Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/467731
5 6 V I N E YA R D & W I N E RY M A N A G E M E N T | M a r - A p r 2 015 w w w. v w m m e d i a . c o m increase quality by timing the deci- sion to pick and we can manage less-than-ideal fruit by adapting the winemaking process to optimize the quality of the finished wine." When introducing the technique, Chauffour first explained the ripen- ing process of the pulp, seeds and skins of the berry and summarized the characteristics of maturity. She emphasized the odorless flavor and aroma precursors that can only be released by enzymatic actions like that of saliva or yeast during fer- mentation: terpenes, thiols and norisprenoides for fruity/floral fla- vors, hexanol, hexanal and C6 com- pounds for herbaceous aromas. BERRY SAMPLING Rousseau developed two levels of analysis, both of which are wide- ly used in southern France, South America and to some extent, Aus- tralia: a deep, quantitative method suited for lab trials and experimen- tation, and a practical method for use in the field. The sampling tech- nique is the same for both methods. Sampling typically begins once a week at the end of veraison and jumps to twice a week as the crop nears maturity. Sampling should always take place at the same time of the day and not immediately after rain. Each sample requires 2 0 0 b e r r i e s w i t h s t e m s t a k e n from representative rows. Alter- nating from the left to the right, sample five berries from the same points on each cluster: right wing, left wing, central shadow, central sunny and tip. Growers such as Paoletti and Molly Scott, assistant grower rela- tions manager at Justin Vineyards & Winery in Paso Robles, sample many different varieties and clones. At Justin, Scott uses BSA to create a picking map by marking rows with tall, PVC poles when the canopies are tall. Paoletti finds that virus will express itself differently each year, so she tags those vines for a later picking date. "Using this technique, we're furthering wine quality by pre-sorting the fruit on the vine," she said. Berry sampling should begin at the end of veraison. Photo: Randy Caparoso