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Winemaking
d'Arenberg cellars were constructed in 1928 by d'Arry's father, Frank, and since then have undergone major restoration and expansion through the 1960's, 1980's and 1990's - these extensions and modifications are still continuing into the new millennium, with Chester at the helm. In the vineyard, d'Arenberg is very particular, selecting small, individual parcels of fruit, both red and white, often from small, distinct parts of the vineyards. These parcels are treated rather exclusively. They're all fermented and matured separately in French and American oak barriques, and kept apart until the blending stage. This ensures a seamless balance across a wide spectrum of fruits. 100% Basket Pressing - For Red and White! d'Arenberg is unique in that it is one of a few wineries in Australia to still use the age-old basket press method for white wines as well as reds. At d'Arenberg, all fruit is pressed in wooden baskets using the very gentle, traditional 'Coq' and 'Bromley & Tregoning' presses. The presses are both old soldiers, dating from approximately 1860. d'Arenberg liked the gentle action of the original 'Coq' press so much that they had it replicated in 1940. The main job of the winepress is to get juice, or fermented wine, from the grape skins and pulp. For white wines, this happens before fermentation (so the more delicate whites do not pick up any color or phenolics from the skins) and for the reds, after fermentation, so that the action of the ferment and the alcohol has extracted the good bits out of the skins. Basket pressing all of the wines makes for a very labor-intensive exercise, but the quality of results justifies the effort. The pressing action is very controlled and is extremely gentle. The d'Arenberg winemaking team uses their collective imaginations in coming up with a way to make basket pressing oxygen free, thereby preventing oxidation in the whites. This is achieved by using a big plastic bag and some dry ice, which encases the whole basket. Chester believes that one of the advantages of basket pressing is cleaner juice, as it is partially filtered through the mass of pulp it drains through in the basket. This saves time in settling and clearing the juice, and brings the procedure much closer to how d'Arenberg like things - minimal interference which enables them to preserve quality. Red Wines After gentle crushing through the Demoisy open mouthed, rubber toothed crusher (which came originally from Burgundy in France) the juice and skins are transferred via the gentle peristaltic action of the must pump to the open fermenters. The cap of fermenting juice and grape skins is kept submerged by fixed 'heading down' boards which ensure the maximum extraction of flavor, color and tannins. Each batch is kept separate and the whole process is very intricate and labor intensive. White Wines The majority of d'Arenberg's white wines are fermented in temperature controlled stainless steel tanks which protect their delicate varietal characters. Others are either partially or fully fermented in new and used oak barriques (mainly French) for example, some Chardonnay and Viognier - for added complexity of flavor and structure. Blending One of the most important jobs Chester and the d'Arenberg winemaking team undertake is to taste each and every barrel at the blending stage to decide which barrel will go into what wine. It sounds like fun (and it sort of is) but it is this attention to detail which makes the whole winemaking and blending process at d'Arenberg such a painstaking, slow, detailed and critical affair. This hands-on, and feet-on, approach to winemaking means they're intimately in touch with the individual textures, flavors and characters of the wines. It's a gentle, harmonious approach that ensures d'Arenberg wines, particularly the young reds, are patiently and individually nurtured. Estate Bottled Wines To ensure all of their hard work and commitment in the vineyard and cellars are protected at all costs, all wines are bottled each on the property. Their quality control procedures include the most advanced bottling and filling technology that ensures each wine reaches you in top condition. Natural minimal processing (which means they rarely fine or filter their red wines) ensures maximum flavor. d'Arenberg is perhaps the last small to medium sized producer that still undertakes all of these three functions - growing, winemaking and bottling and packaging, all at the estate. |
 Chief Winemaker, Chester Osborn
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