This is what 1500 pounds of merlot looks like!

Yep, harvest season is in full swing.  Our merlot from Dry Creek Valley in Sonoma arrived Tuesday.  The plan was to do a 4-5 day cold soak, then pitch the yeast on Sunday — except it started spontaneously fermenting on Friday!  Paul ran out and got the yeasts to pitch, ICV-D21 and BM4x4.  Chris recommended these yeasts, he said the grapes have a vegetal overtone this year.  These yeasts will bring out the fruity character more.  So, I had to go in to the server room winery to punch down 9 32-gallon trash cans!  It wasn’t fermenting too vigorously in the morning, but by evening it was sizzling away with happy yeasts.

It was also time to give the syrah and primitivo a stir and check for malolactic fermentation.  They both smelled great, the primitivo has rich aromas of spicy dark fruit, and the syrah has lovely violet, strawberry, and plum tones, very fruit forward.  I used quick tests to check for lactic acid, a sign that MLF is active.

It’s always difficult to read these tests, but since I had the 2 samples, it was clear that the primitivo is actively undergoing MLF, but the syrah has barely any detectable lactic acid.  The syrah is a slightly higher alcohol content, hopefully that is not inhibiting the MLF.  Since the primi is working, though, it’s not likely the bugs or the temperature.  I’ll check again next weekend and hope for the best!