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Recent Posts

• Breath of Fresh Air
• Blame the Angels and Thieves
• Barreling Down Memory Lane
• Third’s Place
• A Greater Gift

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Medlock-Ames is an intimate space, and so, it’s surprising when one descends into their barrel cellar to see such vast accommodations. An unexpectedly tall ceiling lends itself to an organizational method of high stacking and shorter rows; this creates even spacing between all the barrels–and, while this breathing room is appreciated for the watchful process outside the barrels, it’s to be avoided at all costs inside.

Before reaching the bottle, too much air is harmful to the fermentation process. Barrels are known to lose wine levels through Angel’s Share and Thieving, and, as a result, the absence of wine is the presence of more air than is helpful. To avoid this naturally occurring problem, remaining wine from the emptier barrels must be transitioned into one, entirely full barrel. This method is a daunting balancing act, but it ensures our wine ferments in the best conditions possible with just the right amount of air at all times.

We do this because we believe in the potential these grapes offer and we’re willing to go beyond ourselves so they may do the same. When it comes to this process there is no part where the grapes truly rest, and so, neither does our dedication to them reaching their absolute peak; it’s this thinking, shared by all of our team members, which is the only breath of fresh air our wine needs.

 

The gift of our grapes have exchanged vessels. Once contained in bright purple and crisp green skins, their potential now rests in the bonds of selective oak; hand-chosen by master winemakers, Denis and May-Britt Malbec. Each varietal essence sits in their respective barrel, ready to cast off on an 18-month journey toward becoming a Captûre wine, but, the journey is not without its casualties.

Over the course of fermentation, wine disappears from the barrels. Fortunately, the two culprits involved, the Angel’s Share and Thieving Winemakers, are natural to the process. As the varietal essence gains character, the barrel walls swell from opposing ends, allowing some of this precious juice to evaporate into the outside air–quite appropriately, this occurrence has been coined as the Angel’s Share of the wine.

The second culprit is the thief, a tool used for periodic tasting by the winemakers–a fitting name for its actions, the thief resembles a long pipette that easily dips into the barrel to steal a sample of wine. Tastings are often the best indicator of the wine’s conditions during fermentation, acting as a compass, our winemakers use this subtle information to guide our wines to their intended destination. We’re thankful to the Angel’s Share and Thieves, it’s difficult to feel like victims of crime when all they ever leave behind is progress.

 

Memories; the pleasure of their presence is equally matched by their fleeting nature. Yet, oddly enough, they pass along without much notice, hidden under new thoughts, waiting for their revival. In some cases, the key to their awakening is not the key one expects.

Wine is a well-known conduit of memories. We have all shared in a glass which lets us becomes instant time-travelers or globe trotters, transported far-off places for but a moment in time. For this reason, as I leaned my nose toward a barrel once-used for fermentation, I expected some vivid memory of my times spent with wine, but what returned were surprising memories of straight whiskey.

This scent is undeniable proof of the elegant character born from fermentation. It is not only the wine, but the oak, which takes on new, exciting properties during the 18-month long process. Shocked, I breathed it in once more–immediately, I was no longer in a barrel-filled room, but in a carpeted hotel, at my first Bourbon tasting in the center of Louisville, Kentucky. 

This moment reawakened more than memories, it reinvigorated Captûre’s mission: our wines must tell a story expressive of both our terroir and noble varietals. I anxiously await the day this comes true. No matter where in the world I taste Captûre, I will know the job was done right when it lifts me 2,400 feet, high above Alexander Valley, onto Pine Mountain’s awesome terrain.

 

 

Third’s the word among Captûre colleagues thanks to a pioneering method of barrel selection. In an unprecedented industry move, Captûre’s barrel stock is being divided into three categories, each based on their history of fermentation. One category will be dedicated to barrels twice-used for fermentation, another for barrels once-used, and one for fresh barrels, never used until now.

This method’s rotational concept is what makes it unique. 

After our first fermentation (which takes 18 months), all the barrels will rotate to a new category based on usage, with twice-used barrels rotating out either to be sold whole, or broken down. In the course of 3 years, our once fresh barrels will have become twice-used, and so, the cycle will continue. The impact from this means only 1/3 of our barrels are newly replaced every 1.5 years–this huge benefit extends well beyond the environment and into the wine-making itself. 

Fermentation is not a one-way street; barrel-aging means the barrels age as well. Over the course of the 1.5 year process, both wine and barrel share their distinct properties, adding complexities to the wine and the oak. According to our method, this oak will be used again, allowing these new complexities to benefit the interaction made with the next batch. If anyone asks you what thirds have to do with making wine (admittedly, a rare question), benefitting the environment and production makes it clear; third’s place is in making first place wine.

 

 

The inner-chambers of each grape teem with brilliant sugars. Hardly able to contain themselves, their royal-purple skin swells with maturity. These were the Tin Cross Merlot grapes I helped along from their FYBs through the first conveyor belt, and some, into my mouth (you know, just for quality control–okay, maybe I had my own agenda, but one taste and you’d understand why).

These grapes are perfectly ripened–the teeth need only apply a hint of pressure to release a wave of flavor, with juices bursting forth from the bonds of its taut, outer layer. The tongue’s taste buds are quickly coated and flicker with excitement as they are dressed in this sugary apparel. Even in the absence of fermentation, it’s intoxicating.

That moment is why we strive to capture every drop of this essence, and our Bladder Press is vampiric in that efficiency. 

