Today it was Travelocity…

When my agent called, she said, "I got one for you Wednesday…dress is hip, casual, outdoorsy… Travelocity… 12:55 in Santa Monica."

Wednesdays are always very busy for me. I have my tasting group at 10am, and then usually I see accounts or make a delivery… On this day, I had a hair appointment in Brentwood at 3pm so I had no other choice that to hit my audition before my appointment and stay on the west side. It was really hot yesterday. So I wore a light fabric red dress for my tasting group and brought a pair of jeans to put for my hair appointment. They make you take off your shirt or dress because it can get stained from the hair color. I brought jeans because I didn't want to look like I was naked under my smock!

When I got to my audition I looked around at the other girls and guys and they were all wearing hiking boots and North Face vests, very "outdoorsy" which I guess I sort of forgot about when I got dressed in the morning. I went up to sign in and I looked at the storyboard, there was a guy and a girl dressed in wool hats, big coats and scarves. They looked very COLD. I looked at the copy and it said, "Man and Woman in igloo restaurant sees frozen gnome." I looked down at my clothing. I wasn't exactly dressed for dinner in an igloo. I had brought my jeans in with me, just in case, so I slid them on under my dress and took my dress off. I was wearing a white tank top, which though a little thin seemed a more appropriate thing to wear to an ice meal than a dress. Of course then I thought, well this is dumb. Its white and white never looks good on camera. So I put the red dress back on. Then I thought, I can't wear the dress because I will look like an under dressed Eskimo. So I took it off and decided to use it as a scarf. It was of medium length, but not long enough to wrap completely around my neck. So I just had to bunch it up around my neck and hope for the best. Meanwhile, a guy across from me was watching me get dressed and undressed in the casting area. I looked at him and said, "I'm guess I'm going to use it as a scarf…" He said, "Umm. Ok. Cool."

When my name was called and I went into the room, the casting director looked at me and said, "Do you have a red dress bunched up around your neck?" and I said, "No, it's a scarf." And he said, "It looks like a dress." I paused, "Yeah, funny, I knew it was a little bulky when I bought it… Should I take it off?" He said, "Well, do whatever you want, but I don't know why you would want to use a dress as a scarf." I said, "Well, it's not a dress, it's a scarf... (pause… I sense defeat and humiliation coming on)… I mean, I'm using it as a scarf... for this audition" He fiddled with the camera and said, "If you get the job, it's going to come down to your acting skills (HA!!!!) and not what you are dressed like." So succumbed. I took it off from around my neck and said, "OK, well, I guess I will just wear it like a dress then." So I put the dress back on and proceeded to speak to the Travelocity Gnome who was, naturally, frozen inside the lens of the camera.

I'm never quite sure why one person gets a callback and another person doesn't, but I am pretty sure that it has nothing to do with acting skills. Any actor will tell you that what you wear is probably the single most important factor in a commercial audition.

I believe that getting a callback has something to do with following directions ("dress outdoorsy") and not using articles of clothing that are meant for one thing as another thing. Incidentally, the igloo commercial shoots in Mexico. Seriously.

I did, however, get a callback for the Chrysler Ping Pong spot.

1:09 PM - 2 Comments - 2 Kudos - Add Comment

I should write a book about these experiences...

So I went to an audition this afternoon (a commerical for Chrysler). They usually have some sort of activity for you to do that's in line with the commercial, and then sometimes they ask you about yourself just so they can get a sense of who you are. So today I went in with 3 other people (my fake husband and our fake couple friends.) We had to pretend to play ping pong in the back of a Chrysler SUV, because I guess on the new 08 model they are going to have a ping pong table as an optional accessory. (Sounds a little dangerous if you ask me... wouldn't you be freaked out if you were driving on the highway and looked over at the car next to you and 2 waspy couples were playing ping pong in the back seat of their Chrysler?)

