Science In The Vineyard
Directions
It’s been just over a year, but haven’t we got good at being nimble? Go out, stay home, come back, shut down, mask up, stop in, stock up, lockdown. And just when you think you’ve got a handle on the situation, it’s all out, all change. Our carefully laid plans tweaked, cancelled, then cautiously reinstated - with no guarantee of fulfilment. How long since you’ve managed a winery visit, eh? Cue the dreamy harp glissando...
Dream Winery
You arrive at your dream destination to a welcoming lick from a waggy wine dog, and the sound of laughter from happy pickers, hand-harvesting in the sunshine. You want to linger among the verdant vines, but the old winery is calling your name. Inside the timeworn timber shed, a crusty old winemaker with purple-stained hands cranks an ancient wine press. He still remembers the time he nearly snagged the Jimmy Watson. “Missed it by this much...” There’s a plank for a tasting bench, and a wheelbarrow in the corner full of dusty back vintages. Sure, there’ll be a couple of dodgy ones, but it’ll be worth it. It’s a bit of a lottery, after all...
You old Romantic!
You’re not alone. WineDown desperately wants this place to be real, even though we just made it up. In fact, the average Australian winery is a gleaming tribute to modern technology and scientific innovation: Clean architectural lines... temperature and humidity-controlled premises... sparkling stainless steel... spotless cellars where dust is not permitted to settle, and pristine racks of well-made, reliably good wine. Dodgy bottles? Forget it. It’s big business after all!
Fair Warning
If you’re already struggling with this unsentimental vision of winemaking, then brace yourself. Sitting side by side with today’s organic/biodynamic, all-natural movement is a high-tech vision of maximum efficiency, optimised yields, and enhanced sustainability – and Aussie vignerons and winemakers are leading the charge. Their new tools of trade include remote satellite imaging... drone-mounted multi-spectral cameras... infrared spectrometry... lasers, robotics, AI, augmented reality, and machine learning. Sound a bit far-fetched? Nope, it’s already here.
There’s an App for that
Was a time when all a vigneron needed was a weather eye, a reliable pair of secateurs and a green thumb. These days the kit also includes remote sensors and cameras for analysing ground moisture, and thermal infrared imagery to measure the pattern of temperatures in the vines’ canopies. (The same technology, mounted on drones, can help to identify bunches that have been affected by smoke-taint from bushfires.) Lasers have replaced netting and sound cannons to scare away grape-guzzling galahs; and no self-respecting grower would leave the house without their Automated Grapevine Cultivar Classifier – a machine-learning leaf morpho-colorimetry platform that utilizes fractal dimension and near-infrared spectroscopy parameters. It’s an App.
More Tech Toys
But it isn’t only vignerons who are getting to play with cool tech toys. Winemaking processes are being transformed too. Manually plucking discoloured, mouldy or diseased grapes from the sorting table is SO last year. Whizzbang new optical sorters (capable of taking 7000 images per second) can now identify dodgy grapes in the blink of an eye – removing them with short, sharp puffs of air. And fermentation need never again be a leap of faith for winemakers, with DNA profiling of yeast strains providing real-time analysis and deep insights throughout the fermentation process. But wait, there’s more: Micro-oxygenation, which introduces controlled amounts of oxygen into wine, accelerates the ageing process, while luminescence-based technologies provide molecular visibility – allowing winemakers to actually measure the dissolved oxygen levels. These advances can help to transform brash and astringent youngsters into approachable, mature-tasting wines.
Everything Old is New Again
Even the way we store our wine has been swept up in the revolution. Coopers use near-infrared spectrometry to analyse the tannin content of their barrel staves; while ancient earthenware Qvevri vessels are now being made to consistently high quality using 3-D printing. Glass bottles – with their carbon-intense footprint – are increasingly under scrutiny, and in addition to cans and tetra packs, there are some wildly inventive alternatives being spruiked, including flat (compostable) plastic bottles, and even edible bottles made from isomalt.
The George Jetson Wine Club
It’s 2030. You stopped your quarterly wine order years ago, in favour of smaller, more frequent consignments, with their lighter carbon footprint. A buzz on your wearable device alerts you to an approaching delivery. At your front door, the drone confirms your age and identity with a quick biometric scan and deposits your super-lightweight package of fine Australian wine into your waiting arms. Bewdy! Just in time for tonight’s holographic virtual reality tasting experience. There’s a waggy wine dog, and a purple-handed crusty old winemaker who once nearly snagged a Jimmy...