Transformation Of Grapes To Red Wine

 

Part Two: Red Wine Fermentation

In recent newsletters, we have discussed our philosophies and procedures for making wine, including vineyard selection and development, viticultural practices and the winemaking process following harvest. Most recently, we described the white wine fermentation process and how it contributes to and shapes the character of our Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay wines.

Red wine fermentation is fundamentally different from that of white wines, because red wine depends on extensive contact with the grape skins to produce the color, flavor and texture elements expected in great red wines. So in contrast to the immediate separation of juice from skin prior to white wine fermentation, red grapes are handled quite differently. Like white grapes, however, our red grapes are harvested section–by–section, lot–by–lot, with each vineyard block picked only when the appropriate sugar–acid balance and full flavor development is achieved.

In the Vineyard

Many years of experimentation with our key vineyard properties have led to a better understanding of the best way to handle each lot of grapes in order to maximize flavor, balance and texture elements in the finished wine. This micro–management of our vineyards and the resulting fermentation of many small, unique lots plays a vital role in the production of our wines and provides great flexibility in determining and optimizing our final blends prior to bottling. Our red grapes are harvested by hand in the cool morning hours, as soon as there is sufficient light to pick. Ideally, we will finish in the vineyard by 10 a.m., and in no case will we pick grapes after noon. This is important, as night–cooled grapes are not as susceptible to oxidation or excessive de–juicing; thus, this is the initial step in a long chain of quality control requirements unique to our winemaking process. An additional examination of the grapes in the vineyard by two extra sorters also helps eliminate any leaves or clusters that are not uniformly ripened.

At the Winery

Upon arrival to our covered and shaded processing area, the fruit is gently conveyed to a sorting table, where each bunch is carefully inspected to ensure that all imperfections are removed prior to de-stemming. We use only belt conveyers for the movement of fruit rather than conventional "worm–screw" augers to prevent the damaging or cutting of berry skins or cluster stems, as quality standards dictate the majority of grapes be intact and whole after processing.

Fermentation

After the berries are removed from the stems, the fruit is transferred into small open–top tanks. This is very different from the more conventional method of pumping the grapes (after de–stemming called "must") into fermenters. Pumping breaks the berry skins prematurely, and ultimately results in the excessive release of less desirable seed tannins into the finished wine.

We have 37 open–top tanks designed exclusively for the fermentation of our red grapes. They are very small – from four to seven tons capacity with cooling jackets positioned low to accommodate lots as small as one–and–one–half tons. This gives us tremendous flexibility in keeping lots separate in order to preserve unique and individual characteristics from the various sections of each vineyard.

Once the red must is safely in the fermenting tanks, contents are chilled to 45–50°F to delay the onset of fermentation, and the process of color and flavor extraction from the skins begins. This "cold soaking" of the fruit may last from three to seven days (depending on the rate of extraction) prior to allowing the must to warm for inoculation. We use several strains of yeasts to enhance and/or compliment the flavor and structural profiles of each individual fermentation lot.

Yeast Selection

We have experimented with indigenous or wild yeasts, but prefer the reliability and predictable contributions from "proven" isolated yeast strains. A prominent yeast selection for our Pinot Noir is Assmanshausen, named after a little village on the Rhine in Germany where the country’s best Pinot Noir grapes are grown. It has a relatively slow and steady fermentation rate, promotes good color stability, enhances varietal fruit flavors and aromas and often contributes a pleasant complimenting spicy note to the finished wine.

A gentle punch–down of the fermenting cap occurs three times a day throughout the fermentation period to encourage the interaction between the skins and the fermenting juice. (The cap consists of the skins and seeds that rise to the top of the fermenting must.) Warm fermentation temperatures are encouraged, but are not allowed to exceed 85°F.

The entire fermentation process takes no longer than five to seven days, so the total maceration time (the time the juice/wine remains with the skins) will be from eight to fourteen days. This will vary from lot to lot, but in all cases the precise time required to extract the desired flavor and color without releasing excessive tannins into the wine will be respected.

Racking the Wine

We remove the wine from its skins by draining off all the free run (un–pressed wine) into a stainless steel tank and then gently press the remaining skins into a separate "press wine" tank. The wine is now at about 80°F and receives its inoculation for the malolactic (or secondary) fermentation. This process provides greater stability as well as contributing complexity and a smooth, silky mouth feel to our red wines. Within two to three days, the wine is racked (removed from sediment) into barrels where it completes its malolactic fermentation. This can take from two to eight weeks depending on temperature, pH and other factors. Each of our three barrel rooms has independent heating and cooling systems so we can modify and create the ideal environment for the desired rapid completion of the malolactic fermentation.

 

Pinot Noir

Our Pinot Noirs receive only one careful racking during the barrel aging cycle (after the completion of the secondary fermentation) and is then immediately returned to barrels. This minimal handling preserves the color, flavor and the delicate textural components in the wine. Time in the barrel may vary from 10 to 18 months for our Pinot Noirs, depending upon the needs of the particular lot. Barrels are selected from three French master–coopers for the aging of our Pinot Noir wines – François Frères, Rousseau and Seguin Moreau. We use a combination of new, one–year–old and two– year–old barrels, with wood originating from specific oak forests of France to achieve the flavor and textural profiles desired for each individual red wine.

Our stylistic objective is to produce wines of great balance, elegance and texture, but never to overpower the fruit with too much oak–influenced character.

Our Russian River Valley blend is generally the first Pinot Noir blend assembled, and is bottled prior to the following vintage harvest. Once bottled, this wine will receive an additional ten months of "bottle aging" prior to release. Pinot Noir lots selected as vineyard designates may benefit from additional time in the bottle, and may not be released until twelve to eighteen months after bottling.

By September, as the new harvest season arrives, we will take comfort knowing that much of the fruit from the previous season is safely in the bottle, and continuing its evolutionary path from our vineyards to the glasses of our cherished consumers.