1.2 - Standard Options: Winemaking Flashcards
Why is whole bunch pressing advantageous for sparkling wine production? (2)
- It produces gentle, delicate juice that is low in solids and low in phenolics (tannin & anthocynins).
- The stems create channels for the juice to flow through meaning less pressure is required. (as long as the stems are ripe)
What are the challenges of whole bunch pressing?
It’s much slower as you can only get a small amount of fruit in the press at any one time.
What kind of press is typically used?
Traditionally a basket press with a wider, shorter basket. Pneumatic presses are now used widely also.
Why is it important to to press gently for sparkling wine production?
To minimise maceration and extraction, particularly with black skinned varieties. Too much phenolic matter can make the final wine taste bitter and feel course.
What are the two kinds of press fractions?
- Free run juice
2. Press juice
What are the key attributes of free run juice and press juice?
Free run - higher acidity, more delicate flavours
Press juice - can mature faster/good for early consumption, higher pH
Why is filtration not preferred before fermentation?
Because you need the nutrients in some solids for a healthy ferment.
What temperature should the primary ferment be and why?
14-20 degrees.
To retain fresh fruit flavours but not be too cold for the yeast to function.
What the disadvantage of higher acidity fruit in regards to fermentation?
Higher acid means a lower pH which is a really difficult environment for yeast to perform.
What are the advantages of using selected yeasts for primary fermentation in:
- Method Traditional
- Tank method
- Both
- Can select neutral strains that won’t compete with autolytic flavours
- Can select strains that highlight fruit flavours.
- Helps guarantee a healthy ferment that will complete to dryness in a stressful, low pH environment
What are the five factors that make secondary fermentation a stressful environment for yeast?
- I can be 9.5-11% alcohol already
- It’s still low pH (below 3)
- It needs to be kept at a low temperature (16C)
- Nutrients will be very low (already consumed, can only add so much in Liqueur de Tirage)
- High pressure as fermentation continues in bottle
What are two common kinds of selected yeast used for sparkling wine production?
- Prise de Mousse (EC1118)
2. Lallemand (Epernay Strain)
What is the name of the process of particles clumping together to form large solids?
Flocculation
Why might malolactic conversion be used in sparkling wine production?
To reduce acidity in excessively acidic wines, or enhance texture.
Why aren’t the buttery flavours generally associated with malolactic fermentation usually found in sparkling wine?
Because diacetyl (which gives this flavour) is metabolised by the yeast in the sencondary fermentation.
What would a producer do to inhibit malolactic conversion?
Why?
Sterile filter.
So that there is no risk of it starting the bottle.
What options are available to a producer when it comes to handling the base wine?
- Age on lees
- Age in oak
Why would a producer only use a small proportion of new oak to hold their base wine?
Because the flavours of new oak are heightened in sparkling wine.
What four different elements will producers be blending at the assemblage stage?
Different:
- vineyards
- vintages
- varieties
- vinification techniques
What are the eight reasons for blending in sparkling wine?
- Balance
- Consistency
- Style
- Rose
- Complexity
- Minimisation of faults
- Volume
- Price
What are the most common finishing options for base wines?
Traditional Method - stabilised for tartrates and proteins
All sparkling - clarification
What is the name of the addition that starts the secondary fermentation in the traditional method?
What does it consist of?
Liqueur de tirage. It consists of: 1. wine and/or must 2. sugar 3. cultured yeasts 4. yeast nutrients 5. a clarifying agent (such as bentonite/alginate)
What is the most common sugar level in the Liqueur de tirage?
What does it depend on?
24g of sucrose
The amount will depend on the level of effervescence desired
How much alcohol is generally created during the secondary fermentation with the traditional method?
What is the general level of pressure achieved?
1.5% 6 atmospheres (bar)
Also the name of a common cultivated yeast strain, what is the secondary fermentation in the Traditional Method known as in Champagne?
Prise de Mousse
‘Capturing the Sparkle’
Why is effective flocculation necessary for the traditional method?
Yeast cells must be large enough that they will fall and settle with riddling, and then can be removed readily at disgorgement.
What does ‘sur latte’ mean?
It translates to ‘on the slats’, and refers to the horizontal storage of wines after the additions of liqueur de tirage and bottling.
What temperature is the secondary fermentation in the traditional method?
How long does the secondary ferment usually take?
How does this relate to the final wine?
The temperature can be 10-12C.
It can take 4-6 weeks.
The cooler the temperature the longer the ferment. Some argue a longer, cooler ferment leads to a more complex wine.
After completion fo seconday ferment, what would a method traditional producer choose to do?
Lees ageing.
Various timespans, starting at around 9 months, and extending to multiple years. Typically 15-18 months which is where you’ll start to see yeast autolysis characters
What is the French word for riddling?
What is the French name for hand-riddling pallets?
What’s the name of the automated riddling machine?
Remuage
Pupitres
Gyropalettes
What are the relative time frames for hand riddling versus a gyropalette?
Hand riddling - up to eight weeks
Gyropalette - 3-4 days
What does ‘sur pointe’ mean?
Translates to ‘on the tip’
Refers to bottles being aged vertically, neck down after riddling so that the lees remain settled in the neck of the bottle.
