Its my first year making red wine and I recently sampled some syrah I
made from fresh grapes grown in the Central Valley of California out of
my 1 yr. old American oak barrel. I thought it smelled fine but my
pregnant wife said it smelled like wet dog. It tasted fine to me...a
lot like other "young" wines I have tasted. It has been in the barrel
since 12/31 when it was also sulfited for the first time. I have 7.5
gallons that are still in glass and have not been sulfited or been in
any cooperage. My next thought would be to taste each separately and
try to determine differences. Ideas? Am I too worried about
brettanomyces?

Thanks,
Joe

"Joe Giller" > wrote in message
...
> Its my first year making red wine and I recently sampled some syrah I
> made from fresh grapes grown in the Central Valley of California out of
> my 1 yr. old American oak barrel. I thought it smelled fine but my
> pregnant wife said it smelled like wet dog. It tasted fine to me...a
> lot like other "young" wines I have tasted. It has been in the barrel
> since 12/31 when it was also sulfited for the first time. I have 7.5
> gallons that are still in glass and have not been sulfited or been in
> any cooperage. My next thought would be to taste each separately and
> try to determine differences. Ideas? Am I too worried about
> brettanomyces?
>
> Thanks,
> Joe

You might get another opinion from someone who is familiar with Brett.
Some people love a "little" bit of Brett but others consider it a flaw.
One thing for certain, if it is Brett from the barrel, it will be difficult
to get rid of it.
I sorta like some Brett but I think the taste tends to linger too long.