Hi guys,
As we discussed yesterday, here are my thoughts for the 2018 harvest... Let´s discuss, change, add, remove, etc.
0.- Bottle the contents of one / two barrels and clean the barrel ready for the new vintage.
1.- Keep the grapes for one night or more in the cellar. Leaving the grapes in the cellar will lower the temperature of the grapes. Starting the fermentation at lower temperature will leave more fruity flavors in the wine.
1.1 Tempranillo grapes These grapes are early and the first ones to be picke, can be kept in the basement until they are processed / destemmed. Keeping the grapes in the basement for a few days will start the intracellular fermentation that will give more fruit to the wine.
1.2 Grenache grapes. Garnacha are late maturing and the last ones to be harvested if possible.
1.3 Other grapes They will be picked at the same time or after the tempranillo, although before Grenache.
2. De-stemming and Fermentation. This will be done in the morning (cooler) so that the wine leaves as fruity as possible. The two large vats of tempranillo and grenache red wine mixture will be filled. This will start the alcoholic fermentation that lasts several days (3-5 or so). These are some tips to lower the temperature. It can be done in one of the following ways:
2.1 Airing the must: drop the must in another container, using the tap at the bottom of the vat or using a hose. Then, pour the must of that container over the top hat that forms. Repeat the operation several times.
2.2 Cooling the outside of the vessel with wet rags: soak burlap bags with water and cover the container where the fermentation broth is located on the outside. (not applicable for clay vats)
2.3 Cooling outside the vessel with water: circulate water on the outside of the vessel, as if it were being watered. This operation can be combined with the previous one. (not applicable for clay vats)
2.4 Cooling plastic bottles with frozen water or with ice wrapped in polyethylene bags: place water in empty bottles of soft drinks or drums, especially clean and disinfected on the outside. Freeze them in the fridge or freezer. Then submerge the containers inside the vat with the must in fermentation. This would be the most advisable and quick practice to lower the temperature. Therefore it is essential to have a good stock of bottles with frozen water in the freezers. You could also use ice, in bar or cubes, contained within a transparent and mechanically resistant plastic bag.
During those first days the jars will move as much as possible since during these days the must has hardly any alcohol and the extraction of the skins / pipes will not extract tannins... The alcohol that is formed from 3-5 days will also extract astringency from the tannins...
3.- Once the alcoholic fermentation is over, the wine is run and the empty barrel is filled with wine. This first wine will have less color as it is the best part of the wine. Of the wine extracted by means of the press the last part will be reserved to fill the barrels. This last part of the must has more tannins, more color (more acidity?) And more extraction than the first must. This will help to give more body to the final wine since the Grenache grape by nature has little color and little acidity. The second malolactic fermentation or fermentation will occur in the barrel, probably during spring.
Alternatively maceration in the vats for 30 days or so, then into barrels.
4.- The mixture/remains of liquid and skins that remain in the two large jars will be transferred to a clay vat. Having all the mixture in a vat reduces exposure to oxygen at this stage which is bad and to which the grenache is very susceptible. The skins move like a normal wine, this wine will come out more concentrated and dark.
5.- After the malo-lactic fermentation in the vat, the wine is run and stored in glass contairners to fill the barrel. The skins are pressed to extract the maximum possible liquid content with a light pressing. The skins will still carry liquid to distill brandy later.
6.- The barrel will pass the malo-lactic fermentation between Christmas and spring (if it hasn´t in the clay vats). A periodic check is maintained to fill the liquid in the barrels and ensure that they are always full.
As we discussed yesterday, here are my thoughts for the 2018 harvest... Let´s discuss, change, add, remove, etc.
0.- Bottle the contents of one / two barrels and clean the barrel ready for the new vintage.
1.- Keep the grapes for one night or more in the cellar. Leaving the grapes in the cellar will lower the temperature of the grapes. Starting the fermentation at lower temperature will leave more fruity flavors in the wine.
1.1 Tempranillo grapes These grapes are early and the first ones to be picke, can be kept in the basement until they are processed / destemmed. Keeping the grapes in the basement for a few days will start the intracellular fermentation that will give more fruit to the wine.
1.2 Grenache grapes. Garnacha are late maturing and the last ones to be harvested if possible.
1.3 Other grapes They will be picked at the same time or after the tempranillo, although before Grenache.
2. De-stemming and Fermentation. This will be done in the morning (cooler) so that the wine leaves as fruity as possible. The two large vats of tempranillo and grenache red wine mixture will be filled. This will start the alcoholic fermentation that lasts several days (3-5 or so). These are some tips to lower the temperature. It can be done in one of the following ways:
2.1 Airing the must: drop the must in another container, using the tap at the bottom of the vat or using a hose. Then, pour the must of that container over the top hat that forms. Repeat the operation several times.
2.2 Cooling the outside of the vessel with wet rags: soak burlap bags with water and cover the container where the fermentation broth is located on the outside. (not applicable for clay vats)
2.3 Cooling outside the vessel with water: circulate water on the outside of the vessel, as if it were being watered. This operation can be combined with the previous one. (not applicable for clay vats)
2.4 Cooling plastic bottles with frozen water or with ice wrapped in polyethylene bags: place water in empty bottles of soft drinks or drums, especially clean and disinfected on the outside. Freeze them in the fridge or freezer. Then submerge the containers inside the vat with the must in fermentation. This would be the most advisable and quick practice to lower the temperature. Therefore it is essential to have a good stock of bottles with frozen water in the freezers. You could also use ice, in bar or cubes, contained within a transparent and mechanically resistant plastic bag.
During those first days the jars will move as much as possible since during these days the must has hardly any alcohol and the extraction of the skins / pipes will not extract tannins... The alcohol that is formed from 3-5 days will also extract astringency from the tannins...
3.- Once the alcoholic fermentation is over, the wine is run and the empty barrel is filled with wine. This first wine will have less color as it is the best part of the wine. Of the wine extracted by means of the press the last part will be reserved to fill the barrels. This last part of the must has more tannins, more color (more acidity?) And more extraction than the first must. This will help to give more body to the final wine since the Grenache grape by nature has little color and little acidity. The second malolactic fermentation or fermentation will occur in the barrel, probably during spring.
Alternatively maceration in the vats for 30 days or so, then into barrels.
4.- The mixture/remains of liquid and skins that remain in the two large jars will be transferred to a clay vat. Having all the mixture in a vat reduces exposure to oxygen at this stage which is bad and to which the grenache is very susceptible. The skins move like a normal wine, this wine will come out more concentrated and dark.
5.- After the malo-lactic fermentation in the vat, the wine is run and stored in glass contairners to fill the barrel. The skins are pressed to extract the maximum possible liquid content with a light pressing. The skins will still carry liquid to distill brandy later.
6.- The barrel will pass the malo-lactic fermentation between Christmas and spring (if it hasn´t in the clay vats). A periodic check is maintained to fill the liquid in the barrels and ensure that they are always full.
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