Issue link: http://winesandvines.uberflip.com/i/438260
p r a c t i c a l w i n e r y & v i n e ya r d J a n U a r y 2 0 1 5 15 c o v e r s t o r y By drawing on lessons learned from 15 years of customer expe- rience, Lennova provided a unique solution for Rodney Strong Vineyards. Barrel selections for new red wine blend Seidenfeld has identified Cooperages 1912, Gamba and Vicard Generation 7 as the three primary cooperages for the new red wine blend. Botti Generazioni, an extension of the Gamba Cooperage in the Piedmonte province of northern Italy, supplied barrels with a blend of 28-month naturally seasoned staves from the center of France that utilized a proprietary, slow Toast Check process. Cooperages 1912 supplied three French oak barrels, each contributing a unique influence: World Cooperage Profile 8 for added spice, World Cooperage Profile 14 to enhance structure and the T.W. Boswell Legacy barrel for beautiful balance. Vicard Generation 7 French oak barrels are coopered from staves with low, high and mixed tannin potential levels, and then "cooked" for 90 minutes with a patented bending and toasting process. Luis Flores, barrel foreman, racks wine from tank into barrels while Justin Seidenfeld (right) samples barreled wine. Wine from the tank flows through a 3-inch diameter Waukesha variable speed 0 to 130 gpm positive displacement pump with a winged rotor. Four-barrel pallets are used at Rodney Strong Vineyard for best stability in an earthquake.