Extracted question

The term extracted is often used in the world of winespeak and I’m not entirely sure what it refers to, so I thought I’d ask a few questions.

Heck, first off, what does it mean? Folks use it to describe a wine, but its verb root makes me think of the process of extracting the juice from the grapes. It is often used with the prefix over-, and seems oftentimes a derogatory term. I only recall seeing it used to reference red wines, often ones from warmer climates, and often also referencing vanilla or overoaking. Is it a kind of general critique of those types of wines (lots of fruit, very forward, very ripe, often accompanied by a massive oak presence) or is something more specific?

An inquiring mind wants to know . . .

As someone who recently used the term overextracted, I'll answer what I mean, and then the experts can say what extraction really means.

To me, extraction is mostly what is pulled from the skins (and stems if not destemmed) during maceration. Winemakers can use longer macerations as well as techniques like cold soaking and pumping over to increase extraction (or, for the more technology inclined, things like reverse osmosis). Extraction is part of making any red wine. Some use measurements of dry extract as a barometer of quality. But for some tastes, too much extract leads to a heavy-feeling wine that might obscure terroir or varietal characteristics. Some wines with bitter green tannins are clearly overextracted, other wines with smoother tannins create more debate. One man's (or woman's) overextracted is another's beautifully concentrated. Chacun a son gout.

To me, extraction is mostly what is pulled from the skins (and stems if not destemmed) during maceration. Winemakers can use longer macerations as well as techniques like cold soaking and pumping over to increase extraction (or, for the more technology inclined, things like reverse osmosis). Extraction is part of making any red wine.

Exactly: the extraction in this context is a solid-liquid extraction process removing various things from the skin into the fermenting wine. In particular, the color of red wine is created when anthocyanin pigments* are extracted from the skins, a process that only occurs when the alcohol levels have risen to a certain level. That's why the first method developed to increase extraction was chaptalization.

Mark Lipton

* Those same pigments are responsible for the color of various flowers including hydrangea. Just as with hydrangea, the color of red wine depends on pH and turns blue under alkaline conditions. It's that color change that explains why red wine stains your teeth bluish-purple (the pH of your mouth is above 8 ).

But for some tastes, too much extract leads to a heavy-feeling wine that might obscure terroir or varietal characteristics.

Am I correct that wines noted as being extracted or overextracted are often from warm climates, and, if so, is it because those wines tend to be big in fruit and alcohol which leads some winemakers to try to build the wine's structure to bear that burden with more of the tannins and other components that come from the extraction of the skins/stems?

Am I correct that wines noted as being extracted or overextracted are often from warm climates, and, if so, is it because those wines tend to be big in fruit and alcohol which leads some winemakers to try to build the wine's structure to bear that burden with more of the tannins and other components that come from the extraction of the skins/stems?

Sounds like a question that would need some systematic data to answer. One could in theory plow through the archives here and on other websites to find which wines are more likely to be described as overextracted, construct a matrix, etc, etc..

But, since we don't have time for that, I would say that yes, from my experience the Warm Climate wines do tend to be more about power than the Marginal Climate wines, so perhaps winemakers are more likely to push the extraction.

But, their clientele might also enjoy that and be less likely to criticize the wine as "over"extracted. Whereas lovers of red Burgundy will probably be much quicker to throw that critique in the ring.

But for some tastes, too much extract leads to a heavy-feeling wine that might obscure terroir or varietal characteristics. Some wines with bitter green tannins are clearly overextracted, other wines with smoother tannins create more debate. One man's (or woman's) overextracted is another's beautifully concentrated. Chacun a son gout.

Yep.
In my notes I usually use the terms extracted or extraction to indicate what I consider to be an unpleasant (and, to some degree, unbalanced) characteristic, whereas, I use the terms concentrated, dense, pure and intense to indicate aspects of a balanced and enjoyable delivery of strong flavors.
And this regardless of their technical definitions.
Best, Jim

Just as with hydrangea, the color of red wine depends on pH and turns blue under alkaline conditions. It's that color change that explains why red wine stains your teeth bluish-purple (the pH of your mouth is above 8 ).

Interesting. I was noticing only on Thursday how a splash of red wine on a piece of paper rapidly changed colour. Not exactly blue or purple but heading towards grey. That would be the alkali in the paper then I guess.

I believe we had a thread about the hues of wine and the relationship to pH on the old board some time ago. I remember someone posting a link about the relationship (can't find it now). However, it explained a paradox. One year, I made wine from Foch grapes that were very ripe (about 24 Brix). I did not monitor the pH, but the wine was very deeply colored. Part of the wine I blended 50/50 with Vidal, a white wine that ripens much later and has more acidity. The result was that as the two wines aged in glass carboys before bottling, the 100% Foch threw more sediment, the color intensity decreased and the hue became a neutral red. The 50/50 blend threw less sediment, the color intensity was maintained to the point that it was a more deeply colored wine than the 100% Foch and had a blueish/purplish hue.

