WTN: Bürklin-Wolf 2010 - and a Q on de-acidification

Dr. Bürklin-Wolf Wachenheimer Gerümpel Riesling trocken "P.C." 2010
25€; 13% abv; 7,8 g/l acidity; 8 g/l sugar. This was a very enjoyable wine. Ripe but gloriously mineral, pure Riesling aromas. Enormously concentrated - more than I would ideally prefer -, but with good acidity and just the right touch of sugar to keep this charming and instantly loveable instead of being austere and painful. Long, dry finish. If this is one of the de-acidified 2010s, the process seems to have worked here - this is really quite beautiful. Does anyone know of Dr. B-W was one of the estates that de-acidified?

Has anyone made a list of who de-acidified and who didn't? How is de-acidification supposed to show in the wine - as in are there detrimental side-effects that might be noticeable?

Good questions Otto, I am keen to hear more.

[David M. Bueker]

Has anyone made a list of who de-acidified and who didn't? How is de-acidification supposed to show in the wine - as in are there detrimental side-effects that might be noticeable?

Has anyone made a list of who de-acidified and who didn't: No. And even if someone did the results would permanently be in dispute, as various folks have claimed not to have de-acidified, while others said that anyone who said they didn't de-acidify is lying. (And by the way, questions on de-acidification would likely be on a wine by wine basis, not across a producer, at least for better estates.)

How is de-acidification supposed to show in the wine: Some say it strips the "soul" (whatever that means) from the wine. Of course many 2010s strip the enamel from your teeth, so pick your poison - eternal vinous damnation or dental pain. As for how it really shows - anybody's guess, except that the acidity will be lower.

are there detrimental side-effects that might be noticeable: See the answer to the question above. It's a question of vibrancy, but some 2010s were a little bit too vibrant for mixed company.

I'm not sure what de-acidification techniques are used. Basically there are 3 ways to reduce acidity. Usually in reds and often in Chardonnay, malo-lactic fermentation is employed. The process of cold-stabilization, chilling the wine to below freezing for an extended period of time, will reduce acidity a small amount, but the reason it is done is more to prevent tartrate crystals from forming in finished wines. The third method is to add a carbonate of some sort. Calcium carbonate is usually only added to fresh juice or must, prior to fermentation and is probably the best method, as the calcium carbonate is less soluble and reacts much slower. This is because the calcium bi-tartrate that form is insoluble and falls out of solution in very fine particles. If used later in the process, it can make the wine cloudy with the fine, slimy particles, which are hard to remove. Reducing acidity later in the process usually has the addition of either potassium carbonate or potassium bi-carbonate. Both of these are highly reactive with the acids in the wine and can generate a lot of CO2 and foaming, which, I think, may reduce the aromatics slightly. The potassium tartrate that forms as a result of these additions remains in solution, and might add a very slight "saltiness" to the wine.

Hi Otto -

Thank you for the note. Sounds like a lovely wine.

Many ways to deacidify. One needn't just think in terms of double-salt-precipitation. Wines with low pH and high titratable acidity, in the form of tartaric acid, can benefit from addition of potassium tartrate, K2TA. One molecule of that precipitates out 2 hydrogen ions, both of the added potassium ions, and one additional tartrate ion, increasing pH and decreasing titratable acidity, without any CO2 gas production. This is the same basic reaction that occurs in cold stabilization, which is widely done with no adverse affects.

Craig - I've never heard of this and I can't find any reference to using potassium tartrate in wine making. I've heard of using potassium bi-tartrate (cream of tarter) as a seeding agent in cold stabilization. Can you supply a reference? Thanks.

http://books.google.com/books?id=lU4HO2 ... ne&f=false

It's producing cream of tartar. One molecule K2 Tartrate reduces tartrate ion by 1 net per reaction, since you are starting with 2 potassiums, and hydrogen ion by 2 net ions. K2Tartrate is expensive, however, and not easily available (some of the former producers are no longer producing it- I found some from China, and some from Spain).

