Issue link: http://winesandvines.uberflip.com/i/62409
O CO VER S T OR Y Is TPO the New TCA? How to pursue perfection in total package oxygen By Jean L. Jacobson On a recent Friday night I met a special friend for dinner at one of my favorite restaurants. Earlier I had gladly offered to bring the wine, and being familiar with the menu, I wanted to find that perfect wine that would pair well with most dishes. I spent some time going through my wine "stash" to pick a bottle that would fit the occasion and the menu. I decided on a 2004 Merlot from the Napa Valley. Key Areas of Oxygen Management opened, the cork was passed to me, and a small sample poured into my glass. I took a deep breath, paused, and proceeded to swirl my glass. W The aromas were wonderful, with tastes of lush deep cherry and dark berry, fantastic from start to lingering velvet finish. I was so relieved and excited to offer this wine to my friend. My nervous anticipation stemmed from a previous experience, not too many weeks before, when I met some out-of-town friends for dinner and, as in this case, I brought the wine. The bottle was a 2001 Knight's Valley Cabernet that was also a well thought-out choice. My excitement and anticipation were dashed when the aroma indicated and the taste confirmed that the wine was oxidized. More oxygen flaws than TCA Results from the 2010 International Wine Challenge (IWC) com- petition in Britain show that the judges identified faults in 5.6% 36 Wines & Vines JAnUARY 2012 hen my friend and I were seated at the restau- rant, I asked our server to open the bottle and decant the wine. As the server began to open the bottle, I found myself apologizing in advance to my friend just in case the wine had gone bad. I watched in anticipation as the bottle was of all the wines tasted. The IWC is an annual two-week competi- tion with more than 10,000 wine entries from around the world judged by hundreds of winemakers, wine writers and merchants. Looking at the 2010 statistics in "Results from the International Wine Challenge" on page 37, let's consider 10,000 bottles of wine tasted and of these 5.6% (560 bottles) had faults. Of those 560 bottles, nearly 55% (308 bottles) were flawed due to poor oxygen management (sulfides and oxidation). In comparison, 21% (117 bottles) were flawed due to cork taint (TCA). If the wines averaged $100 per bottle at retail, the monetary loss due to poor oxygen management would be $30,800 compared to $11,700 for loss due to TCA. In this scenario poor oxygen management is responsible for nearly 64% higher loss than TCA. The losses are significant regardless of the price per bottle, and in the premium and ultra-premium arena they can add up to tens of thousands of dollars per year. In addition to the monetary and consumer confidence losses, consider the questions that winemakers will need to deal with to determine the causes of improper oxygen management and correct them. Winemaker Steve Reeder, vice president and general manager of Simi Winery in Healdsburg, Calif., said, "The key to any wine is at the time of consumption. That's 2 • Varietal fermentation • Post-fermentation, pre-sulfur additions • Transfer lines • Connections/gasket leaks/valves • Headspace: tanks and barrels • Racking/transfers • Micro-oxidation • Fining/stabilization • Bottling process • Closure OTR-bottle aging • Storage conditions