Decisions, Decisions

I believe it was Mark Twain that said, “The clothes make the man.” What does that have to do with our wine? Everything when it comes to packaging. The next time you visit a wine shop or liquor store, spend a moment glancing over the different variations in wine packaging. Take note of the bottles themselves; their color, their shape. And in the labels you will undoubtedly see hundreds if not thousands of varying colors, shapes, and sizes. Closures? The common debate today is cork vs. screw cap. The packaging decisions are endless and that is the current situation at hand for us.

Bottles

Bottles come in all shapes, sizes, and colors and while there are no rules to state which style bottle we have to use for our Pinot Noir, we believe our wine will be best represented in it's traditional Burgundy-shaped bottle. The Burgundy bottle has more tapered shoulders than your traditional Bordeaux or Cabernet Sauvignon bottle and presents a more elegant package which pairs perfectly with the elegance of Pinot Noir.

Labels

Don't get me wrong, I LOVED the process of creating our wine label. Being a winemaker allows me to be creative, so this is just an extension of that. However, once the label is designed, it doesn't stop there. With countless options available in the printing process, it can quickly become overwhelming. What texture should the paper have? Matte finish or glossy? Should I add any extra techniques to make it stand out on the shelf? Fortunately I have always had in my mind what I wanted our label to look like so now it's just a matter of bringing it to fruition.

 

Closures: Cork or Screw Cap?

In the past few years, one of the biggest debates in the wine industry has been whether a cork closure is better than a screw cap closure or vice versa. Studies have even been done to prove (or disprove) certain myths. While I know hearing the crack of a screw cap opening pales in comparison to the romanticism of a cork, the benefits of having a taint-free wine that offers consistent aging, maintains our wines flavor and freshness without the potential of getting the dreaded “corked” bottle is the way to go.

It won't be long now before all of these decisions have been made and the final package has been assembled, ready to be filled with our lovey Pinot Noir and ready to be shared with you.

The word of the day is: Ullage

In continuing to monitor the progress of our wine, we periodically need to address the evaporation that takes place from the barrel. If a container isn't completely air-tight, such as an oak wine barrel, evaporation takes place and the alcohol and water particles in the wine can escape as vapors. This is referred to as ullage.

Ullage (pronounced uh-lij) which comes from the French ouillage, has many definitions, one of which describes this process of wine evaporating from a wooden container, such as a barrel. It is also used to describe the head space within the barrel that is caused by such evaporation. And, if you want to impress your friends at your next party, it is also used to identify the air space in a sealed bottle of wine. Regardless of what it is called, the head space in the barrel often needs to be “topped off” to fill the empty space, which, ironically, is referred to as...ullage.

Sometimes we have to get a little creative on how we actually reach the barrels to make sure they are full.

In addition to topping off the barrels, we like to take a sample from each barrel to check the progress. Speaking of progress, I must say the wine is coming along quite nicely. The flavors are continuing to develop and the color is a beautiful, rich garnet. We are so thrilled with the progress and can't wait to share the finished product with everyone.

As the calendar counts down to the end of 2012, we would like to take this time to wish you and your family all the best. May you be surrounded by loved ones as you share good stories, great food, and fantastic wines.

Happy Holidays!

This Harvest is Over!

Activities are winding down in the vineyard.  All the grapes have been harvested, the leaves are changing colors and the cooler, crisp air is reminding us that winter is quickly approaching.

The 2012 growing season for Sonoma County is being described as everything from “very good” to “exceptional”.  The weather this year was close to ideal which allowed for a bountiful crop of mature grapes with well-balanced flavors. This year's harvest statewide is estimated to be around 3.7 million tons, up from 3.3 million tons in 2011 which is great for the California wine industry.

Activities have slowed down in the winery too.  Our wine has been in barrel for a few weeks now and we're continuing to monitor it's development in the aging process.  While it's too early to predict what the wine will ultimately develop into, it's starting to display the characteristics of a true Russian River Valley Pinot Noir.

As the Thanksgiving holiday approaches and you begin to plan your meals and wine pairings, keep in mind that nothing pairs better with Thanksgiving dinner than Pinot Noir.  Be sure to add your email address to this site to be added to our mailing list so you can have our pinot on your dinner table next year.  Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

So Now What?

You may think just because the wine is aging away nicely in the barrels that nothing else happens until it is bottled.  Oh to the contrary.  While the wine is ever-changing as it soaks up the wonderful flavors and aromas of the oak, the business side of things is moving full-steam ahead.

Bottles, licensing, and labels, oh my!  There is definitely plenty going on.  The name and label designs are just about complete and I can't wait to share it with you all.  Stay tuned for the big unveiling.  It won't be long now!

Moving to Barrel

Since my last post, the fermentation process has taken place to convert the grape sugars to alcohol all while the colors and flavors in the wine have continued to develop.  Once complete, it was time to move on to the next phase called "press" which is when the fermented juice is extracted from the grapes.
 

With a little help from a basket press and some gentle pressure, the juice was slowly extracted from the grapes and added to the barrels.

 

Wine, grape skins and seeds going into the press

Pressed wine

One of my favorite aromas of the wine making process is when newly made wine first comes in contact with the inside of a new French oak barrel.  The scent is amazing when the fruit-forward wine combined with the toasted oak of the barrel.
 

But, in all honestly, it's not just the aroma that makes the moment so special. It's the fact that another phase of wine making is over.  It's a time to reflect back on the grape development in the vineyard based on the changes in the weather.  To remember the date that was scheduled to pick and process the grapes.  And, to think back on all of the hours in the winery spent tending to the grapes to extract rich colors and flavors.  All of these memories culminate at this point when the wine enters the barrel.

Granted, a lot still happens to the wine during the aging process when in barrel, (which you will have to stick around to find out about) but this just means we are one step closer to a great wine.  And based on that aroma when the wine hit the barrel, it's building up to be something incredible!