Earlier this month our team finished processing the last of our Cabernet Sauvignon. Our winemaker Mary McDermott has employed some new techniques for our premium wine. Winemakers have a plethora of options in the process of making red wine and we thought we would geek out and explore one of them in more detail…
Our Cabernet had a nice, long extended maceration of approximately one month in our new 5000L French oak tanks.
Maceration is the process of soaking the grapes, seeds, and stems in the wine must to extract colour and aroma compounds as well as tannins. (This is not traditionally done with white wines, as to keep the whites light in colour and nearly tannin free.)
There are several types of maceration techniques. The most common are extended maceration, cold soak, and carbonic maceration.
Cold soak is a method whereby the winemaker delays the onset of fermentation for a few days by keeping the juice cool. The tanks are kept in low temperatures until after the characteristics of the skins have transferred to the wine must. Carbonic maceration is most commonly used in Beaujolais for their Gamay wines, whereby the juice ferments while it is still inside the intact grape. This technique is ideal for making early drinking wines, however it also reduces the aging ability of the wines – as they become light, fruity and low in tannins.
During extended maceration the grape skins have ruptured and the juice and skins are resting together for an extended period following the wine’s fermentation. In this instance, we did a gentle daily punching down of the “cap” or grape solids for the month long process. Mary then drained off the free run juice and allowed a gentle overnight pressing of any remaining wine by the grapes themselves. This wine was collected and placed into a special barrel. The resulting wine is rich and textured with silky tannins. The remaining grape must was removed from the tank and sent to the press then into oak barrels.
We believe extended maceration is beneficial for red winemaking in enhancing the richness of colour, robust tannins, fuller flavour, and intensity of aromas in the wine. Plus it makes for a more sophisticated wine with better ageing potential.
