Banfi, Emiliana expanding U.S. offerings

PHOTOS BY WILLIAM M. DOWD


James W. Mariani is fond of analogies.

He likens his family's Banfi wines to writing, the basics available to anyone but the finest expressions of both created only through imagination and meticulous efforts.

He also likens the differences in those expressions to the differences in dance styles, comparing the impact of one bold wine to Gene Kelly's muscular style and the nuances of another to Fred Astaire's etheral moves.

If that sounds like a charming fellow who gives much thought to his craft and products, it is. Mariani, a New York-educated (Colgate and Cornell) Long Islander who is co-CEO of Castello Banfi with cousin Cristina Mariani-May, spends much of his time traveling from market to market to proselytize for their wines.

In the industry, of course, not a lot of proselytizing is necessary. Castello Banfi has been named "International Winery of the Year" an unprecedented four times at VinItaly's International Enological Concourse, which also named it "Italy's Best Wine Estate" 11 times since 1994.

I spoke with Mariani before a wine luncheon for the trade at Tuscan's Grill in Clifton Park last week.

"I'm as proud of our certifications as I am of our wines," Mariani said, displaying certificates attesting to Castelo Banfi's completion of rigorous international examinations in the areas of sustainable agriculture, environmental responsibility and, unique among wineries, social accountability.

The Mariani family can accurately use the word "unique" in a number of instances.

After living in Italy during his teen years, John Mariani Sr., born in Torrington, Conn., founded the company in New York in 1919 as a wine importer, just before Prohibition hit. He and his partners were able to maintain some income during those years by bottling and selling a 20-proof "laxative."

He named the company after an aunt, Teodolinda Banfi. She was the hospitality manager to the cardinal archbishop of Milan, Ambrogio Ratti, and, to the consternation of many clergy, maintained that position when he was elected Pope Piux XI, the "between the wars pope" who served from 1922 to 1939.

"She was the first woman given Vatican City citizenship," Mariani said, "and in 1938 was the first woman to be buried in the Vatican. She dealt with all the Pope's banquets, special events, and hosting dignitaries. My grandfather took his inspiration about food and wine and hospitality from what he learned from her while he was living in Italy."

When Mariani's sons, Harry and John, took over the company, they became the importer of Riunite Lambrusco, the top import to the U.S. market for a remarkable 26 years, thanks in great measure to a taste for Italian wines developed among GIs during World War II. But, they wanted to upgrade the quality of wine they thought would sell even better. Unable to interest Italian winemakers, they bought land in Tuscany, broke ground for their first plantings in 1978, and in 1984 dedicated the Castelo Banfi Estate.

Extensive research into various types of grapes and a planned reduction of the many clones to a core of three helped the company's development. It now is run by John and Cristina, although their fathers serve on the firm's advisory board.

The business has expanded to include Castello Banfi the castle, as well as at Castelo Banfi the brand. The castle, located on a hilltop in Montalcino, Tuscany, is used as an upscale hotel with restaurants and a glass museum, and the winery is nearby. The company's world headquarters, however, are located in a 60-room manor located on a 127-acre estate and vineyard in Old Brookville, Long island.

Castello Banfi's signature wines include the likes of single-vineyard reserve Poggio all'Oro and cru Poggio alle Mura Brunellos, three proprietary cuvees -- ExcelsuS, SummuS and Cum Laude, and single vineyard varietals Tevernelle Cabernet Sauvignon, Colvecchio Syrah and San Angelo Pinot Grigio. I particularly enjoy their Banfi Chianti Classico Riserva, a sangiovese-based, elegant oak-matured wine.

However, several wines new to the American market are quickly winning me over. Mariani is banking on both wines from Banfi and from the Mariani family's partnership with the Guilisasti family -- who have been involved with Concha y Toro -- in the Emiliana winery in Chile. Emiliana, like Banfi a very eco-conscious company, has been marketing wines to the U.S. under the Walnut Crest brand name but is expanding its line.

Although I enjoyed virtually everything tried at the lunch, I was particularly taken by one wine from each winery.

• 2001 Brunello de Montalcino DOCG: Any wine that can hold its ground with steak forno is a big, bold wine. This 100% sangiovese is such a beast. It is aged at least two years in wood, primarly French oak but also Slavonian oak, then further matured in the bottle for an additional 8-12 months before release. Deep garnet color, soft and velvety mouthfeel yet intense and alive with spice, stone fruit notes and a hint of licorice that melded with the spices, tomatoes and cheese in the bold steak dish.

• 2005 Emiliano Coyam: I am normally skeptical about any blend of more than four grapes. It takes a wonderful palate and a deft hand to make such a marriage work. Winemaker Alvaro Espinoza has both as shown by this blend of 45% syrah, 27% cabernet sauvignon, 14% merlot, 11% carmenere and 3% petit verdot. Both French and American oak is used to mature the wines ("coyam" means oak in the language of Chile's indigenous Mapuches people), The finished product looks syrupy with its bold color, but flows cleanly and wraps the tongue in a pleasant coverlet of fruit flavor, the wood nuances subtle. Coyam has been selling for three years in Europe and South America but is new to the U.S. market this year, at a suggested retail price of $30.

