Day 11 - 1st March

Welcome to autumn at Bloodwood.

The next three months are traditionally the driest across the year and one of the reasons contributing to our selection of this area for viticulture.

Ideally you need your grapes to ripen without interference from excessive rainfall. And if this occurs as the season is cooling off through autumn, so much the better.

Last Sunday we were woke to light rain and were contemplating the removal of the nets in preparation for the Pinot pick.

This Sunday is all about that Pinot Noir. After five days cold soaking quietly in the barrel store, it roared to life. Now, while we all know the difference between God and a winemaker is that God doesn’t think he is a winemaker, a fermentation cap seemingly solid enough to allow me to walk on wine has formed and there is heavenly scent of fermenting Pinot Noir in the air.

The Be is down to 9. The temperature of the ferment is climbing slowly towards 25C which is where I like it and all seems blessed for Pinot this vintage. Now all I need is a sample.

That’s where Mark and a step ladder to provide some height over the ferment comes in. I’d estimate that the skins to juice ratio this year is higher than any wine since the glorious 2014 vintage and it takes more strength than I can muster on a Sunday morning to plunge the cap over the peak of ferment.

Even getting a sample was a bit problematic until I managed to punch through the cap and free the fermenting wine below.

I should say a bit about the reasons for plunging the cap in open ferments like this one.

It is important that the cap remains in contact with the wine to help with all of the magic the skins of grapes provide in red ferments. Not only does the practice improve the organoleptic appeal of the wine, it also introduces oxygen to the ferment, discourages the presence of those pesky drosophilia and by the end of vintage improves upper body muscle tone.

Because we achieve such good colour during cold soaking, we usually only plunge the cap twice a day at peak ferment and once a day thereafter but we do keep drosophila at bay by covering the ferment throughout.

So there you have it..fermentation of Pinot Noir 101.

Be forewarned, you’ll all be asked questions at the end of vintage.

Cheers,

Stephen and Rhonda