What is the profession of oenologist?
The etymology of the word oenologist dates back to the Greek oenos (= wine) and loguos (= science). The oenologist is the wine specialist. A graduate of a master's degree in study technical sciences and the knowledge of wine, its functions range from the culture of grapes to the bottle of wine. Only 5 training centers deliver this diploma in France.
What is your typical day?
There is no typical day for an oenologist. The key word is "adapt". Adapt to what is happening in nature, vines and tanks. Right now the 2017 harvest ends, I therefore focus essentially on the analysis of the vines to select the most successful plots. And then after there will be time for the tasting of wine and assembly. I also often accompany our customers to explain our terroirs to them, the characters of our wines and more broadly our winemaker philosophy. In short, these are very varied days, which have nothing routine.
How is the 2017 harvest promising?
Each harvest is an eternal beginning guided by the forces of nature and leads each year to the development of new wines. The year 2017 recorded a rather unfavorable weather: spring heat wave, followed by a gel period preceding a very dry summer. The harvest is certainly less large but of very good quality. The maturity of the grape varieties has also been upset and it will be necessary to adapt to this characteristic in the cellar to make quality rosés dressed in a beautiful dress with a pale tone.
What is the secret of a beautiful pink dress?
The color of rosés in Provence is very important, it is the first thing that a consumer judges. In Provence, the many shades are all referenced at the Var wine center. This pink color is defined by the natural pigments of the grapes. These are pigments called anthocyanas, which comes from the Greek, "the blue color of the flowers" and the latter are concentrated in the grape dandruff.
At the Château de Berne we collect the grapes in the middle of the night. Our teams meet around midnight at the heart of the vineyard to start the harvest until 6 am. Under these conditions, the colors diffuse more slowly in the juice and we thus master the color of our pink wines. We also limit the oxidation phenomena which would risk alter the color.
How would you define a quality rosé?
In general, a quality wine is, above all, a wine that you like, so it remains a very subjective data. In my opinion, a good wine is a surprising wine, because although after having tasted the same wines after year, I still like to be surprised. It is above all a wine that has elegance, power, wealth, without being too demonstrative, and it will especially be pleasant to drink to accompany meals.
I hope I have been able to answer your questions, and I meet you at the Château de Berne or find our pink wines online.
Thanks
Alexis Cornu