After we played 3 fake ping pong games, the casting director said, "Ok, now I just want to ask each of you a question. Amy we'll start with you... What's your favorite summer activity?" (It's always annoying to be asked first because it gives the rest of the actors time to think about their response.) Now, what I wanted to say was, "Well, Tom, I like to drink Riesling in the summer", however, that sounded less like an activity and more like a problem. But what came out of my mouth (and I sort of yelled it for some reason) was.... "Kayaking. I LOVE to kayak. When it's really warm outside, there's nothing better than slipping into my kayak and taking it for a spin in the Pacific Ocean where the water is so cool and refreshing.".... WHAT??? Kayaking? Being trapped in a boat in the freezing-cold-shark-laden Pacific Ocean is my worst nightmare. It just got me thinking.... wow, sometimes I don't even know who I am!

Oh and in case you were curious, my "husband" and I lost the game in the final round, I don't know how because there was no ball, only small Chinette plates duct taped to strips of cardboard to simulate the ping pong paddle... We all pretended to hit the ball and the guys even grunted, as if the shear force of lobbing an imaginary ping pong ball was just TOO MUCH. When they (pretended) to hit the ball to me I said, "Oh no, I lost the ball again!" And then I would look sheepishly at my husband and say, "Sorry honey!" Just goes to show you that's how bad I am at sports. I don't even have the athletic confidence to win a fake game against my fake friends. Good thing my fake husband didn't hold it against me.

1:27 AM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

The Importance of Alcohol in Wine

By definition wine is a fermented grape beverage. Without alcohol wine is simply grape juice. Alcohol provides weight, texture and flavor to wine. In addition, alcohol in wine contributes to health benefits and detriments. It plays a large role in maturation. As an alcoholic beverage, wine is highly regulated in most countries and has financial (tax), distribution and legal implications. However, arguably the most important role alcohol plays in wine is its ability to provide pleasure.

Alcohol contributes to the body and mouthfeel of a wine. The primary alcohol in wine is ethanol. Many other alcohols are present in wine and indeed contribute to the flavor profile, but they exist in minute amounts compared to ethanol. A German Riesling at 9.5% alcohol by volume (ABV) is a sweeter, leaner and lighter wine than an Alsatian Riesling at 12.5%. In addition, during the complex process of fermentation, alcohol binds with certain grape acids to produce fruit esthers that affect the aromas and flavors of wine. This is particularly true for white wines fermented in a cool reductive manner. From pineapple to black cherry to cassis, esthers are a by-product of alcohol that enrich our tactile experience with wine. As an organic solvent, alcohol helps to extract color and phenolics from the skins of red grapes during fermentation, and also extracts flavor from oak barrels. An entire industry (e.g. magazines, restaurants, retailers, sales people, critics) is built around our ability to describe wine. This would not be possible without fermentation and the production of esthers and other flavonoids.

In addition to flavor, alcohol provides stability. UC Davis Professor of Enology Carole Meredith explains that the microbial stability provided by alcohol accounts for it's historical longevity. At levels over 12% ABV, wine is a hostile environment for many micro-organisms. Port, Madeira and Sherry were originally fortified with alcohol from 17 to 20% to provide stability and microbial protection on their long ocean voyages to the UK.

The presence of alcohol in wine provides some health benefits. Studies by both the American Medical Association and the Australian Wine Research Institute reveal that moderate consumption of wine contributes to good health. Moderate consumption translates to one four to five ounce glass a day for women and no more than two glasses a day for men. In these quantities, the presence of alcohol in wine may help lower cholesterol and protect against heart disease.

Alternatively, in the last year, "Social Responsibility" in relation to alcohol abuse has been tackled by Jancis Robinson, Decanter, Drinks Business, the Australian Wine Journal and is now getting global attention by the World Health Organization. Because wine is frequently seen as a luxury product in a way that a margarita or a beer isn't, the trend can be to ignore the role over-consumption of wine plays in our health. Excess alcohol consumption can lead to liver disease, cancer of the pancreas, breast, mouth, esophagus and increased risk for breast cancer in women among other problems. Women are especially prone to the effects of alcohol in wine because they produce fewer alcohol dehydrogenase enzymes (the enzyme responsible for breaking down alcohol in the body) than men.

