF. The fruit for the third bin came into the winery four days later, but it's nearly negative after a surprisingly quick fermentation. Hopefully not too quick.
These wines should all have at least a day or two of continued maceration on the skins after going dry, which I generally like to see so the wines have a chance to gain complexity and texture, perhaps at the expense of fresh fruitiness. Looks like things will get two days to settle before being put into barrel, so that Sunday press should go into barrel Tuesday and everything, for now, done. A whole lot more happens before wine is ready to bottle in about a year, but next Tuesday will mark the end of a good first harvest for Vincent. Is it too early to start thinking about next year? [yes]
The wines for my project look to be safely in barrel in one week. Pressing for the first two fermenters is scheduled for Friday, the third on Sunday. Those first two are both "negative" meaning they're just about dry, when all the sugar's gone and the wine is made (though hardly finished). The trick now is to push them to completion as they've slowed considerably and the temperatures have dropped into the 70sF. The fruit for the third bin came into the winery four days later, but it's nearly negative after a surprisingly quick fermentation. Hopefully not too quick.
These wines should all have at least a day or two of continued maceration on the skins after going dry, which I generally like to see so the wines have a chance to gain complexity and texture, perhaps at the expense of fresh fruitiness. Looks like things will get two days to settle before being put into barrel, so that Sunday press should go into barrel Tuesday and everything, for now, done. A whole lot more happens before wine is ready to bottle in about a year, but next Tuesday will mark the end of a good first harvest for Vincent. Is it too early to start thinking about next year? [yes]
October 17, 2009
Feeling good and not so good
Earlier this week I managed to slip and bang my right ribs onto the edge of a big plastic container. It knocked the wind out of me for a moment, and hurt pretty badly. I hoped I'd only bruised myself, but I walked around outside for a minute and thought I was ok. Four days later I'm not feeling so good and guessing I have at least one broken rib. It's left me pretty uncomfortable where almost any task is painful or filled with the anticipation of pain. Things could be worse, but don't do something like this. It's not fun. I don't know if the doctor can do much for me, but I guess I better go see him just to know what's really going on.
Happily, I'm feeling very good about how this harvest is going. After anxiety about the hot summer weather and then dodging most of the forecated rain around harvest, the grapes looked and tasted really good. Then came worries about whether everything would go well with vinification, and so far it looks like the team's doing a great job. What I tasted today from the first two fermenters is very promising. Lots of berry fruit and some meaty richness, but no pruney overripe flavors or lack of freshness, something hot years can give. 2009 isn't proving to be a typical hot year, and that's a good thing if you ask me. There's one other fermenter that's beginning to get active. It's hard to believe that everything should be safely in barrel in about 10 days. I'm excited.
Happily, I'm feeling very good about how this harvest is going. After anxiety about the hot summer weather and then dodging most of the forecated rain around harvest, the grapes looked and tasted really good. Then came worries about whether everything would go well with vinification, and so far it looks like the team's doing a great job. What I tasted today from the first two fermenters is very promising. Lots of berry fruit and some meaty richness, but no pruney overripe flavors or lack of freshness, something hot years can give. 2009 isn't proving to be a typical hot year, and that's a good thing if you ask me. There's one other fermenter that's beginning to get active. It's hard to believe that everything should be safely in barrel in about 10 days. I'm excited.
October 15, 2009
Fermentation
The two fermenters of pinot noir are humming along. One's down to 10.2 brix (percent sugar, essentially) as of this morning. The other's at 12.6. And what about those temps. Cap temperatures are at or slightly above 100F, which is pretty hot and called for pump overs to aerate and cool the juice. Cap temps refer to the temperatures in the raised up mass of grape skins. They can be deceptively hot. It's not like everything in a fermenter is that temperature. Sure enough, underneath the cap the juice itself was a good bit cooler. One bin was 86F and the other 90F, again pretty warm but this is the peak of fermentation and I'll be happy to preserve what heat I can to keep the yeast active to finish the ferment well. Sometimes I get a little nervous about the ferment getting too hot, but soon enough it's back to worrying that things aren't staying warm enough to finish. It's always something.
Meanwhile the third fermenter, from the Zenith vineyard, is warming up with the help of two aquarium heaters. The idea is to let it go until it takes off (begins to ferment) on its own. We'll see how long it takes. Happily, there's nothing else to worry about after this one. And I'm in that nice position of not running this winery, meaning I don't have all these bins of fermenting grapes to worry about. Maybe some day, but for now it's not so tough being a small fry.
