Viniculture/Vinification Flashcards
What is viticulture?
The art and science of vine growing.
What are factors of production for growing grapes/making wine?
Location/geography, climate, topography/aspect, grape varietals, viticulture practices, vinification process, harvest, vintage, terroir, wine laws, and history.
At what latitude are most vines grown in the world?
Between 30°– 50°
Macroclimate
“big picture”
Mesoclimate
a particular vineyard site
Microclimate
single row of vines and/or one vine
What defines a continental climate?
Strong annual variation due to lack of proximity to large bodies of water.
Often hot summers and cold winters.
What defines a Mediterranean climate?
Hot and dry summers (aside from immediate coastal areas).
Mild summers along the coast, but subject to storms/weather.
What defines a maritime climate?
Climate influenced by large body of water (a sea or ocean).
Mild temperatures that fluctuate year to year.
What defines a high desert climate?
Generally hot and dry summers with dramatic overnight drops.
What influence does planting grapes on a valley floor have?
Susceptible to frost and sometimes have overly fertile soil.
What do the skins of grapes impart on a wine?
Tannins, color, and flavor.
What does the pulp of a grape impart on a wine?
Water, sugar, acid, seeds/pips.
What can crushing the seeds/pips of a grape do to the wine?
Cause bitterness.
What are three different species of grapes?
Vitis Labrusca
Vitis Riparia
Vitis Vinifera *
What is a grape hybrid?
Vines of two or more different species to create new variety.
Ex. Vitis vinifera x Vitis labrusca
What is an example of a hybrid?
Seyval Blanc
Vidal Blanc
What is a grape cross/crossing?
Vines of the same species are combined.
Ex. Vitis vinifera x Vitis vinifera
What is an example of a crossing?
Pinotage = Pinot Noir x Cinsault
What is a grape clone?
Identical genetic reproductions of a single vine.
What are the effects of a warm climate on grapes?
Grapes ripen fully, more sugar is produced, and acidity is lower.
Higher alcohol potential, flavors are more ripe/lush/juicy.
What are the effects of a cool climate on grapes?
Grapes ripen slowly, less sugar is produced, and acidity is high.
Less alcohol potential, flavors are more tart/lean.
How are yields often measured?
Tons of grapes per acre
Hectoliters per hectare
Pounds/kilos per vine
What are the factors considered at harvest?
Time of picking (grape maturity, sugar ripeness, physical ripeness, and tannin ripeness).
Method of harvest (hand/mechanical and small/large bin size).
What is Green Harvesting?
Crop thinning method of dropping or cutting unripe grapes before harvest to decrease yields and allow vines to focus energy and nutrients on fewer, higher quality bunches.
What are the advantages/disadvantages of hand harvesting?
Labor intensive, slower, greater selectivity.
What are the advantages/disadvantages of mechanical harvesting?
Economical, rapid, often bruises fruit and/or comes with
leaves/pets/animals.
What are the advantages/disadvantages of small bins for sorting?
Enables careful selection, limits # of clusters to allow measure of the fruit’s weight.
What are the advantages/disadvantages of large bins for sorting?
More weight can result in bursting of grapes and premature fermentation.
What is fermentation?
Sugar + Yeast = Alcohol, CO2, flavors/aromas, and heat.
What are the steps for making white wine?
Harvest De-stem or whole bunches Crush Press juice/must from skins (skin contact?) Fermentation Aging (None? Lees? Barrel?) Fine and/or filtering Bottle
What are the steps for making red wine?
Harvest Crush De-stem or whole bunches Skins and seeds macerated Fermentation Aging (None? Barrel?) Fine and/or filtering Bottle
What are the steps for making rose?
Harvest De-stem or whole bunches Crush Press juice skins/must (Limited skin contact) Fermentation Aging (None? Barrel?) Fine and/or filtering Bottle
What is a foudre?
Large oak barrel that can contain 1000+ liters.
What is a barrique?
An oak barrel that can hold 225-liters.
What are examples of other aging vessels for wines?
Egg-shaped
Stainless Steel
Concrete
Amphora
What does barrel aging do?
Evaporates excess water, oxidizes (changes color), affects texture (softens), imparts flavor (vanilla, oak, toast, spice, coconut).
What are some examples of different time of oak barrels?
American
French
Salvonian
Hungarian
What kind of flavors/aromas do American oak barrels impart?
Bold and more intense flavors
dill, coconut, vanilla, baking spice
What kind of flavors/aromas do French oak barrels impart?
Subtler aromas
vanilla, toast, spice
What is fining in terms of bottling?
A process that clarifies the wine.
What is cold stabilization?
A process of fining that causes tartrate crystals to precipitate out of the wine at 25 degrees (very low temperature).
What is the purpose of sorting grapes?
To remove excess leaves, branches, and damaged fruits.
