It was a risk and an experiment never tried before in the U.S. Who thought the aging wine in salt water would work?
Mira Winery made history in February as the first American winery to experiment with aging wine in the ocean, when divers placed four cases of 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon in specially designed cages in the Charleston Harbor.
“It’s the first time we’ve ever done it – anybody’s ever done it in the United States,” Mira Winemaker, Gustavo Gonzalez told Foxnews.com.
Now the results are in with some stunning results.
The goal was to test the affects on ocean-aged wine versus same aged wine in warehouses. The major elements that can affect aging are temperature, humidity, pressure, motion, light – or lack thereof- and oxygen.
“Wine making is an art and a complicated science,” said Gonzalez. “With several factors that impact wine production, aging is traditionally done in a very controlled environment to ensure optimum outcome. With our experiment, we’re testing the impact of unpredictable tides, waves and temperature on the wine’s taste.”
After being pulled from the Harbor on May 21, the experts tasted the wine to see if their experiment yielded positive results. The conclusion was it was a success – calling the wine extraordinary. They compared the wine aged on shore versus the wine aged underwater and they said it was like magic what had happened to the wine that was aged under the sea.
“I think it’s a whole other element for adding diversity to the flavors that already exist within wine,” said Gustavo
After a successful experiment, plans are already in motion to begin Phase II of this experiment, dropping twice as many cases into the Harbor for twice as long. This will begin in early Fall.
“We’re continuing to control our sample and we will continue to get a better understanding of the impact of aging the wine in the ocean,” Mira Winery President, Jim Dyke, told Foxnews.com
As for the wine that has already been aged: it has already been spoken for and will be sold to for up to $1000 after it undergoes chemical analysis.
Mary Quinn O’Connor is part of the Junior Reporter program at Fox News. Get more information on the Junior Reporters Program here.
