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Once the grapes are crushed, Bar Z uses the time-honored method of fermentation. This is called hand cap management. It starts with pushing the solids (skins, seeds and stems) that rise to the top, back down into the juice to get the maximum extraction of color, flavor and aroma. During active fermentation, this process can be repeated multiple times every day. When fermentation is complete, the wine is pressed to separate the solids from the wine. This is where gravity and time start to do their part. The solids that cause wine to be cloudy or hazy settle to the bottom of the tanks during storage.
The wine is pumped off of the settling solids and into a clean tank. This process is repeated until the wine is completely clarified, called racking. After this, the wine is ready for French Oak barrels where it will rest and age until it is ready for bottling. The time it takes is not set by a calendar, but by the wine itself. It takes longer to make our wines, but this hands-on process yields wines that have an Old World style and quality. Those who may have tried a Texas wine in the past and were not happy should know Texas wines have changed.
