High Octane Juice

High Octane Juice(18 July)

Since the 1980’s there was been a gradual increase in the alcohol level in wine, not just in Australia but all over the world. Even many of the French producers are getting into the act, but now some consumers are “revolting” against wines they perceive to be hot, alcoholic rocket juice.

It is no accident that alcohol levels have crept up, and new world countries like Australia have been leading the charge. In the 1980’s many wines Australia produced were much lower in alcohol, around 12.5% was pretty normal and 13.5% was about as high as it got. The problem with making wine at those levels in many cases was the resulting wine was lean, green and basically unripe.

Finally Australian winemakers stopped trying to emulate the French style and not only did we stop calling our wines Claret and Burgundy, we started to make wine in a style that was suited to our growing conditions. Most of the Australian viticultural area is regarded as warm to hot, rather than cool, and this is the first and foremost reason for the increase in alcohol levels. The riper the grape (in a hot area,) the higher the sugar level, and that results in higher alcohol.

The new strains of yeast used is also said to contribute to the higher alcohol level as they are more efficient in converting sugar to alcohol. Today, some growers use wild yeast that self-inoculates the ferment, but it does not seem to make a huge difference to the alcohol level by itself.

Changes to viticulture also play their part. If loads of water is used in conjunction with high yields, there is also likely to be a high alcohol content.

The combination of these factors means many wines have gone from an average 13% to 15%, and in some cases 16% or even 17% alcohol is reached. Some people will disagree, but high alcohol levels in and of themselves does not necessarily mean that a wine is “bad”. The critical factors are balance, ripeness, and drinkability. If a wine is say 16% and shows perfectly ripe, varietal fruit characters and no sign of alcoholic heat, from a quality and drinkability perspective, there is nothing wrong with the wine.

However, the higher the alcohol the harder it is to get the wine right. Stewed or dead fruit characters are not on, alcoholic heat is not a good look, and over-ripe fruit that loses all varietal characters is not attractive.

There are two other factors that are important to some wine lovers. The first is the amount of alcohol they consume, especially when wanting to drink a few glasses and drive. If you use the “Australian Standard Drink” measurement, if a person consumes half a 750ml bottle of wine at 13% alcohol, they will have consumed 3.85 standard drinks. At 14.5% half a bottle would be 4.3 standard drinks and at 16% it would be 4.75% standard drinks. So, the difference between 13% and 16% over half a bottle is less than one standard drink, not a huge amount, but one that needs to be considered when driving.

The second factor that seems to be concerning wine lovers is the perception that high alcohol wines do not match with food. We are all entitled to our own tastes and opinions, but in many instances, I disagree with this hypothesis. A red wine at 15% (assuming it is balanced) is likely to be a big wine and it needs meat, or hearty, or spicy (chilli) food. If you try and drink it with a lobster salad, of course it will not match, but then a 13% red would be unlikely to match either.

If you are drinking a NZ Sauvignon Blanc with fish, does it really matter if the wine is 13% or 14.5%? I think not.

From my perspective, the absolute alcohol percentage is not really the issue; it is the way the wine presents itself that is important. In many cases, from my perspective, the problem with high alcohol wines is either overt sweetness, or even worse, a wine that is so ripe that the entire flavour spectrum is black, leading off with intense blackberry.

But these are my personal opinions and other people have other ideas. This article starts off by stating that the journalist dumped a $75 Sonoma merlot down the drain because the wine had a hot aftertaste and flamethrower finish. “It contained a whopping 15 percent alcohol.” Headline grabbing attention-seeker? Quite possibly.

The article then goes onto state that a Californian retailer would no longer stock wine over 14.5%. They are not the first retailer to rebel against alcohol levels. Earlier this year, one of the senior wine staff at Marks and Spencer in the UK, stated they planned to seek out more wines that were closer to 12% than 14%.

Over-reaction? Possibly, but where there is smoke, there is often fire.

It was not all that long ago that consumers were complaining about the over-use of oak in Australian wine. The press soon cottoned on and the movement grew. Some show judges were told before judging to be aware of the over-use of oak and mark accordingly. In the overall scheme of things, once the problem was highlighted, it didn’t take long for wineries to react accordingly and back off on the use of oak. In some cases, 100% American oak was ditched for French oak or a mix of both, and the wines in most cases are the better for the change. Yes, it is possible to have too much of a good thing and that includes the level of alcohol in wine.

