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November 2018 WINES&VINES 77 WINEMAKING wines from that particular vintage. Most include a blend of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, except for the 2014 and 2015 Codorníu Napa Grand Reserve Rosé and the Ana- lemma 2013 Atavus Blanc de Noirs, which are 100% Pinot Noir, and the 2001 Equinox Blanc de Blanc Cuvée de Chardonnay, which is 100% Chardonnay. R. Stuart and Scharffenberger both employ solera systems for their non-vintage wines. "I love the NV Champagnes of France for their complexity, which I think comes primarily from the art of the wine- maker blending different vintages," Stuart said. "We cannot store many different vintages. But what we do is this: In our first harvest (1999) we made five barrels of base wine. In our second harvest (2000) we made another five barrels of wine. In the fall of 2001 we combined a portion of the '99 and a portion of the '00 and put it into Champagne bottles with yeast and sugar and some riddling aids and began the secondary fermentation." Every successive year and bot- tling, Stuart takes the older base wine, combines it with the new vintage, and bottles it. Scharffenberger also uses a solera system based on holding one tank back in reserve each year. "Typically, 84% to 89% of a bottling is a given vintage, while 11% to 16% is the reserve 'sol- era,'" Jindra said. "Every bottle of NV Brut tells not only the story of the primary vintage, but also the tale of vintages past." Secondary fermentation (prise de mousse) The second alcoholic fermenta- tion, also known as prise de mousse (seizing of the foam), occurs in the same bottle in which the wine is sold. To induce secondary fermentation, most winemakers add a liqueur de ti- rage composed of cultured yeast, sugar and yeast nutrients. Most secondary yeast cultures are developed specifically to fer- ment under high pressure, high alcohol, low sugar and low tem- perature conditions. Only William Heritage does not use a bidule, a small plastic cup inserted into each bottle neck to collect sediment; all install crown cap closures and store bottles sur latte, or stacked on their sides in horizontal rows, separated by lattes, or wooden strips. Bottle pressure after second fermentation ranged from 4 to 7 atmospheres. Bottle aging During aging, all of the winemak- ers perform some poignetage, or shaking of bottles to loosen ad- hered lees from the glass. Most use forklifts to move the pallets of wine around the cellar. Equinox Wines' sur latte dura- tion for the 2001 Blanc de Blanc is the longest, with the first release after eight years en tirage, the sec- ond release after 11 years, and the third release after 15 years. Bottle aging allows for autolysis (yeast decomposition), which con- tributes to a wine's toasty, yeasty notes. Bottle aging also helps inte- grate carbon dioxide into solution, and more time helps ensure finer and more consistent bubbles. "The longer you wait, the more toastiness you get," Stuart said. "This is due to the yeast autolysis, not the CO2, going further into solution. These two factors hap- pen simultaneously. And because you wait a long time, you also have smaller and more consistent bubbles in the wine. This is be- WonderfulNurseries.com 661.758.4777 SERVING THE WINE, TABLE GRAPE, RAISIN AND PISTACHIO INDUSTRIES IF YOU WANT THE BEST, BUY FROM THE BEST. Every day, Wonderful Nurseries follows the philosophy that testing is believing. It's why we confidently offer the cleanest vines in the industry. In line with our "Growers First" philosophy, we have designed every element of our advanced processes & facilities to bring our grower partners peace of mind. This includes our intensive vine testing program, with 100% scion testing for internal mother blocks annually. Our in-house ISO Certified testing lab and built-in safeguards help accomplish this task. When it comes to getting the best in value, selection and cleanliness, Wonderful Nurseries delivers every time, vine after vine. RELY ON THE INDUSTRY'S CLEANEST VINES – 100% TESTED MOTHER BLOCKS © 2018 Wonderful Nurseries LLC. All rights reserved. WONDERFUL, WONDERFUL NURSERIES and the accompanying logos are trademarks of Wonderful urseries LLC or its affiliates. P.O. Box 279, 27920 McCombs Ave., Wasco, California 93280 Some wineries use gyropalletes to conduct the process of riddling to collect dead yeast cells in the necks of bottles.