In this vein, government warnings on wine labels are a legal requirement for domestic wines and wines being imported into the United States. The British Department of Health will also soon require a printed warning on all wine bottles stating the harmful effects of alcohol linked to fetal alcohol syndrome and alcohol overuse. The EU as a whole and the Alcohol Advisory Council in Australia are examining similar, though voluntary, measures to warn pregnant women of the risks associated with drinking wine while pregnant or trying to conceive.

There are also legal implications for the addition or subtraction of sugar and alcohol in must or finished wine, respectively. Chaptalisation for the purpose of raising alcohol content is legal in some parts of the EU, particularly those in cooler climates, but not in Southern France, Italy, Australia or the United States. Alcohol reduction is also a hot topic, especially in the US, where "long hang time" to ensure phenolic maturity is a regular occurrence in places like Napa and Santa Barbara County. More time on the vine leads to over ripe and sometimes dehydrated grapes which, much like Amarone in Italy, make alcohol levels up to sixteen or seventeen percent. High alcohol levels in wine are a concern to many wine buyers and critics, as alcohol suppresses varietal character.

Globally, ABV levels provide a method of classifying and taxing wine. In the US, wine must be a minimum of 7% to be considered wine. Wine between 7 and 14% is considered table wine and requires a federal tax of $1.07 a gallon. Wines over 14% ABV are considered dessert wine. Dessert wines in the US are taxed at $1.57 per gallon, while sparkling wines are $3.40. In addition, each state may tax that wine as well. In California (for wineries producing over 100,000 gallons) the state tax for still wine is an additional 20 cents per gallon. In the EU wine must be a minimum of 8.5% to be considered wine (this rule has some exceptions, like sparkling Moscato.) Each country in the EU has it's own excise tax in addition to the EU's VAT (value added tax). In France, for still wine under 15% ABV there's a taxation of .03 Euro per 750ml bottle in addition to 19.6% VAT. The UK has excise duties of 1.90 Euro per 750ml bottle, with a VAT of 17.5%. Germany, Austria, Portugal and Spain have no excise duties, only varying degrees of VAT. For fortified and sparkling wine taxes are much higher. Regardless of where in the world wine is being taxed, it's an enormously regulated system that provides significant income for many countries in the world.

In "Story of Wine", Hugh Johnson states that wine has "the magical power to banish care… provide a feeling of well-being…and the dulling of pain." The importance of alcohol in wine extends into every area of the industry, from production to distribution to the regulation of alcoholic beverages. However, if not for the presence of alcohol in wine, and the pleasure it brings to the soul after a long day and to the enhancement of certain cultures (imagine the South of France or Italy without wine!) there's little argument that the wine would simply not exist.

12:17 PM - 0 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

homeless dog
Current mood: stressed

I had a heartwrenching experience tonight that has nothing to do with wine. Believe it or not. The restaurant was a little slow tonight, I got cut early, after being elated over a new BCBG dress (that I spent way too much money on). It showed my chest scar - which I am not fond of - AND some cleavage too. The dress was revolutionary for me! I hate showing my scar. To boot, the guy who plays Jim on "The Office" was there tonight - and he's just so cute. Usually celebrities don't do it for me, but I was excited to see him. It was like seeing an old friend from college - even thought he has no idea who I am. Anyhoo, it's LA and it's just like that.

