Wine Dimensions February 2005 |
Dear Friends of Monolithos, |
| When people hear that we make our own wine, their first reaction is something on these lines: "Aren’t you lucky?" |
| Well, the answer is yes, but ….. |
| There is a tremendous feeling of personal satisfaction at the end of the season when we taste the result of a year’s work. However, good things do not come without a lot of effort, love, hard work and dedication. |
You may wonder what could go wrong. After all, winemaking has been around for thousands of years, and Mother Nature provides everything that is needed to transform must into wine. Of course, the above statement is absolutely true, however during the last 100 years, a number of significant innovations in winemaking practices revolutionised the wine industry. Perhaps we owe the scientific background and the revolution in winemaking of modern times to the research of Louis Pasteur (1822-1895), who understood the process of fermentation and the basics of vinification and conservation of wines. According to Pasteur, "Wine is the most healthful and most hygienic of beverages". |
| An example of recent developments is refrigeration, which enables winemakers – even in hot climates – to control fermentation through the use of steel tanks cooled to the desired temperatures. Modern winemaking permits total physical control of every state of winemaking from the vineyard to the bottle. Despite the enormous advances in scientific knowledge, technology and chemical analysis, there are numerous variables in the winemaking process with endless possibilities. Good winemaking is a balance between apparent opposites such as technology and tradition, stainless steel and oak barrels, open and closed fermentation, natural corks and synthetic corks, chemical and organoleptic analysis, objective and subjective tasting, conventional and ecological processes, etc. Furthermore, it is a balance of all the elements in a wine such as the fruit, tannins, acidity, alcohol, colour, aroma and oak wood. Consequently, there is diversity in the art of winemaking and there is no single recipe for making a wine of quality. |
| Even though recent technological advances have benefited the wine industry, they also have led to the temptation to produce more wine at the expense of quality. Winemakers face the challenge of producing wine for a larger market without losing the local character and individual flavour of their product. However, we should acknowledge that the wines we are making and delivering to the consumer today are consistently better than at any time in the history of wine. |
| Philosophy aside, the crucial challenge facing anyone involved in producing quality wine is to determine, "what makes a wine stand out?" In our opinion, in order to stand out, a wine must possess not only qualities found nowhere else, but also flavours and textures that are the result of a unique combination of soil, climate, growing conditions and the effects of man’s hand on the land. In simple terms, these factors give the wine its characteristic personality. In the more sophisticated French winemaking culture, all the above are expressed in the term "terroir". |
| It goes without saying that wine is much more than just flavours, aromas and texture. All outstanding wines have a story to tell – each of these stories is unique, having no counterpart anywhere in the world because they are directly related to the culture, the people and the land they come from. |
| Years ago, when tradition was the most significant factor in winemaking, people observed that certain types of grapes grew best in certain types of locations. This gave way to the regulatory system called "Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée", or AOC. The European Commission has adopted a set of directives regarding the classification of wines. Recently, the Cypriot Board of Wine and Spirit Products developed an appellation system based on a number of broad regional designations which we shall attempt to present in one of our future columns. |
| Now, almost everyone admits that the process of producing a high quality wine begins in the vineyard. Grapes provide the foundation of every wine. It is impossible to make good wine from bad grapes. In a winemaker’s calendar, there is an indoor job in the winery and an outdoor one in the vineyard for every day of the year. January and February are the months for pruning vines. This is perhaps the most important cultural practice in the management of grapevines. Proper pruning will result in maximum yields of high quality fruit without a reduction in hardiness during the following winter. |
| Grapevines may be pruned any time during the dormant season. However, pruned vines are more easily damaged by a cold stress episode than vines which have not been pruned. Therefore, it is desirable to defer the pruning until late winter because delay will give some protection against unforeseen cold damage. Pruning grapevines seems more complicated than pruning fruit trees or roses when you first start, but it gets easier as you gain experience. When done correctly, pruning allows the vine to have the proper amount of year-old cane ready for the following spring’s production. |
| The real secret about grapevine pruning is to know how much to remove and how much to leave. In general, however, there are really two important facts to keep in mind. The first is timing, and the second important factor is that grapes only bear fruit on new wood. The canes that bore last year won’t bear again and so should be removed. |
Wine News and Information |
| The US and Italy will overtake France as the world's leading wine consumers within three years, according to a report commissioned by Vinexpo. Americans are turning their back on the spirits and cocktails once enjoyed by their parents and opting for wine. Worldwide consumption continues to grow, even if we are seeing a decline in big wine-drinking countries like France, Spain and Portugal. |
| The UK will be the fastest growing wine market in Europe and the second fastest in the world after the USA. Vinexpo predicts a growth rate of 15.7% between 2003 and 2008 for the UK, making it the fastest growing wine market in Europe. In terms of positioning, by 2008 the USA will be the world's largest wine consumer, followed by Italy, France, Germany and the UK. Wine sales in the UK should reach £6 billion by 2008, up from £5.1 billion in 2003. Consumers in the UK drink a total of more than 1.5 billion bottles each year, or 24.8 litres per person. Per capita consumption will rise to 28 litres in 2008, one of the fastest growth rates in the world. |
Monolithos Monthly News |
| Monolithos vineyards were scheduled to be pruned during the first week of February, however, the change of the weather during the last few weeks and the snow on Troodos mountains forced us to postpone pruning for later in the month. |
| Our new plantations of "Shiraz" and "Mavro" grapes, at the location named "Ayiasmata" near Pachna, and at 750 metres above sea level, will soon be pruned. A number of plants in this vineyard require a supporting system which will be implemented using the traditional method of wooden staffs without wires. |
| In the winery, we have just bottled the Xynisteri wine of 2004 vintage, which we are planning to have on the market by April this year. |
| On the commercial scene this month, the prestigious Laiki Bank Sporting Club (Cyprus Popular Bank) at Latsia, just outside Nicosia, has been added to the list of restaurants serving Monolithos Cabernet Sauvignon. We highly recommend their excellent Sunday Buffet lunch. |
| If at any time you are passing near the village and wish to visit the winery or purchase any of our products, Martin Wood will be pleased to meet and assist you from his home at "Fig Tree Villa" in Pachna, so do not hesitate to phone him at 25816212 or 99165995. |
| We thank you for your continued support. Take care, and always remember Louis Pasteur’s advice on wine! |
"Wine is the most healthful and most hygienic of beverages". |
| Regards from all of us here at Monolithos |
