General Flashcards
What does it mean that most topsoil is homogenous in vineyards
It means that even within a single vineyard, the topsoil can vary in texture, composition and characteristics from one parcel to another. This variability can influence how grapes grow, how vines take up nutrients, and ultimately how the resulting wine tastes
What is the definition of Igneous Soils
Igneous soils can be either intrusive or extrusive, made from the cooling and solidification of magma or lava, from within or without the Earth’s crusts.
What is a prominent igneous soils in winegrowing (1 of 2)
- Volcanic soil, particularly basalt, is an extrusive soil formed from cooled, hardened and weathered lava.
- Soil is complicated. Typically finely grained, drains well, holds water, retains and reflects heat
- Contains high proportions of iron (resulting in black or red colored earth)
- Thought to impart an ashy, rusty taste to wines
Famous Regions - Sicily, Canary Islands
What is a prominent igneous soils in winegrowing (2 of 2)
- Granite, formed underthe earth’s crust by slowing cooling magma mixed with quartz
* Found all over wine regions
* Elevated PH promotes high acidity in wines, and rock is porous enough to create deep-rooted vines
Famous Regions - Cornas, Rias Baixas
What the heck are metamorphic soils
Metamorphic soils have been transformed from a different kind of rock through pressure and heat over millions of years
Metamorphic soil is not a name rather than a category of a group of soils. Name and describe a metamorphic soil (1 of 3)
Slate(closely related to but less compressed than Schist)
* Slate is an alluvial (key! this means it was transported and deposited by moving water over time)
* Formed under heat and pressure. Dark and variable in color (remember the red slate at the Mosel tasting)
* Not as subject to weathering as other soils (meaning more durable to natural degradation and processes that break down soil). Retains and reflects heat well to help ripen grapes
Famous Region - Mosel
Metamorphic soil is not a name rather than a category of a group of soils. Name and describe a metamorphic soil (2 of 3)
Schist , another metamorphic soil
* A hard and crystalline rock that is more dense than slate
* Made of layers of minerals that can flake off easily
* Retains heat well, and produces big, powerful wines rich with minerality
Famous Regions - Douro Valley, Ribeira Sacra
Metamorphic soil is not a name rather than a category of a group of soils. Name and describe a metamorphic soil (3 of 3)
Gneiss another metamorphic soil.
* Fairly infertile; formed from either volcanic, granite or schist soil that looks similar to granite
* Minerals are arranged in bands that run through the rock
* Overall, hard and infertile soil making it good for grape growing
Famous Regions - Wachau, Kamptal
Define what a sedimentary soil is
A sedimentary soils are solidified minerals or organic deposits from earth, often left by bodies of water
Think about the seashell references in Chablis and Burgundy
Name and describe a prominent types of sedimentary soilds (1 of 3)
Limestone forms the decomposed bodies of mollusks, fish, seashells, and other organic material that once lived in ancient seabeds and reefs.
* Limestone and chalk (a type of limestone) drain well but also hold water for vines to absorb when needed
* Wines made from limestone are often long-lived with bright, linear acidity
Famous Regions - Burgundy, Champagne, Jerez
Name and describe a prominent types of sedimentary soilds (2 of 3)
Sandstone is comprised of sedimentary rock, sand-sized particles that have been compacted over time by pressure.
* Can vary in color depending on what rock is compacted, pressurized, etc. that creates the sandstone, but commonly contains quartz and feldspar
Famous Region - Chianti Classico
Name and describe a prominent types of sedimentary soilds (3 of 3)
Silex/Flint
* Silex is hard and metal-like and contains high proportions of flint, and is made from silicon dioxide
* Stores and reflects heat well, which is great for ripening grapes in colder climates
* Imparts rich and flinty minerality
Famous Regions - Sancerre, Pouilly-Fume
Soil Textures
Soils are also defined by their textures, which can also be comprised of igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic
Sand
Any rock that has been pulverized into small particles. Drains easy and works well in wet climates. Can be problematic for drought-riddle climates (bc probs too good at draining)
Famous Regions - Barole; Serralunga d’Alba, Monforte d’Alba, and Castiglione Falletto
Clay
As topsoil it expands and contrasts with water. However, deep clay subsoilretains percipitation and minerals. Can help in dry times.
* Some say it imparts to wines what the texture of clay is itself - thick, round, and generous
Famous Region - Pomerol
Gravel
Can range in size from pebble to a fist. Most helpfulin absorbing heat and reflecting onto grape varieties. Particularly at night when temperatures cool. Allows region to make wines that are bigger and more alcoholic than they would be able to otherwise
Famous Regions - Left Bank Bordeaux
Silt/Loess
Silt is more finely textured than sand. It retains more water, which can result in overly compacted (think of wet, clumpy dirt) and waterlogged conditions. Can also be too fertile, but one good variety is loess which is a type of wind-blown silt comprised of silica
Famous Region - Niederösterreich (Lower Austria), primarily for Grüner Veltliner
Loam
A warm, soft, crumbly mix of sand, silt and clay. Loam can be too fertile for quality wines. But when blended with other soils it can make powerful varieties
Famous Region - Barossa Valley
Alluvium
A blend of soils comprised of clay, silt, sand and gravel. Deposited many years from running water. Typically contains abundant amount of organic material. Quite fertile
Famous Region - Napa Valley
Biodynamic Viticulture
- Derives from 1924 lectures of Austrian philosopher Rudolph Steiner
Marl
A friable (easily crumbled, pulverized) deposit composed of clay and lime (limestone can be considered as a purer, lithified form of marl)
Tufa
A porous rock composed of silica and calcium carbonate that is precipitated from a source of water such as a spring or lake
Famous Region - Campania, Italy; the Loire, particularly around Touraine
Granite
A hard and coarse-grained igneous rock composed of feldspars, quartz, and other minerals
Famouse Region - Beaujolais, Northern Rhone, Alsace
Eutypa dieback
Fungal infection of the trunk and branches that may be introduced through grafts and transmitted on infected shears at the time of pruning
* Damage often hits one arm of vine; hence dead-arm
* No treatment
* d’Arenberg makes a premium wine called Dead Arm Shiraz from old Eutypa-infected vines in McLaren Vale
* Historically, rose bushes planted at the edge of vineyards alerted vineyard workers to fungal diseases such as powdery mildew and downy mildew which would develop disease in advance of vine
Lifecycle of the vine
Vines are generally propagated through cuttings
* Less common is burying a branch of an existing plant, aka, layering (still practiced in phylloxera-free vineyards). Preserves identity and genetic diversity
* Massal selection take cuttings from most outstanding vines in the vineyard. Usually taken to nursey to be grafted on American rootstock
Vineyard planting
Young vines are typically planted in rows to facilitate vineyard ops.
* Can be planted pell-mell aka en foule which is closely spaced and forces vines to compete with one another for resources
Old Vines
Typically make for better wine -
* Deeper root system
* Lower yields
Bordeaux - February, 1956
The Great Frost
* Required large scale replanting in Right Bank
* These newly planted vines did not withold 1961 vintage for cult like status