I left the restaurant with Cynthia. She drove me to my car, and we saw this homeless man - a black homeless man - walking down 3rd street with his Target shopping cart full of blankets and other things and a dog. A very cute - incredibly skinny - white pit bull with black spots. Cyn and I were talking about how the dog probably ate better than the man. But then as Cynthia turned the car, we saw the dog was really skinny. Ribs were protruding out of his body. I hate seeing that. It kills me. I told Cyn I had to go buy some food for the dog. It was 1056 so Whole Foods - the closest store - would be closed by the time I got there. I wrote it off to "homelessness sucks - what can I doo? But the fucking dog was killing me. So I found a drug store open 24 hours. I bought a bag of dog food - Kibbles and Bits - 2 bones - hickory flavored, a gallon of water and pretzels. I don't know why I bought the pretzels. I thought, how can I bring this man food for his dog and not food for him?

I left Sav-On and tried to find him. He had turned up Fairfax which I noticed right as my new "barely there" BCBG dress was flying up in my face basically revealing my thong. I felt like a total jackass buying dog food for a homeless man in this dress, driving my Volvo up to this man who owns nothing and has nothing. There was no where to park. I saw him. Pulled over into a red zone and put my hazard lights on. He was at a bus stop on Fairfax with a few other people standing around. I walked over to him and said, "Hi, I saw you walking down the street. I think your dog needs to eat more. I bought him some food. Can I give it to you?" He looked at an white old woman standing next to him. She had stark white hair. She was wearing a red shirt with a denim vest and was sun dried like a tomato. She was lighting a cigarette. Simultaneously I noticed that he was young - mid 20s? - but had no front teeth. He said to the woman, "Is is ok?" She said nothing, but nodded that it was ok. I was wondering what their realtionship was all about. I had assumed when I saw him pushing his red cart around that he was all alone in the world. Aimless. I am a naive moron sometimes. I am one of those people who think that homeless people don't have any firends. I go around feeling sorry for people. I am truly ignorant. He said, "ok, that's fine for my dog. But what about me? I got needs too. I'm a man. What's your name?" I said, "Amy. You're dog is too skinny. He needs to eat." The dog, by the way, was precious. I am not saying that for the sake of the story. He was a puppy. Maybe a year old. A huge head. A tiny body. Licking my legs and wagging his tail. So skinny I wanted to cry. Seriously. It sounds dramatic, me standing there in a dress that I couldn't even afford, with my new Volvo that Peter had just washed all shiny in the background - but all the dog wanted was some food and he couldn't find any. He was licking the sidewalk and he was like a skeleton. And I had this dumb car and this dumb dress. and I didn't even care about the guy. I just wanted the dog to eat.

The guy told me his name, which I can't remember now. I said, "Nice to meet you." I didn't want to be disrespetful and just assume that he didn't have money to buy his dog the food that it needed. We all deserve some sort of respect. So I asked, "Will you take this food for your dog?" I put it on top of his shopping cart. He looked at the woman and rolled his eyes. As if he heard this everyday. He said, "I am trying to rehabilitate this dog. He just had surgery because he got hit by a car. Everyone wants me to pick up after his shit, but it just is like BLAH all over the place. How am I supposed to pick up after BLAH, you know?" I looked at the dog for some sign of physical trauma or surgery and I didn't see anything. I said, "Yeah, that must be hard. I think he's sick and hungry and needs to eat" (broken record here). He surveyed me in that stupid dress with the slit up the leg and said, "Yeah, well, did Corinne here (the old white woman with the cigarette) tell you how I like pretty white women?" I said, "no, she didn't, but I have a boyfriend." He said, "Damn woman. I don't want to be your boyfriend. I want to be your nigger." I just kinda stood there. I want to be very clear that I wasn't threatened by this man in any way. He was just talking to me. Even though it was well after dark there were lots of other people standing within 2 feet of me. He said, "Can I be your nigger?" and I am SO uncomfortable with that word. I just said, "Sure, you can be my.... whatever... I gotta go. My car (shiny new white Volvo) is illegally parked (as if that mattered to him). Just feed your dog. Please. For me. (the white lady)." He kept talking about something and I just kept walking backward and waving and smiling and nodding my head and saying, "Yes, right, ok". He was saying thank you.. whatever.. I don't know. I got back in my car and drve home. And now I sit here in preparation for 3 days of showing a veritcal of Lynch-Bages to my favorite restaurant people. It seems slightly glutanous that this is my job. I show expenisve wine to people and try to sell it so that I can pay my rent and go to BCBG. And I am just worried about that dog and wondering why it doesn't have food and water. I would pay for it to have food and water and vet care everyday. I am not patting myself on the back for that. I just want that dog to be ok because it's on a leash and has no choice as to what happens to it. It just walks with the cart. His name is Capone, I forgot to mention that. I remember his name, but not the guy's name. Capone provides that guy with some sense of protection and companionship. And that's great I guess. I just wish that the dog had some medical care and some food. I feel sick.

