Émile Peynaud

Émile Peynaud (born June 29, 1912 in Madiran / Gers, † July 18, 2004 in Talence near Bordeaux ) was one of the most important oenologists and wine tasters of the 20th century. As a professor at the University of Bordeaux , he wrote around 300 treatises on the subject of winemaking as well as numerous books on wine . In addition, he advised over 100 well-known wineries around the world. He was the first to recognize the importance of controlled malolactic fermentation in wine.

biography

At the age of 15, Peynaud started working for the Calvet wine trading company. There he worked under the guidance of the chemist Jean Ribéreau-Gayon on analytical methods to determine the quality of the wine purchased. Together with Ribéreau-Gayon he began the scientific elaboration of the problems found at Calvet. After the Second World War, Peynaud completed a doctorate at the University of Bordeaux and received a chair there. From 1949 he headed agricultural and oenological research. From 1968 to 1977 he was director of the Institute of Oenology.

At the beginning of the 1940s, the correct aging of the wine was often a coincidence, as the relationships between the various parameters were not yet understood. He concentrated his work on four aspects of viticulture:

• Peynaud was convinced that the grapes were usually brought in when they were still immature. He therefore convinced some of the leading wineries in the Bordelais to postpone the grape harvest by about two weeks, but then to carry it out in a much shorter time in order to counteract any rotting of the berries. Through this measure, the goods obtained wines with a deeper color and purer taste. The more mature tannins make the wines more open and more pleasing.
• By growing the berries separately from different vineyards or vineyards of different ages, Peynaud was able to better control the ripeness of the tannins.
• Peynaud recommended temperature control of the mash fermentation as an important quality factor. He found that too high temperatures during fermentation lead to incorrect fermentation and therefore recommended controlled cooling of the mash . He also applied this principle, which had long been known in Champagne , to the wines of Bordeaux and received fresh and fruity wines that had a lasting influence on the modern wine style.
• Peynaud recommended that the winemakers run the malolactic fermentation, which was previously considered a mistake, under controlled conditions, as he found that this fermentation will definitely start later in the bottle and then lead to a wine fault .

These four basic principles have been used extremely successfully worldwide and have significantly reduced the error rate in international viticulture. However, he was often accused of having too uniformed the wine style, as the wines were very pleasant to drink from a relatively young age. From today's perspective, however, it must be stated that the wines have a considerable potential for aging . In contrast to his student Michel Rolland , however, he did not create a new style of wine for his customers, but only increased the quality of the existing wines.

He received the “Man of the Year” award in 1990 in the renowned wine magazine The Decanter .

The list of goods advised by Émile Peynaud reads like a who's who of the most famous wineries in the Bordelais. He not only advised the three large corporations Suntory , Seagram , and Domecq (→ Pernod Ricard ). His list of customers also included 45 of the classified Bordeaux-Châteaux and 13 of the best goods in the Graves area . In addition, it was probably a few hundred estates in Pomerol , Saint-Émilion and Sauternes that used his services. He achieved his most remarkable results at Château Lafite-Rothschild , Château Margaux , Château Cheval Blanc , Château Léoville-las-Cases , Château Beychevelle , Château Pichon-Longueville-Comtesse de Lalande and Château Lynch-Bages .

Works (selection)

• The high school for wine connoisseurs. Albert Müller Verlag, Stuttgart a. a. 1984, ISBN 3-275-00843-9 .
• Le goût du vin . 1st edition, Bordas, Paris 1980.

(3rd edition with Jacques Blouin, Dunod, Paris 1996, ISBN 2-10-002750-6 ).

• Connaissance et travail du vin . Dunod, Paris 1981.
• Le vin et les jours . Dunod, Paris 1988.
• Traité d'œnologie (with Jean Ribéreau-Gayon). Ch.Béranger, Paris 1961 (vol. 2).
• Sciences et techniques du vin (with Jean and Pascal Ribéreau-Gayon ). Dunod, Paris 1975 (vol. 2).

Web links

• Literature by and about Émile Peynaud in the catalog of the German National Library