downturns during bulk aging

[winemaker81]

I subscribe to WineMakerMag, and get a weekly email highlighting 3 free articles and 3 paid articles. The paid articles require a subscription to access.

The following article, titled "Blending Italian Red Wines" contains an interesting quote from Rusty Folena of Vino Noceto, Plymouth, California. Because it's paid content, I'm only posting the quote. I try to respect copyright, so I normally post only small quotes that fall within Fair Use guidelines, and provide the link so folks can read the article if they choose.

https://winemakermag.com/technique/blending-italian-red-wines

Lastly, take your time when it comes to Sangiovese and other Italian red grapes. They tend to be a little fickle in the barrel and also on the vine. It’s hard to describe, but there are some days where the grapes and the wine taste great while they are aging and some days you wonder what happened or what was done wrong. So it’s nice to have enough time with these vines and wines to be afforded the time to wait out the ups and downs they go through while they are getting ready to drink. Wine is a living, breathing creature — the process from the vine to the bottle is fascinating.​

I noticed this same effect in my Oak Stix Experiment, and admit it's nice to see that others have experienced it. Not that it's nice to experience the downturn, but it's good to know I'm not alone and that it usually corrects itself.

The lesson here is that if your wine seems to take a downturn during bulk aging, don't react too quickly unless it's something very obvious, such as H2S. Your wine is having a bad day (or week) and needs some alone time to recover.


EDIT: I got it wrong -- the article in question is a free one.

 

[Dwerth]

I subscribe to WineMakerMag, and get a weekly email highlighting 3 free articles and 3 paid articles. The paid articles require a subscription to access.

The following article, titled "Blending Italian Red Wines" contains an interesting quote from Rusty Folena of Vino Noceto, Plymouth, California. Because it's paid content, I'm only posting the quote.

https://winemakermag.com/technique/blending-italian-red-wines

Lastly, take your time when it comes to Sangiovese and other Italian red grapes. They tend to be a little fickle in the barrel and also on the vine. It’s hard to describe, but there are some days where the grapes and the wine taste great while they are aging and some days you wonder what happened or what was done wrong. So it’s nice to have enough time with these vines and wines to be afforded the time to wait out the ups and downs they go through while they are getting ready to drink. Wine is a living, breathing creature — the process from the vine to the bottle is fascinating.​

I noticed this same effect in my Oak Stix Experiment, and admit it's nice to see that others have experienced it. Not that it's nice to experience the downturn, but it's good to know I'm not alone and that it usually corrects itself.

The lesson here is that if your wine seems to take a downturn during bulk aging, don't react too quickly unless it's something very obvious, such as H2S. Your wine is having a bad day (or week) and needs some alone time to recover.

Would you consider the subscription worthwhile? I have been considering it, but wanted to get another's opinion.

 

[winemaker81]

Would you consider the subscription worthwhile? I have been considering it, but wanted to get another's opinion.

I've been a subscriber for several years, and it's worth it to me.

I find that at least one article of the 6 highlighted each week is useful to me -- not necessarily all of an article, but I find a nugget of usefulness.


Try reading the free articles to see if you like it, and subscribe if you do.

 

[CDrew]

Note: I was able to read the whole article, so not protected by a paywall.

Good article especially about Vino Noceto where I have been many times since they are only 45 minutes away. They are well known locally (and not so locally) for Sangiovese as is highlighted in the article. One time 4 of us were invited into the back room for some tasting of wines that were still in the barrel (not a barrel tasting) and were asked to decide what each one was. They were all very different. In the end, they were all Sangiovese, just different styles and lots, but it was highly instructive how different each one could be. There were lots of wild guesses from Zinfandel, to Syrah, to Merlot, so you can imagine when the all Sangio was revealed, how surprised we were. During foothill wine events, they serve good food, and we will often make this our first stop to get the day started.

I did not realize they grew Teraldego and I've had that only at Runquist in Amador. I do see it on their list of wines for sale and will buy a bottle next time I'm up there to check it out.

Regarding their "OGP" Zinfandel, only 2 wineries make an Original Grandpere Zinfandel, Vino Noceto and Andis which is right across the highway, but the vineyard is a couple of miles away off Steiner Road and is said to be the oldest in California, planted 1864-1869 and still producing today. It's full of gnarly thick head trained vines which do look ancient. Hard to believe they still produce grapes. The vineyard itself is tiny just an acre or two. If you want to see the OGP vineyard during a visit, look to the right (west) as you turn into Iron Hub Winery. That tiny plot full of very old vines is OGP.

Anyway, nice to see the locals get some notice. Amador is making some great wine, and if any of you make a wine pilgrimage to California, put it on your list. (hint: it's far more relaxed and a better value than Napa) You can hit me up for a list of don't miss wineries.

 

[winemaker81]

Note: I was able to read the whole article, so not protected by a paywall.

Cool. Either I misread the email, or they mis-categorized the article. Either way, it works out well for our members.