Your Next Internal Crush

Back when we were kids, this is how we learned that wine was made …

You pick grapes. You separate the fruit from the stems. (Actually, as a kid, one of us just assumed you picked the individual grape berries off of their vines. You know, like apples. It’s not like you saw off the branches. Anyway … ) You throw the grapes into a big vat, and then you get Lucille Ball and an anonymous peasant woman to stomp on them and crush them, at which point fermentation and hilarity ensues. And voilà, you have wine!

Turns out there’s more to winemaking than that, including wackier ways to induce fermentation, for instance — carbonic maceration, a fermentation process through which you get the grapes to crush themselves!

For carbonic fermentation, winemakers pile their grape clusters, stems and all, into a sealable tank in which they pump carbon dioxide. In that low oxygen atmosphere, the berries use the CO2 to ferment internally, eventually producing enough alcohol within themselves that they burst their skins on their own. (We’ve even heard of winemakers piling bunches of grapes into open vats to such an extent that the weight of the top layer creates the anaerobic environment needed for the bottom grapes to carbonically macerate.) After carbonic maceration, you can add yeast to continue a more traditional fermentation. (You can even get Lucy to foot crush the grapes if you choose.)

So why engage in this miracle of biochemistry? Carbonic Maceration is a process by which light and medium-bodied reds can have their grapes’ aromatics teased out while restricting the levels of acid and tannins in your juice. It’s a way to get the fresh, fruity reds that regions like Beaujolais are famous for.

This Wine Wednesday, we’ll be tasting some carbonically macerated wines. Please join us anytime within the hour and a half of this free, walk-up tasting.