Authentic Wine by Goode Jamie

Author:Goode, Jamie
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780520949690
Publisher: University of California Press

MANIPULATIONS

So far we have been looking at wine additions, that is, things that have actually been added to the wine. But there’s another level of manipulation: physical interventions in the winery that have an impact on the flavour of the wine. These range from simple bulk movements to more elaborate techniques such as cross-flow filtration or ion exchange. Whether these interfere with the naturalness of a wine is a subject of some debate. We start from the premise that the more one physically intervenes with the wine the less natural it becomes. The most natural winemakers will move their wines twice: once after fermentation and then again on route to bottle, leaving the wine on its primary and/or secondary fermentation lees. This is a risky business if it is not monitored and managed properly! At the other end of the continuum, the most commercial winemakers can be forced to move their wine numerous times, for both technical and/or economic reasons. We (along with most of the winemaking community) believe that the more you move a wine (irrespective of the nature of the physical interference that takes place), the more you take from your wine. Putting this another way, winemakers who minimize movement and physical intervention tend to make wines with more stuffing. But we’re not saying that those who choose to limit movements will always be left with better wines, because not all stuffing is good. A certain level of intervention is necessary to maximize quality.

As an example of this, wines need a certain level of movement and a certain level of oxygen during the winemaking process. Little movement can result in an abundance of sulfides that ultimately mask the fruit expression and it can lack balance and harmony or even result in aromas that many consider faults. We know natural winemakers who consider the reductive state as critical to protecting the wine during its journey in bottle and that only when the fruit bursts through this mineral expression can the consumer enjoy the wine in all its glory. This is all very well and good if you are selling to a consumer who has the time and patience to wait for such an opportune moment, but as we know, the market doesn’t really work like that.

Physical manipulation is necessary in all wineries, however natural they might consider themselves to be. We believe this all too basic concept is not only paramount to understanding how to make great wines, but also that it is all too often overlooked by those pushing the boundaries of naturalness. Those who refuse certain basic manipulations because it is against their “natural” philosophy run the risk of making faulty wines. It’s true that such wines may well have a more impressive philosophical backbone, but as we know, this does not always mean that they are superior.

Here are a few common manipulations that wine is subjected to. This is not an exhaustive list, but such a list would fill a book in its own right.

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