Tech Time
If I wasn’t a wine writer I would probably be a technology writer. I certainly have blurred the line between the two on occasion in this very venue. Wine can be as high tech to produce as it is low tech to enjoy. A glass and a way to get the bottle open is all you really need to taste wine, but the number of choices technology brings to the modern winemaker is staggering.
There is of course already a catchy phrase for the coming wine revolution: Dialing In. The winemaker will be able to dial in exactly what they want their oak barrels to accomplish. They will have the opportunity to dial in traits for the yeast they use. Soon there may even be ways to dial in exact flavor components like black pepper.
Recent advances have pointed research in the right direction to someday be able to create the black pepper taste on demand in any wine. This is done in the vineyard, and that is where we will see some of the biggest changes.
The wine grape’s genome has recently been mapped. Now that we know what the genes are we can begin the laborious task of doing something about it. The sort of benefits we can expect include disease and pest resistant varieties, tailoring to specific micro climates and of course, greater defenses against drought and heat.
I have already postulated on robotic vine tenders, so I am hardly taking a risk to speculate that someday we could have vines that change color when they are ready to be harvested. They could even indicate their water and nutrient requirements, with easy to respond to visual clues. As the saying goes, the possibilities…
At this point some of you may have come to the conclusion that I don’t buy into the “frankenfood” hysteria. Anyone that knows me realizes that this is where I will *cite Norman Borlaug who “believes that genetically engineering crops is little different from the cross-breeding among plant species that occurs in nature, and he argues that it is irresponsible for affluent environmentalists to prevent these types of foods from reaching developing nations.*
Oak is getting the modern makeover as well. Gone are the days when a cooperage would only make a few types of barrels. Increasingly they are using computer control of heat and time to specify different barrel characteristics for different needs. This is exactly what they have been doing for centuries, but now they claim a precision that makes a barrel specific to white wine, or even a single varietal.
A little more or less heat over a little more or less time and you add more or less flavors like vanilla and clove and woody spices. Mix up the type of oak in the barrel and add or take away a characteristic. One can even go so far as to mix grain size or oak species in a single barrel. All in pursuit of control.
The hardest workers in a winery are also the smallest. The yeast may be tiny, but what the lack in size, they make up for in numbers. It would seem to make common sense that the more control over the fermentation process you have, the more control over the resulting wine you have. This is what the yeast companies are banking on, as they continue to separate strains of yeast into ever more specific cultures.
It is not just about picking yeast in an attempt to influence flavor profile, some yeast foams less, some unstick fermentations, some do better or worse in more or less alcohol. There is a fascinating glimpse at all of the choices one can make in selecting yeast here at the Winemaking Home Page. Genetics will be having a huge affect on yeast as well.
New techniques in filtering are making wines less prone to bacterial problems, while leaving less of a mark on the wine. Removing alcohol has been one of the most recent innovations to have a huge effect. it has been estimated that 40% of wines in some regions have been through this process. It allows one to use riper grapes without making a wine that is too overwhelming in alcohol, or to reduce the tax liability (wine is taxed on alcohol content).
The choices don’t end at growing grapes or making the wine, there are an increasing number of choices in bottles and closures. Everyone has seen a screw cap on a decent bottle of wine by now, but have you seen the Zork? This clever closure has a peel away strip, then you just pull out the top which makes a satisfying cork like pop as it is released.
I am particularly enamored of the Vino-Seal myself. This glass stopper has a tight fitting o-ring and all the benefits that sterile glass offers. The first time you open one you will have no doubt that the seal it makes is sufficient to protect the wine. It is also easily recycled and even easier to keep to reuse.
Glass bottles too are in line for a refreshing. Rising fuel costs have made weight a great issue while demand continues to outstrip availability. As new glass manufacturers come into play the industry may well see innovations in materials as the new companies find ways to distinguish their product lines.
Nifty barrels, new closures, even genetically designed grapes are all going to make a huge difference but as always it is the winemaker that makes the wine. I love technology; I love gadgets; I love the promise of a shiny tomorrow, but mostly I love what works. Sometimes the best solution is pencil and paper. Time will tell.
