Émile Peynaud

Émile Peynaud (born June 29, 1912 in Madiran, Gers, France, died July 18, 2004 in Talence near Bordeaux) was a French oenologist and researcher who has been credited with revolutionizing winemaking in the latter half of the 20th century, and has been called "the forefather of modern oenology".Cite web|last= Styles| first= Oliver, "Decanter" |title= Emile Peynaud dies at 92 |url=http://www.decanter.com/news/56475.html |date= 2004-07-20]

Biography

Peynaud entered the wine trade at the age of fifteen with the négociant Maison Calvet. At Calvet he worked under the chemical engineer Jean Ribéreau-Gayon, and they developed methods of analysing the wines that were to be purchased. In 1946, Peynaud completed his Doctorate at the University of Bordeaux and joined its faculty as a lecturer. Ribéreau-Gayon at this time was also teaching at the University, and the two shifted their previous focus of problems faced by Calvet to the problems faced by the winemakers themselves.

While at the University of Bordeaux, where he became a professor of oenology, Peynaud worked at providing scientific explanations for many problems encountered in the process of winemaking. He convinced the wineries to begin picking of grapes at vineyards up to two weeks later than usual, and to complete the picking as quickly as possible. The practice of also picking underripe or rotten grapes was abandoned, so that the selected fruit arriving at the winery was of the best possible quality.

Peynaud introduced crushing and fermenting fruit in separate batches based on vine age, vineyard location, or any other factor that resulted in fruit of differing qualities in order to control tannin extraction. He then applied the cool fermentations used in Champagne to still white Bordeaux in order to control fermentation temperatures.

Proposing methods that ran counter to many traditions, in the 1950s and 1960s skeptics would use the term "Peynaudization" of Bordeaux, but as his advice clearly produced superior wines, criticism came to an end.

Peynaud considered the control of malolactic fermentation to be one of his most important contributions to winemaking. It was commonly believed that malolactic fermentation was a sickness. He helped the wineries realize that they needed to encourage and control malolactic fermentation. He also stated, "Using only the very best grapes is a new phenomenon," considering this "the crowning achievement of [his] work."Cite web|last= Steinberger| first= Mike, "Slate" |title= The distorted legacy of Émile Peynaud |url=http://www.slate.com/id/2104553/|date= 2004-07-30]

Peynaud was the "Decanter" Man of the Year in 1990. Michel Rolland is one of his pupils.

See also

*List of wine personalities

elected bibliography

* cite book
last = Peynaud
first = Émile
coauthors = J. Blouin
title = Connaissance Et Travail Du Vin
origyear = 1971
year = 2005
publisher = Dunod
location =
edition = 4th ed.
language = French
id = ISBN 2-10-049296-9
quote =
* cite book
last = Peynaud
first = Émile
others = trans. Alan Spenser
title = Knowing and Making Wine
year = 1984
publisher = Wiley-Interscience
location =
language =
id = ISBN 0-471-11376-X
quote =
* cite book
last = Peynaud
first = Émile
coauthors = J. Blouin
title = Le goût du vin
origyear = 1983
year = 1996
publisher = Dunod
location = Paris
language = French
edition =
id = ISBN 2-10-002750-6
quote =
* cite book
last = Peynaud
first = Émile
coauthors = intro. by Michael Broadbent, M.W.
others = trans. Michael Schuster
title = The Taste of Wine: The Art and Science of Wine Appreciation
year = 1996
publisher = Macdonald Orbis
location = London
language =
id = ISBN 0-471-11376-X
quote =

References