Trabajo

Freemark Abbey Winery (Abridged)
In September 1976 William Jaeger, a member of the partnership that owned Freemark Abbey Winery, had to make decision: should he harvest the riesling grapesimmediately, or leave them on the vines despite the approaching storm? A storm just before the harvest is usually detrimental, often ruining the crop. A warm, light rain, however, will sometimes cause abeneficial mold, botrytis cinerea, to form on the grape skins. The resuilt is a luscious, complex sweet wine, highly valued by connoisseurs.
The Winery
Freemark Abbey was located in Napa Valley,California. The winery produced only premium wines from the best grape varieties. Of the 25,000 cases of wine bottled each year, most were Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay. About 1,000 cases of Rieslingwere also bottled. (A case contains 12 bottles of wine.)
Winemaking
Wine is produced when fruit sugar, which is naturally present in the juice of grapes, ferments. The wine ages in barrels for one ormore years until it is ready for bottling.
By various decisions during vinification - for example, the type of wooden barrel used for aging – the winemarker influences the style of wine produced. Thestyle adopted by a particular winery depends mainly on the owners’ preferences, though it is influenced by marketing considerations. Usually, as the grapes ripen, the sugar levels increase and theacidity levels decrease. The winemaker tries to harvest the grapes when they have achieved the proper balance of sugar and acidity for the style of wine sought. The ripening process is variable, however,and if the weather is not favorable, the proper balance might never occur.
Several different styles of Riesling (more accurately, Johannisberg Riesling) are on the market. A rare style results whenalmost-ripe Riesling grapes are attacked by the botrytis mold. The resulting wine is extraordinary an the botrytis itself adds to the wines´complexity. Freemark Abbey had already produced a...