Describe the process of disgorgement
- Bottles are cooled to 7C
- Necks immersed in frozen brine
- A machine turns the bottle upright and the pressure in the bottle pushes out the frozen lees
Why is it important to cool the wine and freeze the necks when disgorging?
The aim is to lose as little wine and pressure as possible, while removing as much lees as possible.
Cool temperatures will increase solubility of carbon dioxide, so will limit gushing.
What is the addition after disgorgement called?
What does it consist of?
What is it’s purpose?
Liqueur d’expedition.
It consists of wine and sugar (dosage)/RCGM.
It’s purpose is to fill the bottle after disgorgement, and determine the level of sweetness in the final wine.
How are dosage, acidity and age related?
The level of dosage will be selected to balance the acidity. And as the perception of acidity rounds out with age, the older the wine before disgorgement, the less dosage required.
What is the Maillard reaction?
What flavours is it likely to produce?
The reaction of the sugar in the liqueur d’expedition with compounds formed during yeast autolysis.
It typically provides flavours of roasted, toasted vanilla aromas.
When was the transfer method invented and why?
When is it used in Champagne?
The 1940s to avoid the costly, time consuming process of riddling, but retaining the characters of yeast autolysis.
It is used in Champagne for 375ml and large format over 3000ml
What are the benefits of the transfer method?
- Less costly than TM
- Still get secondary characters
- Increased consistency
- Suitable for high volume
What is different about the liqueur de tirage for transfer method as opposed to the traditional method?
It doesn’t need to have fining agents added to help flocculation.
Describe what happens after lees ageing in the transfer method.
Wines are chilled to 0 degrees C. The bottles are opened by machine and poured into a pressurised tank. Dosage and SO2 is added, wine is sterile filtered and then bottled.
Describe the process for the ancestral method.
Partly fermented wine is bottled and the completion of fermentation in bottle creates CO2 to provide effervescence. The sugar levels of the must are monitored so that bottling can occur when there is the right amount of sugar to result in the desired level of pressure in the final wine.
What are the disadvantages of the ancestral method?
Bottle variation. Ferment can slow down or stop because of the harsh environment, resulting in an off-dry wine.
Or, the ferment could start up again later, making some bottles drier.
The level of sediment can vary between bottles
What is the difference between Ancestral method wines and Pet Nat?
Ancestral method wines are regulated by the appellation they are produced in. Petillant Naturel wines can be made anywhere, and have no set regulations.
What are three synonyms for the tank method?
- Charmat method
- Cuve Close
- Martinotti
What are the advantages of the tank method?
Large volumes can be made quite quickly and inexpensively as there is no riddling, disgorging or long lees ageing.
What are the disadvantages of the tank method?
It is often seen as an inferior method, and as such, is typically used for inexpensive wines.
What is the typical primary fermentation temperature for tank method wines? Why?
16-18 C
To keep fresh fruit flavours, but avoid flavours that come from a very cool ferment
What is added to tank method wines before secondary fermentation?
Sugar and yeast.
How and when is secondary fermentation stopped in the tank method?
Usually by chilling the wine to 2-4C, when the desired level of atmospheres and RS is achieved.
How is lees ageing done in the tank method?
If lees ageing is desired, the wine will be cooled to 2-4 C and paddles inside the sealed tank will stir to maximise contact. It will typically be a short time (9 months is common) so that the economic benefit of tank method is not lost.
Describe the process that takes place after secondary fermentation in the tank method.
- Wine is cold stabilised
- Yeast removed by centrifugation or filtration.
- Adjustments made (sugar, SO2)
- Sterile filtration
- Bottling with a counter pressure filling system
What is the difference between the Tank method and the Asti method?
The Asti method only has one fermentation.
The Asti method is basically Pet-Nat in a tank
When would carbonation be used?
For inexpensive, high-volume wines, typically using fruity or aromatic varieties
What are the sweetness levels for labelling purposes? (Champagne)
Brut Nature - 0-3g/L Extra Brut - 0-6g/L Brut - 6-12g/L Extra Sec - 12-17g/L Sec - 17-32g/L Demi-Sec - 32-50g/L Doux - 50+g/L
What are the Italian words for the French sweetness levels?
Bruto Natural Extra Bruto Bruto Extra-Dry Secco/Seco/Dry Semi-Seco/Medium-Dry/Abboccato Dulce
What are the German words the the French levels of sweetness?
Naturherb Extra Herb Herb Extra Trocken Trocken Halbtrocken Mild
What is the composure of sparkling wine corks and why?
Agglomerate cork with two disks of natural cork on the ends. Because it’s almost impossible to cut a piece of natural cork to the appropriate size and shape (31mm diameter)
What is the classic closure fr sparkling wine, and what are some of the alternative styles?
Classic is cork, and more frequently DIAM.
Crown seal for pet-nat and synthetic resealable closures for some mass-market wines
How does sugar relate to mousse?
The more sugar available to be fermented, the more CO2 there will be
How is lees ageing related to mousse?
Some CO2 will be lost during lees ageing, so a mousse may appear less intense, however long lees aged wines will have a longer lasting mousse
