Recovery Day

     Much like when you work out too much and you need to take a day off to recover. Today is such a day. I know, I suck. But I'm human and need somewhat of a break. So today I'm just going to answer a wine question. "How and to what extent can a winemaker influence the textural profile of a wine?"

     When we winos talk about texture we're generally talking mouthfeel and winemakers can manipulate this factor in a number of ways. The extent of which they do this is under the influence of the winemaker, owner or both.  Swirling wine in your mouth will give a great idea of what you're tasting depending on how it feels. A thick Shiraz feels different than a Pinot Noir like Viogner feels different than a New Zealand, Sauvignon Blanc.
     Winemakers can first start off in choosing what type of soil to plant in. Different soils can yield higher or lower alcohol levels causing differences this viscosity. The altitude of wines can also do this without changing the composition of the soil. Clay and loam tend to yield broader wines, like Pommerol. Pouilly, with it's silex gives a minerality you can feel in the rocky nature while the Gravel of Chateauneuf or left bank Bordeaux will yield more alcohol and a bigger wine.
     Sugar in the form of polysaccharides plays a great part in mouth feel. When the concentration of sugars are high then there is a thicker or more viscous wine. The polysaccharide Mannoprotein is found in the cell walls of yeast and is released into wine via autolysis. Many will know this as batonage. When you see on the wine label that the winery practices Lees aging or Sur Lies they basically stir the yeast in the wine with a big stick.
     The choice of stem inclusion will play a part because stem inclusion or whole cluster will increase the tannin level affecting mouth feel. This is a drying or astringent feeling, so much so that heavy tannins make a wine more "chewy." There is also the time during maceration and whether this must is interacting with other matter like proteins or polysaccharides.
     Winemakers may also choose to include exogenous products like extra polysaccharides, gums and tannins. Chaptalization is also a factor in mouthfeel that deals with exogenous sugars. Acidification will also affect mouthfeel in making wine more acidic. The addition of barrel fermentation or aging will also add polyphenols like vanillin and terpenes like diacetyl which imparts a chewy and buttery nature.