Oh, I apologize for any spelling errors. Its late.

1:19 AM - 2 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

my own private sommelier (sort of like Idaho)
Current mood: geeky

I worked a party tonight as the wine lady, the sommelier or as many people asked me "are you the expert?". I had been hired as the expert, but I really had a difficult time responding to that. An expert? Hardly. Who is? Jancis Robinson. Oz Clarke. Hugh Johnson. Jerry Springer. I don't know. Expert is impossible. Expert in relation to what? I will strive for Master. Not now. Ask me next year and I'll be a hell of a lot closer. I like that word because it implies hard work, apprenticeship, dedication.

Some comments about this party because I thought it was interesting to put 25 people in a room who really like wine but who don't know a lot about it - but who want to learn - and to see what questions I got asked...

1) Out of 25 bottles opened at the event, 3 were corked. That's fairly in line with the statistic that 10% of all bottles with natural cork have problems with cork taint. Someone asked me - what is a corked wine? One person thought it had to do with storage. Nothing to do with storage. It's a chemical compound (TCA for short) that occurs when cork meets mold meets chlorine. Major problem. From a consumer stand point there's nothing you can do about it except buy screwcaps. Storing your wine in a warm place is a problem for many reasons, but cork taint isn't one of them.

2) I met a really charming, but very forgetable guy (this is his point of view - not mine - gotta love it!) who really wanted just to learn to swirl his glass but not look like he was trying. How do you swirl a glass of wine? It's all in the wrist. And it's not pretentious. It's just something that people do who frequently have a wine glass in their hand. It's compulsive for me. I can't hold a glass still. So with a slight rolling of the wrist - not the whole arm - this too can be your MO. Try it. You'll like. Not like that. Stop moving your elbow. Don't put your pinky in the air. Light easy. There. That's it. Not so hard, right??

3) What are you drinking? Napa Cab isn't.... hmmm... well... you know... its just not for me. Everyone wanted to know what I was drinking. I like beverages that provide me with refreshment. Perrier Jouet, Belle Epoche, 1995... Heidseick, Monopole, Rose, NV... bubbly... good... Cab weighs me down. Super interesting to taste a lot of the wines - they were all domestic - mostly Napa and Sonoma - except for the Champagne. But just not that blown away with the Cabs. There were a few good ones, but best ones were 5 years old or younger. The hostess and I discovered that many of them began to disintegrate an hour after opening. They started to smell volatile. Like Nail polish. Weird. Why??? Dunno. If you have the answer, write me. Can VA develop that quickly? Peter's hypothesis was that these wines already had small amounts of VA. The fruit started to die off and the VA showed through. Sounds good to me.

4) Where do I hold the glass? By the stem. That's what it's there for. Forgetable guy said that someone told him to hold red wine like it was snifter. To warm it up. Red wine isn't like brandy - it shouldn't get warm with your knarly little hand wrapped around the bowl. It should be served, in my EXPERT opinion at 65 degrees. All reds, except Burgundy, which maybe I like even colder. Heat is death. It causes premature aging and possible leakage. Wines will taste baked or cooked. Just ask Marcel (aka I-store-my-wine-on-top-of-my-fridge-at-96-degrees guy)

5) Where does a wine get it's texture? A great question. Love this question. Alcohol gives wine body, texture, flavor. Oak. Polyphenols like tannin (especially in reds). Acid. Residual Sugar. I asked a guy what kind of wine he liked. He said that he seems to dislike heavier styles because they are more acidic. It just can't be. Think Pinot Noir. Now think Cabernet. Light acidic. Heavy less acidic. Generally, more body = more alcohol = more sugar in the grapes to start with = less acidity. As sugar rises in grapes, the acidity falls. Unless the wine has been acidified it seems unlikely.

