Winemaking 101: wineries vs. vineyards & sampling sugar levels

crushing wine grapes for the sugar tests

It’s that time again…

When Em came up with the idea of starting this blog, it was to write about each of our passions, Wine and Food (I know, I know, real original…), and to write and share our adventures in the East Bay. Theoretically we were each going to contribute.

But since then I’ve been on the receiving end of countless amazing meals (and I’ve done my best to wreck a couple here and there) but I haven’t done much contributing. With any luck, that’s about to change because HARVEST is upon us.  Upon entering the industry, I realized just how unclear the winemaking process could be. ButterDate would be a good a place as any to shed a little light on what I believe to be a very interesting process.

This post thus begins a series of winemaking posts throughout the 2011 Harvest.

At most social gatherings, I try to work into the conversation that I’m a winemaker. First off, this never seems to carry the gravitas that I think it will—I knew I should have gone out for stuntman instead! My ego aside, the most common question or assumption I encounter relates to the concept of winery versus vineyard. Many wineries do own their own vineyards.  And likewise, many vineyards make wine, but this isn’t always the case. Much like a chef who buys produce at farmer’s markets or works closely with trusted butchers, several winemakers do not own t buy grapes from vineyards they know, trust and love, year after year.

nets draped over vines to protect mature fruit from being eaten!

Commonly, the winery or winemaker will have long-term relationships with vineyard owners and growers making sure the grapes are farmed in precise methods. One great advantage of this is that a winemaker can then source grapes from several different vineyards in a multitude of different regions. As we approach Harvest however, this can keep said winemaker very busy running between Sonoma, Napa and Mendocino Counties.

In years/vintages past, it wouldn’t be uncommon to have already harvested (picked) the fruit, pressed the grapes and put the juice in barrel to become wine by now. But because 2011 has been such an unseasonably cool growing season, the ripeness of the grapes is far less developed than at the same point in years/vintages past.

Depending on the kind of wine you’re making and the style you’re going for, this can be a good thing or a bad thing.

We have a Grenache Vineyard—a traditionally late ripening grape—way up in Mendocino that sadly may never fully ripen.

With regards to our Pinot and Chard vineyards however, this year’s weather has been an absolute godsend. The grapes are maturing slowly and the flavors are developing gracefully while the sugars, which are most directly affected by the sun and heat, are staying low.

Because the sugar levels dictate the final alcohol level, the cold season equates to more flavorful wines with lower alcohol levels…at least there was one plus to those sunless 60-degree days that Em and I have been complaining about for the last 9 months.

verasion

Veraison (pronounced “ver” “ray” “shun” and in no way related to the phone company) is the term for the color-change that grapes undergo in late summer. This is an indicator that sugar levels are raising and acid levels are falling.

Pomard clone Pinot Nior

When to pick the fruit is among the most important and challenging calls a winemaker must make each harvest. Winemaking, at least in my book, is a constant pursuit of balance, and the pick date is perhaps the most important moment in dictating that balance.

Pick too early and the result may be a thin, watery wine that’s too high in acid and tastes more like ocean-spray cranberry juice and green-stewed vegetables than Pinot Noir.

Pick too late and the sugars go off the charts, the acids have dropped to nil, and the fruits (which were so pleasant a few days ago) are now prune, raisin-like flavors.

Ideally, the end of summer and beginning of autumn brings long, cool days that allow the grapes to hang on the vine until the flavors are just right.

In reality, unexpected heat-spikes and/or rains appear, wrecking havoc on the best-laid plans of mice and men.

Hence, it becomes important to get out to those vineyards regularly and sample the grapes. Last week, Em and I drove up to the Sonoma Coast and Russian River vineyards to sample the sugar levels on the Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.

El Diablo Vineyard

El Diablo is our Russian River vineyard. It’s a hotter region than the Sonoma Coast and we’re aiming to make a bigger wine out of it, something that highlights the rich and full-bodied flavors already coming from the vines.

Silver Eagle Vineyard

Silver Eagle Vineyard, in true Sonoma Coast is a cooler site. It is more mountainous and closer to the ocean. I am genuinely excited about Diablo, but Silver Eagle is truly a special place for me. From this site, we’re hoping to craft a wine that highlights more of the red-fruit and mineral flavors. The alcohol hopefully will be a bit lower and this should be more about elegance as opposed to power…maybe a Magnetic Fields vs. Metallica thing…

Robert Young clone Chardonnay grapes

We’re also going to see if we can’t make two Chardonnays from this Vineyard. The Wente Block is known for it’s rich flavors whereas the Robert Young clone is brighter and shows more minerality.

