Mind on Winemaking: For Chardonnays, Unoaked Is Not Unequal

Matt Mind is the winemaker for Alpha Omega vineyard in Napa Valley, and has lectured within the enology and viticulture packages at each Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and Fresno State College in California. He earned levels in biosciences at Sam Houston State College and in winemaking on the College of California, Davis.

As a winemaker, I’ve all the time liked crafting chardonnay as a result of it’s a grape that enables itself to be formed into an limitless number of types. Actually, probably the most coveted and costly white wines on this planet are chardonnays fermented and aged in French oak, because the aromas and textures of oak barrels are complementary to the fruit characters in beautiful and acquainted methods. However is oak obligatory to precise the total character depth of this selection, or are tank-fermented and aged chards an equally professional expression of the world’s hottest white grape?

The fruit character of chardonnay may be framed and enhanced by the right use of oak, very similar to a freshly baked crust enhances the tart and candy apples in a pie. Lean and acidic chards that present citrus, inexperienced apple and minerality solely want small quantities of delicate oak to enhance and body the wine. In distinction, wealthy, ripe tropical and viscous chards can help a great deal of oak aroma and taste, in addition to buttery notes from malolactic fermentation, whereas nonetheless holding mass enchantment. The origin, seasoning and toasting of oak, in addition to the ensuing sensory character, is an enchanting subject itself, and the custom of nice chard and nice barrels is a compelling story within the historical past of wine.

From a winemaking perspective, barrel and butter aromas can be utilized to deliver complexity, energy and ageability to a wine, but in addition consistency to a product that naturally varies from classic to classic. Together with barrel getting older and malolactic fermentation, they’ll additionally assist cowl delicate flaws that will happen by viticulture and vinification. Nevertheless, the notes of toast, nuts and spice that come from the barrel, alongside savory and acquainted butter, can simply cowl nuanced aromas which are essential to revealing distinctive clonal-vintage interactions whereas additionally distracting from the expression of terroir.  The right amount of oak wanted to border a wine correctly is a recurring subject amongst trade mates, and let me inform you – opinions differ!

A LEGACY OF MINIMAL OAK

The Chablis area in Burgundy has an amazing custom of expressing terroir by its chardonnays with minimal new barrel affect and generally by utilizing pure chrome steel tank fermentation and getting older. A cooler rising space than a lot of the Cote de Beaune, Chablis’ vivid acids and pure tendency towards flinty mineral expression lend themselves completely to a minimal oaked model. Many producers within the new world have adopted this lead, producing leaner, brighter chards by tank fermentation and storage. And whereas generally these pure chards are sharp and angular, the most effective are balanced, expressive and singular.

Whereas starting wine drinkers could search consistency of their favourite bottle of wine, true aficionados seek for the expression of the classic within the glass. With out oak, the delicate fragrant and textural characters of the classic are uncovered and on full show.

Completely different clones of chardonnay can current very totally different profiles if dealt with delicately within the winery and cellar. For instance, I craft a chard from a winery on the highest of Napa’s Mt. Veeder – a delicate Wente clone that shows purity of fruit and floral notes, with lean apple and citrus.

In distinction, an unbelievable winery in Carneros gives me with Clones 76 and 96 which show extra wild and expressive orange blossom notes and a touch of flinty discount that I discover matches properly with barely extra fragrant creamy oak. I can use oak (or chorus from utilizing it) to drive the model of every wine and present my clients the vary and suppleness of the grape in Napa.

With out the flavour profile of oak and butter to average climactic elements affecting grape ripening, stainless steel-fermented chardonnays actually permit the classic and terroir to shine by. Refined adjustments to aromas and flavors attributable to rising circumstances are extra simply detected on this pure and revealing model, and partial malolactic fermentation and lees stirring can assist soften angular acidic edges within the tank.

Stainless-steel tanks are additionally simpler to look after and  a less expensive resolution in winemaking than utilizing high-quality French oak, which may price as much as $1,200 per barrel or extra and in addition wants common microbial monitoring (since wooden is unimaginable to completely sterilize), to not point out stirring, sampling and topping up quantity misplaced to evaporation.

For me, unoaked chardonnays signify a pure and sincere manufacturing methodology. The expression of terroir, clone, and fermentation strategies are on full show whereas delivering an uncomplicated and cost-effective expression of the grape. This budget-friendly, easy and refreshing model could in reality assist have interaction the subsequent era of wine shoppers to fall in love with chardonnay and be part of the remainder of us in embracing its many varieties and expressions. That stated, probably the most wanted and most-discussed chardonnays will proceed to be oak- aged in model, with complexity, steadiness and ageability persevering with to outline the best of wines.

– Matt Mind