Wow is this dull. I'm putting myself to sleep.

10:38 PM - 3 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

The Beginning, circa June 2005
Category: Life

My Journey to the MW

When I began this journey over a year ago, I had no idea what I was in for. I woke up one morning in July 2005 and thought, ugh! I have to do something with my life. I live in LA. I am an actress. Therefore, I worked nights in a restaurant. I was lucky to get a job at one of the finest establishments in the city, but still I was bored. I filled my days with auditions for bad horror films and Tidy-Bowl commercials. The more toilet cleaner auditions that the came my way, the more I started to examine my life. My only real goal was to book one of those prescription medicine ads for Herpes treatment. They run all the time, and because of the stigma involved, they pay you double. I had one of these auditions one day and the casting director told me he didn't really believe I had herpes. I was upset. I thought if I couldn't successfully convince someone how glad I was to "not let herpes rule my life", where was I going in the acting world?

I had completed the certification course through the Court of Master Sommeliers in 2001 and had a desire to start studying again. I didn't want to be a Master Sommelier, not only because I didn't want to spend my life working nights in a restaurant, but also because the double-breasted navy blue jacket with embossed gold buttons just isn't my style. I knew about the Masters of Wine "Programme" (it's based in London, hence I've learned to spell British), so I checked out the website and realized that the due date for acceptance into the 2006 Programme was but 10 days away. With little time to contemplate I dove in. The application process took me a week to complete. There were 2 essays to write. One entitled, "To what extent is the notion of terroir relevant to today's viticulture?" and the other "Discuss the use of oak in the fermentation of both red and white wines." Listen, I didn't know much about viticulture or winemaking two years ago. My boyfriend is a winemaker and we spend a lot of time talking about wine, we now even make a wine together (Hocus Pocus), but rarely did our bedtime talk involve different strains of Sacchromyces Cervisae,110R Rootstock or toast levels on French oak barrels.

Then there was the practical application. I had to go out and buy 3 wines and write my impressions of them as if I had tasted them blind. Luckily, I knew what they were. That made things much easier for the blind tasting assessment. When all was complete I still had to get a recommendation from a person in the wine industry, preferably an MW or someone in the WSET Programme. Well, let's be honest, I had just spent 4 months covered in red colored corn syrup on the set of "Blood Deep", I didn't know any of those MW people. So I asked for a recommendation from Caroline Styne, my boss, and my friend, from aoc restaurant where I both bartended and worked as a floor sommelier. She signed the paper, gave me a hug and her best wishes and I headed off to the Fed-Ex office. Months passed.

In these months I changed jobs. I stayed on one night a week at aoc as a sommelier, but took a full time position in sales, working for Veritas Imports, a Bordeaux and Burgundy Importer and Distributor. And I finally booked a big acting gig. I shot an AFLAC commercial in August and I was feeling better about life. At least I had a little money in my pocket. It wasn't a herpes ad, but it helped pay the bills. Thank God for that, because when I received my acceptance letter in the Programme and the accompanying invoice I was propelled into a seriously demanding proposition, both mentally and financially.

On an uneventful September day I received THE LETTER from The Institute of Masters of Wine. It looked very official. The stamps showed images of Queen Elizabeth. I couldn't open it. I just sat and stared at HRH. I called Peter, my boyfriend, and we opened it together over the phone. It read, Dear Amy, The Institute of Masters of Wine is glad to accept you into the blah blah blah …." Wahoo!!! I got accepted!! I fooled them I thought!!! They think I know something!!! Then I thought, maybe I do know something!! Maybe I can do this!!! And then I went to the North American Seminar in Napa in February 2006, a week long intensive introduction to the Programme and I learned that indeed, my first assumption was correct, I had fooled them, and I did not know anything.

