The Big Picture - Quality v. Value
The terms ‘quality’ and ‘value’ are consequently widely used in reference to wine. The International Standards Organisation defines quality as the ‘degree to which a set of inherent characteristics fulfils requirements’ and it is worthwhile considering the meaning of this definition in relation to different elements involved in the wine production chain. To the consumer who considers whether to purchase a wine, fulfilling requirements is associated with the ‘intrinsic’ sensory quality of the wine, i.e. how the wine tastes, as well as perceived value.
Value is related to both intrinsic quality and image - the latter derived from many aspects such as how the wine is marketed, show awards, or winery environmental sustainability record - and cost. Thus, a wine with moderate intrinsic quality, but with a high concept of image, at a relatively low price compared with alternatives, would be considered by a consumer as high in perceived value.
Intrinsic sensory quality attributes should arguably be of greatest interest to a producer, as optimising and enhancing these will best allow an increase in the value equation. The attributes that are most appreciated will vary according to different consumer types: for a winemaker, these could involve the diversity and persistence of flavours of a wine and its ability to age; for a certain consumer buying a wine for a specific occasion, the wine’s appearance in the glass and types of flavours might be more important; while for a wine company chief financial officer, the ability of a given wine to generate sales or profit is of most consequence. As an industry, we are learning rapidly that consumer requirements can change easily, and that a consumer’s understanding of intrinsic quality can be very different from that of a company viticulturist, marketing team or accountant.
Quality – Broad Indicators
In order to assess the degree to which grapes for winemaking fulfil consumer requirements, there are a number of possibilities available to a producer. An assessment of vineyard characteristics can be valuable. The concept of unbalanced and badly managed vines producing poor wines is commonly espoused in the wine industry, and it is believed that assessment of aspects of a vineyard by experienced practitioners can allow judgement of the likely quality of wine produced from the vines. Traits that might be assessed, often by the use of standardised scorecards, include:
- balance between crop load and canopy capacity;
- uniformity/evenness of ripening;
- vigour/no growing tips after veraison;
- exposure/sunburn;
- disease; and observable berry characteristics (size, seeds, colour, taste etc).
In addition, simple chemical measurements that are available for assessing berry quality, such as total soluble solids (TSS) or acidity, are unquestionably important criteria for winegrapes: certainly, legally, it is not possible to make table wine from grapes with TSS at less than around 14 degrees Brix as wine by legislative definition must contain greater than 8% alcohol.
The fact that TSS or acidity measures do not directly determine characteristics that relate to highly specific requirements of individual winemakers, should not make us lose sight of the great practical benefit of these broad types of measures. In particular, the value of the so-called colour assay, measuring total anthocyanins in berries, should not be underestimated and has considerable merit as a quality indicator. Evidence that colour in berries relates well to red wine quality or flavour intensity scores, independent of TSS, for example as presented at the 10th Australian Wine Industry Technical Conference, has allowed the introduction of this assay in the Australian wine industry to the point that the grape colour measure has been used by a number of wine companies as a useful practical indicator of red winegrape quality, in commercial red wines (which constitutes the bulk of our production).
Grape colour measurement might not invariably highly correlate with wine colour. Wine colour is also dependent on basic composition such as wine pH and sulfur dioxide concentration, and there is the complex factor of co-pigments from grapes that can enhance wine colour. However, all else being equal, grape anthocyanin concentration closely relates to wine anthocyanin concentration in a young wine, and to wine colour. Wine colour density as a quality predictor is also of value to practicing winemakers, and given that red wine colour density correlates with quality grade, and grape colour correlates with wine colour, the quality measure can be extended back into the vineyard.
Quality: Multiple Indicators
While winemakers would prefer to have a single measurement of composition that universally correlates with perceived quality, this is never going to be possible except in the broadest sense. Considering the above discussion regarding the diversity of requirements of winemakers and consumers, it is certain that no one analytical measurement will allow an assessment of the multiplicity of sensory attributes of importance to preference.
While colour in grapes generally correlates with sugar maturity, there can certainly be a wide variation in colour values for grapes at a given TSS concentration. It is worth considering a hypothetical situation where several quality parameters might be used by a winery in determining quality of a grape lot. For a grape load delivered to a winery, there might be an absolute requirement that grape sugar maturity of a certain value should be met, which could be higher or lower depending on company requirements. If this target is not met, the grapes are set at the lowest possible grade. If it is met, then the grapes qualify for a higher grade, with the next decision based on a parameter such as colour. If the grapes have high colour, they can then be graded as higher or lower, based on another measure, such as berry weight, which might be considered important for tannin extraction, for example. Finally, a more sophisticated and time-requiring measurement of the sample might be applied, but only for those highest grade grapes. Such a measurement might be berry sensory analysis where a criteria might be used of the degree of herbaceous flavour (methoxypyrazine concentration): if the grape lot has high herbaceous character it might be downgraded.
A Case In Point - Brian Walsh - Director of Winemaking – Yalumba, Barossa, South Australia
“There are a series of objective measures rather than a single objective measure of wine quality. At the simplest level these include soundness - the absence of major winemaking faults - and the presence of positive attributes. This level of objective measure however only differentiates between poor wine and good (sound) wine. Starting from a good basic wine there is a confluence of objective and subjective attributes which define the relative ‘greatness’ of a given wine.
As an example the relative importance of fruit flavour will be very dependant on wine style or variety, while tannin will be far more critical in red wines than most whites. It is the sum of the parts rather than the dissection of the parts that provides the answer. All high quality wines share a measure of balance and harmony on the palate together with a persistence of flavour.
The customer ultimately decides what is perceived to be high quality. The winemaker (and viticulturist) can have a vision for what they wish to create and, providing they have the grapes and skill, can craft a wine of significance. The customer can be influenced to try the wines, but they cannot be coerced to like the wines. Winemakers can set the trends or benchmarks, but in the long run the market decides what it wishes to buy and consume.”
Quality Starts in the Vineyard