Wines & Vines

January 2014 Unified Symposium Issue

Issue link: http://winesandvines.uberflip.com/i/235941

Contents of this Issue

Navigation

Page 72 of 147

2 0I1N E U N IK II N G W 4 MA F ED "There's a little bit of a thermo-dynamic relationship, but it's a relationship that we've calculated from (tank) size to the rate of fermentation to the amount of heat generated to how much loss there is through the skin to the ambient temperature, and we size the tank a little bit on that." Custom lids for tank efficiency Pinot Noir is fermented in smaller opentop tanks, but Hobbs has custom-made lids by Silver State Stainless that enable One of the tank lids that enables Paul Hobbs to use open-top tanks that are ideal for Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvignon as well. Baccitich to also ferment Cabernet in them. The lids are equipped with an inflatable rubber gasket to hold in carbon dioxide and keep oxygen out, but the seals are not strong enough for the tanks to be filled to the top and used for storage and blending. "Today we hardly ever buy a closed-top tank except for if we're going to do a Chardonnay," Hobbs said. For "almost all our new tanks we just go with a Pinot tank, and then we put a lid on it and they do double duty. You can go with less tanks that way, because when you finish your Pinot you're working with Cabernet, so you get more efficient turns." Hobbs' prized Cabernets such as the To Kalon are fermented in a regular closedtop tank, but Hobbs said the Cabs fermented in the converted open tops do very well. He said both the closed- and open-top tanks have a height-to-diameter ratio of 1:1. During the punch downs and pump overs, cellar workers set a fan at the top of the open tops or run juice into a bucket and sump to help the yeast get some oxygen and lower alcohol levels a bit. Once red fermentation is complete, the pomace is loaded into a Bucher Vaslin JBL basket press. During pressing, the wine receives CALIFORNIA CALIFORNIA Mendocino Sacramento Paul Hobbs Winery NV Napa San Francisco Pacific Ocean assiduous monitoring that includes sensory analysis and monitoring for pH changes. Hobbs said he uses a variety of French coopers for barrel aging including François Frères, Taransaud, Remond, Cadus, Damy, Marques, Vincent Darnajou, Gauthier Freres, Louis Latour, Sylvain and Marcel Cadet. He said he's done extensive trials on American oak but ultimately decided French was the better fit. "We've done a lot of work between both, but for our style French is preferred," he said. "We find that really it's more appropriate for the Paul Hobbs wines." In addition to barrel aging, Hobbs uses a portion of new French oak barrels for control freak LE TRIEUR™ MOG SEPARATOR Dramatically improve the quality of berries going to the fermenter. Easy to integrate, operate and clean. ■ Multiple models available ■ Options for different varietals ■ Remote on/off and speed control ■ Free run juice capture ■ Over 300 units currently in service U.S. Patent #7,581,646 H I G H - P E R F O R M A N C E C R U S H PA D E Q U I P M E N T www.pnlspecialties.com ■ p. 707 573 3141 1650 Almar Pkwy, Santa Rosa, CA 95403 See us at Unified booth #1111 See us at Unified booth #F1 04.19.13 P&L Specialties Wines & Vines 3.5x4.875" ■ ■ f. 707 573 3140 Lic. in CA/OR/WA Win es & Vin es ja n ua ry 20 14 73 1/4-Page BW A R M S T R O N G C R E AT E S

Articles in this issue

Links on this page

Archives of this issue

view archives of Wines & Vines - January 2014 Unified Symposium Issue