| | | | | Saying Goodbye to our Graduating Students
On May 8, 2021, the two current student lab assistants at the MGWII will be graduating from Iowa State University.
They have been essential in the work that we do, and a pleasure to work with, so we asked them to share a little bit about themselves and their journey with you.
We are so happy and excited for them as they enter the next stage of their lives, and we send all our best wishes with them.
CONGRATULATIONS to Chelsea, Lindsay, and all the class of 2021!
 Hello! My name is Lindsay Lifka and I've been working at the Midwest Grapes and Wine Industry Institute since October of 2019. The past four years of my undergraduate study I've focused on horticulture; specifically fruit and vegetable production. I've always had an interest in wine, which, since working in the lab, has blossomed into an obsession. One of my fondest memories occurred during the analysis of wine for the Iowa Department of Agricultural Land Stewardship (IDALS). The wines I ran analysis on were sparkling…. So as a rookie mistake, I popped open one of the bottles and instantly put in a pipette to pull samples. Little did I know that the wine would then come shooting out of the bottle all over myself and the counter; lets just say I learned my lesson. I will be graduating this spring and it is such a bittersweet feeling, especially having to say goodbye to all of the lovely ladies I've worked under at the Institute. After graduation I have plans to live in Colorado as a fly fishing guide for the season, and in the fall making my next move onto something in my related field. What I have learned in the lab will not be forgotten. After visiting Napa Valley and talking with wine makers, I've come to learn there is a high demand for those trained in running analysis.
 I joined the Midwest Grape and Wine Industry Institute the summer before my sophomore year at Iowa State. I was hired as an undergraduate lab assistant, and it has been nothing short of simply amazing and fascinating. I never thought that I would get an opportunity to work in a wine lab and explore a once-in-a-lifetime experience. I have visited various wineries within Iowa, actively participated in winemaking and wine-related experiments, participated in sophisticated wine tasting seminars and carried out wine experiments with multiple scientific methods.
During my time at MGWII, I have learned various wine-related topics such as the different aromas associated with one glass of wine, how to make and extract red wine from an oak barrel, and how to measure free total SO2 in various wines. My time with the incredible humans that make up MGWII has been one of a kind. Coming to work every day honestly did not feel like I was going to work; it felt like my home away from home. While working in the lab, it held a sense of peace and family. I always felt I was a part of a fascinating, intelligent, and fearless group of women who are the best-kept secret of Iowa State University. With being a part of the wine group, I have taken on a passion for wine and am thinking about opening up my own winery one day. I have made many connections due to working with MGWII and will continue to expand my wine knowledge and experience. Working in the wine lab has been the best job I have had during my undergraduate career. I am incredibly blessed to have the opportunity to rub shoulders with these great individuals. I will miss MGWII dearly, but I will always keep in touch. My favorite memory while being with the MGWII is when I was a month into my job; Maureen, Jennie, and I went on a day trip to Tassel Ridge Winery for a packaging presentation and a tour of the winery. That is the day I became fascinated with building my own winery and creating a sophisticated experience similar to the one Tassel Ridge gave. I enjoyed being a part of such an atmosphere and seeing the ins and outs of the winery.
After I graduate from ISU on May 8th, I will be moving forward to graduate school at Mississippi State University to obtain a master's degree in food science in the Fall of 2021. After receiving my master's degree, I hope to get a position in NASA's (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) food lab as a food scientist. With being a first-generation graduate, I aspire to be an example of GRIT (guts, resilience, initiative, tenacity) for the younger generation of all girls. I want them to look at me and see that failure did not stop me from accomplishing my goals but pushed me to have a growth mindset and approach the issue differently to work for me. I hope to show younger girls that being in a science-based profession is possible and achievable.
A quote that I have kept with me throughout my undergrad years and want to pass on to other students is "Advice from a Rock: Try Your Hardest, Stay Grounded, Start Each Day with a Clean Slate, Keep Still, Be Well-rounded, Live in Balance, Never Take for Granite!" | | | Stratified sampling for better insight into grape ripening Maureen Moroney Now that we are heading into the growing season, grape sampling for picking decisions is right around the corner. Be sure to check out the Grape Sampling fact sheet (and the rest of the Grape Maturity Series) available through ISU Extension.  In a paper published by the American Journal of Enology and Viticulture in 2021 ( doi: 10.5344/ajev.2020.20050), a new sampling technique was used to help understand the ripening timeline in wine and table grapes. The varieties included in the study were Merlot, Syrah, Pinot noir, Pinot gris, Pinot blanc, Chardonnay, Sauvignon blanc, Flame Seedless, Summer Royal, and Concord. The term "veraison" has long been used to describe the phenological stage that marks the beginning of the ripening process. During and after veraison, many changes occur in the grapes, including softening, color development, and major shifts in sugar and acid chemistry. However, previous work has established that development and ripening occur asynchronously even between berries within a single cluster. In this study, results indicated that color change within an individual cluster took 20 to 30 days from the first berry to the last, and that there were 10 days between the first and last cluster to complete color change. In order to address the imprecision within the term "veraison" as a phenological stage, the authors defined seven easily-identifiable stages of ripening based on physical traits of the grapes: - Green hard (red and white grapes)
- Green soft (red and white grapes)
- Blush/pink (red grapes) or Yellow (white grapes)
- Red/purple (red grapes)
- Blue (red grapes)
- Ripe (red and white grapes)
- Over-ripe (red and white grapes)
With regard to collecting berry samples, the authors stated that "a random berry sample typically contains at least four of the seven developmental stages defined here." These findings provide further support to our understanding of the high degree of variation within the vineyard. CONTINUE READING | | Through the Grapevine
We are taking a look at some of Dr. Dharmadhikari's published articles, as they are a great resource and a way to freshen up on some of the obstacles we often see with wine.
