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6 WINES&VINES November 2015 A member of Wine Communications Group Inc. ADVERTISING Vice President & Director of Sales Jacques Brix jbrix@winesandvines.com (707) 473-0244 West Lydia Hall lydia@winesandvines.com (415) 453-9700, ext. 103 Midwest Hooper Jones hooperhja@aol.com (847) 486-1021 Northeast Marsha Tabb marshatabb@comcast.net (215) 794-3442 East Laura Lemos laura@boja.com (973) 822-9274 International Dave Bayard dave@bayard.com (973) 822-9275 Advertising Manager Christina Ballinger ads@winesandvines.com DIGITAL EDITION All print subscribers now get digital access to Wines & Vines. You can: • DOWNLOAD pages or full issues • BROWSE current and archived issues • WATCH videos • ACCESS via desktop, tablet or smartphone • SEARCH by keyword or table of contents • NAVIGATE by topic or page thumbnail • QUESTIONS? Contact customer ser- vice at custserv@winesandvines.com or (866) 453-9701 Monday-Friday, 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. PDT. CONNECT WITH US CONTRIBUTORS Kate Lavin wrote the eighth annual survey of suppliers to the wine and grape industry (page 34). Since first compiling data for this yearly feature in 2008, Lavin has witnessed the onset of the reces- sion, followed by a steady climb back to economic health. This year, suppliers reported that new wine brands are popping up, particularly in the premium segment. Additionally, winery and vineyard clients are paying promptly, a good indication about cash flow in the sector. Laurie Daniel, a regular contributor to Wines & Vines, conducted the winemaker interview for this issue (page 94) to learn more about how wine packaging affects winemaking decisions and processes. Her interviewee is Juan Jose Verdina, the winemaker at Jamieson Ranch Vineyards in Napa Valley, who was apt for the topic because Jamieson Ranch packages its wine in several formats, including glass bottles with corks, glass with screwtops and kegs. Verdina, a native of Chile, formerly worked for Hahn Estates in Monterey County, Calif., and was the winemaker for the Cycles Gladiator brand. Russell Moss contributes his fourth article to Wines & Vines in this issue with "Thiols From Harvest to Bottle" (page 122). In it, he de- scribes how winemakers can enhance fruit aromas in aromatic white wines based on recent research. A graduate of Lincoln University in New Zealand, Moss is pursuing a master's degree in viticulture and a master's degree in enology at Virginia Tech in Winchester, Va. Moss is currently investigating how foliar nitrogen and sulfur sprays impact volatile thiols in Sauvignon Blanc and Petit Manseng. ON THE COVER In this month's cover image, winemaker Scott Hawley sorts grapes at Law Estate Wines in Paso Robles, Calif. The winery is the focus of our Technical Spotlight feature (page 98), for which associate editor Andrew Adams looked at the equipment and winemaking practices Hawley uses in the cellar. QUESTION FOR NOVEMBER: What winemaking tool was most useful this harvest? Paul Bonarrigo Winemaker and chairman Messina Hof Winery Bryan, Texas The harvest of 2015 was the largest harvest in history for the state of Texas. For Messina Hof we crushed more than 1,000 tons. That is two times what we have crushed before, and the fruit quality was outstanding. Our most important pieces of equipment were our brand new Santa Rosa Stainless Steel wine tanks. Florent Merlier Winemaker Van Duzer Vineyards Dallas, Ore. The ozone machine is an essen- tial piece of equipment at Van Duzer Vineyards—during harvest and all year long. It provides a quick and efficient sanitization of all processing equipment from the sorting line to tanks to press. By using ozone gas, we are able to control the fruit fly population and be environmentally friendly without sacrificing efficiency. Adam Casto Assistant winemaker Gandona Estate St. Helena, Calif. In any year my answer would be people, but in 2015 this was especially true. While it has turned out to be an exceptional vintage for quality, it was not necessarily a no-brainer, and thus I relied heavily on the tactile input that only humans—and considerably capable ones at that—can provide.