🍷 Bâtonnage
Stirring the lees in the barrel with a stick to make the wine softer.
Bâtonnage is the stirring of the lees in a barrel or tank to make the wine softer. The word comes from the French for "stick": in the past the lees were stirred with a stick lowered inside. Nowadays special tools or stirrers are sometimes used.
What is stirred? The wine lees, that is, dead yeast that settled at the bottom after fermentation. Left lying, they give the wine little. But when the lees are lifted and spread through the wine, they enrich the taste: the wine becomes rounder, creamier and fuller.
Bâtonnage is used most often for white wines, for example Chardonnay in Burgundy. It is done regularly, say once a week, over several months. It is important not to let air in: too much oxygen harms the wine.
Bâtonnage is closely tied to the lees: it is a way of working with them. It is used when a winemaker wants a wine of richer texture.
How it connects to Wine
🍷 Bâtonnage ← then ← 🍷 Lees → kind of → 🍷 Winemaking → kind of → 🍷 Wine
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Frequently asked questions
What is bâtonnage?
Stirring the lees in a barrel or tank to make the wine softer and fuller.
Which wines get bâtonnage?
Most often whites such as Chardonnay, and also some sparkling and red wines.
Where does the word bâtonnage come from?
From the French word for a stick, which was once used to stir the lees.