Wine Aging- Wine aging refers to a group of reactions that tend to improve the taste and flavor of a wine over time. The term wine 'maturation' refers to changes in wine after fermentation and before bottling. During this period, the wine is subjected to various treatments, such as malolactic fermentation, clarification, stabilization, and bulk storage. The important feature of this phase is that the wine is periodically exposed to air where many oxidative reactions influence the changes in wine composition. The term aging should be reserved to describe changes in wine composition after bottling. After bottling, once the oxygen picked up at bottling is consumed, the wine is in the absence of oxygen. This is called the reductive atmosphere. Many reactions occur during this phase to contribute to the final bottle bouquet.
To view full article: https://www.extension.iastate.edu/wine/wine-aging
This article can originally be found in Missouri State Fruit Experiment Station in Mountain Grove, Missouri, which would later become part of Missouri State University : https://digitalcollections.missouristate.edu/digital/collection/FruitPubs
| | | Let's focus on.. with Dr. Watrelot | | | | Focusing on Research Winemaking
Heating Treatments- Part II Flash Détente (Release) In the previous newsletter (February 2021) I explained the process of thermovinification and the impact of this process on wine quality. This month, I am going to introduce you to a type of thermovinification, flash détente or flash release. Before explaining the process of flash détente or flash release, let's introduce this technique with some history. As previously explained, thermovinification was developed in the 1960s. Later, some parameters were improved to extract more phenolic compounds and allow a better wine color stability over time which was the beginning of flash détente (or release). The flash détente process was developed and patented on grapes by the French National Institute of Agricultural Research (INRA) of Pech Rouge and the Aurore society in 1993. In 1999-2001, a study comparing this technique with the classic vinification method on Cabernet franc, Merlot and Cabernet sauvignon wine quality was conducted in the Bordeaux region (Vinsonneau & Escaffre, 2006). In this study, the grapes were mechanically harvested, destemmed, and crushed prior to heating at various temperatures from 75°C to 85°C (167 °F to 185 °F) for 30 min to 1h in a maceration tank, and then pressurized under 94 to 97 mbars at a cooler temperature. All of the flash détente treated wines were richer in phenolic compounds, in color, and in tannins and have been perceived to have less green and vegetal aromas after 8 months of aging. Flash détente is a relatively new process and not much research has been carried out on this technique to help extract phenolic compounds from grapes. This is because only about 100 units are available and in operation in the world. Flash détente is a technique of extraction using the thermovinification process, meaning that grapes are heated at 85°C to 95 °C (185 °F to 203 °F) for a short period of time and then cooled down to 30-35 °C (86-95 °F) in a second, in a vacuum /expansion chamber at 20-50 hPa, prior to beginning alcoholic fermentation (figure 1). As a result of the applied vacuum and the quick change of temperature, called "détente", the liquid from the grapes is evaporated and the berry cell walls are disrupted, which enhances the extraction of phenolic compounds.
CONTINUE READING | | | | CHECK OUT BEFORE YOU GO... | | | | A new (FREE!) fact sheet series is live on the Iowa State University Extension Store. The series provides information on the combination of methods used to estimate grape maturity as harvest approaches: Check it out! | | |
The 2020 Iowa Native Wine Production and Sales Report is now available.
The report is created from the monthly data reported to the Iowa Alcoholic Beverages Division (ABD) regarding production, inventory, sales, and non-sale uses of native wine produced in Iowa. The Food, Farm and Enterprise Development team at ISU (formerly the Value Added Agriculture Program) compiles data at the end of each calendar year to track activities in Iowa's wine industry.
Few highlights from report:
107 Wineries, 3 Meaderies, and 5 Cideries sold native Iowa wines/meads/ciders
37.6 % sold at retail
48.1 % sold at wholesale
276,274 gallons sold
307,267 gallons produced
$301,887native wine excise tax collected
Joe Hannan's Podcast!
ISU's Commercial Horticulture Field Specialist
The first discusses Platinum 75 SG for Japanese beetle control in grapes and is an introductory to a project this summer. The second looks at early implementation of smart sprayer technology for apples and grapes. Both episodes are on the Small Farm Sustainability Podcast and can be found by subscribing to that series on your podcast player of your choice or listening directly at:
LISTEN TO IT HERE | | | | | | | |
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