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WINEMAKER INTERVIEW November 2017 WINES&VINES 89 glass viewing ports down the side, which is great for R&D. We are able to look into the tank and view the actual fermentation to see what's hap- pening. We can see exactly what levels the cap and juice are at, and we can extract samples at specific levels to analyze what we are seeing. It is great for experimentation and analysis. We primarily use it for Cabernet Sauvignon, but we also use it for the other red Bordeaux varieties that we use for blending. We also completely changed our glycol sup- ply lines and ports. We used to have just one inlet, and we had to manually change the valv- ing from the hot to cold cycle. Now it is all automatic, which provides more control and more precision. We also have a remote alarm system that automatically alerts us if something is not within our parameters. While we do not have remote monitoring yet, everything is digi- tized, and we find our alarm system to be suf- ficient. If something goes out of range, it will send us an email. This said, the system is entirely scalable, and we can upgrade our software to allow for remote monitoring at some point. One of the things we love is having one touch-screen control panel for all our tanks, which integrates with all of our other systems. So, from a single location, we can see what is happening in our barrel room and other parts of the winery. Lewis Mechanical helped design and install the new system. While it is a custom system—and the first system of its type in- stalled in the valley, with programmable ele- ments that are unique to us—none of the main elements are proprietary. Any company we wish to work with can work on the equipment, and we can upgrade software easily. In terms of what makes it unique, we have one main control panel that links to all of our tanks and barrel rooms. We have automatic valves so we can tell a tank to heat automatically from one interface; and our hot glycol is now digital. Q You're running trials involving a couple types of concrete eggs as well as a ceramic egg. What have the results been? Weinkauf: We have been running Sauvignon Blanc trials using three different types of eggs for three years. It has been fascinating seeing the impact these vessels have on the wines and assessing what qualities they accentuate during the initial fermentation and, later, after months of aging in bottle. Interestingly, the initial char- acteristics often change dramatically after bottle aging, which is something we have learned to factor in for the final wines. In broad strokes, we have found that each different vessel has its own signature impact on the wines. For instance, our ceramic egg from Vital Vessels yields wines with great bal- ance and freshness that are more textured and showy in a very pleasing way. Our French Nom- blot cement egg delivers a more mineral-driven wine with a hint of more reductive character. Our cement egg from Sonoma Cast Stone American falls somewhere in the middle in terms of results. It gives a little minerality, but it also yields a very clean, well-textured wine. Each is a great tool that provides something a little different in our spice rack. In terms of shape, size and coating, they are each some- what different. The ceramic egg is 650 liters and has the classic egg shape that provides great natural convection. It is fired clay, which results in a very stable and inert surface. The French egg is 600 liters and is raw concrete inside, but it is a proprietary concrete blend. The American egg is fatter at the bottom and tighter at the top. It is our largest egg, at 1,800 liters, and its cement is mixed with other non- cement proprietary components. In terms of pros and cons, there are a few things worth noting. Tartrate removal from the ceramic tank is easier than in the cement tanks, but the ceramic tank is a bit more delicate. From a winery aesthetics standpoint, the So- noma Cast Stone allows you to have your logo done beautifully on the tank, and they come in different colors. Q With your winery lab, you're able to do nearly all analysis in-house. How has that changed the way you do things? Weinkauf: We built our winery laboratory six years ago, and it has made a huge difference in our approach. The two key pieces of equip- ment are a Mettle Toledo Titrater and an As- toria-Pacific Discrete Analyzer, which does automated enzymatic analysis. Together, these tools dramatically cut our analysis costs and the time it takes to get data back. In the past, we had to send out analysis, and it was expen- sive. Now we can do analysis on every single barrel and tank, and it is much more focused and precise. This allows us to manage every single fermentation in 21 tanks and as many as 250 barrels each vintage, with barrel-by- barrel analysis, where we can monitor for com- plete fermentations, glucose/fructose, malics, VA and individual sulfurs. This has been hugely beneficial for overall quality, and the cost sav- ings paid for the equipment in just a few years. In fact, our ROI on all of our new equipment has been from one to three years. There are few things that we still need to send out for lab work for a variety of reasons. We do not have a machine to measure alcohols, which is something we usually only check once, since after we check it, the levels tend to be very stable. The machine for analyzing alcohols is very expensive, and the ROI just didn't make sense based on how often it would get used. We also choose to send out our juice panels, since that is a relatively inexpensive analysis that can give us 10 to 12 different variables all at once, and we send out for microbiology. The other things we send out are things that have to be certified by a third party for export. For instance, we have what we call our Pacific Rim Export Panel and our Canadian Export Panel. Some of the things that these panels certify we can actually do in-house, but we need the legal certification from outside laboratories to sell our products in these markets. Q You're using mobile services for bottling and cross-flow filtration. What are the advantages? Are there disadvantages? Weinkauf: The advantage of using a mobile service is that you are using state-of-the-art, perfectly maintained equipment run by profes- sional technicians who know the machines inside and out, as opposed to people who may only do bottling once or twice a year. The dis- advantage is scheduling. With mobile services, you have to work on scheduling and availabil- ity in advance, which leaves less flexibility if you need to change your bottling dates. As far as cross-flow goes, we like the quality of the filtration that we get at lower pressures. For our bottling, we have been working with a great company called Ryan Mobile Bottling for almost 25 years, and we use Juclas USA for our filtration. A resident of the Santa Cruz Mountains, Laurie Daniel has been a journalist for more than 35 years. She has been writing about wine for publications for more than 21 years and has been a Wines & Vines contributor since 2006. SAVING WATER A s at many wineries, water conser vation is a major focus at Spotts woode. That attention extends to both the vineyard and the winery. "In the vineyard," says winemaker and vineyard manager Aron Weinkauf, "we have actively been improving water use efficiency for more than a decade, including using realtime vinewater analysis/sap flow tools from Fruition Sciences and Tule Technologies. We use drip irrigation, irrigate at night and apply longer irrigation sets for deeper water penetration and less evaporation. As a result, in 2016 we averaged 78 gallons per vine, down from 97 in 2010." More recently, changes in the winery also have translated into big water savings. "We have metered water use, we steam clean our barrels (saving 49 gallons per barrel), we use pressure washers, and we purchased more easytoclean stain less steel equipment," Weinkauf says. As a result, the winery cut its water use from around 500,000 gallons in 2012 to 250,000300,000 gallons now.