Comments for Wine

Comment on Do the people who crush grapes with their feet in winemaking wash their feet first? by K....

K.... — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 09:53:59 +0000

I hope so!
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Comment on Do the people who crush grapes with their feet in winemaking wash their feet first? by Pontac

Pontac — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 09:34:59 +0000

All those people who say that commercial wines are never foot pressed. cannot have never seen D’Arenburg wines from Australia.

Some of their wines have a ‘foot trod’ logo on the bottles –see the Winemaking page on their website, and the info for their d’Arrys Original Grenache says "Gentle handling through the winery includes crushing through the Demoisy crusher, open fermentation with the traditional heading down boards and foot treading followed by basket pressing through the 19th century ‘Coq’ and ‘Bromley & Tregoning’ basket presses and then into almost 18 months barrel maturation in old French and American oak." – See http://www.darenberg.com.au/default2.php

Foot trod grapes are used in Port wines from Portugal and I know some wineries in South Africa that do it.

At Port winery Quinta do Passadouro – ‘The wines will continue to be made completely traditionally, "for as long as we can afford to" says Bohrmann, explaining that labour costs of foot-treading grapes are huge compared to modern presses. But Jorge Borges insists the foot can produce a uniquely soft wine style, with maximum extraction of flavour without breaking the pips and releasing bitter components.’ see http://wine-pages.com/features/passadouro.htm

I am sure they do wash their feet first but I wouldn’t worry about the feet. You shoulld see the state of the grapes, covered in all sorts of detritis. The act of fermenting will purify the juice.

In some places they wear rubber boots.
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see my profile

Comment on Do the people who crush grapes with their feet in winemaking wash their feet first? by Arianna H

Arianna H — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 09:23:59 +0000

The Wine that is sold in stores, no matter the country, is not crushed by feet. The method has been discontinued many years ago. While you can still find a few places that will have you crush grapes with your feet you will wash your feet very, very, very well if the winery is going to try and make the wine. However these places are few and far between due to the possibility of lawsuits.

So the quick answer is bare feet, washed, no shoes.

Hope this is helpful
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Comment on Do the people who crush grapes with their feet in winemaking wash their feet first? by muffinman

muffinman — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 08:52:59 +0000

I make wine that way. I dress like a gumby.
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Comment on Do the people who crush grapes with their feet in winemaking wash their feet first? by Ambrosius A

Ambrosius A — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 08:06:59 +0000

they are topless also. boobies.
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Comment on Is it better to serve chardonnay cold or at room temperature? by neff_ian

neff_ian — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 07:41:59 +0000

It DOES matter. Have it at 45F and it will bring out the best of it, the best smell and taste too. Try some other day having two bottles of the exact same Chardonnay (one at room temperature – 77F – and one at 45F) and you will be able to tell the difference, the warm one will give you more aromas (but kinda funky, like jam or boiled fruit) and it will taste sour, the cold one will expose less aromas, but they more like what the enologist wanted the drinker to feel, most likely vanilla, butter and/or some tropical fruit and the taste will definitively be better. There are some very good instant reading thermometers that can aid you with the temperature issue, but a quick rule is to just put it in the freezer for 30-45 minutes and it’ll be ready to be enjoyed!

PS: While drinking it, keep the bottle in a bucket with ice and water so it doesn’t get warm.
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Personal experience

Comment on Do the people who crush grapes with their feet in winemaking wash their feet first? by Renate

Renate — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 07:33:59 +0000

No one crushes grapes with their feet anymore
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Comment on Do the people who crush grapes with their feet in winemaking wash their feet first? by heavenlea_7

heavenlea_7 — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 06:59:59 +0000

LOL....I hope so!!!!!!
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Comment on Is it better to serve chardonnay cold or at room temperature? by Lexi

Lexi — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 06:58:59 +0000

Don't serve too cold. Serve just slightly chilled to bring out more of the flavors and aromas.
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Comment on what is the best merlot I can buy? by Hank

Hank — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 06:42:59 +0000

[OOPS! I wrote this after supahtfor's Answer was posted but before those of Acceptanc and wine&food]

Unlike all of the prior Answerers I will actually answer your Question!!!!

The greatest merlot in the world is generally considered to be Chateau Petrus, from the Pomerol area of France.

By the way, Professor Lubehead names himself accurately: in fact cabernet sauvignon and merlot are two completely different varieties of [vinifera] grapes.

As for kate’s recommendation of Trader Joe’s 2 buck Chuck (their Charles Shaw private brand), I would advise that for the money you should spend an extra dollar for TJ’s 3 buck Moe (their J.W. Morris private brand) – it is 3 or 4 times as good, although still characteristicly typical for a lower-priced (which I – and the wine critics of the "Wall Street Journal", who are not favorably disposed toward the stuff, though I think they are too severe, define as $ 15-20US) California merlot.
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