 New Tanks... ...for an old philospohy. 
Above is a photo showing the birth of one of our stainless steel tanks. These wine tanks are custom made for Left Foot Charley and they will be the first of their kind in North America. What is so special? First, they are oval. Most tanks in America are tall cylinders. These are short, long ovals - just like the classic wooden fudors of Germany. Their shape helps distribute the yeast into a thinner layer. A shallow yeast bed lessens the chance that the yeast will suffocate under their cumulative pressure. Think of the difference between a crowded elevator and an escalator. Suffocating yeast make for stinky wines! Second, the oval tanks will be equipped with independent cooling jackets on both sides covering over 50% of the tank's surface. This allows for rapid, efficient cooling which stops the fermentation when we want. Halting the fermention results in wines with longer length and a natural, pure flavor. Grape sugar is comprised of glucose and fructose. As the yeast convert sugar to alcohol they choose glucose first - leaving the sweeter, more intense fructose for the end. When we chill the tanks, the yeast fall asleep before they can eat up this luscious fructose. Instead, you get to enjoy it! This is the key to all of our Rieslings - dry(ish) or sweet. Finally, the ceiling on these tanks is within arm's reach. This ensures that we can adequately scrub every nook in the tank. Clean tanks make pretty wines that will age indefinitely. Each oval tank is 3000 liters (792 gallons) in size measuring 3.5 feet wide, 5 feet long and 7.5 feet high. They are perfectly sized for 1.5 acre fermentations. This allows us to ferment the vineyards individually and create wines that represent the unique space in which they thrive. |