I stand before a bin of former grapes and pick up a lifeless, wrinkled skin. The flake rests flavorless on the tongue with the exception of uncrushed, tannin-filled seeds awakened by the soft pressure of my jaw. Disgusting; no wonder over-pressing is avoided. The Bladder Press has done it’s job, revealing these dark skins were merely vessels carrying a greater gift. That gift has moved on, and we eagerly envision the transformation that awaits in its new, oak home.

 

 

We put a lot of pressure on our grapes, but this is the part in the process where they actually feel it. Wine-presses are the key to this process and are as old of a method as planting vines. Since the first wine-press, there have been major advances in press-types which benefit the production of high-quality wine, one of which is known as a Bladder Press.

Similar to other equipment from Medlock-Ames, the Bladder Press’ cylinder is made with stainless steel. Inside is the innovation. A bag, or bladder, is in the center of the device and filled with pressurized air–the bladder slowly expands allowing even crushing-weight on all the grapes within.

This device allows for maximum control and helps us to avoid over-pressing of any one grape. Too much pressure can be a bad thing, producing unwanted tannin levels in the juice. With a Bladder Press we know we’re capturing the very best out of our grapes, and are proud to say we press to impress.

SIDE NOTE: Have a Happy Halloween! If anyone is still dressing in costume (I know I will be) please, send your best photo (only one) to dylan.klymenko@gmail.com. We’re looking for a maverick concept, but that doesn’t necessarily mean Senator McCain costumes win automatically. Good luck, the best costume wins a prize.

 

 

Cleanliness can always be found in two places: next to godliness and inside of Medlock Ames winery. After previous posts, you may imagine Medlock Ames to be a forest of stainless steel structures, and you’d be right. This is due to the enduring qualities of stainless steel that allow the winery to maintain its sanitary environment.

Wine-making is a dirty job (Mike Rowe, eat your heart out). No more than 5 minutes into working the first conveyor belt had my hands begun to resemble Violet Beauregarde–as for the conveyor belt? Spotless. That’s the amazing property that gives stainless steel its name; as a special steel alloy, it “stains less” than ordinary steel. This unique endurance also applies to corrosion or rust, which makes it easy to wash all equipment with the disinfecting power of high-pressure, steaming hot water.

And just when you thought stainless steel was done showing off in this post, it has one more great trait, it’s 100% recyclable. The proof is in the structure, today’s stainless steel already averages 60% of its content from recycled steel used as far back as 1970.

Environmentally safe, long-lasting, and sanitary; that’s the appeal.

 

What seems to be a traumatic separation actually concludes in joyful reunion–after being shook loose from their stems and carefully inspected, only the best grapes of the bunch unite inside a stainless steel tank. This tank is the largest piece of stainless steel on the property, able to house around 4 people comfortably inside its pristine, metallic walls. This tank is where the grapes will rest for the next four days (I wasn’t kidding about that stationary lifestyle).

Inside the tank is a crucial leg of the wine-making journey known as Cold Soak Maceration. The grapes have just been pulled out of temperatures in the upper 80s and traveled more than they have in their entire lifetime; as anyone could imagine, they’re feeling a little hot under the skin. Over a four day period, the grapes are slowly brought down and maintained to a cool temperature near 58.7º Fahrenheit.

For those who cook, it’s the same principle as removing your pasta from boiling water just before it’s done–because the pasta is still super-heated, it continues cooking without direct heat. If the grapes were simply left in the tank without temperature control, fermentation would accelerate, starting well too early, and, resulting in something like jam more than the next step in making wine.

 

 

Grapes tend to lead stationary lives, but when they’re off the vine things really start to move. This past week our grapes were harvested into their FYBs, and then, carefully trucked 27 miles to Medlock Ames winery. That’s a lot of movement after 9 months of resting on a vine, but their arrival at the winery is only the beginning of the journey. 

Step foot in Medlock Ames winery and you see both machines and people hard at work–organization is so precise, sometimes the lines blur between the two. The first machine in the line-up is a large, stainless steel structure with an inclined conveyor belt moving skyward. The grapes are poured into the base of this device and picked up by tiny ridges along the belt. This one-man job (two, if you’re inexperienced) demands a sharp eye and steady hand to remove all leaves and maintain each belt-ridge with equal, moderate loads of grapes.

At the top, these grapes are dropped into a Destemmer Machine. The name speaks for itself, grapes are gently shook loose from their stems and flow onto the next conveyor belt below. Here watchful eyes on both sides remove any extra stems, bugs, or raisins that may have slipped past the Destemmer. The grapes which meet approval fall through a steel grate with a cork-screw shaped contraption inside. This mechanism pushes the winning grapes through a tube into large, steel tanks–and so, here begins Part 2 of Bin to Barrel.

 

There’s a new containment unit in town, and, among winemaker’s all around the world, it stacks up as the best. Due to their dandelion yellow color, the industry has affectionately coined these units as, “Friggin’ Yellow Bins” or FYBs for short. Yet, these bins are nothing short on utility–the key quality is in their size.

As you may be able to tell from the photos, there are some other bins which are much larger than FYBs, and for this reason, much cheaper. When grapes are placed in a larger bin, the top layer will slowly begin to apply weight on the bottom layer. Often times, this results in an early crushing of the crop and loss of quality juice.

Captûre focuses on maintaining every hard-earned drop of its Tin Cross crop. The use of these smaller, yellow bins means even weight distribution and no premature crushing of the grapes. They may be more expensive but it’s a worthwhile price for the pride we take in capturing the true essence of our grapes. So, when it comes to transporting your harvest, remember, quality wine starts with a three-letter word; FYB.

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