"Negodki" > wrote in message
...
> "Lum" > wrote:
>
> > Blush wines are made by fermenting juice, so the[y] are "white" wines.
>
> How do they get their pink colour then? Most red grapes (I understand
bacos
> are an exception) will yield a white wine if there is not some period of
> skin contact.

That's the point. The longer the skin contact, the darker the blush. At
some point after crushing and skin contact begins, the wine becomes rosé.

IOW, blush wines are generally made from red fruit that is pressed very soon
after harvesting - often without crushing. Champagne is mostly made from
Pinot Noir that is picked somewhat underripe (~18 Brix) and pressed as whole
clusters. Most of the color (what there is of it) remains behind in the
press pomace. The finished wine from this operation is so slightly tinted
that you might easily mistake it for a white (blanc de blancs) Champagne.

I need a word for wines made from Pinot Grigio or Gewurztraminer in a style
that tends to acknowledge the inherent color of these varietals (and others,
if there are any). My Pinot Grigio looked more like Pinot Noir in the bins.
It was clearly _not_ a white grape. The finished wine is a copper/orange
color. Part of the color is from the barrel fermentation and aging, but
more is from the fruit itself. The flavor is quite intense, and definitely
_not_ Chardonnay-like. I think this is a good wine to give some age to.

Some wineries, particularly Pinot Noir producers, will "bleed off" some of
the free run juice immediately and make vin gris from that, and dump the
skins back into the main lot to enhance its color. This typically raises
the pH of the must, but that's easily fixed with a little tartaric. Most
wines need a touch of tartaric anyway - at least here in California*.

Tom S



*In France, a bit of cane is more common. Given my choice between the two,
I'd prefer to need to add acid rather than sugar. Grapes that are low in
acid are certainly ripe; grapes low in sugar are probably _not_ ripe.