Displaying items by tag: yeast

Summary:

Join winemaker Olivier Humbrecht MW, of famed estate Zind Humbrecht in Alsace, for a deep dive into these key components of winemaking: yeast and fermentation! 

Presenter: Olivier Humbrecht, MW

Olivier Humbrecht studied wine together with wine marketing and wine business for five years in Toulouse, and then got the chance to do his ‘military service’ working for Sopexa in London.  He learned about and enrolled on the MW course, becoming France’s first ever Master of Wine in 1989.  He began to work with his father, and converted the family domaine to biodynamics in the early 1990s.  His father had painstakingly built up a unique collection of hill-site vineyards over the decades, notably clearing and replanting a quarter of the great historic Grand Cru of Rangen de Thann with Olivier in his later school years.  Olivier has continued to build on this, notably with the recent acquisition of a parcel of Sommerberg to complement the family’s Grand Cru holdings in Brand, Hengst and Goldert, and to complement its other holdings of Rotenberg, Clos Hauserer, Clos Jebsal, Heimbourg, Herrenweg and Clos Windsbuhl.

Olivier’s respectful, non-interventionist winemaking, combined with his and his father’s fastidious viticulture, has given the world vintage after vintage of magnificently differentiated, nuanced bottlings: global white-wine references.  He has never stopped experimenting and improving on his work, using biodynamic practices, changed row orientations and re-thought canopies recently to produce a much greater percentage of dry wines than before.

A BIT OF WINE CHEMISTRY: Lessons from Champagne

Day one of the Champagne study trip initiated a discussion which continued throughout the week of factors impacting aromas and flavors in champagne. Broadly, aromas can be categorized into the impacts of grape variety, terroir, vinification, and post-production events (influencing individual bottles versus entire “batches”).

This article will focus upon the biochemistry of sulfur, nitrogen, oxygen, and sugars in an acidic environment (esters arising from acidification of alcohol); the intent is not intended to be comprehensive. For purposes of this essay, the use of the word aroma will include the complex notes of aging characterized as “bouquet.”

“Although many efforts have been made to characterize the quality and flavor of the compounds in wine… tasting remains the single universal test used… This is because the taste of a molecule, or blend of molecules, is constructed within the brain of a taster.” F. Brochet and D. Dubourdieu, 2001

Summary: 

Every wine lover knows that basic, yet critical, equation: Yeast + Sugar = Alcohol (Ethanol) + CO2. Without the Saccharomyces cerevisiae fungi, we’d only have fruit juice. Within this species, hundreds of strains exist. Some evolve naturally; laboratories select and breed others. Different yeasts produce many different results, from how quickly a vessel ferments to the final wine’s flavor expression. Take as one extreme example the film-forming yeast flor. And, of course, the tricky Brettanomyces are also in the yeast family. Join this webinar to explore the vast world of yeast types and how they may improve or spoil wine.

Presenter: Christy CanterburryMW

Christy Canterbury is one of twenty-nine US Masters of Wine. She is a journalist, public speaker and judge based in Manhattan.

Christy’s articles have been published in Decanter, Wine Enthusiast, Food Arts, Sommelier Journal, Beverage Media, TASTED and on Snooth, TimAtkin.com and several other blogs, including her own. Christy is the Consulting Editor of the recently released book, Rock & Vine, and the Italy Editor for the Professional Wine Reference.

Her recent public speaking appearances include VinExpo, the European Wine Bloggers’ Conference, the Hong Kong Interntional Wine & Spirits Fair, the Women in Wine Leadership Symposium and TEXSOM.

Prior to going independent, Christy was the Global Beverage Director for Culinary Concepts by Jean-Georges Vongerichten and the National Wine Director for Smith & Wollensky Restaurant Group. In retail, she sourced wines from within and outside Italy for Italian Wine Merchants.

Learn more about wines with the Wine Scholar Guild's study & certification program and sign up for our Wine Study Trips.

Summary: 

Genetically modified organisms are creating a frenzy amongst their potential users and consumers. Europe has outlawed their use, but the USA, Canada and South Africa are open to them. Whether you camp with the “pros” or “cons”, join this webinar to learn how GM vines and yeasts are formed and tested and to listen to the arguments of both sides. You just might change camps…in either direction!

Presenter: Christy Canterburry MW

Christy Canterbury is one of twenty-nine US Masters of Wine. She is a journalist, public speaker and judge based in Manhattan.

Christy’s articles have been published in Decanter, Wine Enthusiast, Food Arts, Sommelier Journal, Beverage Media, TASTED and on Snooth, TimAtkin.com and several other blogs, including her own. Christy is the Consulting Editor of the recently released book, Rock & Vine, and the Italy Editor for the Professional Wine Reference.

Her recent public speaking appearances include VinExpo, the European Wine Bloggers’ Conference, the Hong Kong International Wine & Spirits Fair, the Women in Wine Leadership Symposium and TEXSOM.

Prior to going independent, Christy was the Global Beverage Director for Culinary Concepts by Jean-Georges Vongerichten and the National Wine Director for Smith & Wollensky Restaurant Group. In retail, she sourced wines from within and outside Italy for Italian Wine Merchants.

Learn more about wines with the Wine Scholar Guild's study & certification program and sign up for our Wine Study Trips.