Archive for the 'Articles on Wine and Vineyards' Category

Sta. Rita Hills Open House Weekend

Published
by
joanie
on June 15, 2008
in Articles on Wine and Vineyards, Joanie Hudson, Lafond Winery, Open House and Special Events
. 0 Comments

In addition to the Solstice Parade and Festival this weekend, the Sta. Rita Hills Winegrowers Alliance will host the 2008 Open House weekend (June 21 & 22) to showcase the burgeoning appellation.  Numerous events and morning vineyard walks will allow guests to get an in-depth and close up look at the region.

Two-day passports are available for $75 and includes:

*Access to Open Houses at participating wineries

*A picnic box lunch created by Lafond Bistro (pick up your lunch at Lafond Winery between 11:30 and 1:30)

*Gala Reception at Sanford and Benedict barn on Saturday evening

*Morning Vineyard Walks

For more details, including wineries that will hold open houses, see the events page at www.staritahills.com.  There are additional events going on, such as winemaker dinners and a golf outing, available at additional costs.

Lafond Winery will have an Open House on Saturday from 10-2:30pm and on Sunday from 10-5pm.  On Saturday winemaker Bruce McGuire will offer 2007 barrel samples and select library tastings in the barrel room.  Light appetizers will also be served.  The Open House will continue on Sunday.

This event only happens once a year and provides a unique opportunity to meet the winemakers and increase your knowledge of Santa Barbara’s wine country.

Joanie Hudson, Assistant Tasting Room Manager, Santa Barbara Winery

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New Hints Seen That Red Wine May Slow Aging

Published
by
Pierre
on June 4, 2008
in Articles on Wine and Vineyards, Health and Wine News
. 0 Comments

From the June 4, 2008 New York Times written by Nicholas Wade…

Red wine may be much more potent than was thought in extending human lifespan, researchers say in a new report that is likely to give impetus to the rapidly growing search for longevity drugs.

The study is based on dosing mice with resveratrol, an ingredient of some red wines. Some scientists are already taking resveratrol in capsule form, but others believe it is far too early to take the drug, especially using wine as its source, until there is better data on its safety and effectiveness…

To read the entire article:

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Cold Stabilizing Chardonnay at Santa Barbara Winery

Published
by
joanie
on June 2, 2008
in Articles on Wine and Vineyards, Chardonnay, Joanie Hudson and Santa Barbara Winery
. 0 Comments

We are witnessing winter being brought back to the cellar in the beginning of summer here at the winery.  Fourteen of our stainless steel tanks are filled to capacity with 51,000 gallons of our 2007 Santa Barbara County Chardonnay.  The wine is currently going through the cold stabilization process.  During this step of the white wine making process, the wine is chilled down to 32 degrees F in order to remove all tartrates (also known as “wine diamonds“).  These tartrates form when the wine gets too cold.  While they are natural sediment and completely harmless, they can sometimes be cause for consumer dissatisfaction.  So in order to prevent this, winemakers force the tartrate crystals to form at the winery bringing them out of solution so that they can be filtered out before bottling.  The thermal mass of 51,000 gallons at 32 degrees chills the entire building.

Our Assistant Winemaker Ryan tells me that the next step is to “seed the wine with cream of tartar,” which gives the tartrates something to grab onto as they fall to the bottom of the tank.  Once they do this, keeping tanks at 32 degrees, the next step is to filter the wine at .2 microns, removing the tartrates from solution.  Once filtering is completed, the wines will be warmed up to over 55 degrees and the bottling process will begin, leaving us with a “crisp, clean, wonderful Santa Barbara County Chardonnay for a very reasonable price,” says Ryan.  Until then, and while the icicles continue to form on the outside of the steel tanks, I will be wearing my mittens in the winery.

Joanie Hudson, Assistant Tasting Room Manager, Santa Barbara Winery

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Terroir-izing California wine

Published
by
Pierre
on May 16, 2008
in Articles on Wine and Vineyards and Wine News
. 0 Comments

This is a great article in the Los Angeles Times by Mathew DeBord which appeared May 12, 2008 in which he attacks the Luddite mentality of many wine writers.

California wine is the yuppie of global beverages and, at the moment, under assault from a cadre of wine writers, filmmakers and importers who have taken an ultra-conservative, borderline Luddite stance toward its incontrovertible dominance of the global wine business. (They are not, as they would like to be perceived, plucky independent thinkers who are bucking a mega-trend.)

Powerful fruit — the product, for the most part, of extremely well-cultivated grapes, not technological manipulation — is suspect. Alcohol, the result of the high levels of ripeness that California winemakers can achieve, is also a problem. Any whiff of technology in the winery, regardless of the magnificence of the product, needs to be indicted as if it were some unholy transgression against an ancient winemaking pact. Thou shalt not useth the demon oak. Beware the reverse-osmosis heresy. Pick not thy grapes when they art ripe, but rather pick them when they art green and unripe, the better to filleth thy wines with Old World structure and weird herby flavors…

To read the full article:

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Summer Pink

Published
by
joanie
on May 8, 2008
in Articles on Wine and Vineyards, Joanie Hudson, New Releases and Rosé of Syrah
. 0 Comments

Mass market American “blush” wines that were popular in the 1970s are a far cry from the dry and refreshing Rosés being produced today in California, Spain, Italy, and southwest France.  These pink wines are not to be confused with the cloying sweetness of grocery store boxed wines.  The resurgence of dry style Rosés in California has resulted in the production of a variety of styles that are a playful alternative for the summertime.

