Do you Know These Important Harvest Terms?

It's harvest time in the northern hemisphere.   Serious wine lovers who have visited wineries during this period (and/or attended wine appreciation classes) have probably heard most of the below terms of the wine-making process.   But, do you know what they really mean?    Below is a 5-6 minute quiz for 10 terms you need to know.     (Answers at end)  

1.  Alcoholic fermentation:

a.  The addition of alcohol to fermenting grapes.

b.  Alcohol that is produced when grapes are mixed with Sulphur.

c.  The conversion of sugar to alcohol.

d.  Fermentation of grapes which causes higher acidity.

 

2.   Battonage:

        a.  Separating the solid parts of fermentation from the liquid.

        b.  Stirring wine during fermentation.

        c.  The process of transferring young wine from tanks to barrels

        d.  Removing grape skins & seeds from the juice.

 

3.   Brettanomyces:

        a.  Famous French scientist who pioneered cork closures.

        b.  Amount of acidity in grapes.

        c.  Instrument that measures a wine’s tannin level.

        d.  Yeast that causes wine to spoil.

 

4.  Fining:

a.  Sugar level of grapes used to determine ripeness.

b.  Process used to make a wine more clear.

c.  Removing microbes from wine.

d.  Pressing grapes with minimal pressure.

 

5.  Malo-lactic Fermentation

a.  Removal of microbes that interfere with fermentation.

b.  Developed in Spain, this process reduces free radical acids in wine.

c.  A process to remove harmful acids that cause a wine to spoil.

d.  Conversion of harsher malic acid to the softer lactic acid.

 

6.  Must:

a.  Unfermented grape juice

b.  End stage of fermentation

c.  Must-add components to begin fermentation

d.  First inspection of grapes prior to fermentation

 

7.  Lees:

a.  Naturally occurring microbes on grape skins

b.  Yeasts that can interfere with fermentation.

c.  Sediment that occurs during fermentation

d.  Calculation of acidity during fermentation

 

8.  Racking:

a. Evaluating when a wine should be placed in a barrel after fermentation

b.  Process of separating wine from sediment by moving it to another barrel.

c.  Stacking barrels in a winery to facilitate gravity flow.

d.  Process used during bottling to keep wine away from oxygen exposure.

 

9.   TCA:

a.  Destructive chemical that causes a wine to be “corked”

b.  Harsh acid that is found in the skins & seeds of grapes

c.  An array of acid compounds that are vital to the start of fermentation

d.  Test to determine the physiological ripeness of grapes

 

        10.   Topping-off:

          a.  Filling your glass at a wine tasting without permission

          b.  Adding Sulphur to a wine to prevent spoilage

          c.  Filling a wine barrel to its top level to prevent oxidation

          d.  Adding extra grapes during fermentation to enhance flavors 

           

   Answers:

1. c
2. b
3. d
4. b
5. d
6. a
7. c
8. b
9. a
10. c  

How high did you score?  

                9-10 Correct:    Wine-Know!

                7-8 Correct:   WINE OH!

                6-7 Correct:   Whine O

                < 6 correct:   Wine NO!  

 

Harvest Terms You Need to Know

September in the Northern Hemisphere is a huge month for winemakers.  Wine lovers should be aware of the following vocabulary, especially if you’re visiting a winery:

• Alcoholic fermentation:   the conversion of grape sugar to alcohol

• Battonage:  stirring the wine during fermentation so that the liquid has contact with the lees (the solids)

• Brettanomyces:  bad yeast that causes wines to spoil

• Brix:  measurement of the amount of sugar in the grape

• Carbonic maceration: fermenting whole clusters of grapes that have not been crushed

• Fining:  process used to clarify the wine (egg whites are used by many)

• Free-run juice:  juice that has not been pressed but obtained simply by the weight of the grapes themselves

• Malo-lactic Fermention:  Known also as “ML,” this is the conversion of harsh malic acid to softer lactic acid

• Must:  unfermented grape juice

• Lees:  sediment that occurs during fermentation (includes spent yeasts, seeds & other solids)

• Racking:  process of separating the wine from the sediment by moving the liquid to another barrel

• Saignee:  French term which literally means “to bleed,” this is the process of removing some of the unfermented grape juice to increase the wine/skin ratio

• Sulfites:  chemicals that prevent spoilage of wine

• Tannin:  compound found in the seeds, skins and stalks of grapes

• TCA:  abbreviation for the destructive chemical that causes cork taint

• Topping-off:  process of filling a wine barrel that has lost wine due to evaporation

Is Wine Really Going to the Dogs?

