The Oenological Station in the Calle Cordoba in Jerez is considered
the finest drinks laboratory in Spain according to two provincial government
delegates who visited yesterday. The large building is considered a reference
point for safety as well as authenticity in drinks.
The Junta de Andalucia (the RegionalGovernment) has invested
heavily in the station in recent years, and it is now recognised worldwide. It
is not unusual therefore to see samples on its shelves from as far afield as
Russia or Algeria. They are asked, for example, to check if the samples contain
natural alcohol, if they have been watered down, or if they are of the stated
age.
Jose Maria Mateos, the station director, showed the
delegates what the machines linked to computers are capable of, for example measuring
the wines’ pH, volatility and alcohol content. Only a few years ago this would
have taken a technician 15 days, but now takes only a few seconds. While the
machines are impressive, they do cost an average of about 120,000 euros. One
has an electronic nose, while another can measure radioactivity levels.
Another facility of the Estacion de Viticultura – as it is
known in Jerez – is the checking of age of the VOS and VORS Sherries. For this
they use carbon 14 which has a life of 4,000 years. Since nuclear testing was
banned in 1962 radioactivity levels have been falling, and it is perfectly
possible to work out in which year the grapes grew.
Fraud in vinegars has been completely eliminated by being
able to detect whether acetic acid is natural or added. Blended wines can be
checked to see if they are blended from the stated grape varieties. Soils can
be analysed, nutrition is studied, the list goes on, the lab never stops.
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