Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/497437
34 MAY 1, 2015 Good Fruit Grower www.goodfruit.com C ool vintages are challenging for growers and winemakers, but teamwork during the season can result in good wines, says the director of winemaking and viticulture at Long Shadows Vintners. Wines made from cool vintages seem to get a lot of bad press, said Long Shadow's Gilles Nicault of Walla Walla, Washington. Long Shadows Vintners, founded by Allen Shoup, former chief executive officer of Chateau Ste. Michelle and its affiliated wineries, is a unique owner-partner winery of seven acclaimed international winemakers. The group focuses on producing wines from Washington's Columbia Valley. "Wines from cool season vintages often don't show as well initially because the acids and tannins can clash together," said Nicault, who spoke about the 2011 and 2013 vintages during the annual meeting of the Washington Association of Wine Grape Growers. "But a cool vintage is not necessarily a bad thing. The wines might not be amazing in the beginning, but wine- makers can still make good wines from cool vintages." He noted that cool vintages have a stigma because in most wine growing regions, cool equates to rain during har- vest and high-disease pressure, which can impact fruit quality. But in eastern Washington, most precipitation comes in winter months and not during the fall harvest. The type of growing season does influence the winemaker's style of wine. Nicault, in working with seven wine- makers at Long Shadows, has found that some of them prefer to make wine from cool sites while others gravitate to fruit from warmer sites. In warm vintages, like 2013, much of the winemaker's focus is on fruit numbers (pH, acidity, Brix) and determining how high to let sugars get before picking, he says. Cool vintages require more winemaker interaction in the vineyard and communication with the grower. At what point do you know what type of vintage you're in? The first indicator is timing of bud break. "By bloom, if it's early or late, you start to know what type of vintage is coming, but not always," said Nicault. Weather during bloom for 2013 was cool and rainy, not indic- ative of the above-normal warm temperatures that later occurred. For a winemaker, the most important time is veraison because that's when you know what's hanging on the vine, he says. "If it's late August, and 10 to 15 percent of the berries still haven't finished veraison, then you know you're in deep (trouble) and you need to get things on track." Winemaking practices Fermentation management is key in both cool and warm vintages if the picking window is shortened. Picking dates, tank rotations, extraction and maceration times, and pressing practices are all impacted by a rush of grapes coming to the winery. In 2013, winemakers were challenged in managing fermentation because much of the Cabernet Sauvignon ripened all at once. "You need to think ahead about how much fermentation capacity you have," Nicault said. Also, shorter maceration time is usually better in cool vintages because grape skins are typically thicker. The use of oak and oak alternatives also depends on the type of vintage. Fruit from warm vintages have riper tannins than cool-vintage fruit. Oak alternatives, like untoasted oak powder, may help reduce methoxypyrazine levels from wines of cool vintages. He prefers the use of polysaccharides as an additive for cool vintages because it helps give wines more intensity and mouth feel. For sugar management in wines, he doesn't go by Brix numbers (sugar levels in fruit) but considers the type of berry (small or large) and the juice they produce. For example, Malbec is a very juicy variety, and he may drain away some juice to result in better skin contact. But if he pulls out 10 to 15 percent juice, he may have to add some water back later. When making acid adjustments, he doesn't follow a recipe but considers pH and malic acid content. Cool vintages usually have more malic acid, though in warm vintages, wine- makers are trying to preserve acidity. Brix are usually much higher in warm vintages and dealcoholizing may be necessary. Nicault said that making wines from warm vintages is not without its own challenges from the high-heat units and reduced acidity levels in fruit. "There can be a loss of varietal character and a loss of the fruit's sense of place." Should winemakers strive for consistency from vintage to vintage or embrace vintage variations? Because every year and every vintage is different, he recommends that winemakers match each vintage with their style. "Winemakers are like crazy scientists," said Nicault. "We don't follow a recipe but react to what we have. We're not here to make Bud Light." Market for cool The historic Ridge Vineyards, located in California's Santa Cruz Mountains appella- tion, is proof there is a market for wines pro- duced in cool regions and for cool vintages. Paul Draper, CEO and winemaker at Ridge Vineyards since 1969, said his winery also had radically different vintages in 2011 and 2013. Ridge Vineyards celebrated 50 years as a bonded winery in 2012, but its roots go back to late 1880s when grapes were first planted on Monte Bello Ridge and the Monte Bello Winery Match vintage with WINE STYLE Grapes There is a market for cool vintage wines. by Melissa Hansen "By bloom, if it's early or late, you start to know what type of vintage is coming, but not always." —Gilles Nicault The vintage variation session at a Washington State wine convention included sampling the same wines but made from distinctly different vintages of the cool 2011 and warm 2013 seasons. TJ MULLINAX/GOOD FRUIT GROWER