Determining the exact faultless harvest dates for each parcel can be really challenging. It requires knowledgeable skills to lay down a meticulous harvest plan in order to have an ideal outcome at this important stage. Every so often, it is crucial to take the necessary risks in search of perfection.
In France as in Argentina, berry tasting constitutes a ripeness evaluation tool, which with a good training, allows not only to differentiate the degree of maturity concerning sugar but especially phenolic maturity, which equally is an essential indicator of potential wine quality.
As a winemaker, it is necessary you taste several bunches of grapes before drawing a conclusion about a parcel. When walking the vineyard you choose the berries at random, from different clusters, from different areas until you are able to determine harvest dates and quality for each parcel, or even divide a parcel if necessary.
Likewise as when tasting wine, Marcelo Pelleriti explained to me that almost all senses are used to taste berries:
SIGHT: the skin color becomes black for the red varieties, while it becomes golden yellow for the white varieties. Small berries are preferred since it means that there is less water and more concentration. The pips change from green to a brown or uniform yellow color. It is also preferred those clusters that have perfection in shape.
TOUCH: In general, the thicker the skin, the better. Of course there may differences according to the varietal and vintages. During ripening, the skin should lose its elasticity, the tannic intensity increases while the tannins become less astringent. Sometimes skin maturity is hard to achieve, especially on certain loaded parcels, or during certain vintages.
TASTE AND SMELL: when ripeness is achieved, the pulp becomes sweet, balanced in acid, it softens, loses its adherence to pips and the skin. The aromatic level increases and develops fruity notes.
If I have to compare berry tasting between France and Argentina, I can say that the main difference is in sweetness and acidity perception. In France berries have a natural acidity that I just have found in cooler areas of Mendoza as it can be Uco Valley. Undoubtedly, in Argentina berries are sweeter due to its natural sugar content than afterwards it is translated into alcohol.
I really enjoyed berry tasting. It is exciting to start imagining your wine from the vine itself, and then observe this huge transformation of fruit juice into wine. Definitely, berry tasting can provide you a range of information that traditional chemical analyses are still unable to detect. Once more, this is a sign that making wine requires more than good technology…it requires dedication, experience and passion!