Fixing it can be done in two ways; the slow way, or the quick way utilising technology. The slow way involves changes to viticultural practices, experimenting with yeast strains etc. This will take time and will be costly, but the process should result in fine wine, better than much of it today. The fast way is one that wineries don’t want to talk about but the technology is available and already in use. It involves reverse osmosis to strip out some of the alcohol. It’s not a difficult process, but it’s not as simple as saying “this is 15% make it 13%. It requires some finesse to keep the wine in balance and get it right.

As time goes on, as it always does, the pendulum will swing the other way and alcohol levels will start to reduce. It’s just a matter of how long it will take, and my bet is that it will start soon.

Feel free to submit your comments!

From: Mike

07/17/2007 13:04:29 Hi Ric

Just as an FYI I’ve reproduced my feelings on this from a post on my blog, and if folks want more on what I have written about this they should search my blog under Corti.

The discussion of alcohol levels in wine rages on. It would be nice if there was unimpeachable evidence that high alcohol wines fail to please the drinking public, but I don’t see substantiation of that. If anything the reverse is true. What I do see are individuals trying to impose their personal preference on others. Darrell Corti is a good example with his statement that he will no longer sell wine with more than 14.5% alcohol. But Corti has been inconsistent, and his statement that "I made the rule, I can break it." highlights that inconsistency.

Elin McCoy, the writer of Robert Parker’s biography, has now stepped into the same fold with a piece in Bloomberg. She calls her dumping of a 15% alcohol Merlot down the drain a “personal rebellion against the latest wine-fashion craze”. I’m not sure I’d call increasing alcohol levels in wine the latest wine craze; its probably been going on for at least the last few decades. McCoy quotes the numbers herself, “In the Napa Valley, the average climbed to 14.8 percent in 2001 from 12.5 percent in 1971.” And I’ve noted a similar trend in the flagship Aussie Shiraz Penfold’s Grange over its 50+ year history.

Unlike Corti, McCoy does add to the argument in a constructive way by tasting a 2005 Amador County Syrah that Clark Smith had subjected to reverse osmosis to change the alcohol content. The resulting wines had alcohol levels of 15.4 percent (“seemed hot and super- rich”), 14.2 percent wine (“jammy, with a fresher nose and brighter flavors”), and 13.75 percent (“spicier, with fruit and leather notes, more Rhone in style”). Subjecting these wines to personal sensory evaluation is a worthwhile endeavor, and it’s a pity this was not done with a larger audience in a blinded fashion. The results would have been certain to be interesting.

There are no prizes for guessing that McCoy’s favorite alcohol modified Syrah was the 13.75% wine. But was she looking for the wine that gave her the most pleasure, or one that reminded her of a Rhone? Help me a little here, as an Australian who has lived in California for 20+ years I’m confused. Amador County is in California, right? That is part of the USA, correct? I thought the Rhone Valley was in France? Should Amador County Syrah be Rhonish in style? Amador County is divided into two appellations, Shenandoah Valley and Fiddletown. Amador County is Zinfandel territory, but it has been having success with Syrah. Shouldn’t they be allowed to develop their own style of Syrah?

The alcohol argument is unlikely to go away soon. We have all tasted low alcohol wines that have survived decades beautifully. But it’s a little early to be passing judgment on the longevity of high alcohol wines. I’ve got bunch of Shiraz/Syrah from Australia and California sitting in my cellar waiting patiently for a decade or so to pass before I see if they have fallen to pieces. And therein lies the problem, I have to let them lie there rather then drink them sooner, like tonight! After all as one of the exponents of high alcohol wines Sparky Maquis of MollyDooker (and Shirvington, Parson's Flat, Henry's Drive, Marquis-Philips) says “People are always asking me, When should I drink this wine? How long should I cellar it?" "And you know what I say to them? I'm making another one next year! When should you drink it? How long will it take you to find a corkscrew?!! Or now that we're going screwcaps, How long will it take you to get a glass?!!"

