During the vinification of the great Burgundies from MADAME VEUVE POINT, we are permanently active and vigilant. Our wines sometimes need direct contact with oxygen. At certain times we also need to separate the wine from its lees.
Pinot Noir, which is a particularly delicate grape, demands precise and careful manipulation.
When the malolactic fermentation is complete (we use laboratory tests to verify the complete disappearance of malic acid), the wine is once again racked, that is to say, it is pumped into a different container. In Burgundy it is very common to use oak barrels for maturing the wine, as is the case in the MADAME VEUVE POINT cellars. So the wine passes from a vat to a barrel or from one barrel to another (if malolactic fermentation has taken place in a barrel).
When running off the wine our CellarMaster will separate it from undesirable deposits. This operation may be repeated several times.
There are several methods of racking. One consists of running off the wine, then pumping it to allow aeration, as we do here in Burgundy in the MADAME VEUVE POINT cellars. The CellarMaster tilts the barrel slightly. and the wine runs into a recipient where it is aired for a few minutes before being pumped into another perfectly clean barrel. The lees remain in the original barrel (which is subsequently cleaned).
