Class Notes- March 3

4:57- Room is slowly filling. Chatter abound. I looked at the points breakdown in this class, and I need to do a lot more work than I thought in order to get an A. With how few people are actually coming to class, I wonder how many people are going to end the semester with a C?

4:59- Alexa from some organization (Human Trafficking something something) is announcing a concert at 7pm on Thursday. Students get in free!

5:01- CLASS BEGINS
"Die hard 100 who are still coming to this class- thank you! I don't know why you come." -Boyer
Any questions?

1. What would you pair with an apple wine?
"Apple pie... But that's just me. You experiment." -Boyer
There are no exact rules. Sometimes opposites attract, and sometimes they don't. Wishy washy blah blah
Pate pairs well with a super sweet wine, surprisingly.

2. Some guy had a Spanish Rioja wine. He's mumbling and I can't understand him.
"Riojas are awesooooooome (high pitch singing)." -Boyer
Riojas get rustic very quickly.
Costco has a rioja- it's probably bullshit.

3. Another guy had a Lebanese wine. Boyer hasn't had many.
"Because Lebanon is what you say..... chaos. It's a disrupted state, so its wine production is far behind." -Boyer

4. This guy made his own mead.
"Do you have any advice on how long to age it?" -Guy
Sweetness does not age out. "You should know this as a brewer!"- Boyer
It's super hard to brew mead. Yeast wants to eat sugar to make alcohol. The more sugar you have, the easier it is for yeast to proliferate. With mead, the damn yeast can't stay alive because it's TOO sweet.
"It's so sweet, it's hard for shit to live in it. Honey cannot spoil. It's so concentrated, it kills everything in contact with it." -Boyer

5. Attimo winery is having a barrel tasting! $20/person. Super random.

February/March is the slowest time for the economy!

6. Today is national pancake day at Ihop. This is stupid.

7. Almost everything pairs well with roses!

Grapes of the day!
Pinot Grigio/Pinot Gris/Grauburgunder
Regions: Italy ,Alsace, Germany, Australia, New Zealand, California, Oregon, Argentina, Chile
Flavor Profile: low/soft to good acidity, peaches, apricots, ripe tropical fruits, hints of melon/mango...
Alsace- more full bodied, spicy/floral
German- slightly sweet
Oregon- pear, apple, melon
Italy- thin, spritzy flavors: crisp and acidic
"Oily consistency"

Malbec
"Everyone's had a malbec! They're super affordable, and they're the KING GRAPE of Argentina!" -Boyer
Regions: France, Argentina, Chile, CA
Flavor Profile: A "rustic" version of Merlot, softer in tannins and lower in acidity (except in higher altitudes). Plummy, violets, floral, cherry, black cherry, more berries, chocolate, earthy, light leather, prune, vanilla...
Originally from France, it didn't do much over in Europe. But once they brought it to Europe, it went "gangbusters wild and is super awesome" -Boyer.

"I realize how late it's gotten because of how much fun we have in this class." -Boyer

EXTRA CREDIT WOO

Water helps moderate climate; Big bodies of water mean more constant temperatures.
CONTINENTAL CLIMATE
-Colder winters, hotter/shorter summers
-More extreme temperature swings
-Examples: Inland Europe, Germany, Austria.

MARITIME CLIMATE: Regions near large bodies of water
-Temperature swings regulated by the water proximity
-Problems of rains and storms to area
-Examples: Bordeaux

MEDITERRANEAN CLIMATE: A specific maritime type
-Awesomeness
-Mild winters, long warm summers
-Mild, light rainy winter
-Examples: Midi region in France, Australia

Human decision can affect the taste of grapes
-Training
-Pruning
-Harvest time
-Fertilizing...

Find the balance between ACIDS and SUGARS when you HARVEST

Grape differences in color make for differences in...
GREEN/WHITE
-Chardonnay, Riesling
-Ripen sooner (pigmentation comes last)
-Less tannins, less tannic structure
-More malic acid (the "bite")
-Shorter growing season, cooler climates

RED/BLACK
-Cabernet, Merlot, Pinot Noir
-Ripen later, wait on the color
-More tannic and tannic structure
-More tartaric ("mouth pucker"); less malic
-Longer, hotter growing season

The last phase of ripening: Veraison
-The color of the grape takes form
-Berries start to soften as they build up sugars
-The berries grow dramatically as they accumulate glucose and fructose
-pH increases as acids decrease (like malic)

The longer the growing season...
Sugars: UP
Colors/Tannins: UP
Acids (Malic): DOWN

You NEED acid to boost up wine!