The people at the seminar were smart – beyond smart – they were really really really smart. Our first question to answer was something along the lines of "What are the problems a winemaker can encounter post-fermentation and how can these be prevented?" They asked us to write on our own for a while and then Phil Tuck, MW, would guide us through an answer. I could only think of one thing. They gave us 5 minutes, but I only needed about 9 seconds to write, "lack of color extraction." As I surveyed the room, I saw that everyone else was still writing and the team of MWs were looking on, so I thought I better look like I had more to write. My solution to lack of color extraction involved taking some of that red colored corn syrup from the Blood Deep movie set and adding it to the must. I thought this was very funny. But still it only took me about 17 seconds to write that. So I sat and just wrote. "I have no idea what I am doing here" …."I have no idea what I am doing here". Needless to say, I had nothing to contribute to the group solution when it came about, as Phil Tuck, MW, is quite serious and probably would not get a laugh out of my color extraction solution. Lots of other people in the room knew exactly what to say, however, and I was humbled.

This humbling experience continued into the mock tasting exams where I thought everything was Malbec. But what if it looked, tasted and smelled like Pinot Noir? Forget it! They are trying to trick you I thought, it's MALBEC!! They want you to think it's Pinot Noir… those tricky MWs. It's clearly cool-climate Malbec as evidenced by the translucent light color, moderate alcohol, soft tannins, elegant cherry fruit and earthy mineral components. Did I mention transparent color and light cherry fruit? Did I also mention that I had never really even tasted Malbec?

My point here is that some people began their travels on the MW Programme with a little more experience than me. Just a little. Even though I am really good at screaming on camera, believe it or not that actually hasn't been a big contributor to any of my essay topics thus far. However, the 2007 seminar fared much better for me, and I hope that writing these essays allows me to share my moments of joy and pain with you. Mostly pain. I don't know if and when I will ever pass, but the journey is really the only part that matters anyway. At least that's what my acting teacher says every time I flop at an audition.

1:39 PM - 1 Comments - 0 Kudos - Add Comment

Reductive and Oxidative Winemaking MW Essay

Discuss the differences between and dangers of both reductive and oxidative winemaking, giving examples of both styles.

Though they vary greatly in style, both reductive and oxidative winemaking techniques can produce complex, compelling wines. Wines made in a reductive style are produced without exposure to oxygen. Reductive processes include tank fermentation, maceration and elevage, increased use of sulfur dioxide, lees contact and lack of racking or pigeage. Those made in an oxidative style are intentionally exposed to oxygen, even though in most cases the exposure is limited. Some oxidative techniques that may be employeed are barrel fermentation, extended maceration, barrel aging, battonage, micro-oxygenation, delestage and pigeage. Both techniques are widely utilized, but if not carefully managed may have a significant negative impact on the final product.

Wines made in a reductive style are bright, fresh, clean and fruity. Reductive techniques are primarily used for white wine, though this is certainly not exclusive. Because most whites are not left in contact with their skins during fermentation, they do not have the added protection against oxygen of tannins, anthocyanins and other polyphenols that reds possess. In order to protect the must and finished wine against spoilage, many aromatic and delicate varieties are best produced without oxygen contact. Sauvignon Blanc and Riesling have a particular affinity with reductive techniques. Their light styles are highly susceptible to the dangers of oxygen exposure.

JJ Prum in the Mosel-Saar-Ruwar uses sulphur dioxide throughout the winemaking process in order to minimize the risk of oxygen exposure. Potassium metabisulphite before fermentation and sulfur additions during elevage help produce a long lasting age worthy Riesling. Neudorf, a top producer of classic New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc, ferments the freshly pressed juice in a closed tank to avoid oxygen exposure during fermentation. In addition, only one racking occurs between fermentation and bottling. Neither wines undergo barrel aging or malo-lactic fermentation, and both are bottled before the next vintage. Kept away from oxygen, these wines remain crisp, fresh and very fruity.