There is of course already a catchy phrase for the coming wine revolution: Dialing In. The winemaker will be able to dial in exactly what they want their oak barrels to accomplish. They will have the opportunity to dial in traits for the yeast they use. Soon there may even be ways to dial in exact flavor components like black pepper.
Recent advances have pointed research in the right direction to someday be able to create the black pepper taste on demand in any wine. This is done in the vineyard, and that is where we will see some of the biggest changes.
The wine grape’s genome has recently been mapped. Now that we know what the genes are we can begin the laborious task of doing something about it. The sort of benefits we can expect include disease and pest resistant varieties, tailoring to specific micro climates and of course, greater defenses against drought and heat.
I have already postulated on robotic vine tenders, so I am hardly taking a risk to speculate that someday we could have vines that change color when they are ready to be harvested. They could even indicate their water and nutrient requirements, with easy to respond to visual clues. As the saying goes, the possibilities…
At this point some of you may have come to the conclusion that I don’t buy into the “frankenfood” hysteria. Anyone that knows me realizes that this is where I will *cite Norman Borlaug who “believes that genetically engineering crops is little different from the cross-breeding among plant species that occurs in nature, and he argues that it is irresponsible for affluent environmentalists to prevent these types of foods from reaching developing nations.*
Oak is getting the modern makeover as well. Gone are the days when a cooperage would only make a few types of barrels. Increasingly they are using computer control of heat and time to specify different barrel characteristics for different needs. This is exactly what they have been doing for centuries, but now they claim a precision that makes a barrel specific to white wine, or even a single varietal.
A little more or less heat over a little more or less time and you add more or less flavors like vanilla and clove and woody spices. Mix up the type of oak in the barrel and add or take away a characteristic. One can even go so far as to mix grain size or oak species in a single barrel. All in pursuit of control.
The hardest workers in a winery are also the smallest. The yeast may be tiny, but what the lack in size, they make up for in numbers. It would seem to make common sense that the more control over the fermentation process you have, the more control over the resulting wine you have. This is what the yeast companies are banking on, as they continue to separate strains of yeast into ever more specific cultures.
It is not just about picking yeast in an attempt to influence flavor profile, some yeast foams less, some unstick fermentations, some do better or worse in more or less alcohol. There is a fascinating glimpse at all of the choices one can make in selecting yeast here at the Winemaking Home Page. Genetics will be having a huge affect on yeast as well.
New techniques in filtering are making wines less prone to bacterial problems, while leaving less of a mark on the wine. Removing alcohol has been one of the most recent innovations to have a huge effect. it has been estimated that 40% of wines in some regions have been through this process. It allows one to use riper grapes without making a wine that is too overwhelming in alcohol, or to reduce the tax liability (wine is taxed on alcohol content).
The choices don’t end at growing grapes or making the wine, there are an increasing number of choices in bottles and closures. Everyone has seen a screw cap on a decent bottle of wine by now, but have you seen the Zork? This clever closure has a peel away strip, then you just pull out the top which makes a satisfying cork like pop as it is released.
I am particularly enamored of the Vino-Seal myself. This glass stopper has a tight fitting o-ring and all the benefits that sterile glass offers. The first time you open one you will have no doubt that the seal it makes is sufficient to protect the wine. It is also easily recycled and even easier to keep to reuse.
Glass bottles too are in line for a refreshing. Rising fuel costs have made weight a great issue while demand continues to outstrip availability. As new glass manufacturers come into play the industry may well see innovations in materials as the new companies find ways to distinguish their product lines.
Nifty barrels, new closures, even genetically designed grapes are all going to make a huge difference but as always it is the winemaker that makes the wine. I love technology; I love gadgets; I love the promise of a shiny tomorrow, but mostly I love what works. Sometimes the best solution is pencil and paper. Time will tell.
posted by Wineguy at 6:02 PM
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