THE CAPAS PROCESS

In Spanish capas means layers or steps, and that is exactly how our wines are made. Before the introduction of refrigeration to winemaking, tecnica de capas was the standard process for conducting fermentations. The term refers to the technique of cooling a fermentation by adding fresh must (freshly crushed fruit juice containing skins, seeds and sometimes stems) to the tank. Historically it was too large a task to harvest a vineyard in one day. Instead, a vineyard owner would pick the grapes over multiple days. The fermentation would begin with the first day’s grapes and then new crushed fruit would be added overtime. Each addition of must diluted the yeast population and cooled the tank, slowing the fermentation rate. However, cooling is not the only benefit of the capas technique. Perhaps of equal importance is the ability to harvest grapes at different ripeness levels, which in turn reveals a more diverse range of fruit flavors, as well as higher natural acidity and tannins. The resulting wines give a full expression of the terroir of the vineyards.  

We filled our small cement tanks and open barrels a third full of must and let the fermentation begin naturally. Five days later, we added another third and three days after that we added the final third. We love the longer, softer, mouth feel and texture that results from slowing down the process. 

 I used to watch and wait for the exact day when the fruit was going to be at its most perfect ripeness. What I now realize, after playing with tecnica de capas, is that there is not just one perfect day to pick the grapes. If you start the winemaking process with multiple expressions of a vineyard, you begin with a wine that already has more layers than when you pick it all in one day. I gave up the pursuit of making perfect wine years ago, as there is no perfect wine. For me the goal is to create beautiful wine that can enhance a perfect moment with friends and loved ones.