Mike

From: Dan Sawyer

07/18/2007 02:43:15 I hope Andrew from Warrabilla keeps up his bloody fine work!!!

From: Tim Smith

07/18/2007 08:18:22 I've read a lot of press lately about high alcohol in (usually) red wines, and I am finally compelled to vent my spleen publicly on the subject, at the risk of alienating some prospective customers.

I will show my hand straight up and say (a) I am a winemaker and (b) I would love to drink wines that were of a moderate alcohol level.For years the international and national wine buying public has enjoyed the fruits (sic) of the wine industry's labours; 'clean and green' has been the mantra.As each vintage progressed through the 90's, wines got riper, in the pursuit of riper fruit flavours (more is better, a bit more is a lot better). The resultant higher alcohol is an obvious by-product. In a society that has become increasingly more aware of the dangers (and joys...) of drinking alcohol, surely, there must be a degree of responsibility on the part of the consumer?

The often heard lament is "I cant drink a full bottle of (insert brand here) because the alcohol is so high". As a winemaker, I wouldd prefer you didn't drink a full bottle of anything, as long as you drank enough of my wine that gave you enjoyment, not over indulgence then I am happy. I cant recall anybody saying 'I cant drink a full bottle of scotch/bourbon/gin etc any more'.Well, the reality is, no-one is asking the consumer to do so.

As fine wine is usually associated with people of discerning taste, I would have thought that drinking less but drinking better is a more than acceptable approach to take.

Am I suggesting we take too much responsibility for our actions?

From: Muzz

07/18/2007 15:28:43 It is not a simple problem to solve. I think it is important to remember that the vine is producing fruit to have its seeds distributed by birds (bird candy) and that it makes this fruit attractive by loading the grapes with sugar; at the same time birds don't give a toss about green phenolics.

If you reduce tonnages to very low levels to attempt to concentrate flavour the vine accumulates sugar more rapidly than it ripens its phenolic structure. Consequently you have to wait to 25 brix to have this happen (and I've waited to 25.8 brix = 14.3%). Now add to this more efficient yeasts and there is potential for very high alcohol.

At this point the fruit often displays what is known as "shrinkle" ... not shrivelled to raisins but dimpled like a golfball. From these berries we get the deep "black" fruit characters (almost regardless of the varietal) and, often, almost chewable fruit-tannins. In tannic varieties this is perhaps gilding the lily and in the lighter flavoured varieties such as Pinot noir it can lead to wines that are the antithesis of the traditional concept of the wines. Fruit bombs.

Conversely, if you are in the Riverland/MIA and being offered $200 a tonne you have to grow your shiraz out to 30 tonnes to the hectare (13 tonnes an acre) to (still not) make a living. The resulting wines can (note, only can), be thinner on the palate but often, in these hot regions, the phenols and the sugars ripen in the reverse order, with sugar struggling to attain the levels the wineries require. In extreme tonnages, the vine struggles to ripen fruit to any level of winemaking acceptability - yet the fruit remains immensely attractive to birds!

Just as the consuming public demanded less oak they also demanded more fruit-filled wines and to do this the grapes have to be harvested later. One of the successes of the wine-world is "yellowtail", a wine that has quite a high residual sweetness to suit the US market it is aimed at. Many other makers - often at much higher price-points - have used the same ploy with not only residual sweetness but the sweetness ingendered by high alcohol. So in reality who is to blame, the makers or the consumers?

Blame those bloody birds!

From: Mark Koen

07/18/2007 19:57:10 Dear Torb,
Recently discovered your site and it provides a plesant, objective view of the wine industry. Keep up the good work.

In regards to Alcohol levels, Pirramimma have released a range of wines that have had the alcohol reduced by osmosis in an effort to attract a younger, hip drinking group. I have tasted them and I believe that balance and flavour haven't been sacraficed in the process.

Herb at Foggo Road make a Grenache at 15% yet it is so softly pressed, that you would never know the alcohol levels. There Three Sheds at 17% is unique and very porty.

