Alcohol Is Not The Demon
Sunday, April 13, 2008 at 10:13PM 
There have been major rants and counter-rants (their words not mine) lately about high alcohol wines by Alder Yarrow at Vinography and Thor Iverson at oenoLogic, there's lots of good thinking, interesting reading and great debate in these two posts. However, I think they miss the major point on this issue.
Nobody who has tasted a lot of wine can deny that they've tasted many wines with high alcohol that worked. Wines that despite their potent alcohol were balanced, interesting to drink, complex and great with food. There is also the reality that not all varieties are created equal when it comes to gracefully carrying high alcohol levels. For example the elegant pinot noir is often overwhelmed by alcohol levels that zinfandel and syrah lightly carry.
The issue should not be the alcohol level of the wine, but if the wine tastes balanced and still reflects the 3 V's of great wine: variety, vineyard and vintage. It is here that higher alcohol wines often fail, but the reason is not the alcohol level itself.
The faults often blamed on high alcohol come not from alcohol itself, but the fact that the grapes were harvested super-ripe, which is just another word for overripe. These overripe grapes, which are the fashion as one of the routes to pointy wines, obliterate the three V's as varietal character disappears as does the personalities of vineyard and vintage. A byproduct of these overripe grapes is high alcohol, which is created by combining exaggerated sugar levels with super-efficient cultured yeasts that can keep eating sugar and excreting more alcohol no matter the alcohol level in the fermenter. In the old days all the yeasts would have died, but today's macho yeasts can handle 16%+ with no problem. The result of all this is a wine with huge fruit flavors of indeterminate origin, 4.0 pH, 15% alcohol and 90+ points. Of course, it has only a generic personality as it could come from anywhere as can easily be seen in wines from Spain, Australia and California that are totally interchangeable and indistinguishable. After all, what is an appropriate alcohol level for a stateless wine with no varietal character?
The first issue should be if the wine has any personality at all before we get to the alcohol level. Once that issue has been resolved we can think about wether the alcohol level is appropriate. Appropriate alcohol levels also should vary by vintage and a winemaker that makes natural wines will have alcohol levels that change year-to-year. My experience is that even in hotter vintages that produce higher alcohol levels well made wines will achieve a balance that works, although it may take some time to attain equilibrium. No, wines from a hot vintage may not be the best a producer makes, but they can be excellent wines. The key issue for the winemaker is to harvest ripe, but not overripe grapes each year if they wish to produce distinctive wines. Ripe grapes produce wines with alcohol levels that will find a natural balance in the wine of that year, but wines from overripe grapes produce not only out of balance alcohol levels, but cannot achieve any kind of natural balance as every aspect of the wine becomes distorted and exaggerated.
It's overripe grapes, not demon alcohol, that are the villains in this debate.
Reader Comments (9)
Bravo for distilling this debate down to the fundamental issue!
If I may add, Parker isn't the sole reason for higher alcohol wines coming out of Europe. The Cotes du Rhone has seen an increase in the average temp over the past 30 years that has given wine-makers just so many options: They can either adjust the blend (using varieties less affected by heat), harvest early, or let the alcohol level creep up. I know Parker is an influential mofo but, lets not attribute what is actually the work of Mother Nature to the guy!
I agree that Parker is certainly not the sole cause for this trend. I also think the palates of American consumers think more is better these days.
I like the way you articulate the true nature of the issue. Although each variety (at its best) is typified by different alcohol levels, so too can a wine be too hot for the cepage.
As for the super-yeasts: I don't think any of them is one of efficiency as I don't think any strain is able to convert sugar to alcohol at a ratio far above 0.6. They do not produce more alcohol than an older strain would from the same amount of sugar. Instead, it is their tolerance of higher alcohol concentrations that makes them desirable as, by surviving in a more hostile environment, they ferment the must to dryness.
I agree with most of what you say and appreciate your taking the argument off alcohol and re-focusing it on the true issues. The problem is that we don’t have a good moniker for this, currently popular, style. “Monster Wines” doesn’t quite capture the problem and “Progeric Wines” is bound to offend some and backfire”. I think that you are one of a few writers who – if we work together - can help frame the language to accurately describe the problem and help the public understand the problem.
I agree monster doesn't cut it, nor does Parkerized. How about Homogenized?
Anyhow, thanks for the interesting perspective.
The yeast issue is overplayed. The yeasts can't convert sugar that is not there. Depending on the pH of the must and its levels of some electrolytes the conversion rate is about 0.55 to 0.60. The balance of the equation goes to heat and CO2. You don't loose more than 0.5% ABV in open top versus closed fermenters. A faster rate of conversion does little to the finished levels. It really does boil down to the new strains' tolerance of higher % alc. Since the grapes used start with higher potential alc, you want a yeast that will take the must to dryness - or you'll get stuck with 12.5 abv wine with significant RS. As Bruno D'Alfosno will assert: there are no "natural" yeasts - only feral ones. Even wines started with ambient/feral yeasts often get inoculated because they can get stuck.
"Homogenized" is OK but it does not really drive home that these wines are made from *raisined* grapes which have lost varietal typicity. These wines also do not have the make up to evolve into the more sublime aged drink. That is why "progeric" is more on the nose, but not a very sensitive term. We gotta keep thinking.
Obviously, potential alcohol makes all the difference and seconds my points of not harvesting too ripe. For pinot noir producers in warmer areas this is a huge problem as I'm sure Bruno is painfully aware.
Well, that takes us back to the original issue: it's not the alcohol, it's the super ripe state of grapes used. Especially if they are so ripe that varietal typicity becomes blurred or less distinct. You can have someone (or a group) decide they like a wine spun down or RO’ed to a specific ABV, but that is because, those "progeric" phenolics taste better at a given % alcohol. If your Cab was hung to oblivion and tastes like prunes, then no amount or RO or centrifuging will get it to taste (or age or go with food) like a cab should.
And just you try and tell the Sta. Rita Hills folks that they are in a warm climate... ;)