In the cellar — Paroles de vignerons - Vinparleur

Vintage Story Part 1 - #Champagne J.Vignier

Permalink, by Champagne J.Vignier

2018 gave us a lucky harvest. After a vigorous and snowy winter, continuing alternation between abundant rain and sunshine marked spring. Some thunderstorms and hail approached the Côte des Blancs and the Coteaux du Sézannais in May, but except some light leaf damage, none of our vines or grapes were harmed. Mildew was a major problem at that period, but it seemed to be under control at the beginning of the warm and dry summer. Drought was compensated by the huge ground water reserves stored in the chalky sub soils that act like a sponge, supplying water to the plants and the grapes until optimum ripeness was achieved.

This year’s harvest was very early, as we started to pick the firs grapes on August 28^th. Grapes were tasty and healthy, showing good balance between sugars and acidity, as well as crisp citrus flavours and aromas of pears, apples and some spices. Fermentations went along without any problems and malos are under way. We expect a beautiful vintage, where all of our vineyards will fully express their peculiar character. To our greatest satisfaction, the wines from the Coteaux du Sésannais, “Silexus Sézannensis” and “Les Abbesses”, are already keeping up with the most precious Grand Cru terroirs we cultivate at the Côte des Blancs.
The calm after the storm… When the wines rest.

Permalink, by Sebastian Nickel

When all the grapes have been picked, when fermentations are over and the last grapes have been pressed, silence finally returns to the cellar. Some tanks are doing malolactic fermentation, a second “fermentation” carried out by bacteria, in which malic acid is converted into lactic acid (Read our article: How is my malo doing?) https://www.vinparleur.net/malolactic-fermentation-in-wine?), while others are already blended and prepared for winter. Its time to fill up tanks and barrels and having a final tasting of the cellar to appreciate the job.

While the wines seem to be sleeping during the following months, they are nevertheless undergoing a profound and essential change. Due to gravity, the wines become clearer, as yeasts, proteins and other macromolecules sink down to the bottom of the tanks, forming the lees. Tannins combine and become smoother, the color of the red wines stabilizes, aromas are shaped and changed creating the bouquet. This period of harmonization may be more or less long, depending on the character of the wine, grape variety and quality, soil and terroir and the choice of the wine makers. For Primeur wines, simply structured and marked by fermentation aromas, it takes only a few weeks, while it may need months or even years for more complex wines.

Development of the wines is mainly followed by tastings, while some important parameters are checked in the laboratory. Taste and aromatic development decides among other things when and how often the wines are racked and separated from the lees. The latter is indeed an interesting source for aromas and taste, but in the case of strong reduction, it may also be a source for unpleasant odours in the wine.
Vintage 2017 - A key year for Domaine Santa Duc

Permalink, by Domaine Santa Duc

After several years of observing our vineyards, we are more than ever convinced that every terroir seeks to express the character of its landscape, its soils and its climate through the wines we make. Our task and responsibility as winemakers is therefore not limited to cultivating vines, but above all to creating and maintaining a harmonious natural environment from which the cultures feed.

We have found this harmony in organic and biodynamic farming, which we have been practicing for several years in Gigondas and Châteauneuf-du-Pape. Over the past year, we have completed the adaptation of our winery to this way of working: a new winery and several small truncated cone shaped fermentation tanks made of stainless steel allow a separate processing of the grapes depending on their origin. After arriving in the cellar, the harvested material passes through a sorting table to the “Delta Oscillys”, an apparatus that destemmes the grapes by means of vibration. A particularly gentle procedure that guarantees the integrity of the grapes. Grapes finally go into the fermentation tanks by gravity, where they are subject to a long cold maceration before being fermented by natural yeasts. The finished wines mature for up to 18 months in concrete tanks, wooden vats or in terracotta jars, depending on their character and requirements. This natural production process makes it possible to respect the individuality of each terroir and vintage.

