Vintage 2008 - MERLOT - Bring it on!
Following the Viognier harvest, everyone braced themselves for a bigger day with the Merlot. Given that we were a few pickers short the previous day, I was right on to stressing with the picking contractor that more bodies were needed to ensure that the fruit is off before the peak heat of the day. Things did drag on into the afternoon with the Viognier pick.
Sampling the previous week did indicate that the Merlot was ripening nicely, sugars had risen well, seeds were darkening and flavours were peaking. From a logistical perspective it makes sense for me to harvest both varieties either on the same day or on alternate days.
The harvest team really excelled in the conditions and the whole of the 9+ tonnes was brought in with a 4 x 4 motorbike and trailer.
In order to reduce any chance of green characters in the wine it is vital that leaves and petioles are removed. You can point out to the pickers as many times as you like to keep vine leaves out, however you have to check every picking box as it comes in.
The day went well, yields were good and the word from the winery was that the analysis could not be faultered. Beaume, pH and titrateable acid were all as you would want them and at this stage not acid adjustments were needed. This year we are trying something a little different by allowing the crushed grapes to undergo a cold soak for 4 - 5 days prior to fermentation. The idea behind this is that the batch will homogenise well, will commence the colour extraction process and also ensure greater fruit intensity in the final wine.
Following this it will then be up to those special little yeast babies to do their thing. Keep you posted on the progress of the wines.
Vineman