D5: Fortified wines Flashcards
What rootstocks are commonly used in Douro Valley for Port production?
Rootstocks that are tolerant of drought such as 110R and 1103P (both hybrids of V. Berlandieri and V. Rupestris)
Refer to training, pruning and trellising decisions in Douro
- Cordon trained and spur pruned. VSP trellised
- Head trained and cane pruned. VSP trellised
Objective: To promote even sun exposure and ripening, and allow for mechanisation where viablew
Describe Vinha ao alto vineyard layout
Includude advantages and disadvantages
Vines are planted in vertical rows up the slopes
Advantages:
-Least expensive option to plant and maintain.
-Allows relatively high-density planting (≈ 5,000 vines per ha) and efficient use of land
- Allows mechanisation
Disadvantages:
-Above 40% incline, mechanisation is cannot be used.
-Water run-off and erosion
What is the maximum yield permitted for Port wine production?
The maximum permitted yield for Port production is 55 hL/ha, but due to limited water availability and hazards, yields are more likely to be around 30 hL/ha
What are the viticultural hazards in Douro Valley?
- Late spring frosts in the highest altitude vineyards
- In some years, cool weather from the west during early summer can disrupt flowering and fruit set
- Downy mildew and botrytis bunch rot can be issues in the wetter Baixo Corgo
What are the five prescribed varieties that have been the focus of replanting efforts and clonal research in Douro?
- Touriga Franca
- Touriga Nacional
- Tinta Roriz
- Tinta Barroca
- Tinto Cão
Describe the white grape varieties used in Port production
- Malvasia Fina: Provides neutral wines with medium acidity, full body and a slightly honeyed note
- Moscatel Galego Branco (Muscat Blanc à Petit Grains): An aromatic grape variety. Oftenused for unaged styles
Describe ‘foot treading in lagares’ extraction method
Include advantages and disadvantages
Lagares are shallow (≈ 80cm deep) square tanks that allow a large surface area between must and grape skins. Traditionally they were made of granite and extraction would come from foot treading
Advantages
- Effective at extracting, yet gentle enough to not crush seeds
- Closely related to heritage in Douro
- Unique selling point for visitors
Disadvantages
- Difficult to have complete control over winemaking
- Draining is lengthy
- Relies on a sizeable labour force
- As relies on a sizeable labour force, It is easy to miss ideal points of extraction/fermentation (e.g. middle of the night)
Describe ‘robotic lagares’ extraction method
Include advantages and disadvantages
Modern lagares have been created in which silicon ‘feet’ attached to a stainless steel gantry, press the grapes against the lagar floor and subsequently punch down the cap
Advantages
- Control, hygiene and speed
- Can also be placed in granite lagares
- Reduce the need of a large hired workforce
- Equal quality that foot treading
Disadvantages
- Initial investment
- Lack of romance
Describe ‘pumping over’ extraction method
Include advantages and disadvantages
As in still wines, fermenting juice under cap is sprayed on top of the cap to aid extraction
Advantages
- Does not require a large workforce or a high initial investment
- Despite it provides gentle extraction, it can be used alongside stainless steel pistons
- It is much easier to operate on a large scale and it can be automated
- Inclusion of pistons has a positive effect in quality
Disadvantages
- Not as effective as foot treading or modern lagares (if used on its own)
- If pistons are used, this adds costs
List winemaking decisions in Port production
- Modern fermentation vessels tend to be made of stainless steel. This allows easy temperature control and if necessary, the tank can be cooled down to slow fermentation
- Grapes may or may not be destemmed
- Fermentation Tºs for red wines: 18-32ºC
- Fermentation Tºs for white wines 17-22ºC
- Many producers use ambient yeasts as these are sufficient to start the ferment
Refer to Port maturation
- Historically, Port has been matured in Vila Nova de Gaia, as temperatures are cooler and more constant
- Most styles are aged in old oak, even if for a relatively short time
- Vessels vary in size depending on amount of oxidation desired. Balseiros (up to 100,000L) are used to keep wines fresh. If gentle oxidation is desired, 600L pipes are used.
- Racking is carried out to avoid potential off-flavours. Frequency of racking is another way to control the amount of oxidation
Describe Basic Ruby Port
- One of the simplest and least expensive style of Port.
