Wines & Vines

80 WINES&VINES February 2018 GRAPEGROWING WINE EAST tion (usually in 24 hours), it will be cooled down to about 50° F for a fermentation of about four weeks. Following fermentation, both nitrogen and carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) are used to keep the wine fresh, and Oliver has a stringent program using analysis of the headspace in each tank to monitor oxygen levels. The winery has a number of smaller tanks, most of them from Santa Rosa (Calif.) Stainless Steel and Paul Mueller Co. in Springfield, Mo. All the larger tanks are from Paul Mueller and range from 6,000 to 114,000 gallons. For stability of the new wine, Oliver uses the 0.8 molecular mathematical formula to determine the necessary SO 2 levels based upon the pH of the wine. Oliver explained that if you take away the "3" whole number of the pH, one needs to have the remaining fraction equal to ppm of free SO 2 . The lower the pH, the less SO 2 . Thus, a wine with a pH of 3.2 needs 20 ppm of free sulfur, while wine at 3.4 pH will require 40 ppm. He believes that this method is particularly useful for SO 2 in Traminette. When the wine has been fermented to about 2% residual sugar, it is centrifuged, cold stabilized and run through a Della Tof- fola horizontal pressure diatomaceous earth (DE) leaf filter. Prior to bottling, it will be checked for heat and cold stability, SO 2 levels (which may require an addition via the 0.8 molecular formula), and a final pad filtration of 0.45 microns. Bottling is done quickly, using a large GAI 28-valve counter-pressure filler from Prospero Equipment that is run by a seven-person bot- tling crew. If started first thing in the morning, the Traminette bottling is usually completed by lunch. The wine is packaged in flint-colored Vitro WCF reverse-tapered Bordeaux-shaped 750 ml glass bottles stoppered with Nomacorc Green Line closures made with sugarcane-based poly- mers and topped with a PVC spin-on capsule. Usually bottled in December, it averages about eight weeks in the warehouse. "I'm a firm believer in these fresh, delicate wines being expeditiously made and bottled," Oliver said. His Traminette wine is only avail- able in Indiana and through Oliver's limited- distribution wine club. While Bill Oliver has successfully led his family winery to a large commercial success, he has done it with a singular focus. He ex- plained: "While the fruit is growing, how do we present it in the bottle? We want every wine we make to reflect the quality of great fruit, grown well and clean, and picked at the right time." Ray Pompilio is a wine writer based in Ithaca, N.Y. An avid follower of the Finger Lakes wine scene—and new grape varieties across the East and Midwest—Pompilio delights in finding new and interesting wines to write about, and to taste. SUPPORT RESEARCH & WINE INDUSTRY NEEDS THROUGH THE A M E R I C A N V I N EYA R D FOUN D AT I O N i m p r ov i ng t h e h e a l t h o f g r a p e v i n e s w i t h g e n e t i c s a n d nov e l d i ag no s t i c s t o o l s The AVF is funding two of Dr. Cantu's research projects. The first is to identify and characterize the functions of resistance genes to use for breeding of new grape varieties with effective and durable resistance to powdery mildew. The second is to develop rapid and cost-effective diagnostic methods for the detection, identification and quantification of grapevine trunk pathogens. For more information, visit AVF.org or contact Dr. Cantu at dacantu@ucdavis.edu. For a wealth of useful viticulture and enology research and information, visit AVF.org, ngr.ucdavis.edu, asev.org, iv.ucdavis.edu or ngwi.org Finding Solutions Through Research Finding Solutions Through Research AMERICAN VINEYARD FOUNDATION • P.O. Box 5779, Napa, CA, 94581 • tel (707) 252-6911 Visit our Web site at www.avf.org for information on funding and current research projects AMERICAN VINEYARD FOUNDATION • P.O. Box 5779, Napa, CA, 94581 • tel (707) 252-6911 Visit our Web site at www.avf.org for information on funding and current research projects Oliver Winery vineyard manager Bernie Parker (left) walks the vineyard with Bill Oliver. TOD MARTENS

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