My guest for this episode is Clark Smith. Clark has been making and studying wine since the 1970’s. He’s had a huge influence on the wine world through his wine consulting business, and in 2013 he published the book Postmodern Winemaking. Ten years later, that book is still groundbreaking.
Clark knows more than you do about the chemistry of winemaking. In addition to that, he’ll tell you he has a bit of an ego. He may say some things that rub you the wrong way. He may say some things that you find hard to believe. He may say some things that contradict everything you know. But he may also say some things that enlighten you and revolutionize your winemaking. There really isn’t a way to pigeon-hole him. Clark is candid, transparent, a bit of a pot-stirrer, and in pursuit of the most soulful wine he can make.
In the past he has been the whipping boy for the natural wine press, partly for his embrace of new technologies, and partly for his willingness to confront hype with science. Depending on your convictions, you can fault him or thank him for introducing reverse osmosis and micro-oxygenation to American wine, but you cannot fault him for concealing his use of techniques or technologies in his winemaking… which is more than I can say for some who claim to make natural wine. You may disagree with him, but make sure you understand him before you dismiss him.
We cover A LOT of ground in this conversation, including:
What wine really is – the googe-ness of wine
Minerality comes from living soil
Why brix has nothing to do with ripeness, and how determining ripeness takes a personal relationship with a vineyard
Why watering back must increases a wine's aromatic and color intensity
Why he makes his best wines without sulfites, and how everything that’s common knowledge about sulfites in wine is wrong
Why Brettanomyces is a hospital disease, and why a living wine with good structure beats it.
Wine Diamonds
White Wine making
Sweet Wine making
And Much more.
Buckle in… maybe grab a note pad… and
Enjoy!
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