- Aged in bulk for two or three years
- It is bottled young while the wine retains a deep ruby colour
- Product of wines that are suitable for drinking early and have no ageing potential
- Usually produced using protective winemaking techniques to retain primary fruit
- Generally a multiyear blend
- Due to limit ageing and use of cheap spirit, wines might show simple fruity flavours and harsh alcohol
Describe Basic Tawny Port
- Lightness and browning of colour does not come from long periods of oxidative ageing
- Often made by light extraction to give them a pale colour
- Basic Tawny is often produced form lighter wines grown in Baixo Corgo where grapes rarely ripen to given much depth or intensity of fruit
- White Port can be used to adjust colour
- Many bulk wines are left upriver for longer than other wines to speed up maturation
Describe Tawny Ports with an indication of age
- These are Ports that have been aged for long periods in wooden barrels (620-640L), permitting a controlled exposure to oxygen, while tannins soften, alcohol becomes more integrated and primary aromas of fruit develop into tertiary flavours from fruit development and oxidation
- Clarification and stabilisation occur naturally, implying no filtration
- 10Y, 20Y, 30Y, 40Y or 50Y can be stated in the label
- Usually blends of more than one vintage and can be made up of wines that are younger and older than the age specified
- Wine must be tasted by IVDP and must be deemed to have the characteristics of a wine of that wine
- As per long ageing, barrels need racking and topping up (adding cost)
Describe Colheita Port
- Tawny Ports made form the grapes from one vintage
- Must be aged in small barrels of minimum 7 years before bottling
- Label must state vintage and bottling year
- The shipper could bottle part in one year and bottle more in the coming years according to demand
- The wine in the barrel can be topped up with other wines to avoid ullage
Describe Vintage Port
- From a ‘declared vintage’. Producers must register their intention to release a vintage Port in the 2nd year after harvest and the young wine is approved by an IVDP tasting panel
- As well as considering quality, producers will decide according to market conditions
- Grapes will come from higher quality plots
- Touriga Franca and Touriga Nacional are usually key components in the blend, giving colour, tannin and flavour concentration suitable for long term ageing- Extraction during fermentation will reflect this aim
- Various lots will be stored in large wooden vessels (to avoid oxidation) and tasted over the next two years to determine if vintage is declared
- Maximum 3Y in old large wooden vessels
- Majority bottled after 18-20 months in wood
- Small oxygen exposure ensures colour stability
- No fining. No filtration
Describe Single Quinta Port
- In years when the producer does not produce a Vintage Port, they may produce a single quinta
- This is a wine from a single year made only with grapes from one estate that is stated in the label
- Single quinta Ports are made in much the same way as Vintage Ports, aged in wood for 2-3 years and bottled without filtration
Describe the climate and location of Douro Valley
- Located in the northeast of Portugal
- It has a warm continental climate with temperatures easily reaching 40ºC in summer and freezing temperatures in winter
- Shelter effect from Serra do Marão
- Baixo Corgo, Cima Corgo and Douro Superior
Describe the Madeira style associated to the recommended grape varieties
- Sercial: Extra dry or dry. Lightest coloured and bodied of varietal wines. Citrus peel and nuts
- Verdelho: Medium dry. Usually has more residual sugar and hence more body and a rounder texture than Sercial. Sweeter flavours such as candied fruit as per residual sugar. May be slightly darker
- Boal: Medium sweet. Fuller and sweeter than Verdelho. Darker in colour. Caramel, chocolate and candied nuts.
- Malvasia: Sweet. Full bodied, often brown. Sweetest style balanced by refreshing high acidity. Raisins and caramel.
- Terrantez: Medium dry or medium sweet. Delicate. Aromas include citrus peel, caramel and sometimes even floral notes.
- Tinta Negra: Made at any level of sweetness
Describe the Canteiro maturation process
- Longer and more resource-intensive process associated with higher quality wines
- Wines are matured in old oak vessels in a warm environment (loft or warehouse heated by the sun)
- 400-700L vessels left with a small headspace of air
- Producers own warehouses that reach different average Tºs (depending on location and design)
- It is also usual for the warehouses to have warmer and cooler areas within them. Younger and older wines can be stored in different locations within the warehouse
- Alcohol increases to 19-20%. Sugars, acidity and aromas concentrate
- Cannot be sold until 3Y after 1st January following harvest
- A representative of IVBAM must seal and unseal the vessels
Describe the Estufagem process
- Involves the wine being heated in Tº-controlled stainless steel vessels called Estufas
- The tanks are heated to 45-50ºc (max 50ºC) using a heating coil or water jacket. Min 3M in tank
- IVBAM representative seals, and breaks the seal when maturation is completed
- Tank is not usually filled to the top, permitting some oxidation
- Wine cools down, is filtered and let to rest 6-12M
- Wines may not be sold until 31st October of 2nd year following harvest
Describe winemaking decisions in Madeira
- Grapes are checked for weight, health and for potential alcohol (IVBAM representative must be present)
- Skin contact decisions varies
- Stainless steel vessels
- Ambient yeasts
- Timing of fortification depends on style. Sweet wines can ferment as little as two days, and dry styles for around a week.
- 96% abv grape spirit. 17-18% abv after fortification
- Before maturation, wines are fined and filtered
- Batches are tasted and classified according to their style and quality. This determines their maturation pathway
Describe the ‘recommended’ grape varieties in Madeira
- Tinta Negra: Most planted variety. High yields and easy to grow. Much is used for wines with sweetness levels in label. All sweetness levels
- Sercial: High acidity and used in driest styles. Late ripening and susceptible to botrytis bunch rot and can experience poor fruit set. Low plantings
- Verdelho: 2nd most planted variety. High acidity. Susceptible to botrytis bunch rot, downy mildew, and powdery mildew
- Boal: Umbrella term for a number of grape varieties. Boal Cachudo. Grows best in warm and low sites in south of the island. Susceptible to drought. Semi-sweet wines
- Malvasia: Umbrella term of a number of varieties. Malvasia de San Jorge is the most common Malvasia grown in Madeira. Relatively high yields and prone to botrytis bunch rot.
