RIOJA WINEPRODUCTION
ByAntonio Maciá Soro
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H
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o A Special Wine Like most of the great viticulture regions of Europe, the face of modern Rioja was cast during the 19th century.
o With the hope of escaping phylloxera, the deadly vine louse found in Bordeaux, many successful Bordeaux growers began moving south across the Pyrenees to La Rioja in the 1870's.
o Modern Rioja spends more time in small oak barrels than almost any other modern wine.
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SO ILS
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SUB-AREAS CLIMATIC INFLUENCE
APPROXIMATE AREA OF
VINEYARDS
CHARACTERISTICS OF THE WINES
RIOJA ALTA Atlantic 24.457
hectares
-Medium alcohol content.-Full-bodied with high total acidity.- Suitable for aging in casks
RIOJA ALAVESA
Atlantic and Mediterranean
12.050hectares
-Red wines with average alcohol content and total acidity.-Ready for drinking (young wines obtained via carbonic maceration) and also for aging in casks.
RIOJA BAJA Mediterranean 20.907
hectares- Reds and rosés with higher alcohol content and extract.
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Areas where they are found
Percentage of total surface
Characteristics of the ground
Characteristics of the wines
Chalkyclay
Rioja Alavesa,Sonsierra and
Rioja Alta25% Small, terraced
plots
- Rich in glycerine extract- Good colour- Basis of red Riojas- Whites with character, light in colour
Ferrous clayFound in plots throughout the
region25%
Sloping. Reddish brown and hard with deep hard
rock
- Light reds with medium body- Rosés
Alluvial
Found in plots throughout the
wine region near rivers
50%Large, flat plots with good depth and river stones
- Whites and reds with medium body
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MAKING P
ROCESS
There are five basic components or steps to making wine:
•Harvesting
•Crushing and Pressing
•Fermentation
•Clarification
•Aging and Bottling
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MAKING P
ROCESS
The Harvest
• Harvesting or picking is certainly the first step in the actual wine making process.
• In order to make fine wine, grapes must be harvested at the precise time, preferably when physiologically ripe.
• Harvesting can be done mechanically or by hand.
• Once the grapes arrive at the winery, reputable winemakers will sort the grape bunches, culling out rotten or under ripe fruit before crushing.
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Crushing and Pressing
• Crushing the whole clusters of fresh ripe grapes is traditionally the next step in the wine making process.
• Today, mechanical crushers perform the time-honored tradition of stomping the grapes into what is commonly referred to as must.
• Mechanical pressing has also improved the quality and longevity of wine, while reducing the winemaker's need for preservatives.
• Up until crushing and pressing the steps for making white wine and red wine are essentially the same.
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Fermentation
• Fermentation is indeed the magic at play in the making of wine.
• Many winemakers prefer to intervene at this stage by inoculating the natural must.
• Fermentation can require anywhere from ten days to a month or more.
• Sweet wine is produced when the fermentation process stops before all of the sugar has been converted into alcohol.
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Clarification
• Once fermentation is completed, the clarification process begins.
• Filtering and fining may also be done at this stage.
• Often, winemakers will add egg whites, clay, or other compounds to wine that will help precipitate dead yeast cells and other solids out of a wine.
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MAKING P
ROCESS
Aging and Bottling
• The final stage of the wine making process involves the aging and bottling of wine.
• After clarification, the winemaker has the choice of bottling a wine immediately, which is the case for Beaujolais Nouveau, or he or she can give a wine additional aging as in the case of Grand Cru Bordeaux and great Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon.
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QUEST IONS
What is the right temperature for the tasting of each type of wine?
How can I know the age of wine?
How must the uncorking be done?
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