- Joined
- Nov 23, 2019
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When you've reached retirement age, you come to terms with the fact that conquering this art is at least partially a function of the number of vintages left to you. You realize that doubling the number of vintages is a REALLY good idea. Toward that end we've ordered Chilean grapes from our local supplier. The order arrives in about ten days.
We selected Cabernet Franc, which we've worked with in the past, and Carmenere. This grape variety is new to us. Researching the internet provides a few clues. The two that stand out are that if the fruit is ripe the can be either fruit forward or structured. (What does "structured" mean? Concrete block, steel, and two bys?) But when the grapes are under-ripe there is a risk of vegetal and herbaceous notes of green bell pepper, and paprika. Not a fan.
The plan is to choose and stock in a couple of different yeasts. One for ripe fruit and one for not so ripe. Scott labs manual recommends (with capsule recommendations):
Alchemy IV: Fruit forward, decreases vegetal notes
CVRP: Enhanced mouthfeel
ICV-GRE: Short skin contact
Rhone 2226: Choice for imitating Rhone
RP15: Medium to full body wines
CSM: Minimizes herbaceous notes
We've never worked with any of these yeasts and know nothing more than what is stated in the manual.
Current, underinformed, quick picks are Rhone 2226 and CSM. Alchemy IV looks like it might be one size fits all. Or not.
We're open to all ideas, suggestions, and opinions.
We selected Cabernet Franc, which we've worked with in the past, and Carmenere. This grape variety is new to us. Researching the internet provides a few clues. The two that stand out are that if the fruit is ripe the can be either fruit forward or structured. (What does "structured" mean? Concrete block, steel, and two bys?) But when the grapes are under-ripe there is a risk of vegetal and herbaceous notes of green bell pepper, and paprika. Not a fan.
The plan is to choose and stock in a couple of different yeasts. One for ripe fruit and one for not so ripe. Scott labs manual recommends (with capsule recommendations):
Alchemy IV: Fruit forward, decreases vegetal notes
CVRP: Enhanced mouthfeel
ICV-GRE: Short skin contact
Rhone 2226: Choice for imitating Rhone
RP15: Medium to full body wines
CSM: Minimizes herbaceous notes
We've never worked with any of these yeasts and know nothing more than what is stated in the manual.
Current, underinformed, quick picks are Rhone 2226 and CSM. Alchemy IV looks like it might be one size fits all. Or not.
We're open to all ideas, suggestions, and opinions.