Wine Style, Quality and Price

Question 1

Managing high or low rainfall areas:

Answer 1

• on slopes
• gravel or chalk that can drain water
• irrigation is necessary

Question 2

What does pruning do?

Answer 2

Controls the number of bunches of grapes of each vine.

Question 3

What does positioning do?

Answer 3

Increases or lowers the temperature of the grape bunches or their degree of exposure to sunlight.

Question 4

What can pests do to vineyards?

Answer 4

They move quickly. Can damage shoots, buds, leaves and may eat the grape.

Question 5

What does disease do to vineyards?

Answer 5

They’re systemic. They hurt the plant over time but it’s a slow process.

1. damage green parts, leading to spoiled grapes
2. reduce yields
3. inhibit ripening
4. can lead to the death of the vine

Question 6

When are grapes hand-harvested?

Answer 6

• when whole bunches of grapes are needed
• on steep sites with difficult access
• where labor is cheap may decide to hand harvest

Question 7

Benefits to hand-harvesting:

Answer 7

• minimizes bruises

- better quality grapes because of small containers

Question 8

Benefit to machine harvesting:

Answer 8

• machine harvesting can get grapes in fast (once grapes off stem they start oxidizing)

Question 9

At what temperature and for how long is white wine fermented?

Answer 9

12-22ºC (53.6-71.6ºF) for 2 - 4 weeks

Question 10

How is red wine made differently than white wine?

Answer 10

• Red grapes are crushed and then both must and skins are put in fermenting vessel together.
• They are fermented at higher temperatures for longer- Methods used to keep juice in contact with the skins for maceration
• Free-run wine is drawn off
• Skins are pressed. May be added to free-run wine for higher levels of tannins.

Question 11

At what temperature and for how long is red wine fermented?

Answer 11

• 20-30ºC- 5 days (Beaujolais) and for more than 2 weeks for rich-flavored wines, such as top quality Bordeaux

Question 12

How is the fermenting wine kept in contact with the skins?

Answer 12

Juice may be “pumped over” the floating skins (the cap, thick layer of skins, stems and seeds) or the skins may be “punched down” into the juice.

Question 13

When is the free-run wine drawn off from the fermentation process?

Answer 13

When enough color and tannin has been extracted.

Question 14

What is press wine?

Answer 14

Wine that has been pressed from the skins. It has a higher level of tannins and may be blended with the free-run wine.

Question 15

What are the differences between French and America oak?

Answer 15

• French/European oak is more expensive
• French oak gives more subtle, toast and nutty flavors and smoother tannins
• American oak gives sweet coconut and vanilla but harsher tannins

Question 16

How do winemakers avoid air in casks?

Answer 16

It’s expensive cooperage to keep wine always topped up to avoid it.

Question 17

What is maturation with oxygen? What’s the other name for it? What are the benefits?

Answer 17

• Non-reductive winemaking
• Aging in open top barrels or vats, or oak barrels
• The vessel is porous and allows small amounts of oxygen to dissolve in the wine.
• It softens the tannins in red wines, making the wine taste smoother, and can cause flavors, such as toffee, fig, hazelnut and coffee to develop.

Question 18

What is maturation without oxygen? What’s the other name for it? What are the benefits?

Answer 18

• Reductive winemaking
• Bottles, cement, fiberglass, stainless steel, airtight vats.- Can blanket a wine with inert gases
• Changes occur faster in bottles, because they’re smaller.- Preserves fresh, fruity, vibrant notes

Question 19

What happens to wine in bottles?

Answer 19

• few wines improve in bottles- It is common for the attractive fruit flavors to fade away
• for a few special wines, the fruit character remains and complex flavors develop around it
• In the bottle, the fresh fruit aromas of young wines change into cooked fruit, vegetal and animal notes

Question 20

What is racking?

Answer 20

• Filtering or fining is a traditional method in wine production of moving wine form one container to another using gravity rather than a pump.
• Exposes the wine to oxygen and can reduce the “reduced” notes (volatile sulfur compounds, mercaptans, rotten eggs, rubber, struck matches, sewage)

Question 21

What is the difference between southern and northern hemisphere wines?

Answer 21

• Southern hemisphere wines are half a year older
• This can make a difference when wine are made to be consumed as young and fresh as possible, such as rosés and fruity unoaked whites

Question 22

What is the EU classification system?

Answer 22

• Wines with a (GI) geographical indication and wines without
• The GI wines are subdivided into Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) and Protected Geographical Indication (PGI)

Question 23

What is a merchant or négociant?

Answer 23

They blend together wine and/or grapes bought in from winemakers and grape farmers.

Question 24

About PDO:

Answer 24

• In theory, each PDO is unique, having a flavor that cannot be copied by any other wine
• Uniqueness is caused by the place the grapes are grown, the grape varieties used, and the methods used to grow the grapes and make the wine.
• The wine must be made within the laws that specify the limits of the area, wine growing and making techniques and grape varieties. France, Italy and Spain. In Germany, also graded according to sugar levels.

Question 25

The two main factors that affect the quality and style of the raw grape material are:

Answer 25

1. Degree of care of the vineyard

2. Control of yields

Question 26

What are some vineyard activities that help the grapes ripen fully?

Answer 26

1. Careful pruning

2. Careful positioning

Question 27

What do lower yields mean?

Answer 27

Generally result in riper grapes with more concentrated flavors.