2017 was therefore a key year for Santa Duc, but also for Benjamin, who this year took over the cellar from his father. Despite the lower yields on Grenache, mainly due to the hot weather during flowering and the resulting coulure, the harvest quality was more than satisfactory. Rainfalls in June and the end of August ensured sufficient water reserves in the soil, so that the vines showed no drought stress and the grapes came slowly and with regularity to full maturity. The fermentations in the new cellar went very harmoniously, so that the wines can start their maturation with serenity by the end of the year.
“Yves Gras is producing some of the most compelling examples of Châteauneuf-du-Pape”

Joe Czerwinski @ RobertParker.com

Permalink, by Domaine Santa Duc

« It has been interesting to observe the evolution of winemaking style at this address over the past 20 years. While the premise has always been top-quality fruit from fine-tuned viticulture and moderate yields, ideas about ripeness, methods of extraction and aging have changed. I expect the modern, multilevel tower that serves mainly to receive guests must have turned a few heads when it was first built, but now it is just emblematic of the forward-thinking employed by proprietor Yves Gras and his well-traveled son, Benjamin.

The winery acquired its first amphorae in 2014, and Yves told me he expects that amphora-fermented and aged lots will account for 10% of each blend for 2017. Rather than pure power, the father and son are looking for more balance and freshness in the wines, and they like that the amphorae are “very neutral.” On the warm plateau, where the winery and many of the estate’s vines are located, Mourvèdre is becoming more important in the finished wines. Ben said, “It’s a good tool against global warming.”

Gigondas-based Yves Gras has quietly grown his holdings in Châteauneuf du Pape to six hectares, from which he’s producing four separate cuvées. I’m sure it will hurt some feelings to say an outsider like Gras is producing some of the most compelling examples of Châteauneuf-du-Pape, but keep in mind these are generally tiny-production gems and not easy to track down.»

Joe Czerwinski –@RobertParker.com October 2017
Put on the pressure, but keep it friendly! #wine #harvest

Permalink, by Sebastian Nickel

No matter what color - red, rosé or white - pressing grapes or pomace is always a decisive stage in wine production. First step on the way to white wine and some rosé wines, last step in the red wine production, pressing the grapes as gentle as possible always is the key to succes and great wines.

Carried out with special wine presses of different types and constructions, the press cycle takes about two to three hours for freshly picked grapes, for pomace often a little less. During the process, pressure is steadily increased, held, and removed again. The pressure-free phases are used to drain the juice or wine from the press. For the same reason the grape mass may be turned around in the press from time to time. But beware! All operations should be done with moderation, because the rougher you handle the harvest, the rougher the wine will taste!

Gentle and progressive enhancement of the pressure are two essential factors to obtain a high-quality must or press wine. It is not just about brutally crushing the grapes. Instead, one tries to burst each individual cell inside the berries to release its juice. Maturity rarely is homogeneous inside the berries. The central part of the fruit is usually more mature (more sugar, more acidity, more aromas), than the parts close to the pips and the skins. This difference is even more pronounced when harvest is brought in early. During cautious and progressive pressing, mature cells burst first, while the less mature cells release their juice only at high pressure towards the end of the pressing process. Thus the first two thirds of the must are usually of finer quality than the last third.

Some winegrowers and winegrowing regions, such as Champagne, separate both factions and make different wines from them. Both fractions can, however, complement each other and produce a more complete wine. So, unite or rather separate? The answer to this is left to any winemaker.
The good ones into the pot, the bad ones into the crop - Why to sort out the bad grapes?

Permalink, by Sebastian Nickel

  It takes good grapes to make good wine. But protecting a vineyard against the invasion of fungi and insects is not always an easy affair. So, close to harvest, you will always find a few rotten berries in a vineyard. Knowing that grapes in bad shape can innoculate harmfull microorganisms and provoke dubious flavors in a wine, you should better remove them before starting. Therefore, sorting out bad grapes is an excellent way to achieve proper crop quality in the cellar.

  If picking is done by hand, sorting may already start in the vineyard: Rotten berries or parts of the grapes are being cut out and the grapes can even be re-sorted again in the boxes or on the trailer. In the winery sorting tables or automatic optical sorting systems may bring the work to perfection, giving the ideal starting point for wine production without problems (and probably even without sulfur).

  Today, modern machines are automatically equipped with a fairly efficient sorting system, removing any leaves, leaf stems and other plant parts that may have fallen off the vines with the berries. And nothing (except time and money) may withhold you from resorting the harvest again at the winery using classic handsorting or optical sorting to get a perfect crop.  

