In the pre-fermentation juice stages of white wine production, winemakers are provided the option to add sulfur dioxide (or not). Do you know why you would (or wouldn’t) add sulfur dioxide to a white juice pre-fermentation? When sulfur dioxide is added to most white juice, the browning enzyme polyphenol oxidase or PPO is inactivated. The […]
Harvest
“Harvest Helper” Workshop Registration Now Open!
If you’re new to this “wine harvest” thing, or simply want to make sure you’re using the best possible winemaking practices, then the Harvest Helper Virtual Workshop is for you! We’ll spend 3 days, over our lunch “breaks” reviewing essential harvest practices for the cellar. Such topics include: PLUS, Q&A is open each day for […]
The Do’s and Don’ts of Harvest
Lessons Learned from 2022 The 2022 harvest season reminded me that great winemaking is often knowing when to react to something, and when not to react to something. During last year’s vintage, I received a higher-than-average number of questions and situations that I never experienced prior to 2022. For these reasons, I thought now would […]
Harvest Is Coming
Guess what? Harvest is starting to sneak up on us. Although there is probably TONS of work to be done in the vineyard, it’s also time to start preparing the winery for harvest. Do not let harvest preparation get away from you. Any good winemaking team will tell you that one of the key methods […]
Are you taking adequate fermentation records?
Having adequate detail in an easy-to-navigate record keeping format allows winemakers to: quickly see past decisions, evaluate which treatments were effective for various wines, and assess general inventory needs on a regular basis. While the use of wine production software systems are often helpful, many winemakers strive to take good notes on the cellar floor. […]
3 Facts About YAN You Probably Forgot
As many winemakers have already jumped into harvest, I wanted to highlight just how important nutrient supplementation can be during primary fermentation! But, wait! Are you confused about what YAN is? Have no fear! You can jump over to my FREE primer on yeast available/assimilable nitrogen (YAN), Fermentation Nutrition: What to Know and Why to […]