Meanwhile the third fermenter, from the Zenith vineyard, is warming up with the help of two aquarium heaters. The idea is to let it go until it takes off (begins to ferment) on its own. We'll see how long it takes. Happily, there's nothing else to worry about after this one. And I'm in that nice position of not running this winery, meaning I don't have all these bins of fermenting grapes to worry about. Maybe some day, but for now it's not so tough being a small fry.
October 13, 2009
Slow ferments
Two of my three fermenters are actively fermenting. Well, one more than the other. We had a heating plate in one fermenter overnight, and then it was switched over this afternoon to the other fermenter. The first one seems to be going pretty good, the second one should take off over night as the juice temperature warms up. Again, think of bread dough. A warm place helps the dough rise.
The third fermenter, from the Zenith vineyard, is still cold soaking. The fruit came in cold and didn't need any cooling. Now it's slowly warming up and with a little push in a day or two it should start fermenting.
Meanwhile, I saw lab numbers on the juice samples we sent to ETS in McMinnville. Considering the hot summer, the numbers look pretty good. Definitely lower sugars and higher acids (lower pHs) than 2006, also a hot growing season, but definitely not the ideal chemistry of last year. That simply suggests we'll have nicely ripe wines with soft structures but not the excessive alcohol or softness of other hot years. Take that as a very broad generalization. Who knows how things will turn out.
One nice thing is that both of these lots have high tartaric to malic acid ratios, meaning there won't be a big loss of acidity in the malolactic fermentation process. Also, there are nice levels of nitrogen in the juice samples that suggest the yeast should have plenty of nutrition to ferment to dryness. All in all, things look good.
The third fermenter, from the Zenith vineyard, is still cold soaking. The fruit came in cold and didn't need any cooling. Now it's slowly warming up and with a little push in a day or two it should start fermenting.
Meanwhile, I saw lab numbers on the juice samples we sent to ETS in McMinnville. Considering the hot summer, the numbers look pretty good. Definitely lower sugars and higher acids (lower pHs) than 2006, also a hot growing season, but definitely not the ideal chemistry of last year. That simply suggests we'll have nicely ripe wines with soft structures but not the excessive alcohol or softness of other hot years. Take that as a very broad generalization. Who knows how things will turn out.
One nice thing is that both of these lots have high tartaric to malic acid ratios, meaning there won't be a big loss of acidity in the malolactic fermentation process. Also, there are nice levels of nitrogen in the juice samples that suggest the yeast should have plenty of nutrition to ferment to dryness. All in all, things look good.
October 12, 2009
Quick update - day 7
The cool and dry weather is about to end, meaning most people have picked their red grapes here in the northern Willamette Valley of Oregon. Some whites are still out there, and some red I'm sure. It's only October 12, but after the hot summer and gorgeous weather the last few weeks, it's hard to imagine pinot noir getting much better after a predicted week of rain coming up. I'm glad all the grapes from my project are in.
In the winery, my two fermenters from last Tuesday's pick have started to ferment naturally. I'm not so much against added yeast. Great wine comes from that. I'm just fascinated by spontaneous fermentation. Who knows if it's yeast from the vineyard, from the winery, or what. It's just interesting to see grapes ferment without added yeast.
That's not to say things aren't helped along, mostly with heat. I compare it to putting your bread dough in a warm place to rise. You heat up your fermenters and they begin to ferment. Pretty simple. I'll come clean and admit we added a little acidified water to each fermenter to bring down the sugar level almost a full percentage point. Nothing drastic, and in some ways of thinking it's so little, why bother. But it helps in a year of dehydration to return some of that lost liquid.
Now it's two punch downs a day for the active bins until they're past their peak fermentation, then down to one a day until it's time to press. The bin of grapes that came in two days ago is still soaking so it got a pump over today to get oxygen into the juice to feed the yeast and to mix up things up to get a good sample for the lab to see how much sugar, acid, etc. is in the juice.
Let it rain. In a couple of weeks everything should be safely in barrel. That will feel good.
In the winery, my two fermenters from last Tuesday's pick have started to ferment naturally. I'm not so much against added yeast. Great wine comes from that. I'm just fascinated by spontaneous fermentation. Who knows if it's yeast from the vineyard, from the winery, or what. It's just interesting to see grapes ferment without added yeast.
That's not to say things aren't helped along, mostly with heat. I compare it to putting your bread dough in a warm place to rise. You heat up your fermenters and they begin to ferment. Pretty simple. I'll come clean and admit we added a little acidified water to each fermenter to bring down the sugar level almost a full percentage point. Nothing drastic, and in some ways of thinking it's so little, why bother. But it helps in a year of dehydration to return some of that lost liquid.
