Term
Whole-cluster
hohl KLUS-ter
Stems in the ferment
Fermenting uncrushed bunches, stems and all. Adds perfume, pepper, a herbal snap, and a different tannin — or a green mess if the stems are not ripe.
Burgundy, the Northern Rhône, and Beaujolais argue about percentages every vintage. Whole-cluster can lift Pinot and Syrah toward spice and floral notes. It can also add stemmy bitterness if lignification (stem ripening) did not happen.
Carbonic maceration is a relative: whole berries, different biochemistry. Many wines use both, in part.
If a red smells of rose, pepper, and crunch beyond its grape, someone probably left stems in.
