Lower part of the Quarts de Chaume looking down towards the Layon
Very good news!
At their meeting last night the Syndicat des Quarts de Chaume voted decisively against the use of cryoextraction (also called cryosélection) by 15 votes to 2. Domaine Baumard, who have been allowed to use this technique until now, will be given time to adapt to the ban.
From 2011 the average potential alcohol of the grapes for Quarts de Chaume at the time of picking must be 18° min with 17.5° as the absolute minimum permitted, which I suspect will make cryoextraction both less attractive and largely unnecessary.
From 2011 the average potential alcohol of the grapes for Quarts de Chaume at the time of picking must be 18° min with 17.5° as the absolute minimum permitted, which I suspect will make cryoextraction both less attractive and largely unnecessary.
More details later.
Indeed very interesting. Using cryextraction to make a supposedly high-quality sweet wine seems wrong. A bit like if you were allowed to use chaptalisation (adding sugar) to make the sweet Sauternes. Ah, yes, I forgot, they are allowed to chaptalise in sauternes, aren't they?...
ReplyDeleteI'm surprised that a producer with a reputation for high quality wine, like Baumard, would use it.
-P
A very good result. It would be very wrong for wines produced in this fashion to be sold alongside other 'properly' made sweet wines such as those coming from Pierre Bise. Have to admit to being a fan of Baumard's dry whites though.
ReplyDeleteGreat news.
ReplyDeleteI was surprised to see that Baumard would use a freezer. I guess there is room for reasonable people to disagree....
Luli. I think if you look at the photos of vines overloaded with green grapes – looking very different from the Chenin I have seen in the last three days both in the Quarts de Chaume but in other parts of Anjou – you will see that cryoextraction is essential if these grapes are to be transformed into sweet wine.
ReplyDeleteIf you wish to make wine using such methods and such a yield fair enough but it should not be entitled to a Layon appellation and certainly not Quarts de Chaume.
Per I'm not sure what is allowed in Sauternes but there is every reason for the Loire not to follow Bordeaux.
ReplyDelete