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Decisions, decisions

From harvest to bottle, winemakers have a lot of choices to make

By: Ben MacPhee-Sigurdson

Posted: 10/15/2011 1:00 AM | Comments: 0

It was a tense time in the Okanagan Valley when I was there a few weeks ago. Not because contest winners Ken and Hedy Pawluk and I weren't welcome -- quite the opposite -- but because the grape harvest was starting up. Winemakers are at their busiest in the fall, often having to drop what they're doing to bring in a certain grape variety that's suddenly ready to be picked.

One grape's journey from bud to bottle isn't just as simple as "squish fruit and wait." Rather, it's a taxing "hurry up and wait" process that puts a winemaker's skills and patience to the test. Certain grape varieties ripen earlier, meaning they can be picked first. Others -- particularly grapes that make the heavier, more tannic red wines -- require more hang time in order to fully ripen.

Grapes are picked either mechanically or by hand once they are ripe. Hand harvesting ensures less damage to the grapes when picked -- grapes going into mid- to upper-tier wines are typically harvested this way. Vineyards whose elevation, surrounding landscape or slope aren't conducive to mechanical harvest are typically hand-picked as well.

What happens next isn't always consistent, but it's probably easiest to talk about white and red winemaking separately. White wine is generally easier -- the grapes are pressed, the juice removed and the skins, stems, etc. discarded.

The white grape juice is then placed in either stainless steel or concrete fermenting tanks, where yeast is added to kick-start the fermenting process. The sugar and yeast produce alcohol and carbon dioxide, the latter of which dissipates throughout the process. The wine is then transferred to stainless steel tanks or oak barrels, depending on the winemaker's desired final product.

To make red wine, the grapes are gently crushed in order to break open the grapes enough to get the juices flowing. Some or all stems may be removed in order to not impart too much of a bitter, reedy note to the wine, but the skins are left to impart colour and tannin. This mush -- or must, as it's called -- has yeast added to it in order to get fermentation going. The longer the yeast and must sit in concrete/stainless steel fermenters or oak barrels, the more sugar is converted to alcohol and the drier the wine will be.

The skins and stems are pushed to the surface of the juice by the carbon dioxide produced, and the winemaker must decides whether to push them back down or pump the juice back over the floating skins (and how often s/he wants to take this action). The fermented red grape juice is eventually drained, the remaining solids are pressed and some (or all) of this wine is blended back into the initial free-run juice. A secondary fermentation -- the conversion of malic acid to the softer lactic acid -- can then be instigated, the wine is transferred to stainless steel tanks or oak barrels for aging, and it may undergo filtering for the purposes of clarity before bottling as well.

In a nutshell, much of what we taste from the bottle comes from the decisions made by the winemaker throughout a lengthy process, especially when it comes to red wine.

Yes, harvesting the grapes is tough work, but the host of variables a winemaker considers while creating a wine is just as taxing.

uncorked@mts.net twitter.com/thegrapenut

DOMAINE GAYDA 2010 "THREE WINDS" SYRAH (Pays D'Oc, France -- $13.99, Liquor Marts and beyond)

Deep purple in colour, the Three Winds delivers espresso, cherry jam, earth and raspberry notes on the nose. It's a medium-plus-bodied, jammy red, with roasted coffee, dark chocolate and cherry notes, some light acidity and tannins, and a medium finish. Good value for money here -- this is a perfect pizza wine. 87/100

PARRAS VINHOS 2009 MONTARIA VINHO TINTO (Alentejano, Portugal -- $10.95, Liquor Marts and beyond)

A blend of three indigenous Portuguese grapes, the Montaria brings savoury, meaty notes on the nose, as well as blackberry, iron and tart cherry aromas. Dry and medium-bodied, there's some smart acidity on the palate that works well with the lean tannins in bringing cranberry and tart raspberry flavours to mind, with a hint of earthiness and spice. A good value wine for Mexican fare or simple steaks. 87/100

MAIN STREET 2009 PINOT NOIR (Napa Valley, Calif. -- around $20, private wine stores)

Napa Valley is typically known for big Chardonnays and Cabernet Sauvignon, but this is a pretty nice little Pinot. Smoky notes on the nose accompany cherry pie, raspberry and vanilla aromas. It's light-bodied, with cola, cherry, strawberry and vanilla flavours on the palate and just enough earthiness to keep it from getting too cloying. Sampled at De Luca's ManyFest kiosk. 88/100

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition October 15, 2011 E4

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