- Terrantez: Limited plantings. Susceptible to powdery mildew and botrytis bunch rot and therefore is picked soon after reaches 9% abv potential
What are the key choices affecting style, quality and price in fortified wines?
- Grape variety (provide own aromas/character or neutral base)
- Vineyard site (location and climate)
- Timing of harvest
- Skin contact and extraction
- Timing of fortification
- The fortifying spirit
- Maturation
- Blending
- Finishing
Describe the Solera system
- The Solera system is a method of fractional blending that is used to maintain consistency and quality year after year
- The barrels of wine that make up the Solera system are grouped in sections known as criadera. The barrels belonging to the same criadera contain wine of the same age
Describe biological ageing
- Biological ageing refers to the practice of maturing wine under a layer of flor
- Flor comprises four strains of Saccharomyces cerevisiae
- These strains are found on the skins of the grapes from the Jerez region and are also found in bodegas where Sherry is matured
What are the correct conditions for the development of flor?
- The wine needs to be a maximum of 15.5% abv
- SO2 must not have been added to the wine
- Flor needs plentiful oxygen. Sherry butts are left 85-90% full and the bungs are loosely inserted to ensure the flor is in contact with oxygen in the headspace
- Warehouse Tºs 16-20ºC
- Humidity levels above 65%
Describe the influences of flor in the wine
- The flor protects the wine from oxidation (wines remain pale lemon in colour)
- The flor consumes alcohol and releases acetaldehyde, giving aromas of apple (bruised or skin), hay, chamomile.
- Flor consumes glycerol (giving the wine a lighter body and a drier nature)
- Flor reduces acetic acid
Describe the influences of oxidative ageing in the wine
- Colour gradually changes from lemon to gold, amber and then brown
- Levels of alcohol increase slightly, as in the bodega environment water is generally lost from barrel at quicker rate than ethanol. This also means that other components of the wine become more concentrated
- Glycerol levels increase, giving a fuller, rounder body
- Aroma and flavour increases in concentration and evolve to tertiary oxidative characteristics
- Acetaldehyde decreases slightly, but levels of acetic acid and ethyl acetate increase slightly
Describe the finishing processes in Sherry production
- Most Sherries are tartrate stabilised, fined and filtered prior to bottling.
- The use of term ‘en rama’ was recently regulated and is reserved to wines that are not subject to clarification or cold stabilisation processes.
- Clarification includes sedimentation, centrifugation, fining and filtration
- Stabilisation includes protein stability, tartrate stability, and microbiological stability
What is the effect of conditions of Sanlúcar de Barrameda in flor growth?
- Its maritime climate means that it does not have such extreme summers and winters and that humidity is relatively high
- These conditions are ideal for flow growth and leads to thicker layers, as consequence, the wine feels fresher
Refer to vineyard management of vineyards for Sherry production
- Vineyards are in the process of being transformed, mainly to accommodate mechanisation of all the annual tasks including pruning, harvesting and soil management
- Main training system used to be replacement cane pruning (vara y pulgar)
- An increasing number of vineyards are cordon trained (single or double), spur-pruned and VSP trellised. Shade is needed
- Max yields 80 hL/ha. Common range 60-70 hL/ha
- Key role of aserpia
- Rootstocks: 333EM, 41-B and 13-5 EVEX. Hybrids V. Vinifera x V. Berlanderi. Tolerant of limestone soils and droughts. Good yields.
- Low disease problems. Downy mildew (systemic fungicides), European grapevine moth (pheromone traps)
Describe the grape varieties used in Sherry production
- Palomino: Principal grape variety. Used in all dry and sweetened styles. 97% of vineyard area. Mid to late ripening, well suited to dry, sunny weather and capable of producing high yields. Neutral grape variety. It loses acidity quickly when it near maturity.
- Moscatel (Muscat of Alexandria): Mainly grown around Chipiona on sandy soils. Late ripening and well adapted to heat and drought. Aromatic.
- Pedro Ximenez: Small, thin-skinned grapes accumulate high levels of sugar and are then traditionally dried in the sun to concentrate sugar. It’s a neutral variety and therefore its flavours mainly come from the drying and maturing processes.
Describe Albariza
- Key soil in Jerez. Mixture of limestone, silica and clay. Clay gives important water retaining properties, which is gradually released.
- Albariza forms a crust when dry, which is helpful in reducing evaporation from the soil surface
- The light colour of Albariza soil also means that it reflects light back into the vine canopy aiding the ripening of grapes.