The dangers of reductive winemaking occur mostly in red wines where complex sulfur compounds can bind in the absence of oxygen. Syrah is particularly prone to form hydrogen sulphide bonds and mercaptans when made reductively. These off-putting aromas can take the form of stewed vegetables or rotten eggs in the case of hydrogen sulphide, and burnt rubber characteristics when mercaptans form. At Stolpman Vineyards in Santa Barbara County the Syrah is racked twice prior to bottling, once under inert gas and the second racking without inert gas. The second racking, right before bottling, is intended to break up any sulfur compounds that have developed over time in barrel.

Barrel aging is just one of the many winemaking techniques used to increase complexity in hearty grapes varieties. Oxidative winemaking begins at crush, when the grapes are split open in order to begin the fermentation process. (The opposite reductive process is carbonic maceration, where the berries are fermented whole; a style popular for Beaujolais Nouveau). In the very hot 2003 vintage, winemaker Giacomo Sensi utilized delestage twice during fermentation, after a drop of five brix, to expose the must to oxygen. He believes this provides a cleaner fermentation by breaking up sulfur bonds, particularly when grapes are very ripe. It also protects against a sluggish fermentation by providing the yeasts with the appropriate amount of oxygen needed for healthy reproduction. Oxygen also aids in softening tannic varieties like Cabernet and Nebbiolo. In Bordeaux and Piedmont, barrel aging for up to 36 months softens the tannins in these varieties and creates an elegant, drinkable wine. Barrels aren't financially suitable for all wineries, however. Micro-oxygenation during elevage is an inexpensive method of simulating barrel aging. This is useful in large wineries, like DaVinci in Chianti and Altos las Hermigos in Argentina where at over 100,000 case production, barrel aging is prohibitivey expensive.

However, oxygen can be an incredibly dangerous tool when over-used and without good winery hygiene. Micro-organisms and bacteria thrive in environments where oxygen is in ready supply. Acetobacter, the bacteria responsible for nail varnish aromas of volatile acidity can be a major problem if barrels are not topped up frequently or if the wine is left exposed to air. Brettanomyces also has an affinity for both wood and oxygen. If oxygen exposure isn't controlled, this spoilage yeast can thrive. In addition, excessive oxygen exposure causes wine to lose color, flavor and become lifeless and "maderized".

Luckily, maderized wine isn't always a negative. Maderia is intentionally exposed to both high temperatures and oxygen in order to produce a wine with nut, toffee and coffee flavors. With the help of fortification, it's an incredibly stable wine that can be kept open in bottle for up to a year without any marked changes in flavor. Likewise, the acetaldehyde aromas in Sherry that develop with exposure to oxygen is a sought after attribute. The difference between tawny port and vintage port is largely the difference between a slightly reductive style and a more oxidative style. Vintage port is only left in barrel for a little over 2 years. It ages in bottle. This helps the wine remain viscous, fresh and fruity. Alternatively, tawny port is left in barrel for a minimum of 7 years where it loses much of its color and freshness. Nutty slightly oxidative aromas are a hallmark of tawny port.

Oxidative and reductive styles are rarely exclusive and many winemakers will use both techniques at some point in the winemaking process. Lees aging produces a reductive environment because the lees scavenge oxygen from the elevage vessel. When battonage is practiced, however, the stirring of the lees introduces oxygen. At Ovid in Napa, winemaker Andy Erickson ferments his Cabernet in hermetically sealed tanks with an automatic pump-over machine that rests inside the fermentor. The wine will still undergo two rackings during elevage in order to protect against reductive aromas followed by two years barrel aging for softening. The choice to utilize oxidative or reductive processes or a combination of both is a matter of style, varietal affinity and financial viability.

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