About Our Wine Making Process in Lake Leelanau, MI
Aurora Cellars Specializes in Cool Climate Wine Making
It’s up to humans to perfect the wine making process, and you won’t find more passionate winemakers than those at Aurora Cellars. Below, we’re proud to share a few of the secrets about our cool climate wine making process in Lake Leelanau, MI. Our family-owned boutique winery produces fewer than 10,000 cases per year, giving us time to carefully examine each batch to ensure it meets our high standards. Learn more about what makes our world-class cool climate wines so exquisitely flavorful.
Knowing When to Harvest the Grapes for the Right Flavor
The first step in the wine making process is harvesting the grapes, for it’s the acids, tannins, and esters in the grapes that give wines their distinct flavor notes. When you pick the grapes is essential because their level of physiological ripeness directly influences the resulting wine’s acidity, sweetness, and flavor. The weather also plays a significant role in wine making, especially in colder climates where winter and spring frosts may be an annual concern for the harvests. Science, experience, art, and good old-fashioned tasting all go together in determining the ideal time to harvest the grapes. At Aurora Cellars, we monitor our plants’ soil, acid and sugar levels, and other factors to ensure they’re ready for harvesting. Cane pruning lets us remove old growth from our plants and helps us protect them from annual frosts. Operating a smaller vineyard allows us to hand tend and harvest our grapes and invest in better quality control measures to ensure a perfect small batch of wine every time.
Crushing and Pressing the Grapes to Extract the Juice
Once they’ve been harvested, the grapes are then sorted to eliminate the rotten or under-ripe ones before we’re ready to begin crushing and pressing them. While winemakers used to perform this ritual by stomping the grapes with their feet, today’s mechanical crushers have improved the process. Because the crushing process now takes less time and is more sanitary, fewer preservatives are needed to ensure the longevity of the wine. The type of wine desired will influence the pressing stage. White wines require pressing the grapes immediately after crushing to separate their juice from the skins and seeds. Red wines allow the grapes to keep their skins to aid in their color and flavor with additional tannins during the fermentation stage of the wine making process.
Sugars Are Converted to Alcohol During Fermentation Process
The extracted grape juice will typically begin the natural fermentation process within 6-12 hours. Some winemakers allow wild yeasts in the air to do their job of fermenting the grapes, while others prefer to use a controlled yeast of their choosing. During the fermentation process, the juice’s sugars are converted into alcohol. Fermentation times will vary, ranging from 10 days to a month or longer. In cool climates, an alcohol level of 10% is considered the standard. If you desire a sweeter wine, you need to stop the fermentation process prematurely before all the sugars become alcohol. We have perfected our cold climate wine making process over the years to avoid issues with extreme ripeness, too much fermentation, and over-extraction to eliminate undesired flavors and taste profiles.
Filtering, Aging, and Bottling the Wine to Refine the Flavor
Why Do So Many People Prefer Cool Climate Wines?
Where grapes are grown and harvested can affect their taste profiles. Warm climate grapes enjoy more consistent temperatures throughout their growing season. However, grapes in warmer climates tend to lose more of their natural acidity. Cool climate grapes retain their acidity but may have a harder time ripening. As a result, cool climate red wines tend to have a lighter body, lower alcohol content, higher acidity, and a more robust flavor than other red wines. Many cool climate wines are described as tart, elegant, nuanced, or fresh, accounting for why they are so popular among wine enthusiasts. Grapes that tend to favor cooler climates include Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris, Pinot Noir, and Zweigelt.
Join Our Wine Club & Taste Our Award-Winning Cool Climate Wines
Aurora Cellars specializes in Blaufrankisch, Cabernet Franc, and Merlot cool climate wines in our Lake Leelanau, MI boutique winery. Our cool climate reds have gained national notoriety in recent years. The Leelanau Peninsula’s rolling hills and hard-compact clay soil give us an ideal location for wine making. We cordially invite you to visit our tasting room to taste our award-winning wines for yourself. If you enjoy our welcoming atmosphere, knowledgeable staff, and exquisite wines, why not join our Wine Club? Members receive exclusive access to select and boutique wines, free wine tastings, deals on wines, discounts on glass pours, and more fun-filled perks. Contact us today to learn more!
