Ok, actually it's two words, but they're really fun.
Weekly Wine Word(s): Carbonic Maceration
Just say it a few times...let the words roll around in your mouth, much like a Beaujolais Nouveau on a crisp, late November day. But why are these words like a Beaujolais Nouveau, you ask? Why, because carbonic maceration is the way Beaujolais Nouveau is produced!
Beaujolais Nouveau is a red wine, which hails from the (you guessed it) Beaujolais region of France, and is made with the Gamay grape. Purple, sometimes pinkish in color, the wine is fermented for a few weeks (quite a bit less than the standard minimum of a few months with other wines--and that's even before the ageing process begins). In fact, the period between harvesting and the finished product can be less than six weeks! The wine is then officially released on the third Thursday of November--which is probably one of the reasons it is a popular Thanksgiving wine. Also, it pairs nicely with turkey and cranberry sauce.
But carbonic maceration is the secret behind Beaujolais Nouveau. While typical wine making methods call for wine grapes to be pressed after the grapes are harvested--and at this point either then juice will be removed for white wine, or left on the skins and seeds (where one finds the color and tannins) to begin the first fermentation process for red wine--carbonic maceration is unique. The grapes are left intact, where yeasts already present in the grapes begin tiny little fermentation processes inside the grape skins. Some grapes on the bottom of the fermentation tank are inevitably crushed, where they will begin the typical fermentation process, but most of the grapes will remain intact, before they are quickly pressed. The result is a light, very low tannin red wine with bubble gum notes. Seriously. I didn't believe my wine tutor when he told me this, but it actually does taste a bit like bubble gum.
Because Beaujolais Nouveau lacks the tannic structure of most red wines, it doesn't really age, or even keep very well, so you should drink it the year it is produced. It pairs well with Thanksgiving foods, as well as some stews, creamy soups and gamey meats. I like it with cranberry bread, or the classic turkey, cranberry sauce and cream cheese sandwich.
Thank you Wikipedia, for confirming some of my facts: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carbonic_maceration
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3 comments:
Can you explain the phrase "volatize the esthers?"
I love questions!
This is my understanding of the term, so far as it pertains to wine:
Esters are chemical compounds--volatile esters are found in perfumes, essential oils and pheromones and are often found in fruits. In other words, how some smells reach nasal receptors is through volatile esters.
One of the processes of wine tasting is to swirl the wine in the glass before taking a sip. The more surface area a wine has, the more esters are freed. Swirling the wine increases surface area, thereby releasing the esters and making the smell more powerful. “Volatizing the esters” refers to swirling or decanting the wine (which also increases the surface area of the liquid), thereby making the smell more powerful and easier to appreciate.
Beautiful and concise. You could be a science writer. Thank you for that scientific explanation--I am satisfied.
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