Thank you Craig. Complicated. The first line in the first book on wine making I read said "Good wine is made from good grapes". In 36 years of making wine at home from numerous varieties, I've found this to be true. The best wines were always made with no adjustments to acidity or sugar content.

Howie, until recently, nearly all of the best wines in California, and most probably Australia, were produced from acidity adjusted must. It's always nice to have the microclimate balanced with variety and viticultural method, so as to require as little adjustment of any kind as possible. However, that rarely occurs, and if it does normally at a site, sooner or later there will be reason to adjust for exceptional circumstances. In very cold climates, such as the Saar, when fruit normally has considerable malic concentration, the Calcium double salt method is often the only one capable of bringing the resulting wine into balance. Luckily, most CA fruit does not have this problem, and adjustment often simply requires Tartaric addition.

[David M. Bueker]

Craig,

Most German Rieslings are dominated by tartaric acid.

Most grapes are predominately tartaric when ripe. The ratio of malic to tartaric decreases during ripening as malic acid is converted to sugar.

All I think Craig is trying to point out is that just before veraison (color change) the concentration of malic acid (in the juice from unripe grapes) could possible be as high as 25 g/L. In two weeks following veraison the malic acid content could drop in half, partly due to dilution as the grapes ripen and grow bigger. As the grapes mature, as Howie pointed out, the malic acid concentration will drop even further due to respiration or combustion. At “maturity” musts or juice from “cooler regions” may still have malic acid concentrations in the range of 4-to 6.5 g/L. In “warmer regions” malic acid concentration could be only in the 1 to 2 g/L range.

Salute

How is de-acidification supposed to show in the wine - as in are there detrimental side-effects that might be noticeable?

If it's done well ("appropriately") it shouldn't show at all.

Germany certainly has a (historical) reputation for use of the double salt method, though I'm not sure how widely used it is there these days. The double salt method can certainly result in an apparent saltiness on the palate, as Howie mentioned. In my experience, it can also destroy mouthfeel. It tends to be more obvious when more severely used - really it's not a practical technique to deal with a significant de-acidification requirement. I'm also suspicious the malates (where relevant) can be a problem taste-wise.

I wonder if some producers in Germany use ion exchange these days.

Sounds like a nice trocken, BTW Otto, thanks for the note.

[David M. Bueker]

In the last 17 vintages (the ones where I have significant tasting and informational experience), the only year with a notable level of malic was 1996. Boy were those some weird Rieslings.

In the last 17 vintages (the ones where I have significant tasting and informational experience), the only year with a notable level of malic was 1996. Boy were those some weird Rieslings.

Interesting. I assume you are going by taste (not really reliable) AND analytical data (as per the above quote). What do you mean by "notable" in terms of malic concentration (as tartaric)?

[David M. Bueker]

In the last 17 vintages (the ones where I have significant tasting and informational experience), the only year with a notable level of malic was 1996. Boy were those some weird Rieslings.

Interesting. I assume you are going by taste (not really reliable) AND analytical data (as per the above quote). What do you mean by "notable" in terms of malic concentration (as tartaric)?

Both. Granted I only had a chance to review data for a handful of those vintages (2001, 2002, 2003, 2008, 2010), but the times when there was high malic (i.e. 1996) it was easily tasteable. Just going off memory from 2002 (the vintage I tasted in Germany), I specifically recall one Mosel producer who had no more than 1.5 g/l of malic for any of his wines ( I saw the data sheets for every wine tasted that day). The rest was tartaric.

Normally you see roughly a 50/50 split between Malic and Tartaric acids in Germany. In 2010 it was 75% Malic, 25% Tartaric, in 2011 it was 25% Malic, 75% tartaric. Doppelsalzentsäuerung is not regulary employed in these modern times (2010 being the exception). Yields are getting lower, there is more canopy work to help to control acidity (leaf-thinning in the fruiting zone, higher canopies –or rather lower heads, green-harvesting, etc.), and there are many more measures taken to ensure that the soil is warm and loose which can lengthen the growing season considerably and help to build down acidity.

