Page 51 - Grapevine May-June 2020

Around The Vineyard

One has to ask, is this all the difference between world have adequate access to new wood, so that
icon and premium wines, a few simple vineyard treatment is no longer an icon differential. Nor do I
manipulations? think icon wines can be made by any special yeast
strain, or perhaps fermentation process. I should
When pressed harder, I found it difficult to locate quickly add that the ACE process described in the
anyone in the winemaking team—including the last issue (achieved by the Della Toffola DTMA
viticulturist—who could give sound reasons (in my machine) certainly produces distinctive wines; how-
opinion) as to selection and management of vine- ever, as its application becomes widespread, its
yards to make icon wines. To develop icon wines is possible use for creating iconic wines becomes less
not just a matter of marketing, but of producing a likely. So, from my perhaps limited knowledge, icon
truly distinctive and better wine. wines will likely not be “created in the winery.”

Wineries or Vineyards, Secondly, some wineries make many small parcels
the Source of Icon Wines? of wine, and the icon may be a selection of their
best lots. A valid process, I think, but one which
I want to recap and look at this notion from a very neither guarantees outcome, nor reliability of result
general perspective. We can conceivably create from year-to-year. So such wines would not meet
icon wines by using any of three processes. normal icon criteria.

Firstly, one may use techniques in the cellar, Thirdly, is the option of choosing an “icon wine
which will have an unusual but significant wine vineyard,” having one or more blocks, or parts
quality impact. Examples that come to mind from thereof, producing distinctive wines. These parcels
several decades ago were the use of new wood may be managed differentially to create icon wine.
barrels on red wines, and, some years later, for
the white wines. By now, most cellars around the I have been critical of other people’s approaches

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