Thursday 28 June 2018

It's that winebot again

New aerial drone technology will soon be used to monitor and survey the vineyard. This will help farmers to identify problems with the crop and which areas of the vineyard are ready for harvesting, or should be left in the sun to ripen longer. Data sent back from the drone will be analysed by computer algorithms that can determine the quality of the grapes and which diseases they might have. The drones could also be used to identify insect and mammalian pests which could harm the crop.  The aerial done could be programmed to land and carry out remedial work or spray insecticides or even shoot mammalian pests such as rabbits or wild boars.

Aerial surveys by drones could also be used to identify territory which could be exploited as new vineyards. They could analyse soil topography and condition. And make recommendations about drainage and access.

Automated operations controlled by algorithms will be able direct drones to plough the soil for a new vineyard, create the trellises and plant new vines. A new vineyard could be created  and managed completely automatically.

The farmer could be relieved of vineyard work and administration - he would become simply a landowner whose land produces grapes. This is the direction in which we are heading, landowners, farmers and workers will become increasingly detached from the land; so will the consumers.

A time might come when many people do not realise how wine is produced and from what fruit. They will see themselves as just drinking alcoholic fruit juice: as this will probably what their wine will taste like.  Welcome to the future world of wine.

http://thegrapevinemagazine.net/article/drones-in-the-vineyard-uses-benefits-concerns-key-players/

Monday 18 June 2018

Oyster Bay Merlot 2016 New Zealand red wine

Last week my wife and I shared a bottle of Oyster Bay Merlot 2016 from New Zealand. We drank half a bottle with some pasta with bolognaise sauce on one evening and with some roast chicken the following evening. The wine was very fruity and ready for drinking and was of good quality but quite expensive for £8.50 a bottle. The wine is reasonable value for money but of standard quality. Like most other new world wines it is identified according to the wine variety:"Merlot".

The wine is probably not 100% merlot  as it is probably blended with a small proportion of other wine from other red wine grapes. The wine is not identified as coming from a particular estate so grapes from a number of different vineyards from different areas of the region were probably used to produce the wine. None of this detracts from the quality of the wine. However, if I were to taste this wine blind it would be a lucky guess that it was from New Zealand . It could just as well been a "Merlot" wine from Chile or Italy.

On Friday we opened a bottle of Chateau La Fagnouse Saint-Emilion  Grand Cru 2015 red to drink with roast lamb. This wine was a different kettle of fish. The wine needs to be aged before it will reveal its true fruit character. We shall be keeping the rest of the half -case, that our friend brought us from France, for longer. This wine is not a top quality Bordeaux and it is made from predominantly  merlot grapes; but it is one step up from the Oyster Bay wine. For a start it will keep much longer because of its structure and the balance of  its tannin and acidity. It tastes and smells as if it comes from Bordeaux. At a blind tasting my wife and I would  definitely be able to identify the wine as red Bordeaux even if we were not able to guess that it was a Saint-Emilion wine let alone a grand cru. This wine is slightly more expensive (in France) but I would gladly pay the difference. The wine comes from a genuine estate which picks its own grapes and makes wine from them as an independent producer. The wine has regional character and complements a good meal and the food of the region. It does not need to remind you of the grape variety: it is good quality Bordeaux but calling it "Merlot" would add nothing to its reputation.