Spring 2026 Cellar Update
Myles' Cellar Update - 4/1/26:
The end of winter leading into the spring is always an interesting time of year in a wine cellar. After the intense period of the year that is harvest and the slow down around the holidays, early springtime is a combination of busy and slow days. It is simultaneously a good time to enjoy time away from the cellar and to give the little extra effort that will lay the groundwork for the summer to come.
Over the last two months we have been preparing the 2025 Rosé of Pinot Noir and 2025 PopsanBro White Pinot for bottling. That process included watching them finish up fermentation, adding sulfur to protect them microbiologically and from oxygenation, cold stabilizing, heat stabilizing, and lightly filtering the wines. While each of these processes might sound intense or manipulative they are all quite simple and rather than detract from the final wine, help it to show its fullest potential.
Sulfur Dioxide or SO2, is the most commonly used preservative in wine and has been used since the 17th century. Here at Jachter Family Wines, we recognize the importance of its use but also are quite sensitive to its impact on the wines. Because of this, we use the minimum amount possible to achieve the style and quality wines that we strive to produce. At the end of fermentation, there is a high degree of microbiological activity that has just happened so in order to finish a wine at its optimal place, we will use the necessary dose of SO2 to terminate the function of the microbes and cease any further fermentation. In addition to ceasing fermentation SO2 also then has the added benefit of helping to prevent oxidation that would occur to the wine once the yeast cells are no longer active.
Cold stabilization is the process by which surplus Potassium Bitartrate crystals are precipitated out of the wine. In other words, when the wine becomes very cold, the amount of Tartaric Acid in a wine can become unstable and crystallize with Potassium Ions. These crystals fall out of solution and can be seen at the bottom of a bottle of unstabilized wine. Luckily, the process of cold stabilization is a straightforward one–we hold the wine cold (below 32F) for around ten days until it measures as cold stable. Then the wine is racked off the sediment that could otherwise have found its way into your bottle.
Heat stabilization is the process of fining out surplus proteins in a wine that could cause haziness if a wine was left in a hot environment. This is also a straightforward process that begins with bench top trials in the laboratory. We take small samples of each wine and treat them with small dosage rates of Bentonite, heat them in a water bath, then allow them to cool on the lab bench top to determine the addition appropriate rate based on where the haziness has formed.
Bentonite is a naturally occurring mineral clay. Its physical structure looks like small overlapping sheets and its function in the wine is based on the positive and negative charge of particles in the wine. Because of the physical nature of the Bentonite, there is very little interaction between it and anything other than the protein particles that we want to remove. Basically the Bentonite is added to the wine and the small sheets act like magnets to protein particles and create small boxes around them. Once the boxes are formed the Bentonite (and protein inside the box) falls out of solution and creates a sediment at the bottom of the tank. The fined wine is then racked off the sediment and the wine is heat stabilized.
The final step before these wines are ready to bottle is a light filtration. Since we have cold and heat stabilized the wines we want to ensure that all of the sediments produced are left behind. To do this we run the wine through a very gentle polishing filter that will make sure the wines are perfectly clear and ready to be enjoyed!
Through all these steps it might seem like a lot has to happen for bottling preparation, and it kind of does! But because of the style of wines we are producing and the quality therein all these processes are as minimally invasive as possible and are not additives or leave any residues in the final wine.
In addition to all the action with the 2025 Rose of Pinot Noir and 2025 PopsanBro White Pinot we have also been preparing the 2025 Blanc de Blancs for tirage bottling. Tirage bottling is a different set of processes. The wine has not seen any SO2 in the cellar, even after fermentation has been completed. The wine has been cold stabilized but not heat stabilized and will be lightly filtered before bottling. Since we are making this wine in the Traditional Champagne Method, the wine will have sugar and a prepared yeast culture added to it before bottling under crown cap so that yeast will ferment in the closed environment of the bottle and produce carbonation. After a few weeks of allowing the yeast to fully ferment the sugars in bottle, the wines will remain enclosed with the yeast in bottle for their period of "en Tirage” aging. Different appellations require different time periods of “en Tirage” aging, in Champagne 15 months is the minimum, for Method Oregon 24 months is the minimum, and our goal is 48-60 months minimum.
