BOTRYTIS
DESSERT WINES
·
PRODUCTION
· WHAT
TO EXPECT
·
SENSATIONAL RECIPE IDEA
Botrytis Dessert Wines
A customer the other day
was purchasing a bottle of our Botrytis Semillon and commented that the name
sounded like a disease. The reality is that he was correct.
Lusciously delicious
dessert wines in Australia are generally produced from fruit that has been
infected by the fungal disease Botrytis. Sounds horrible but the results of
this infection can be truly exciting and very enjoyable.
Botrytis wines are
expensive to produce which meant that, historically, only the wealthy Nobles
of Europe could afford them and the infection was named Noble Rot. Today
these wines are far more affordable and can be readily enjoyed by us more
common folk.
Often these types of wines
are called “Stickies” or “Dessert Wines” and the names start to tell
you what to expect, thick, sweet and deliciously flavoursome wines.
Botrytis Wine Production
How does Botrytis spread
and where dose all that flavour and colour come from?
Botrytis
can occur naturally and is also spread artificially to a vineyard that
wishes to produce a Botrytis wine. As the infection spreads the berries
start to loose water and they shrivel. This leaves the berries concentrated
in the grape sugars, acids and flavours. Because this is a fungal infection
the berry skins can burst and there is further infection from other yeast
and bacteria and there can be a great variety of secondary flavours added to
the grape. One such component is acetic acid, vinegar, and in small
quantities can add greater depth and complexity to a wine. Excess acetic
acid has to be removed if the overall concentration is above the legal limit
or if the wine is not balanced.
Broken grape skins means
oxidation. Just like when you bite into an apple the white flesh of the
apple will brown and sour in a short while the grape berry will also undergo
oxidation and this turns the juice brilliant shades of gold. Further
oxidation will occur during the barrel ageing adding more depth to the
colour.
To keep these wines sweet
you can use yeast that will die at relatively low concentrations of alcohol
or stop the ferment early leaving behind good sugar levels. Most dessert
wines are lower in alcohol than table wines at 10 – 12%.
What can you expect?
In their youth they are
light to medium gold in colour. The nose will show citrus and possibly some
tropical notes. The mouth will be excited by the plentiful acids and thick
sweet wine that will finish with some nuttiness. As they age the colour will
deepen to a brilliant deep gold and the wine will appear to be more viscous.
Dessert wines will often benefit from extended cellaring. Colours of brown
are an indication that the wine may be ageing poorly and you should take a
close look at your remaining cellared stocks of that vintage with the view
to drinking them soon before they deteriorate too far. As with table
Semillons the Botrytis Semillon as they age will start to exhibit more
honeyed flavours, less of the citrus and the nuttiness will also become more
prominent.
You do not need to drink
great quantities of these wines and the flavours should persist for
considerable time on your palate. Below is a recipe that we enjoy but
frankly these wines are a great dessert just by themselves at the end off a
good meal or while relaxing in a deep warm bubble bath.
RECIPE
Ingredients
Granny Smith Apple (one per
person) and leave skin on
Mars Bars (more or less
than one per person depending on how sweet your tooth is)
Botrytis Semillon
Aluminium foil
What to do
Core the apples, more or
less to suit your sweet tooth
Cut the Mars Bars into
small pieces and push these into the cored apple
Place apple on enough foil
so as to completely cover but only form a cup at this stage
Splash the dessert wine
over the apple
Seal up the foil around the
apple and completely cover
Place on tray and bake in
pre heated oven at 180ºC
Bake for approximately 20
minutes or until the apple is soft enough for a skewer to slide in
Serve on a plate with cream
or ice cream and enjoy the flavours and the compliments from your guests.