I attended a seminar led by Ed Sbragia on the Beringer Private Reserve; Sbragia said that his father had taught him to "get everything out of the grape that it was possible to do", and that it was a lesson he had learned well. He said he tried to extract all of the elements present in the grapes, stems and pips. For example, he described the second PR as follows according to my diary.

Sbragia said the 1978 was the second PR vintage, that the fruit was overripe when picked, that only new oak was used because of all the fruit, that the vintage had aged beautifully. He said he pumped over three times a day, and this vintage exemplified his preference to age oak and wine together. In response to questions, he said that the cedar notes could come from either wood or the juice, and that the eucalyptus aromas could have come form eucalyptus leaves that fall into the crushers and stemmers; the resins from the trees also build up on the skins of the grapes before picking.

When I first started writing tasting notes, I tried to make sense of the words"extraction", "extracted", etc., and puzzled over notes like this one from Robert Parker -- he tends to use the word "extraction" in a favorable way -- there is a high correlation between high scores and the use of the word, especially with respect to fruit:

1970 Vega Sicilia Unico Riserva Rueda Castilla-Leon Spain. P96: Finally, the 1970 Vega Sicilia Unico has been released. It has long been reputed to be one of the all time greats from Spain's most renowned and expensive producer. Just how good is it? I do not think those readers who have the financial means to afford the wine will be disappointed with what's in the bottle. I have always believed the 1968 (which has just been released in magnum) is the most concentrated and potentially profound Vega Sicilia yet produced. The 1970 falls just a notch below the 1968 in terms of pure extraction. It surpasses the 1968 in its exceptional perfume and seductive, gorgeously-textured, voluptuous, and sexy style. The color is a healthy dark ruby. The nose offers up smashingly intense aromas of lavishly-oaked, but gorgeously pure black-cherries and currants. The wine is full-bodied, and nearly sweet tasting because of the fruit's exceptional ripeness. Expansive and deep, with the wood, tannin, and acidity nearly masked by the sheer quantity of fruit, the 1970 Vega Sicilia Unico is a velvety-textured, seamless, rich, profound wine that is more approachable than the 1968, yet, along with that legendary wine, remarkably fresh and youthful. It is astonishing that a twenty-five year old wine could look, smell, and taste so young, yet also be so complex. No one knows how Vega Sicilia achieves such brilliance, but the proof is in the bottle.

Puzzle as I could, I couldn't make sense of "extraction", let alone "pure extraction" in that note -- and I still haven't made sense of it. I was fascinated to read Florida Jim's note that he used the word in a negative sense.

In any event, I no longer use the word in writing tasting notes -- it is so slippery, and I sure don't know how I could ever decide whether the winemaker had extracted too much, too little, or just the right amount of what's in the grape, stems, pips, etc.

BTW, I understand that some winemakers -- not Sbragia as far as I know -- but some winemakers sometimes use enzymes to aid in extraction. Burghound had a note to that effect in an essay on Chablis recently, for example.

Winemaker Magazine had an interesting description of one of these enzymes:

Wine Wizard answers: Lallzyme EX is a blend of enzymes that helps break down the plant cells in grapes. This mix of pectinase, cellulase and hemicellulase is introduced at the crusher or right at the outset of fermentation and is most often used for red winemaking. According to the company, this enzyme cocktail aids in the release of tannins, anthocyanins and certain other aromatic compounds during fermentation. Their in-house studies showed an almost 10 percent increase in color intensity in Sangiovese, as well as a 10 percent increase in anthocyanin release, when compared to non-treated control wines. They also claim that the enzyme aids in the release of less-astringent tannins and limits the extraction of “C6 compounds,” a class of compounds of which certain kinds can be responsible for herbaceous character in wine. Adding to the positive press, a formal study presented at the 1999 Joint Burgundy-California-Oregon Winemaking Symposium at UC Davis concluded that Pinot Noir treated with Lallzyme EX exhibited more color on the purple-blue scale — in other words, color that was more intense. It also showed more body and a more spicy, floral and fruity character.

Grape varietals that might particularly benefit from this enzyme are those that often have problems with color stability and extraction: Sangiovese, Pinot Noir and Nebbiolo. If you have the inclination, you might want to conduct side-by-side fermentation experiments in your cellar. Treat two batches identically except for dosing one with Lallzyme EX. The results should indicate what the enzyme does to your favorite style of wine.

http://www.winemakermag.com/mrwizard/302.html

Regards, Bob