WSET2 - Chapter 3 - Viniculture Flashcards
Name the five things a vine needs to be healthy and ripen.
Carbon dioxide, water, heat, sunlight, nutrients
How is climate different than weather?
Climate describes the weather conditions we may expect in a typical year, while weather varies day by day, year on year.
What 3 elements determine the climate of a wine region?
Latitude, altitude and oceans
How do ocean currents and breezes affect climate in wine growing regions?
Ocean breezes generally are cooling. The ocean current warming fro Western Europe.
What happens to the wine of grapes that have not ripened fully? (due to cool climate)
It tastes sour, astringent, bitter and lacking in fruit flavors
What happens to a grape if the climate is too hot?
They become unpleasantly jammy low acid, raisiny or generally taste bland
Wines grown in a hot climate are what with respect to alcohol, body, tannin and acidity?
High alcohol, full body, high tannin, less acidity
Wines grown in a cool climate are what with respect to alcohol, body, tannin and acidity?
Low alcohol, light body, less tannin, more acidity
What time during the year does weather have the biggest impact on grapes?
The growing season
Name four types of extreme weather that impact grapes.
Hail (damages skin, subject to rot); extreme cold or hot; floods and late frosts
How can winemakers handle vintage variations?
They can use (geographical) blending to keep style similar.
Sunlight allows grapes to combine ____ and ____ into ______
Carbon dioxide, water, sugar
In high latitude regions (far away from the Equator) what are common practices to ensure grapes get more exposure to sunlight?
Plant on a slope or near a river that reflects sunlight
What effect does too much water have on grapes (3) and the resulting wine (3)
Grapes become bloated, the crop is bigger, but flavors and sugars are diluted.
Wines have less body, less alcohol and less flavor.
For the highest quality wine, how do you manage water?
Just enough water to ensure sugar production, but no more.
In Europe why are vines planted on steep slopes or soils like gravel or chalk?
They help water drain away and can contribute warmth (e.g. gravel)
Most of the worlds vineyards are found at what position in the globe?
In temperate zones between 30 and 50 degrees
What are the main 2 factors affecting warmth? What is a secondary factor?
Main: Climate and weather. Additional: soils very in their ability to reflect or absorb heat. Dry stony soils are warmer than clay.
What vineyard activities affect the quality and style of the raw grape?
Degree of Care in the vineyard (positioning leaves, etc)
Control of yields (pruning, etc)
Name the four parts of a grape
Stalk, skin, pulp and sees
Give 3 examples of pests and diseases in a vineyard
Animals pests (eat and damage) Fungus diseases (e.g. mildew or rot) do damage Long-term diseases (fungal bacteria or viral ) can affect the health of vines lowering yields and inhibiting ripening.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of machine harvesting
It is efficient and cheap; it can only be done on flat sites. (If whole bunch of grapes are needed, it must be hand-harvested)
What is the most important part of the winemaking process?
Fermentation
Describe the five stages in making WHITE WINE
Crushing, pressing (remove skins), fermentation, maturation and bottling.
What is must?
The mix of grape juice and yeast that you have prior to fermentation.
What is the temperature of white wine fermentation?
12-22 C
How long does fermentation of WHITEwine take?
2 to 4 weeks
Describe the five/six stages in making RED wine.
Crushing, fermentation, pressing, maturation, blending, bottling
What is the temperature of red wine fermentation?
20 - 32 C
How long does fermentation of RED wine take?
5 days to 2 weeks
What types of wines MUST be made from black grapes?
Rose and red
What distinguishes rose wines during their production compared to white or red wine?
Like red wines there is skin contact (12h/36h) before pressing.
Like white wine fermented is at lower temperatures (12-22 C).
T/F Red wines are fermented in oak barrels
False. This is not very practical
Name three containers that can be used for maturation
Oak, cement, stainless steel - eventually bottle.
Maturation WITH Oxygen causes what flavors?
toffee, fig, nut and coffee
Maturation WITHOUT Oxygen causes what flavors?(usually in bottle, as inox tanks are too big and flavours stay unchanged for months)
Fresh fruit aromas change into cooked fruit, vegetal and animal notes.
Only in small percentage of wines the fruit characters remain while the other complex flavours develop around it.
What are factors that impact the cost of a wine? (three categories, list one or two items per)
Vineyard: cost of premium land, degree of mechanisation, yield management
Winery: Cost of barrels and ageing (ties up capital need space)
Packaging/Distribution: Exchange rates, packaging, transport, low-volume high service distribution is more expensive
(True/False) White wines can only be made from white grapes.
False
What do punching down and pumping over do to a red wine? When do they happen?
This happens during fermentation. Alcohol can help extract color, tannins and flavor from the skins so this is done to accelerate those processes.
What is the difference between free run wines and press wine?
Free run wine can be drawn off after fermentation is complete (no press).
Press wine is yielded by pressing, this has a higher level of tannins and can be blended in to achieve certain styles.