A client of mine sent me an article a few months ago that piqued my curiosity.   Most of us know that dogs have an inordinately keen sense of smell (they’re used to sniff out bombs or explosives; to find smuggled drugs; to locate dead bodies after a disaster; or even to find truffles which grow under the ground).   But who has ever heard of dogs being used in wineries to sniff out wine defects such as TCA (the culprit involved in a “corked” wine)?   Indeed, dogs are being used not only in wineries to find TCA, but some thinking-out-of-the-barrel folks are also using canines to identify infected wood even prior to the barrel’s construction.

TCA (Trichloroanisole) is a chemical substance that can ruin wine.  While it typically comes from corks, it can also originate in the actual wood from which a barrel is made, from wooden pallets used in a winery, or even from cardboard boxes.  And, it’s extremely potent---one ounce of pure TCA would be enough to contaminate 10 billion bottles of wine, or more than five times California’s annual wine production.   That means a barrel of wine contains only a microscopic fragment of TCA.  Dogs, whose noses are thousands of times more powerful than humans, can detect these nano-like traces of TCA.

A corked wine is often described as a “musty basement” or “wet newspaper.” Ironically one of the other descriptors  is that of a “wet dog.”   Regardless of how you describe it, TCA ruins a wine.  Although the cork industry has stepped up to the plate in decreasing “cork taint” by implementing better quality control procedures, it is still estimated that 2-4% of all wine is corked.   If you haven’t experienced it, you’re one lucky dog.

Wine Trivia That May Surprise You

With holiday parties rapidly approaching, here are some tidbits for cocktail trivia with fellow wine lovers:

How many varieties of wine grapes exist in the world today?

>10,000

What grape varieties are the most planted on the globe?

• White:  Airen from Spain tops the list.  Next, is Chardonnay, then Ugni Blanc (a grape from France)

• Red:  Merlot snags the numero uno spot, closely followed by Cabernet Sauvignon, then Grenache (if this last one surprises, you can blame it on Spain again.)

How many grapes go into the making of a bottle of wine?

Bordeaux’s Chateau Yquem claim that one grape vine yields one bottle of their Sauternes.  Other high-end producers state that one grape vine produces 2 bottles of wine.  Still yet other indicate that it takes about 2.5 lbs of fruit to make a bottle of wine.

How is wine heart healthy?

The dark color pigments found in red grape skins are responsible, thus only red wines exert a protective cardiac function.

How many bottles are in a barrel?

The standard barrel contains 300 bottles of wine.

What are the culprits that can taint a wine?

There are 2 that can especially wreak havoc.  Brettanomyce (aka “Brett”) is a spoiling yeast that causes barnyard smells in wine.  It can destroy an entire winery’s inventory as it’s difficult to eradicate.  The other is a chemical compound called TCA.  This culprit is often found in flawed corks, thus when TCA ruins a wine the wine is referred to as “corked.”

Top 10 Wine Trivia for 2014

These are tidbits that a wine aficionado should know.  They range from terminology used in the vineyard and wine-making process to pests that can destroy wine.  Also included is information such as the health benefits of wine. Let’s start with the most destructive first, and end on a positive note.

    1.   Brettanomyce:  “Brett” is a wine spoiling yeast that causes barnyard 

          smells.  It can destroy an entire winery’s inventory as it’s difficult to 

          eradicate.

    2.  TCA:  a chemical compound (often found in flawed corks) that ruins a 

         wine and causes it to be “corked.”

    3.  Green harvest:  to cut off grape clusters from the vine in order to 

         intensify the flavor of those grapes that are left.

    4.  “On the lees”:  the lees are the dead yeast leftover after fermentation.  

        Some wines (usually whites) are left in contact with their lees to increase 

        the complexity of the wine.

    5.  Malolactic fermentation:  commonly referred to as “ML,” this is a 

         chemical process that converts harsh malic acid to a softer lactic acid. 

    6.  “Rack a wine”:  to siphon wine into a new, clean barrel…leaving all the 

         sediment  in the old barrel.

