Sweet, Reinforced and Fortified Wines

Wines from Grape Dehydration is the first of its kind in the field of grape dehydration - the controlled drying process which produces a special group of wines.

These types of wine are the most ancient, made in the Mediterranean basin, and are even described in Herodotus. Until few years ago, it was thought that these wines – such as Pedro Ximenez, Tokai, Passito, and Vin Santo – were the result of simple grape drying, because the grapes were left in the sun, or inside greenhouses that had no controls over temperature, relative humidity or ventilation. But Amarone wine, one of the most prized wines in the world, is the first wine in which the drying is a controlled process. This controlled process – grape dehydration – changes the grape at the biochemical level, and involves specialist vine management, postharvest technology and production processes, which are different from the typical wine-making procedure.

After a history of grape dehydration, the book is then divided into two sections; scientific and technical.

The scientific section approaches the subjects of vineyard management and dehydration technology and how they affect the biochemistry and the quality compounds of grape; as well as vinification practices to preserve primary volatiles compounds and colour of grape. The technical section is devoted to four main classes of wine: Amarone, Passito, Pedro Ximenez, and Tokai.

The book then covers sweet wines not made by grape dehydration, and the analytical/sensorial characteristics of the wines. A concluding final chapter addresses the market for these special wines.

This book is intended for wineries and wine makers, wine operators, postharvest specialists, vineyard managers/growers, enology/wine students, agriculture/viticulture faculties and course leaders and food processing scientists

List of Contributors ix

Glossary xiii

Introduction 1
Fabio Mencarelli and Pietro Tonutti

Part 1 History

1 Sweet Wines: The Essence of European Civilization 5
Attilio Scienza

Part 2 Vineyard Management, On-vine and Postharvest Grape Dehydration, Vinification

2 Management of the Vineyard 29
Osvaldo Failla, Laura Rustioni and Giancarlo Scalabrelli

3 Technology and Management of Postharvest Dehydration 51
Fabio Mencarelli and Andrea Bellincontro

4 Biochemistry and Physiology of Dehydrating Berries 77
Pietro Tonutti and Claudio Bonghi

5 Changes in Volatile Compounds 91
Claudio D’Onofrio

6 Changes in Phenolic Compounds 105
Danilo Corradini and Isabella Nicoletti

7 Changes in Physical and Mechanical Properties of Dehydrating Berries 119
Luca Rolle and Vincenzo Gerbi

8 Management of Vinification and Stabilization to Preserve the Aroma Characteristic of Dehydrated Grape 131
Luigi Moio and Paola Piombino

9 Methods of Vinification to Preserve the Colour in Red Grape Passiti Wines. Aleatico: a Case Study 145
Riccardo Cotarella

10 Role of Yeasts in Sweet Wines 153
Juan C. García-Mauricio and Teresa García-Martínez

11 Botrytis Infection: Grey Mould and Noble Rot 159
Andrea Vannini and Gabriele Chilosi

12 Vinification and Aroma Characteristic of Botrytized Grape 171
Pierre Louis Teissedre and Bernard Donèche

Part 3 The Wines

13 Amarone 189
Daniele Accordini

14 Moscato Passito 205
Daniele Eberle

15 Italian Passito Wines 215
Attilio Scienza

16 Pedro Ximénez and Malaga 251
Juan J. Moreno-Vigara and Juan C. García-Mauricio

17 Tokaj 269
Zoltán Kerényi

18 Vin de Paille 277
Pierre Louis Teissedre, Bernard Donèche and Kleopatra Chira

19 Botrytized Wines: Sauternes, German Wines 285
Pierre Louis Teissedre and Bernard Donèche

20 Ice Wine 301
Nikolin Musabelliu

21 Port 305
Tim Hogg

22 Marsala 319
Andrea Zanfi and Silvia Mencarelli

23 Notes on Other Sweet Wines 327
Fabio Mencarelli

Part 4 Market and Marketing

24 Sweet Wine Market 333
Renzo Cotarella

25 A Strategic Framework for Marketing Sweet, Reinforced and Fortified Wines 337
Alberto Mattiacci and Costanza Nosi

Analytical Index 351

Grapes and Wine Index 355

“With a title like this and a price tag like that, this book is going to appeal to the seriously nerdy, and indeed, the winemakers, vineyard managers, oenology students etc., at whom the briefing document says it is targeted. Keen MW students might be in that list too.” (Wine Wisdom, 16 July 2013)

Professor Fabio Mencarelli is based atthe
University of Tuscia, Italy,in the Postharvest Labof the
Department for the
Innovation of Biological, AgriFood and Forestry Systems.

Professor Pietro Tonutti is based at the Scuola
Superiore Sant’Anna in Pisa, Italy, where he
leads a research project on fruit ripening and post-harvest physiology.

The history of wine is the history of sweet wine. In the Mediterranean basin, climate conditions encouraged growers to leave the grapes on vine to become overripe, or to pick the bunches and let them dry in the sun, before pressing them into wine. Until a few years ago, it was thought that these wines – such as Pedro Ximenez, Tokaj, Passito, and Vin Santo – were the result of simple grape drying, because the grapes were left in the sun, or inside greenhouses that had no controls over temperature, relative humidity or ventilation. But Amarone wine, one of the most prized wines of the world, is the first wine in which the drying is a controlled process. This controlled process – better defined as a grape dehydration – changes the grape at the biochemical level and involves specialist vine management, postharvest technology and production processes, which are different from the typical wine-making procedure.

Sweet, Reinforced and Fortified Wines: Grape Biochemistry, Technology and Vinification is the most comprehensive book available on the technical issues, scientific topics and characteristics of these important special wines. After an introductory chapter dealing with historical overview and the description of the cultural impact of sweet wines throughout the centuries in the Mediterranean area, the book is organized into three sections. The first section covers different technical and scientific aspects of the whole production chain, from the field to the cellar. The variety of options for managing the vineyard and different solutions for operating the dehydration process are outlined. The changes which occur at physiological and physico-chemical levels, characterizing the berries during on-vine and postharvest dehydration, and in relation to noble rot infection, are then described. The first section also extensively reports issues, methods and technical solutions to optimize vinification for the best possible quality of sweet wines. The second section of the book is dedicated to well-known reinforced, fortified or sweet wines produced in different areas of the world. These chapters, describing the specific characteristics and quality traits of wines, highlight the cultural diversity and variety of protocols applied in this segment of the wine industry. The third and final section deals with the market for sweet, reinforced and fortified wines, and not only includes statistics and data regarding the current marketing situation, but also posits some opportunities and strategies for the future.

Sweet, Reinforced and Fortified Wines: Grape Biochemistry, Technology and Vinification will be a valuable resource for wineries, wine makers and wine operators, as well as postharvest specialists, vineyard managers, and grape growers. Enology students will prize it as the first in-depth study of these wines, while agriculture and viticulture facilities and course leaders will find it detailed and comprehensive.