Interesting Wine Trends

Oak barrels vs Stainless Steel vs Concrete Vessels

There are some interesting innovations and trends happening in the wine world today. In this post I want to discuss a few of these related to the storage and fermentation vessels, as well as the type of vessel from which you pour your wine (glass, can, or plastic). These variables reflect history, environmental concerns, aesthetic concerns, and taste. In addition there are some winemakers pushing the envelope when it comes to winemaking itself.

First, let’s talk about storage and fermentation vessels. Historically, concrete vessels were widely used in the early 1900’s. Barrels date back much further and remain the most widely used vessels for storage and fermentation today. Stainless steel became more popular for white wine and the collective tastebuds in the wine world are changing. As is true with other realms of life (from fashion to music and many other areas). The old becomes new again. Specifically, concrete is having a moment once again. Today, many wineries are giving concrete a try, including at least one winery in New Jersey.

Cape May Winery fairly recently began using concrete storage and fermentation vessels (in addition to their stainless steel and oak vessels). I’m pretty sure a couple of other New Jersey wineries have made some use of concrete vessels for storage and/or fermentation, but I cannot think of one right now. Feel free to send me a comment if you know of others.

Cape May Winery has embraced this old world technology to add an interesting facet of winemaking. Is the use of concrete to store wine really old world technology? Yes, for many years white and red wines were made, stored, and even transported in barrels (mostly made of oak). But oak barrels allow oxygen to make contact with the wine and barrels are hard to clean. Stainless steel proved easier to clean and sanitize. But some critics feel they make blander wines, even though they helpthe fruit shine and perhaps taste a tad fresher. At a recent visit I got to taste a glass of Cape May Winery’s Stone White Field Blend (88% Chardonnay and 12% Sauvignon Blanc). It is a field blend (both varieties of grapes were harvested together and fermented together in cement vessels). This was an excellent wine with grapefruit on the palate.

Concrete tanks come in varied shapes and sizes and are porous. Concrete is fairly easy to clean and it also maintains temperature levels well, so there are no huge variations. Some feel that concrete is the perfect alternative to oak and stainless steel, with some of the advantages of both wood and steel. I say we should try and enjoy all of the options. For most red wines, for now, I prefer the oak barrels. But, variety is the spice of life.

Pouring Vessels

Once the wine is made and is sold to the consumer, again there are choices. Again most wineries in New Jersey and elsewhere, utilize glass bottles as their primary choice. But bottles have a few disadvantages: 1. They are expensive; 2. They are heavy; 3. While recyclable, they do leave a heavy carbon footprint, mostly via transportation. On the other hand, most wine drinkers seem to agree that they are more aesthetically pleasing and (most importantly) the wine seems to taste better than the alternatives.

What are the alternatives? What about cans? Cans have been around for at least a few decades, but are gaining popularity (especially in the lesser expensive lines of wines). What are your feelings about getting or drinking your wine from a can? I confess that I prefer my wine to come from a bottle. That said, I drink a bit of craft beer from time to time and when I bring some home it is almost always in a can. Cans are lighter and cheaper than bottles. I always pour them in a beer glass to drink. Maybe I should do a taste test?

The third option is plastic. We can no longer use “one use” plastic in New Jersey, however, Amalthea Cellars in Atco, is a great example of the plastic option. Their plastic growler can be utilized again and again. With proper care they can certainly be used for each of the four seasons for at least one year. I hasten to add that, the quality of the wine in these growlers is very good. This makes plastic worth another look.

I did not mention boxed wines, as they also use plastic inside of the box. It is treated the same way as the plastic growlers-press the container after each pour and compress the wine into a smaller space, with less unwanted oxygen.

A photo of the most recent Cantina Mas is shown below. It is their fall red blend of Barbera, Sangiovese, and Petit Sirah. Photos of plastic jugs don’t look as pretty as bottles with beautiful labels. That said, the wine contained in these jugs is so consistently good that I never feel the need to taste a sample. They make a new red blend four times a year, around the start of each season. The summer blends tend to be lighter, while the winter blends tend to have more body and a deeper color. If you follow the directions carefully your wine will still be good two or three weeks after you pour your first glass. There are four liters of wine in each Cantina Mas container. It is always a very good wine at a very good price.

Speaking of Amalthea…

While I was picking up my Cantina Mas, I decided to bring home a few bottles of their wines, as well:

• Dream Barrel Chardonnay-Sourced from California, this is a very good Chardonnay with notes of apple and pear and crisp acidity.
• Amalthea Cellars 2019 Legends Edition Europa I-This series has been one of my faves for several years. Classic Bordeaux style red blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (75%); Merlot (20%); and Cab Franc (5%).
• 2018 Buffalo Trace Mouvedre New Jersey-Mouvedre oaked in the famous Buffalo Trace Bourbon barrels.
• Green Dragon Tavern Old Vine Zinfandel American-Amalthea makes three different Zinfandels. None are sourced from NJ, as there are no Zinfandel growers in NJ. Unfortunately, their Primitivo (sourced from Italy) was sold out.
• 2018 Dream Barrel 2018 Syrah (Paso Robles)-I have not tried this one yet, but look forward to it!
• Amalthea Cellars New Jersey Elara White Table Wine-This is a wonderful, dry blend of Chardonnay, Riesling, and Rayon d’Or.

Cheers!

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