I think there is a huge market for the Moscato style wines, lighter styles, Wirra Wirra, Pertaringa and Jeanneret all make great examples. If they could make these wines in the price range of a monday to friday wine, I believe more Australians would drink these styles.

all the best,
Mark K

From: Peter Feros

07/18/2007 20:34:45 I think part of the issue here is the size of the bottle. In Australia in particular you always drink from a 750ml bottle. The problem is that when you goto a restaurant you buy a 750ml bottle, cause if they happen to have half bottles on the wine list they are generally 75% of the full bottle price. Now I understand not everyone is in the same boat as me, but I generally only go out as a couple, so we either take 1 bottle or buy one. Now if I drive and have half a bottle that small increase in the alcohol content does make a big difference to me. 3.88 standard drinks means that I can drive after 3 hours (2 in the first hour and 1 for each hour thereafter). Now 2-3 hours is about what I normally spend in a resturant when I have 3 courses, so even a small increase in the alcohol means I have to sit around for another hour before I'm ok to drive.

Now you could say well don't drink half a bottle, well that means that my partner has too much or leave quarter of a bottle, neither is palatable to me.

Other times I'm at home and open a bottle have a couple of glasses with my wife and we leave about 1/3 of bottle. I might drink a little more and finish the bottle if I didn't start to feel tipsey. Now leaving a bit in a bottle is fine if I drink it the next night, but often I don't want a drink the next night and I find it goes to waste.

I guess I don't have too much of an issue with the alcohol content of the wine, just that with the bottle size and how I think most people eat and drink, the extra alcohol makes a big difference to me.

From: smithy

07/18/2007 22:54:44 Torb.
Liked the article. It spoke about the importance of balance.
Thats is the key whether we are talking 12.5% Riesling or 17% Shiraz.
Figures on their own mean diddly squat.
Its how the wine tastes!

Interestingly the RO technology is also available to concentrate wines and make them more alcoholic...something which we've never done, but I would suggest happens more often than being used to take the alc level down!

The other factor is the massive understating of alc's on labels.

We are only legally obliged to quote them to +/- 1.5% so a wine at 16% alc can be legally labelled 14.5% (in Aust anyway) and I have never heard of a single prosecution for being incorrect.

Ever! Then again I've only been doing this for 25 years so they may be out there!
Is that margin being used? .... You betcha ...... Especially when the hype of the anti alcohol bashing gets to hysteria levels in the media.

What gets up my snout is when these under declared wines (I stress they are totally legal!) are put forward as arguments against big ripe styles. ie You make them but never own up to it!

Perhaps its only mugs like us that accurately declare the % alc. As far as articles about pouring expensive high alc wine down the gurgler, I would hardly say its newsworthy.

I've been pouring green hard unripe wines to the big underground tank for years!
Cheers
Smithy

From: Reid Bosward

07/21/2007 01:48:21 I just read your article on high alcohol, as usual a well composed and balanced piece. Thanks for defending balance in high alcohol wine. We have given up worrying about high alcohol as in our opinion our wines are for the most part balanced.

One of the things that is rarely mentioned though, is the fact that the consumer in this century tend to be all about now. By that I mean that the days of buying ageing wines has for the most part gone. Most of the worlds population live in cities where expenses for apartments and housing are high and by and large the cost of having a large cellar just simply isn't practicle. In short we have become "Just in Time" and with this as a common purchasing need, wines have had to adapt to reach the market. A two year old Shiraz at 15.5% tastes better and more balanced than a 12.5% Shiraz, its just the way it is.

I think the other point with ageing red wines or any wines for that matter is that the ATO accounting rules make wineries put wine stocks in there P & L statement, thus attracting tax if your in the black, it is hard to hold wine when you get taxed on it every year, and then again at the end with WET and GST. The quicker you can roll the stock the better, thus a wine that is attractive young will sell faster, ............This is partly why fortifieds have become so un-attractive from a business perspective its just to hard, and also why wineries rarely get involved in aged releases. With regards to the tax rules I think this changed about 15-20 years ago, one day I might follow the history of this up.

From: Chris Robinson

07/21/2007 21:31:20 I am in the US at the moment and it is clear there is a ground swell of tasters that are fed up with high alcohol wines a la Parker. Even the sommeliers are on to this trend and respond remarkably when you ask for something under 14% alcohol with a knowing "yes, we are getting more requests like that every day" comment.