But what makes these wines pink?  How are they different from red and white wines?  I hear these questions often.  Red wines get their deep color and tannin from being fermented on their skins to extract color and tannin.  White wines are produced by immediately pressing the juice off of the skin to minimize contact between the two.  The next step is to ferment the freshly squeezed grape juice (aka the must).  During Rosé wine production, the juice is left in contact with the red skins for a short amount of time (anywhere from one to three days) resulting in its characteristic pink color.  Fermentation continues as a white wine, usually carried out in stainless steel tanks.  Rosés can be made from any variety of red grape — Syrah, Grenache, and Pinot Noir are popular here in Santa Barbara County.

Rose wines possess characteristics of white wine, making them popular as temperatures rise.  Stainless steel fermentation results in pleasantly light and crisp fruit qualities.  They are extremely versatile — popular by the glass as well as to accompany summer meals.  I personally think that Rosé wines can e drank all year round, especially in California because they also complement a variety of fall and winter root vegetables.

Our 2007 Rosé of Syrah is the fifth vintage Bruce McGuire has produced with grapes from the Hilltop Ranch vineyard in the Santa Rita Hills.  It is made from 100% Syrah grapes.  Plump strawberry and orange peel aromas are emerging with an extremely refreshing mid-palate fruit explosion and crisp acidity.

Joanie Hudson, Assistant Santa Barbara Winery Tasting Room Manager

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Checking for Malolactic at Lafond Winery

Published
by
Pierre
on April 29, 2008
in Articles on Wine and Vineyards, Lafond Winery and Wine News
. 0 Comments

Winemaker Bruce MaGuire periodically checks the red wines from the 2007 harvest for completion of malolactic fermentation. Some varieties will undergo this secondary fermentation, the conversion of malic acid to lactic acid , very quickly. Others especially those varieties harvested late are slower to undergo this process — one reason is that, because it is later in the season, it is colder and cold inhibits fermentation.

There was a time, and not so long ago, when malolactic fermentation was not as understood as it is today – it was discouraged – with the unfortunate result that it sometimes occurred within the bottle and spoilt the wine. The benefits today, of a carefully controlled malolactic fermentation, are well recognized. And aside from a more stable wine it enriches the wine with more complex flavor and balance.

Malic acid is most easily recognized in apples. Some white wines are also encouraged to go through malolactic fermentation especially those rich buttery Chardonnays. If fruit flavors, however, are essential such as in Riesling, Rosé, and Sauvignon Blanc, the wines are kept chilled, until bottling, to prevent this from occurring.

The photo below is of Bruce in the lab, at Lafond Winery, ’spotting’ the different barrels. He puts several drops on each ’spot’ on a special paper. Each spot represents a different barrel, and when he places the paper in a solution it will tell him if the fermentation has been completed, or how far it has gone. He uses a small capillary tube, that he rests on the board at his side, to deposit the ‘drops’ on the paper. Slow but effective.

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2007 Santa Barbara County Chardonnay - The Bulldog Method

Published
by
joanie
on April 28, 2008
in Articles on Wine and Vineyards, Bottling, Chardonnay and Joanie Hudson
. 1 Comment

If you have ever been into the tasting room and noticed the barrels that are kept in the room right behind the bar, those are not just for decoration, they are full of wine.  All of our white wine processing is done right here in our downtown facility, from grape to bottle.  Right now we are tanking up the 2007 Santa Barbara County Chardonnay out of barrel, prepping it to be bottled in about two months. 

This tanking process is very meticulous as it requires efficiency and timeliness in moving the wine around.  The barrels are first pulled from the barrel room by a forklift.  Next, our winemakers sort through these barrels, sampling them to decide which barrels are going to be used in the Santa Barbara Chardonnay, and which will be saved for our other Chardonnays. 

To get the wine from barrel into tank, a method called “Bulldogging” is used.  This refers to the apparatus, The Bulldog, that is used to pressure the barrels using Nitrogen.  If you pressurize the barrels in this manner, the wine is pushed out by the inert gas through the hose.  By not using a pump to transfer the wine into tank, any oxygen uptake into the wine is reduced.  According to our Assistant Winemaker Ryan, this “raises the freshness factor of the wine tremendously.”  Over the past 10 years, Ryan has honed his skill for moving wine around, and he has developed techniques in speeding that process along. 

Right now we also have an allotment of 2006 red wines getting prepped for bottling.

2006 Primitivo Joughin Vineyard

2006 Sangiovese Stolpman Vineyard

2006 Nebbiolo Stolpman Vineyard

2006 Lagrein Joughin Vineyard

2006 Negrette Joughin Vineyard

2006 Syrah Santa Ynez Valley

Joanie Hudson, Assistant Tasting Room Manager

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