Issue link: http://winesandvines.uberflip.com/i/70673
WINEMAKING with soft, plush tannins totally lacking in harshness or vegetal aromas. To the classi- cally trained palate, these are not complete wines. But Steve McIntyre sees possibilities for the emergence of a whole new wine product category to emerge. "Liquid-phase flash wine represents an opportunity for a whole new kind of wine style that sells at the $12 level," McIntyre says. I think he's right. It would not shock me if, a decade hence, half the wine we sell is like that. Size matters Della Toffola's 30-ton-per-hour unit has a minimum lot size of one truckload, and price breaks are offered for larger quantities. Small lots are not only more expensive, they impose limitations on style choices such as partial-lot processing. Their pilot unit can process as little as 1.5 tons, but as with any industrial process, the most reliable results are obtained with full-scale equipment. There do exist 3- to 5-ton commercial units that may take by storm the regions outside California where ripeness, extrac- tion and rot are the norm, and well-funded state programs charged with solving foul weather problems could provide a ma- chine for a whole region. Iconic of the growing division between in- dustrial and artisanal winemaking, flash ex- traction excludes the small guy and widens the gap between vins d'effort and vins de ter- roir. A small winery simply can't produce the lip-smackin' delicious product a flash unit cranks out by the carload any more than a microbrewery can duplicate Budweiser or a small creamery can make Velveeta. Flash Détente has been around for 20 years, and we're just finding out about it. Flash turns winemaking on its head be- cause a bit of extra tannin is always wel- come. I predict that the screw press will make a major comeback in large wineries as a perfect partner for flash, and we may even see continuous systems for seed tan- nin extraction to enable liquid phase fer- mentations that result in wines with more conventional palate framing. Successful mega-wineries throughout the world are implementing flash for one pri- mary reason: fermentation tank turnover. When you can get maximum extraction COMPLETE CRUSHPAD SYSTEMS LT™ & LT™ 2+2 (MOG Separators) Fruit Receiving Systems Bin Dumpers Sorting Tables Belt Conveyors Screw Conveyors Vibratory Conveyors Presses Destemmers & Peristaltic Pumps Destemmers, Mohno Pumps & Crush Rollers USED BY THE FINEST WINERIES TO ACHIEVE THE BEST RESULTS Call Now to Schedule Design Appointments! CA Contractor's #803431, OR Contractor's #180330 WA Contractor's #PLSPELS923BZ P 707 573 3141 • F 707 573 3140 www.pnlspecialties.com Santa Rosa, California 95403 1650 Almar Parkway Tom Beard Company 1650 Almar Parkway, Santa Rosa, CA 95403 P. 707-573-3150 74 Wines & Vines FeBRUARY 201 1 SOLUTIONS • EXPERTISE • QUALITY • SATISFACTION www.tombeard.com F. 707-573-3140 2 Barrel Washers • 4 Barrel Washers Barrel Processing Lines • 1/2 Ton Bin Washing Systems 35 lb. Picking Lug Washers • Custom Cellar Equipment in 48 hours, capital for tank farm expan- sion can be delayed and efficiency increased without a hit to product quality. Of thee I sing We Americans should be ashamed of our- selves. Flash extraction has been around for 20 years, and we're just finding out about it. With a table wine industry less than 50 years old, we have become awfully compla- cent in our old age, and the universities we depend on have lost their gumption. The U.S. departure from the International Organization of Vine and Wine (OIV) was a bonehead move that took us away from the table where technologies are shared. Our universities make little attempt to in- terface internationally. There is little for- eign language literacy among our profes- sors, and even less interest in the practical problems of commercial wineries. Whatever. Lesson learned. Now that flash has hit our shores, we may have a lot fewer problems to grouse to the academics about anyhow. Clark Smith is winemaker for WineSmith and founder of wine technology firm Vinovation. He lectures about an ancient yet innovative view of American winemaking. E. jmendoza@tombeard.com