Now it's two punch downs a day for the active bins until they're past their peak fermentation, then down to one a day until it's time to press. The bin of grapes that came in two days ago is still soaking so it got a pump over today to get oxygen into the juice to feed the yeast and to mix up things up to get a good sample for the lab to see how much sugar, acid, etc. is in the juice.
Let it rain. In a couple of weeks everything should be safely in barrel. That will feel good.
October 10, 2009
Last fruit in today
What a satisfying day. Today saw the last pinot noir in at the winery, including a ton or so of Pommard clone from Zenith vineyard for my label. Gorgeous fruit, big clusters but not such large berries. Rather, lots of middle and sometimes tiny berries, more than I ever remember seeing on a cluster. Flavors were sweet and ripe with nicely tart acidity. For the second harvest in a row, Zenith fruit is the best I've seem. Nice job Tim Ramey and company.
One of my two bins of pinot noir from earlier this week smelled pretty strongly of acetone this morning. That's not uncommon during cold soak, and is something that will cause winemakers to "kick off" fermentation. The ethyl acetate that gives this nail polish remover smell comes from apiculata yeast that usually start wild fermentation. They operate well at cold temperatures, but don't tolerate alcohol and die off once fermentation gets going in earnest. The ethyl acetate they produce apparently gets metabolized during fermentation, or whatever happens, the smell goes away pretty quickly. After the bin was punched down it didn't smell anymore, nor several hours later in the day. I think there was just a little activity on the surface. We'll kick off fermentation tomorrow. No worries.
So now I have three fermenters of pinot noir safely in the winery. No more worrying about the weather, now it's all about vinifying the grape juice into wine. Lots can go wrong, sure, but this is good fruit and I'm confident all will go well. 2009 should produce delicious wine, and that's the right way to start a wine business.
One of my two bins of pinot noir from earlier this week smelled pretty strongly of acetone this morning. That's not uncommon during cold soak, and is something that will cause winemakers to "kick off" fermentation. The ethyl acetate that gives this nail polish remover smell comes from apiculata yeast that usually start wild fermentation. They operate well at cold temperatures, but don't tolerate alcohol and die off once fermentation gets going in earnest. The ethyl acetate they produce apparently gets metabolized during fermentation, or whatever happens, the smell goes away pretty quickly. After the bin was punched down it didn't smell anymore, nor several hours later in the day. I think there was just a little activity on the surface. We'll kick off fermentation tomorrow. No worries.
So now I have three fermenters of pinot noir safely in the winery. No more worrying about the weather, now it's all about vinifying the grape juice into wine. Lots can go wrong, sure, but this is good fruit and I'm confident all will go well. 2009 should produce delicious wine, and that's the right way to start a wine business.
October 08, 2009
Harvest and baseball
So I have two bins of pinot noir soaking in the winery. I'm swamped at my "real" job but nothing much happens during the cold soak. Light mixing of the skins and juice each day, maybe a pump over to mix things up for a good sample to take brix and ph readings, which change after havest as any dehydrated grapes give some suger into solution and potassium buffering the ph up a bit.
Brix is a bit higher than I'd like at 25.4. It's the price of waiting an extra week to harvest, as sugars rose modestly but flavors seem to really come on strong. Acidity is still strong, but the ph reading and final brix will come tomorrow when a juice sample is taken to the lab for a full analysis. We'll see how much malic acid is in the juice vs. tartaric acid. Since malic acid converts to lactic in the ML fermentation, raising ph, the more malic, the more you can expect to see a ph shift up. If there's lots of malic and not so much tartaric, an extreme example, you might consider acidification with additional tartaric to ensure balance in the finished wine. I'm not guessing that will be required here, but we'll see.
Another important number from the juice analysis will be glucose and fructose content, a better measurement of sugar to predict final alcohol levels. As things are, a winemaker's inclination might be to add water to bring the sugar level down a bit, maybe to 24.5. You might think that would dilute the wine, but it doesn't do that, necessarily. Rather, it's an intervention that might be necessary in the extreme, but something I want to avoid if possible. The question is -- intervene with acidulated water, or end up with a higher alcohol level in the wine. Yeast convert sugar to alcohol at rates between .55 to .62. If I assume a .57 conversion, and the brix is an accurate reflection of potential alcohol, I'm looking at 14.4% alcohol. Is that ok, or do you add water to bring that down? I'm inclined to want to do nothing, but if the glucose/fructose is higher still, hmm. What do you think? I'm not trying to make intellectual wine, rather a tasty drink for dinner and such. These grapes won't be going into a high end bottling. But what to do, what to do.