The sorting of the harvest is therefore an almost unavoidable step for flawless, high-quality wine production and may even save harvest quality (but not quantity), especially in case of difficult vintages.
Crumbs and crystals in #wine – when it looks odd, it may still taste good!

Permalink, by Sebastian Nickel

When wine brightly shines in our glass, we expect it to be particularly good and pure. But do not be misled by this immaculate purity. A slight haze in the wine, crystals at the bottom of the glass, a fine sediment that adheres to the bottle…they do not necessarely point to problems in taste. On the contrary, this may as well be a sign that the wine isn’t sterile, but still alive.

So let’s stay cool and find out the reason. A slight “cloudy” aspect in the wine often indicates that the wine has not, or only slightly been filtered. Small, glittering crystals in white wine or rosé are not sugar, but so-called tartrate cristals (naturally crystallized tartaric acid from grapes). A fine, coloured sediment in red wine may be made of anthocyanins, the molecules that give colour to red wine. They too derive from the grapes. And there are many other examples.

Curiously, the younger the wines are, the more we expect them to look particularly good and perfect. On the contrary, matured wines are suspicious, when there is no sediment at all… I admit, it’s not very pleasant to finish the last glass of (young or old) wine with a mouth full of sandy stuff on your tongue. Wines that have the features mentioned, should therefore be treated with caution and decanted before drinking. Of course, visual imperfections MIGHT be a sign for smell or taste inconvenience. But should this be the case, your nose and palate will tell during tasting.

So do yourself a favor and never evaluate the quality of a wine only by its colour and visual aspects. Finally, the wine is not being made to look at, but to drink it!
Who or what is hiding behind the name “Vin de France”? #wine

Permalink, by Sebastian Nickel

The name “Vin de France” (VDF) was created as part of a reform of the European wine market in 2009. It replaces the traditional designation “Vin de Table” (table wine). One also designates VDF as VSIG - Vin Sans Geographical Indication (wine without geographic origin). All French wines that are not produced under an AOP (Appellation d’Origine protégée) or IGP (Indication Géographique protégée) label, are therefore by definition a Vin de France.

It’s a relatively ungrateful wine category. Although it includes fantastic, rare wines, it also takes all the “leftovers” of French wine production. From scariest, cheap booze (whose brand names we do not want to point out here) to rare produceds from old vines... just everything. Synonymous with coarse, industrialized mass production for decades, people often forget that there are different reasons why a wine may be labeled Vin de France.

The most common reason is the grape variety. Each AOP and IGP has its own list of approved varieties. Only cultivation of these varieties gives access to an AOP or IGP. If one grows grape varieties which are not on the list, the wine is automatically labeled as Vin de France. Pierre Cros, vigneron in the Minervois, offers several cuvees that are affected by this rule: His “Mal Aimes”, made of old, Mediterranean varieties (Picpoul noir, Alicante bouchet, Aramon, Carignan), as well as his rosé “Partouse”, a cheerful mixture of Aramon, Picpoul, Morrastel and Rivairenc... He also planted italian Nebbiolo, and Portuguese Touriga Nacional at the end of the nineties. Both wines are proudly labeled “Vin de France”.

A second reason may be the location of the vineyard. If it has not been classified by the INAO (Institut National des Appellations d’Origine) as an AOP or an IGP, the production will be fully considered as Vin de France. Last but not least, each winemaker and each winery may incidentally also freely decide to produce Vin de France wines. Producting wines with a designation of origin may have many advantages: A certain reputation and prestige, joint actions and communication on the wine market and at fairs... But there is always a counterpart. French AOPs and IGPs have more or less strict and restrictive production rules. The choice to produce a Vin de France, may thus also be interpreted as a choice of a free and high-quality wine production.

ADVICE 1: If you have a curious palate, pay special attention to the Vin the France wines at the next visit to your favorite wine store. You could experience pleasant surprises ...

ADVICE 2: If you have a delicate palate, avoid the lower wine shelfs containing Vin de France on your next visit to the nearest supermarket. No pleasant surprise in sight...