Winemaking

During the past several decades considerable interest has developed in the United States for the wines that are produced in small wineries across our nation. This in­ terest continues to intensify, especially for the truly good wines that are reason­ ably priced. Consumers are unforgiving. Second-class wines will not be accept­ able just because a vintner may be newly established. The functions that must take place in the small estate-type wine cellar and the controls that can be realistically exercised by winemasters are essential in the creation of superior products. Although wine can be a comparatively simple food to produce, it is a very vast topic. Perhaps much the same as with other art forms, it is the infinite variability offactors at the root ofthe subject that renders it so complex. There are hundreds of different vine varieties cultivated around the world, and doubtlessly an even greater number of fruit and berry cultivars. Combined with such factors as soils, climates and mesoclimates (which may change with each vintage season), culti­ vation techniques, harvesting criteria, and overall operational philosophy, one can easily understand the enormous breadth and depth of variation which exits. This diversity, along with more than 5 years of enological development, generates a number of different wine possibilities that can only be conceived as something vastly exponential.