Growing the Grape: Part Deux

The grapevines and land are procured, now what?

There are a number of trellising methods that viticulturists employ when planting their vines such as the “double curtain” or the “lyre” that were developed by the Australian guru of the canopy, Dr. Richard Smart (Hugh Johnson’s Wine Companion).

When the winemaker has chosen their method, they must next look into the pruning method. Originally a painstaking procedure that was done by hand, there are now mechanical methods that have taken precedence in the larger vineyards.

Also, according to Hugh Johnson’s Wine Companion, “chicory can be planted to keep grape vines from becoming too dense.”

The grapes are now planted and set up to ensure consistent production. How to cultivate and protect the vines is now the issue. If you are one of the burgeoning groups of green growers that don’t want any pesticides touching your grapes, there are a number of natural choices to consider.

Green winemakers use copper sulfate, one of the primary methods of controlling pests and protecting against viruses.

It’s been around for many years and is actually a part of sustainable farming.

Natural predators are introduced to keep insects out. Australia uses guinea fowl to prey on mites.

Other plantings may be introduced, that will aid in retaining water and fortifying the vines.

One type of intruder that might be welcomed, however, is botrytis, or noble rot, which can produce great sweet or dessert wines. Wine producers that do not want such wines work hard to keep the insects that help instigate the botrytis mold out of their vineyards.

The next issue is when to pick the grapes. Botrytis infected grapes,are left longer on the vine as the sugar level of the grape will increase the longer it is on the vine. the same is true of other grapes used to make dessert or sweeter wines like ice wines.

Like any farmer, the vineyard owners have to combat the weather and its effects like drought, floods, and cold snaps. In fact, if you track the fires and flooding within the wine regions of California, France, and Australia over the past couple of years you will see that those winemakers who were able to save crops have a greatly varied output. This is due to what Californians call mog (matter other than grapes) and the fact that most winemakers have more than one vineyard and may buy grapes from growers who specialize in growing grapes to sell to winemakers, which is the most popular way of procuring grapes for new wine makers.

Once the grapes are picked and sorted, the winemakers add sulphur dioxide (think sulfites) to crushed grapes to prevent wild fermentation. And then the fun begins. There are a multitude of steps that each winemaker uses to-separate stems, skins, etc. from the juice and ready it for the storage casks or vats.

There are a variety of preferred methods stemming from the formidable malolactic fermentation (created by bacteria rather than yeast, that lowers acidity of a wine when the bacteria feed on malic [apple] acid and turn it into lactic [milk] acid) to cold fermentation and stabilization. One of my favorite stories about this process concerns a port. The Penfold’s Grandfather Port.

It seems that the people at Penfold’s created an inverted pyramid that has been used for as long as they have been making the Grandfather port, to age said product. The result being that whenever you get a bottle of the Grandfather, you are actually getting a blending of every vintage since they began making it. It’s not a very complex story, but I somehow always envision an Indiana Jones-style warehouse from the 1930s with an enormous wood cask as its centerpiece and a series of walkways and scaffolding surrounding it. There are a number of steps I’ve skipped here, but I’ll get back to that all later.

If you’re looking for some interesting wines to try, Maxwell’s is hosting a wine dinner with winemaker Raimund Prum on Thursday, June 12. The combination of these fine German wines, a chance to sample some great wines, meet the actual winemaker, and sample chef Mike Wald’s menu is sure to please. I’d suggest making reservations now.

And if you’re planning a trip to the Twin Cities at the end of June, Spill the Wine in Minneapolis is a spring wine dinner featuring organic wines from all over the world as well as regional organic foods.

As always, be safe and enjoy.