For example New York wine lists are now amazing with obscure lower alcohol (all under 14.5%) wines from Spain, Portugal,Argentina and many lesser, and less known, vineyards of France (e.g. many from the regions of the Loire) and even the occasional Oz rarity (e.g. Mornington Peninsula pinots).

One sommelier at the fantastic Mas restaurant in NY (a must for foodies!!) said they now choose to exclude wines on alcohol levels and have been dropping a lot of Californian blockbusters as "unsuitable for food matching".

Could the Emperor be losing his magic? The answer clearly is yes ... in New York! My advice to serious "wine with food" drinkers is to add to the argument for more food conscious wine lists by asking about alcohol levels in your wine selection in food outlets in Australia. You will be amazed how this is catching on, how sommeliers are taking interest and action and how owners are now shaping their lists.

From: Grant

07/22/2007 00:17:36 Smithy's point about labelling is interesting. I remember reading a quote somewhere about David O'Leary saying that he sent a bottle of DRC Romanee Conti off to be tested once and the alc/vol came back as 14.8% ! Now this was a second hand web conversation ( on www.auswine.com ) so I wouldn't like to put words in anyone's mouth but if true I'm betting that the DRC label didn't read 14.8%.

From: Larry

07/23/2007 08:42:05 One point you missed with regards to reasons behind the alcohol levels being so high is the reduction in the use of ice as a cooling agent for hot ferments. Dilution makes a difference. For all I know, it might even be illegal now, but it was certainly prevalent in the old days if you wandered around at vintage.

I really don't buy the efficient yeast argument. If that were the case then wines would have been sweeter in the past as more sugars were left. In my opinion the opposite is true, a lot of red wines now taste sweeter, and even more so in conjunction with higher alcohols. A wine chemist should comment on this (rather than a lazy ex-homebrew guy).

From: Dave Lehmann

07/24/2007 20:04:18 This is a subject that's near and dear to me at the moment. What's right and what's wrong... well in my humble opinion NOTHING -other than wines with clear faults. But then even what is actually a "fault" (over oaking, high low alc, over under ripe etc) can also be a blurry line that is so often delineated by an almost collective subjectiveness; the social palate if you will.

I've made Barossa wines (reds) that have come in across the spectrum of alcohol. From 12.8% up to a whisker under 16% and everywhere in between. Each has had its place and been delicious in its own way.

I am not a formulaic winemaker. What drives my decision to pick or not pick is ultimately flavour out in the paddock. Where the flavour is right changes every year and is subjectively pinpointed by me. You just have to make a decision based on your best guess and experience. Usually you get it right sometimes you don't, it's all a part of the game!

Anyway, the variables involved in getting to the endpoint of that mouthful you and I as consumers respond to is so infinite that the mind sometimes boggles. Ultimately it can only come down that point in time as the wine fills your senses, the context you are drinking it in and how you react. Hell, I've started a bottle and initially disliked it, but as the wine opened and developed, finished loving it.

Ultimately perhaps the best answer to this debate is for the drinkers out there to keep expanding their palates, trying something new (Go one to the left!) and above all keep an open mind. If you like big alcohol buy big alcohol... if you enjoy the lower alcohol wines drink those. Hopefully though, rather than drawing those lines in the sand you are like me... reserve judgement and look at each mouthful on it's own merits. Hell, if it tastes good, drink it... you'll be a much happier person for it!

From: Dave Lehmann

07/25/2007 00:32:01 Having read Reid's comments above and as a continuation of what I said earlier, I would also like to add that I've seen a lot of the old wines Dad (Peter) made back in his Saltram days of the 60's and 70's that were high alc and have aged beautifully.

Generally it was the Cabernets (some as high as the 15% mark) that lived the best (hence my passion for them), but what really determined the aging potential was the balance of the wine when it was young.

Those that were out of balance just didn't cut it in the long run. Those however that were big bruising block busters akin to the "new style" of today (Nothing is new really) have aged amazingly. The argument that high alcohol won't age is to my mind bunkum.

I agree totally that the softer fruitier wines drink better younger and to achieve this is simple... use riper fruit... just be assured you are definitely not sacrificing aging potential... just delivering wine with a better drinking span (from now till infinity rather that lets look at in 10 years when we can drink it). Anyway just wanted to get that off my chest.