Enough wine geekery. Any baseball fans out there? Ten years ago when I first worked some harvest days in a California winery, I remember the nice, tired feeling of driving home to San Francisco after a hard day's work listening to late evening playoff baseball games on the radio. I used to love traveling in the fall months when I could, but that's done if you're making wine. I also love baseball, and while harvest is a busy time, there are moments to catch some ball even if I can't lounge around and watch entire games. Those drives are a good memory now. Same too when I was first a home winemaker, listening to games while I picked my own grapes and then at home in the garage as I oversaw vinification, then the recent years of working harvests and having long drives and time to hear baseball on the radio. There's something sweet now about making wine and hearing a game, a connection I never made as a kid or younger adult but now consider a right and good mark of fall. I love October.
Tonight, I have kid duty as my wife is out at knitting group. She's enough of a wine widow so it's only fair. The wine with dinner? 2008 Domaine La Croix Belle Vin des Pays des Cotes de Thongue, a 100% syrah bottling from the Languedoc region of France. Ten bucks locally and pretty nice gulping wine. Clearly syrah, with gummy purple fruit and a pleasant stem note, and a sweet savory flavor that's nicely balanced between acid, tannin and flavors. Worth trying again.
Brix is a bit higher than I'd like at 25.4. It's the price of waiting an extra week to harvest, as sugars rose modestly but flavors seem to really come on strong. Acidity is still strong, but the ph reading and final brix will come tomorrow when a juice sample is taken to the lab for a full analysis. We'll see how much malic acid is in the juice vs. tartaric acid. Since malic acid converts to lactic in the ML fermentation, raising ph, the more malic, the more you can expect to see a ph shift up. If there's lots of malic and not so much tartaric, an extreme example, you might consider acidification with additional tartaric to ensure balance in the finished wine. I'm not guessing that will be required here, but we'll see.
Another important number from the juice analysis will be glucose and fructose content, a better measurement of sugar to predict final alcohol levels. As things are, a winemaker's inclination might be to add water to bring the sugar level down a bit, maybe to 24.5. You might think that would dilute the wine, but it doesn't do that, necessarily. Rather, it's an intervention that might be necessary in the extreme, but something I want to avoid if possible. The question is -- intervene with acidulated water, or end up with a higher alcohol level in the wine. Yeast convert sugar to alcohol at rates between .55 to .62. If I assume a .57 conversion, and the brix is an accurate reflection of potential alcohol, I'm looking at 14.4% alcohol. Is that ok, or do you add water to bring that down? I'm inclined to want to do nothing, but if the glucose/fructose is higher still, hmm. What do you think? I'm not trying to make intellectual wine, rather a tasty drink for dinner and such. These grapes won't be going into a high end bottling. But what to do, what to do.
Enough wine geekery. Any baseball fans out there? Ten years ago when I first worked some harvest days in a California winery, I remember the nice, tired feeling of driving home to San Francisco after a hard day's work listening to late evening playoff baseball games on the radio. I used to love traveling in the fall months when I could, but that's done if you're making wine. I also love baseball, and while harvest is a busy time, there are moments to catch some ball even if I can't lounge around and watch entire games. Those drives are a good memory now. Same too when I was first a home winemaker, listening to games while I picked my own grapes and then at home in the garage as I oversaw vinification, then the recent years of working harvests and having long drives and time to hear baseball on the radio. There's something sweet now about making wine and hearing a game, a connection I never made as a kid or younger adult but now consider a right and good mark of fall. I love October.
Tonight, I have kid duty as my wife is out at knitting group. She's enough of a wine widow so it's only fair. The wine with dinner? 2008 Domaine La Croix Belle Vin des Pays des Cotes de Thongue, a 100% syrah bottling from the Languedoc region of France. Ten bucks locally and pretty nice gulping wine. Clearly syrah, with gummy purple fruit and a pleasant stem note, and a sweet savory flavor that's nicely balanced between acid, tannin and flavors. Worth trying again.
October 06, 2009
First fruit in today
We brought in the first pinot noir fruit for my new wine project Tuesday. 2.5 tons of a mix of Dijon clones from the Walnut Hill area of the Eola-Amity AVA. Nice volcanic soils, steep south slope, 10 year old vines, not to shabby produce in this hot year. There was definitely some dehydration in the grapes, but less than expected. The clusters were soft and more than ready to go physiologically. Flavors are pretty nice. Not much rot. Lots of leaves in the bins that were sorted out (thanks sorters!). All together, a nice start to this adventure. There's another ton on Pommard clone pinot noir from Zenith vineyard coming in Saturday, and then it's all about the winemaking process. Now, sleep.
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