    7.  Cap:  a very hard top that forms during fermentation at the top of the 

         tank (it’s composed of grape skins which are where many flavor                         components and color pigments are located).

    8.  Pump-over:  to pump juice over the hard cap (to break it up) during 

         fermentation to extract color, flavor & tannins.

    9.  Fine:  to clarify or make the wine more clear.

  10.  Heart healthy benefits of wine:  due to dark colored pigments found 

         in red grape skins, thus only red wines are cardiac protective.

Cork v Screwcap---New Zealand Takes the Lead

We’ve all been there:  a special bottle of wine---ceremoniously opened for a special event.  BOOM!  The wine smells horrible with an unmistakable odor of mold.   The culprit is tricholoranisole, more commonly known as TCA.  In short, the wine is “corked.”   TCA is caused by defective corks and it is estimated that somewhere between 5-8% of wine has some degree of this cork taint.  New Zealand winemakers, however, have bucked a huge tradition by switching to screw-caps…even on their premium wines.

Screw-top enclosures have been used on food products since the 19^th century, but they weren’t used for wine bottles until the 1950’s.  A few Australian wineries were among the early adopters, but the adventuresome New Zealand wine industry was the first to adopt screw-caps in masse.  Market-conscious American vintners are still testing the treacherous waters of public opinion.  The tradition-driven French are less receptive, as are most Europeans.

Is this resistance all about tradition?  Some of you might be thinking “No, it’s because the slow passage of oxygen through a porous cork allows the wine to age better!”  Others might be pondering that the metal of the screw-top could react with the wine and create problems.  Neither of these has been proven to be true.

Flying in the face of tradition, for the last 10 years the Kiwi’s have been leading the effort to convert to screw-caps.  Currently, over > 90% of New Zealand’s wines are made with metal enclosures.  The country has been on the cutting edge of debunking the myth that screw-caps are substandard.  There are plenty of studies now that offer ample evidence that spending money to seal wine with anything other than a metal cap is a significant risk.  New Zealand has also discredited the argument that screw-cap use is economically motivated as screw-cap equipment requires a significant financial investment.

As there is a lack of data on the ability of wine to age over decades with a metal cap, no one knows for sure what the long term effect of screw-tops will be.  Personally, I will gladly follow Chubby Checker’s  “Let’s do the twist!”

Waiter! There's a Flaw in My Wine!

We’ve all been there….an inordinate amount of time perusing the wine list and finally finding the perfect bottle.  The first course is on its way…the sommelier uncorks the wine and presents a small amount for tasting.   But, there’s a problem with the wine---you gotta be kidding!   Today I’m ranting about two things that can ruin a wine: cork taint and Brettanomyces (aka “brett”).  Both of these can wreak havoc on wines, irrespective of the wine’s price or quality.

A “corked” wine has an undesirable smell that is caused by a chemical compound called 2,4,6-trichloroanisol, or TCA.  The compound can develop in corks themselves which is the reason for the name (but it can also come from cardboard cases or wooden pallets; in fact, entire wineries can be contaminated with TCA.)  A corked wine smells musty or moldy and reminds many oenophiles of old musty books, wet cardboard, or a damp cellar.  Interestingly, it is estimated that as high as 8% of wines are corked.   

Brettanomyces, or "brett," is an unfriendly yeast….a close relative of the most common winemaking yeast.  Brett, like TCA, can ruin a wine.   At low levels, some feel this yeast can add complexity to the wines;  in young reds, for example, it can give bacon-clove-leather notes reminiscent of older reds.   At higher levels, however, it contributes obnoxiously strong barnyard notes, or the smell of dirty socks.

Brett is a winemaker’s worse nightmare.  It multiples quickly and is often difficult to recognize before it’s too late.  Once it sets up housekeeping in a winery it can be super tricky and very costly to eradicate.  Brett can permeate walls, floors and ceilings…it essentially has no barriers. In some cases the only answer has been to build a new winery.  The best way to prevent this yeast is immaculate sanitation practices throughout the winery.

The threshold of perception (and tolerance) for both TCA and brett vary from person to person.  There are some people who don’t notice these flaws, some who notice but don’t find them offensive, and others who might mistake one for the other.  Regardless, it’s up to the individual to decide if the wine is drinkable or should be sent back.