Sampling the fruit

The aim of sampling is to yield a true representation of the overall vineyard; there are a number of ways people aim to achieve a true representation. I most prefer walking one or two rows of the vineyard block I’m testing then every 10 steps or so, I’ll snip off a cluster, repeating as necessary until I reach the end of the row. 

Now that I’ve got my zip-lock bag full of grapes, it’s time to crush away. This can be both the most fun and messiest part of the day. Its important to make sure that all the grapes are crushed, especially because the most ripe berries can be practically falling apart while the least ripe are harder and more acidic. For some reason the bags always leak, and as I continue crushing the grapes, little trickles of grape juice seep out, and now we’re well on our way to a sticky mess!

Once the samples are all completely crushed, I use a refractometer to test the sugars. A refreactometer is a laboratory scale used to test density. In this case, we use a scale called Brix. The brix level is a measurement of the amount of sugar in the grapes. Hence a high level of brix, say 30 degrees, would mean there is 30 grams of sugar per 100 grams of juice!

As of now, the grapes taste great! The acids are all still a little high, and the sugars still need to come up. Here are the numbers,

El Diablo: 23.3 Brix

Silver Eagle, Pinot: 17.9

Silver Eagle Chardonnay: 15.6 and 13.8

Looks like things still have a while to go, but this gives a good staring point to begin monitoring.

Next up in the winemaking series…picking and crushing! 

Hand Bottling Project

hand-bottled Sonoma Coast Pinot & Chardonnay

Most wine you or I drink is bottled by an impressive machine wherein the wine, cork and label are all placed in or on the bottle mechanically on the bottling line. Hand bottling is reserved for large format bottles such as magnums or jeroboams.

Chardonnay keg

To ensure pristine condition during hand bottling, the wine is set into a full keg thereby eliminating 'headspace', or the room at the top of the tank, barrel or bottle where air can cause oxydization.

hand-bottling components: bottles, corker and keg

Upon completing a hand bottling project of large formats for his winery, DH realized there were a few extra liters of both Sonoma Coast Chardonnay and Pinot. He proposed we hand bottle the excess ourselves for wine to have at home or give away as gifts. Before he could finish his sentence, I was already in the winery, sterilizing bottles! ;-)

Sonoma Coast Pinot Nior

For legal reasons we cannot mention the vineyards of either wine but rest assured, the quality is incredible. In wine labeling there 'Sonoma Coast', a massive area sprawling from Napa up to Fort Ross and then there is 'true Sonoma Coast', (where these wines are from) which is known for its floral and red-berry flavors in the wine. Because of its proximity to the Pacific, this vineyard never gets too hot, which means the fruit never gets overripe, which means the wine itself has more acid and structure. 
The Chard is rich and mineral-ly with some subtle tropical fruit flavors, everything you'd want in a white.
The Pinot is full bodied without being syrupy and has an incredible nose of roasted marshmallows, a flavor/scent that appeals deeply to my inner 12-year old.

I digress. 

Sterilizing bottles with Argon gas

We began by sterilizing all the bottles with argon gas. Argon is an inert gas and when inserted into a bottle, pushes out any and all debris as well as any air, thereby eliminating oxygen between the wine and cork. 

filling the bottle from the keg

Next DH would fill each bottle up to the proper fill level then I would hand cork the bottle using the corker.

place the bottle, then the cork...

...then crank the lever!

In all, the project took about an hour and a half and was a very pleasant and bountiful way of learning how to hand bottle wine.

For the finishing touch, DH brought home the waxing kit. 
No, no, no...not that kind of waxing kit! The waxing kit with which to seal really fancy bottles of wine and some whiskies (i.e. maker's mark). This is a completely unnecessary albeit beautiful step and will be particularly nice if we are actually able to save any as gifts.

bottle waxing at home

The wax heats up at 350 degrees for 2+ hours so we set it up outside (hot wax can get messy) and caught game 4 of the NBA finals. GO Dirk!

a quick slab of primary sealant to prevent air-bubbles

turning the bottle to even out the wax

Waxing bottle tops is as fun as you would imagine. Wait, what do you imagine? 
(I must realize not everyone finds the mindless tasks in life as fun as I do.) But I for one loved waxing the bottles. It reminded me of something we might have done in Girl Scouts way back when, sans alcohol of course.

DH is also a wonderful teacher, though he might beg to differ. Here's a little video of him explaining the waxing process. You be the judge!