Fred Swan - All Comments

RE: The T-Word

Luke Boland — Fri, 09 Mar 2018 01:25:29 GMT

From the title and picture of this article I thought it was going to be all about terraces.

RE: The T-Word

Mark Shipway — Wed, 07 Mar 2018 09:59:24 GMT

Nicely written piece Fred! Hope you push the envelope further with this kind of progressive thought. I literally just moderated a seminar on this topic last week and truely identify my own experiences in a similar way on the subject.

RE: The T-Word

Ivan Arangelov — Tue, 06 Mar 2018 17:51:01 GMT

You can only take from the concept of terroir in the winery, you cannot add into it.

RE: The T-Word

Matthieu Ghezouli — Mon, 05 Mar 2018 08:31:37 GMT

Thanks for this open mind article.

RE: The T-Word

Jonathan Ross — Sat, 03 Mar 2018 11:57:50 GMT

I really love this article. It is a tricky topic to write about, and you totally nail it. It is important to identify the human element that is so thoughtfully presented here, and it is interesting think about how so many of the world's most iconic wine styles couldn't exist without human input. One of my favorites is the example that Sherry offers. If we were to look at the production process, then one could argue based on this article's sentiments that the universally accepted way to showcase the region's maritime influence, climate, and chalky soils is to acidify the palomino grape so that it can foster the growth of flor. While it may sound bleak to some, or even staggering to others, its something that has become part of the terroir of Sherry. We could think about a variety of process driven wines this way. Champagne, Port, Tokaji, Hunter Semillon can all be thought of in using the photograph analogy in the article. The vast majority of champagne is as we know it, but there are some that choose to make still dry reds, or mistelles from the region. Dry reds from the Duoro, or dry whites from tokaj are examples of people taking a picture of a forest at a different time and in a different light than many others.Too bad people aren't looking at Hunter Semillon differently. Trust me, I've been looking!

RE: The T-Word

Emily Makowski — Thu, 01 Mar 2018 21:51:58 GMT

Really enjoyed this article

RE: The T-Word

Admin — Thu, 01 Mar 2018 21:44:36 GMT

Love this piece! I have a question about your mention that commercial yeasts can allow a Northern Hemisphere Sauvignon Blanc to resemble those from New Zealand. Any particular character you are associating with yeast type here? I assume you are referring to volatile thiols like 4MMP. There are multiple studies linking machine harvesting to dramatically higher thiol levels from increased enzymatic activity caused by damaged fruit. Obviously these compounds are a byproduct of yeast activity, but I'm wondering if factors like machine harvesting or increased UV exposure from VSP trellising might be the bigger culprit (or benefactor depending on your taste) than yeast strain?

RE: Five Myths of Winemaking

Fred Swan — Fri, 11 Aug 2017 20:41:19 GMT

Hi Eric, Thank you for the kind words. I'm glad you enjoyed the article.

There are many variables that can effect the amount of diacetyl produced by MLF, even beyond those I mentioned in the article. They include the speed and temperature of MLF, lees stirring during MLF, the amount of bacteria added during inoculation for MLF (more bacteria results in lower diacetyl), the particular strain used, longer lees contact, etc. As far as timing goes, doing MLF more or less at the same time as alcoholic fermentation tends to produce less diacetyl as well. That would be counter to the theory you were given recently.

However, if the fermentations are both non-inoculated, it's possible both are occurring simultaneously and both finish late. That, along with the extended lees/bacteria contact that suggests could result in less diacetyl. The downside is that slow fermentations (and the associated delay in applying SO2) present considerable risk of contamination. And any benefits in lower diacetyl due to simultaneity and extended contact might be be balanced out by higher diacetyl production due to slow, low temperature MLF.

In short, it's an interesting theory but I suspect any correlation between the timing you suggest and the results are most likely coincidental rather than causative.

RE: Five Myths of Winemaking

Eric Entrikin — Fri, 11 Aug 2017 01:35:04 GMT

Hi Fred, late actually getting to read this fantastic article. Hoping to see more. I was recently told that diacetyl production levels were more pronounced if the MLF occurred relatively close to the primary fermentation and this was the reason why you saw more of the character in warmer climate Chardonnay as opposed to Burgundy as the malos there typically occur in spring following harvest. It would seem to follow in with your explanation but does the timing have really anything to do with it? I think sometimes we get a piece of information and if it seems logical it becomes a fact when in truth it is only a piece of the overall picture.

Thanks again for the great article!

RE: Five Myths of Winemaking

Fred Swan — Tue, 11 Jul 2017 15:52:41 GMT

Big "thank you" everyone for the comments and support. Stephen, thank you for discussing your experiences as well. That's great info.

RE: Five Myths of Winemaking

Evan Hufford — Tue, 11 Jul 2017 07:08:08 GMT

Fred this is such a great article, thank you for writing this. Definitely gave me more to think about when asking winemakers about their practices.

RE: Five Myths of Winemaking

Kelli White — Thu, 06 Jul 2017 15:49:16 GMT

A terrific article, Fred! Great information, I learned a lot!

RE: Five Myths of Winemaking

Mark Shipway — Wed, 05 Jul 2017 21:53:28 GMT

This is a great piece for Somms to read as it highlights, amongst other things, that the understanding of and skill in utilising the various techniques in wine production is the ultimate factor in determining wine style and in particular, quality. The human involvement is so often overlooked but the experience of the producer of handling a specific variety or varieties in winery and vineyard as well their knowledge of site is what counts most.

RE: Five Myths of Winemaking

Steven Washuta — Mon, 03 Jul 2017 21:02:08 GMT

It's great to see some more technical stuff here! I really enjoy the discussion on Diacetyl and it's something I think about a lot in wine. Since you mentioned that temperature, pH, and the timing of sulfur additions play a role in the diacetyl level in a finished wine, it makes sense when you put it all together why a stereotypical Cali chard is so different than a Puligny.

From my experience making high quality, small production wines in the USA; most wines, red and white, are pressed into barrel after primary and put into a warmer room where they are inoculated with ML bacteria (oenococcus oeni - my favorite bacteria name). The warmer temp helps MLF proceed quickly and usually finish before the end of the year. Once the test shows no malic the wines are sulfured and then the winemaker can consider the wine "safe" as before that sulfur addition it's more vulnerable to brett or bad bacteria. So the combo of warmer falls and riper grapes coming in at a higher pH, warmer MLF temperatures, and quick sulfur adds leave a wine with diacetyl above threshold. I notice this a ton in highly produced new world wines, red and white, and for me it distracts from the true character of a wine. MLF dynamics are as important in the finished wine as primary fermentation and it's often overlooked as just something that is a necessity to making stable wine and all that matters is that it's done, but how it's done is the key.

RE: Five Myths of Winemaking

Eric Crane — Mon, 03 Jul 2017 15:52:21 GMT

Thank you so much for this.