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Winemaker's Minute Episode #23 - What to Expect on Crush Day
What to expect when your grapes hit the winery
You've been waiting all season for your grapes to ripen, and you've just heard that they are being picked soon. Great! You've also laid out your plan for how you are going to handle those grapes when they come into the winery. Smart! Now it's time to set the machinery in motion. What does that look like, and what do you have to be ready for once you see the fruit? Kian Tavakoli walks us through the process, and we look into the machinery t...more

Wine Maker's Minute #22 - Racking Wines
What is racking, and why do you rack wine?
Most wines get racked at some point in their aging cycle. Racking is simply drawing the clear wine off the top of the lees (yeast cells and other sediment) which settle to the bottom of barrels during aging. Those lees left behind are then dumped, the barrel refilled, and then topped with wine from the same vineyard. The process is done to clarify wines, move them to new barrels to add extra complexity from multiple types of oak, and to introdu...more

Wine Maker's Minute #21- Creating a Cabernet Sauvignon Wine Plan
Everything you need to know to get your Cab wine plan completed
At Crushpad, the wine plan is at the center of your winemaking experience. This is the blueprint for how your consulting winemaker will help you create exactly the wine that you want. In conversation here with Stuart Ake, Kian covers everything from Style, to fermentation temperature, to barrel choice. If you're making Cabernet Sauvignon, this is the place to start. And to get more detailed information on each choice in the wine plan, you can als...more

Winemaker's Minute Episode #20 - Power-washing Barrels
Saves time, money, AND it's fun to watch!
Getting excited about a barrel washer might seem to confirm that we're a bit geeky when it comes to our high-tech gear but barrel hygiene is critical to making great wine. And to guarantee that barrels get properly cleaned you need a high-pressure barrel washer. We just upgraded to a shiny dual-barrel automated barrel blasting beauty. For reasons known only at the highest levels of Crushpad management, our new barrel washer has been named Bruce...more

Winemaker's Minute Episode #1 - Wine Style
What Kind of Wine Would You Make?
Whether you are making your own wine, or just trying to find the right bottle at a local shop, you need to be able to express to others the style of wine you are looking for. You can't get what you want if you don't know how to ask for it. Crushpad Chief winemaker Michael Zitzlaff talks with us about how to define a style of of wine.

Winemaker's Minute #19 - Sulfur and Winemaking
What is the role of SO2 in making wine?
Sulfur, or sulphur if you're on another continent, plays a critical role in making wine that is stable, and can stand the test of time in bottle. Sulfur is actually a by-product of the fermentation process, but is also added in small amounts to almost every wine made to inhibit harmful bacteria that would spoil the wine in the winemaking process, or in the bottle. When is it used, and how do you determine how much to add? Ask a winemaker. We did,...more

Winemaker's Minute #18 - Choosing Your Aging Vessel
Wood barrel, or steel? French, or American oak?
To guarantee you end up with a wine you will love, you have to know how much, if any, oak influence you want in that wine. This is managed by choosing the proper aging vessel. From crisp Sauvignon Blanc all the way to brooding, broad-shouldered, Cabernet Sauvignon, other than grape varietal, the aging vessel holds the most influence over the finished wine. Choosing a barrel type might seem as much an art as it is science but Kian walks us through...more

Winemaker's Minute #17 - Should You Filter Your Wine Before Bottling?
Some people insist on filtering, others are proud to avoid it - You decide
Most white wines are filtered prior to bottling, and some reds are. Filtering can clarify a wine so that it sparkles in your glass, but if you filter too heavily it can strip character from the wine. How do you decide what level of filtration, if any, is appropriate for your wine? Well, you ask a guy who has 25+ years experience making that call. Mike Z explains your options.

Winemaker's Minute #16 - To Fine, Or Not To Fine?
Fining can be used to clarify and soften wines
Fining is the process of clarifying and stabilizing a wine. A fining agent is mixed in to bind with particles suspended in wine that would make it appear cloudy when poured into a glass. Since fining agents are slightly heavier than wine, the bound particles precipitate out and settle to the bottom of the tank. Sometimes you might fine a wine to clean it up if it is cloudy, other times you might wish to soften the wine by precipitating out compo...more

Winemaker's Minute #15 - Malolactic Conversion
Malolactic conversion transforms sharp malic acids into softer lactic acids. What wines, and wine styles employ this "secondary fermentation"?
Malolactic conversion, also referred to as secondary fermentation, uses bacteria to transform muscular malic acids (think green apple) into smoother tasting lactic acids (think milk). Many white wines undergo a partial malolactic conversion, and pretty much every red wine goes through this process. What does it mean to the style of the finished wines, and how do you manipulate the level of malolactic conversion? Mike Z fills us in.
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