Natural wine To quote wine writer Max Allen (1) “The hottest wine trend of the decade? That’s easy: all things natural. Grapes grown with a minimum of sprays, preferably organic or biodynamic; nothing added in the cellar except perhaps a small amount of sulphur dioxide preservative at bottling. Just wine. It’s also been the […]
Stuck Ferments Every vintage and every region has its own particular issues. So there is always something to keep us interested in the lab. Often the issues are minor or sometimes they are region-wide and a bit of a pain. One problem that appears to some degree, in some place, every year, is the issue […]
Winery tank issues – for water that is! Vintage is the time when we typically see lots of winemaking fermentation problems – but we thought you might need a break from all that. So in case you’re sick of thinking about wine at the moment, this month we take a look at an interesting issue […]
Smoke taint concerns from February bushfire in Orange (Image Credit: Christina Bos) Our NSW manager, Christina Bos, knew it was a bad sign for the local wine industry when she saw the columns of smoke rising off Mt Canobolas from her front veranda in Orange one weekend in February. For those that know this gorgeous […]
Chinese Exports requirements We receive many requests for a variety of tests for wines destined for China. These vary amongst clients and we often find that we are doing special tests for some exporters and not others. Added to this are some unusual tests that have been requested by the Chinese authorities over the past […]
MLF and holidays Would you think there is a connection between vacations and malo-lactic fermentation (MLF)? Here is an example of such a connection. Recently we received a problem sample of wine that had not completed MLF. The winemaker, who had been away for a winter holiday, had added a large dose of sulfur dioxide […]
We are pleased to now offer Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) analysis in addition to our extensive range of wastewater tests. Need quicker results than the industry standard 5 day BOD test can provide? COD testing can give you a good indication of the oxygen demand in your sample much more quickly. We have implemented the […]
The best time of year to collect grape vine Petioles for analysis is now (full flowering, 80% cap-fall). Petiole testing can provide a snapshot of the nutrient status of the vine. Obtaining quantitative information on nutrient levels can assist in determining the effectiveness of fertiliser applications and also help you to identify the cause of […]
It’s that time of year again when this yeast can rear its ugly head. Brettanomyces can produce the volatile phenols 4-ethyl phenol (4EP) and 4-ethyl guaiacol (4EG), which are responsible for sweaty, horsey or medicinal off-flavours in wine. Right now red wines should have completed primary fermentation and have been transferred to barrels for oak […]
We are NATA accredited to prepare Export Certificates for wines destined for all major export destinations, including China. The benefits of using the Vintessential Laboratory Export Service include: ► Fast Turnaround: We strive to have most Export Certificates completed and issued to you one day after receiving your samples. ► Minimal Sample Required: We require only one bottle of finished wine for testing […]