Of all of the top (VDP) estates in the Pfalz (to take but one example), I think that only 4 or 5 didn’t deacidify some wines, in some way in 2010. If they didn’t, we were seeing dry Spätlese at 12 or 13g/l. That’s tough to swallow for some people. On the other hand, the producers who didn’t (Christmann, Koehler-Ruprecht come to mind) had their best vintages that I’ve ever tasted.

Is the Bürklin-Wolf Gerümpel deacidified? I find it incredibly hard to believe that it wasn’t. One thing can hardly be disputed: Bürklin-Wolf makes among the most elegant Riesling in the world (to my taste, the most elegant in the Pfalz by some distance.) The wines are excellent and I like the estate more and more with every wine that I taste.

Anyway, thanks for the note Otto.

Cheers,
Bill

Here was my note on that same wine btw:

2010 Dr. Bürklin-Wolf Wachenheimer Gerümpel Riesling Trocken P.C. –Pfalz, Germany 13,0% Alc.

Wow.

Spontaneous fermentation in traditional Pfälzer Doppelstück Oak Casks (2400 liter.) 40 year-old vines.

This is the most renowned and most characteristic site in Wachenheim and it would be hard to argue that it is not the greatest of the village. Within the internal classification that Bürklin-Wolf uses, it is classified as Premier Cru (P.C.), but it is absolutely one of the better wines that they make and hands-down the most elegant.

Gorgeous aromas of almond blossom, marzipan, crème brulee, and apricot. It has a creamy texture with just the faintest spike of acidity and pushes the limits of trocken in residual sugar with almost 9g/l. Drinking it I am reminded of Carillon Puligny-Montrachet. Not bad company. Excellent dry Riesling.

[Low malic in] vintages (2001, 2002, 2003, 2008, 2010), but the times when there was high malic (i.e. 1996) it was easily tasteable. Just going off memory from 2002 (the vintage I tasted in Germany), I specifically recall one Mosel producer who had no more than 1.5 g/l of malic for any of his wines ( I saw the data sheets for every wine tasted that day). The rest was tartaric.

Normally you see roughly a 50/50 split between Malic and Tartaric acids in Germany. In 2010 it was 75% Malic, 25% Tartaric, in 2011 it was 25% Malic, 75% tartaric.... I think that only 4 or 5 didn’t deacidify some wines, in some way in 2010. If they didn’t, we were seeing dry Spätlese at 12 or 13g/l.

You guys appear in disagreement.

(I would also call 25% malic significant - particularly at TA's > 8 g/l.)

Doppelsalzentsäuerung is not regulary employed in these modern times (2010 being the exception). Yields are getting lower, there is more canopy work to help to control acidity (leaf-thinning in the fruiting zone, higher canopies –or rather lower heads, green-harvesting, etc.), and there are many more measures taken to ensure that the soil is warm and loose which can lengthen the growing season considerably and help to build down acidity.

So presumably, when there is high malic, the double salt method remains the most common method for dealing with high acidity in German Riesling(?).

Hi Ben,

2010 was such a freak year that many winemakers, especially those that weren't yet making wine in the 80s or 90s , had never employed double salt before. We are taught how to do it in school, so presumably it is an important tool to have in your back-pocket when the need arises, but I couldn't call it common.

25% Malic high? I disagree in the case of Riesling and some other grapes (Pinot Blanc, Silvaner, Scheurebe, Muskateller.)

I believe that David was talking about analysis of finished wines, while I am talking about grape must.

Cheers,
Bill

[David M. Bueker]

I was indeed speaking of finished wines.

What’s wrong with a little “pleasant” “greenish apple” or “granny-smith” note found in a white wine?

Salute

What’s wrong with a little “pleasant” “greenish apple” or “granny-smith” note found in a white wine?

Nothing IMO.

Great discussion! Thanks for all the information!