Thanks for this. The persistence of the mistaken belief that vines directly upload chalk or granite or slate or whatever and that's what gives the taste of the wine is nothing short of mind-boggling.
Back in the 1970s when I was studying geology I don't ever remember anyone licking rocks, though there were some weird guys. Yes, they were almost all guys; only one or two girls in my classes. Anyway, while geology is not irrelevant, chemistry is more important, both in the soil and the fianl product. Minerality is a useful term to hint at the flavours beyond fruit, acids and tannin.
Thanks for another well written, thoughtful AND correct explanation of what we (including myself) call minerality in a wine. In the course of my career growing grapes and making wine my appreciation of soils, both structure and composition, has grown and evolved. I’m blessed with soils in my vineyard (Bradford Mountain, Sonoma County CA) that are deep, ancient (approx 65 million years when seabed was lifted by tectonic plates) and have a high percentage of clay and very low pH, very low nutrients (except Fe and Al), low CEC and organic matter. The good news is that our clay is unusual in that though it holds lots of water it is “non-expansive” and has good drainage (we can receive 3”/8cm of rain and get out in vineyard 2-3 days later with a tractor). Our grapes tended to have very low pH at harvest (3.2 or lower) and really low P/K, which often made it a struggle for primary (yeast) fermentation and especially for secondary (malo) fermentations. For the past 20+ years of cover crop, annual compost applications and no irrigations the grapes are not as low pH on average (3.4 range) and more reasonable P/K so less issues with fermentations. Still plenty of “minerality” in our wines but not as austere as in the past (been growing grapes up here for 43 years).
The components/quality of the grapes we harvest each year is a result of the interaction of the vines (variety/rootstock), the soil (structure and components) and the weather that growing season.
Thanks Fred, really loving these insights! Other than pH and P/K how would you say the wines have been affected / benefited from a such an increase in soil organic matter? They retain minerality, but would you say the profile has gotten bigger, rounder or more complex perhaps?
They are “rounder” (or probably better said less edgy/angular) and better balance between fruit and acidity. Still good acid and favorable pH in finished wine but a little more accessible when released. We don’t filter or fine our red wines and leave in barrel between 18-30 months depending on the wine/vintage and then bottle age for a year before release……
I really enjoyed the article. While I think of minerality in wine as mostly a reference to a degree of austerity and acidity, it seems to be a useful term for creating wonder in the minds of many wine drinkers. Your description of soils was really well done and a pleasure to read. I thought your point about cover crops was very important. The infusion of fresh organic matter is so important for soil biological health and creating balance for soil fertility in the broadest sense.
BTW, I belong to a club of RockHounds, some of which are highly educated in geology or mineralogy. Our newsletter is appropriately called, The Rocklicker! None of them actually do it, or admit to it.
Thanks for this. The persistence of the mistaken belief that vines directly upload chalk or granite or slate or whatever and that's what gives the taste of the wine is nothing short of mind-boggling.
Back in the 1970s when I was studying geology I don't ever remember anyone licking rocks, though there were some weird guys. Yes, they were almost all guys; only one or two girls in my classes. Anyway, while geology is not irrelevant, chemistry is more important, both in the soil and the fianl product. Minerality is a useful term to hint at the flavours beyond fruit, acids and tannin.
Thanks for another well written, thoughtful AND correct explanation of what we (including myself) call minerality in a wine. In the course of my career growing grapes and making wine my appreciation of soils, both structure and composition, has grown and evolved. I’m blessed with soils in my vineyard (Bradford Mountain, Sonoma County CA) that are deep, ancient (approx 65 million years when seabed was lifted by tectonic plates) and have a high percentage of clay and very low pH, very low nutrients (except Fe and Al), low CEC and organic matter. The good news is that our clay is unusual in that though it holds lots of water it is “non-expansive” and has good drainage (we can receive 3”/8cm of rain and get out in vineyard 2-3 days later with a tractor). Our grapes tended to have very low pH at harvest (3.2 or lower) and really low P/K, which often made it a struggle for primary (yeast) fermentation and especially for secondary (malo) fermentations. For the past 20+ years of cover crop, annual compost applications and no irrigations the grapes are not as low pH on average (3.4 range) and more reasonable P/K so less issues with fermentations. Still plenty of “minerality” in our wines but not as austere as in the past (been growing grapes up here for 43 years).
The components/quality of the grapes we harvest each year is a result of the interaction of the vines (variety/rootstock), the soil (structure and components) and the weather that growing season.
Thanks Fred, really loving these insights! Other than pH and P/K how would you say the wines have been affected / benefited from a such an increase in soil organic matter? They retain minerality, but would you say the profile has gotten bigger, rounder or more complex perhaps?
They are “rounder” (or probably better said less edgy/angular) and better balance between fruit and acidity. Still good acid and favorable pH in finished wine but a little more accessible when released. We don’t filter or fine our red wines and leave in barrel between 18-30 months depending on the wine/vintage and then bottle age for a year before release……
I really enjoyed the article. While I think of minerality in wine as mostly a reference to a degree of austerity and acidity, it seems to be a useful term for creating wonder in the minds of many wine drinkers. Your description of soils was really well done and a pleasure to read. I thought your point about cover crops was very important. The infusion of fresh organic matter is so important for soil biological health and creating balance for soil fertility in the broadest sense.
BTW, I belong to a club of RockHounds, some of which are highly educated in geology or mineralogy. Our newsletter is appropriately called, The Rocklicker! None of them actually do it, or admit to it.