While all the action is happening with these three wines, the rest of the cellar is relatively quiet! The 2025 red wines have all finished fermentation and are quietly aging in their barrels. We will begin blending trials in the summer to determine the 2025 wines and what their final blends will be. The 2025 Chardonnays are mostly finished with fermentation, although there are a few slower moving barrels that are still working through the last amounts of sugar and/or Malic acid. These wines will be over-vintaged in barrels so they still have plenty of time before we begin blending trials in November.
Cheers,
Myles
Have any winemaking questions for Myles? Feel free to connect with him directly via email at myles@jachterwine.com
Apr 2, 2026 at 12:00 PM
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Tractor Tails: Spring Edition
Aaron's Vineyard Update - 4/1/26:
Spring Is Jumping the Gun in the Vineyard!
If you’ve spent any time around farming, you know nature doesn’t always check the calendar. This year, she seems to have flipped ahead a couple of pages without telling anyone. We’re officially into early spring activity in the vineyard—and by “early,” I mean about two weeks ahead of schedule.
Bud Break Is Off to the Races...
The Nebbiolo and parts of the Chardonnay blocks have already hit bud break, which is always one of those moments that feels equal parts exciting and mildly nerve-wracking. It’s the vineyard’s version of stretching after a long nap—everything waking up, full of potential… and completely exposed to whatever spring decides to throw next.
Meanwhile, Pinot Noir is still taking its time, sitting comfortably in the wooly bud phase like it’s not quite ready to commit. Classic Pinot behavior—never in a rush, always on its own schedule.
Sheep: The Unsung Vineyard Crew
Before we get too far into tractor season, it’s worth tipping our hats to the real MVPs of late winter: the sheep.
They’ve done exactly what we asked—trimmed down the grass and cover crop with remarkable precision, all while contributing a little “natural fertilizer” along the way. Efficient, sustainable, and significantly less complaining than most crews. Hard to argue with that kind of work ethic.
With their job complete, under-vine cultivation has now begun. In other words, it’s time for us humans to step back in and clean up what the sheep politely left behind.
A Little Early, A Little Different
Bud break coming early puts a slightly different tone on the season. It’s not necessarily a bad thing—but it does mean we’ll be keeping a closer eye on weather patterns, especially those spring cold snaps that like to show up uninvited.
Farming keeps you humble like that. Just when you think you’ve got the timing figured out, the vineyard reminds you who’s really in charge.
Changes in the Blocks
This season also brings some meaningful changes in the vineyard layout.
We’re grafting over two blocks of Chardonnay:
- One will transition to Wädenswil (a clone that should bring some exciting structure and character)
- The other is making a more dramatic shift—moving from Chardonnay to Coury Pinot Noir
Yes, you read that right. Chardonnay making way for Pinot. If vines could talk, this would probably qualify as a major identity shift.
Dirt Work and the Lower Vineyard
In addition to what’s happening above ground, we’re continuing development in the lower vineyard. April will be dedicated largely to dirt work—moving soil, refining layout, and setting the stage for future plantings.
It’s not the glamorous side of vineyard life, but it’s the kind of work that quietly determines how everything else performs down the line.
Looking Ahead
So here we are: early bud break, sheep off duty, tractors warming up, and a few blocks getting a complete makeover.
Spring doesn’t ease into things—it kicks the door open and gets moving. And this year, it showed up early and didn’t bother to knock.
We’ll keep you posted as the season unfolds. For now, we’re keeping one eye on the vines and the other on the weather…
Cheers from your friendly farmer,
Aaron
Have any vineyard or farming questions for Aaron? Feel free to connect with him directly via email at ajachter@jachterwine.com
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