I just decanted two bottles for this evening. One is a 2007 Quilceda Creek Cab and the other is a 2010 Saxum James Berry Syrah/Mourvedre/Genache blend. The QC had a lot of sediment and the Saxum had none to speak of. Age makes a difference, but after opening more than my share of wine bottles, it seems that cabernet throws off a lot more sediment. I once had a sommelier explain that Bordeaux bottles were shaped the way they were because Cabernet causes a lot of sediment that gets caught in the shoulder when decanting, while Barolo (the other thing we were drinking that night) did not, so Barolo bottles could have a gentle slope to it. Obviously, wine that has been filtered will have less, and the nature of the pressing process will affect sediment, as well as things like how much a wine is racked, but is it possible that just the grape itself affects the amount of sediment all other things being equal? Seems wrong to me, but what do I know. I just drink it.
Do you actually expect me to rely upon the opinions of a bunch of idiots from WineSpectator when I can ask all the winemakers who frequent Wineberserkers and who are so generous in sharing their time and knowledge?
There can be quite a bit of sediment in Barolo, though it tends to be much finer.
Slight thread drift, but this one (posted on an Aussie forum) from many years ago still makes me smile. The back label says “May throw a light sediment”. The bottle in this picture is empty.
If a red is not cold stabilized, it will eventually throw a tartrate sediment.
If pectic enzymes are used, you’ll get a protein sediment.
Unfiltered reds, tannins will eventually polymerize and fall out. The more tannin, the more fall out. That could be a factor of grape variety and/or technique (extent of macerration, inclusion of press fractions, etc.)
Generally speaking, it’s more a factor of winemaking technique.
I think that’s true. For example, a lot of the old-school wine from Rioja is kept in barrels for a long time and then racked often. You rarely get much sediment in the old-school wines.
In the newer types, they don’t keep them in tanks or barrels as long. They bottle them younger and you get a lot more sediment. I think that’s the case with the CA Cabs - if those were kept in tank for six years, you’d probably have a lot less sediment.
That said, the grape would also matter quite a bit. Grapes that tend to have thicker skins, etc., would tend to have more sediment if bottled young.
Jay - There is sediment and there is sediment, as Jody said. With those relatively young bottles you’re talking about, I would guess you’re not getting much polymerized tannins; it would be more stuff that could have been filtered out, or partly tartrates.
That may be true with young wines, and old wines like traditional Rioja and Barolo that see long tank or barrel age. But there are big differences in grapes. In my experience, syrah throws the most sediment, and it adheres to bottles; you’ll find a crust on the side where the bottle has rested. This is quite distinct to the variety.
Cabernet definitely throws a lot of sediment with time, but it can be relatively benign. I’ve often enjoyed the dregs of an old Bordeaux; often the last glass seems fresher than the previous couple because of the sediment. By contrast, nebbiolo sediment is much finer and much more bitter. Hence, unless it was aged so long and racked, you have to be very careful to sit Barolo and Barbaresco upright days before opening and decant with extreme care.
Pinot and tempranillo (even modern style ones) don’t seem to throw a lot of sediment.
I had an '85 version of this in about 2001 that looked similar.
Burgundy producers used to say you shouldn’t decant the wines, but I hate straining great red wine through my teeth.
I agree with John about Nebbiolo sediment.
Has anyone else other than me left the sediment from a really nice wine in the bottom of the (last) glass and poured another (somewhat lesser) wine in on top of the sediment, with a marked improvement of the taste of the second wine?
Nope - though I suppose this has some similarity to ‘ripasso’ used by some in Valpolicella!
When I worked at Antioine’s in NOLA we went through at least 2 bottles of older vintage porto by the glass every night. One of my bartenders started making Smoors out of the sediment in them by spreading it on pound cake and then layering that with French Vanilla ice cream. To die for!