Go here for a full rundown on the Banfi and Emiliano wines samples at the luncheon.

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Newman's Own -- wine

What's missing from this shopping list?

Pasta, steak sauces, salad dressing, lemonade, salsa, lettuce mixes, spinach, carrots, pretzels, cookies, popcorn, candies, olive oil and vinegar, dried fruit, fair trade coffee and pet food.

If you guessed wine, you'd be in agreement with film star and entrepreneur Paul Newman whose Newman's Own line of food and drink items has donated more than $200 million to charity since its inception in 1982.

The Westport, CT-based company is adding wine to its product list with a December bottling of a California chardonnay and cabernet sauvignon in a partnership with the Rebel Wine Co. Rebel itself is a collaboration between Trinchero Family Estates, whose brands include Sutter Home, and Three Thieves, a company that buys grapes and finished wine to sell under its name.

"Wine was the only thing missing at dinner time. Now the meal is complete," Newman said in a statement issued by his company on Tuesday.

The wines will have a suggested retail price of $16.

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EU wine definition may not be too restrictive

Fears among some European fruit wine producers that the European Commission would side with those who wanted only grape wines to be called true wine can breathe a bit easier.

An EC diplomat has been telling journalists that ""The Commission will probably allow berries and apples to be included" in the definition.

And, Michael Mann, spokesman for European Union Agriculture Commissioner Mariann Fischer Boel (above), has been hinting that a deal could be made by year's end. Mann said at a news briefing, "We will do everthing we can to come to a compromise which is acceptable to everyone and is pragmatic. We are involved in a political negotiation so of course we listen to opinions from important wine-making countries."

Under Boel, the EC is attempting to make widespread changes in the EU's wine policy. Large cash incentives to dig up vines to help reduce Europe's "wine lake" surplus has been an ongoing device.

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A rosé by any name is contentious

Excerpted from Drinks International:

Arguments between winemakers over a new rosé wine brand in Provence have forced France's national fraud office to intervene.

Provence’s largest AOC union, Côtes de Provence, has accused local firm PGA Domaines of “stealing” the region’s name for its new Rosé de Provence wine. Rules prevent wine brands in France from using any part of an existing AOC name. The feud is the latest example of a power struggle between France’s wine appellations and a new wave of brands, as the sector battles to regain ground in foreign markets.

Quarrelling over the new PGA Domaines brand became so bad that French fraud police, more accustomed to handling high-level corruption cases, were called in to investigate the dispute earlier this year.

They have since sided with PGA Domaines, but lawyers for Côtes de Provence remain on standby to sue the group if France’s national appellation body, INAO, refuses to accept the Rosé de Provence brand.

James de Roany, head of PGA Domaines, told Drinks International: “If unfortunately INAO was not to agree on our brand, we will not stop using it.”

Surging rosé wine sales in the key UK market have heightened competitive tension in Provence, where 80 per cent of wine produced is rosé, according to union figures. De Roany said he would have no problem with other regional wineries printing "rosé de Provence" on their labels to simplify their offering for foreign consumers.

“We believe that Provence rosé wines are far too weak in export markets and that they are not profiting enough from the boom in this category of wines. Provence producers claim that they are the world leading rosé producers but this is not true if they only export 10% of their production.”

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EU subsidy cut plan assailed

The 270-nation European Union has been on an ambitious pace in recent times to change the face of the alcoholic spirits industry.

The latest flap is over an EU proposal to ban crystal sugar from European wines and end subsidies for concentrated grape juices, both of which are currently used to raise alcoholic content in wines unable dued to various agricultural conditions to rise to the needed level on their own.

The EU wine industry has been plagued by increasing competition from the U.S., Australia and South America along with its own overproduction causing lower retail prices. EU economists say sugar and subsidized juice, widely used particularly in northern Europe where cooler temperatures don't create as much sugar in the grapes, spur overproduction.

EU Farm Commissioner Mariann Fischer Boel says that if EU policies continue unchecked, excess wine production would reach 15% of output by 2010. Currently, the EU spends $700 million of its $1.9 billion wine budget to get rid of unwanted wine.

Not unexpectedly, opposition is strong in areas that would be most affected.

Friedlinde Gurr-Hirsch, state minister for Baden-Wuerttemberg in Germany, told Business Week magazine, "This is an important issue for us. ... Let me be honest: This is a very difficult area. Everyone has to share both the pain and the gain."

Luxembourg Farm Minister Fernand Boden, whose country has a healthy sugar-induced wine industry, has rejected the plan, telling the magazine, "We do not understand that the Commission relentlessly comes back to this when there is a clear majority of member states that have repeatedly spoken against this."

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Oregon relaxes wine naming rules

How would you like to be the first on your block to serve a genuine Oregon Pinot Grigio?

Impossible, you say? Oregon law requires that particular wine to be called a Pinot Gris, not Pinot Grigio.

Not anymore. The Oregon Liquor Control Commission has introduced something new to the state's burgeoning wine industry: reasonability.

Oregon had long had the nation's tightest strictures on what it could and could not name its wines. That has changed, bigtime.

Winemakers now will be allowed to name a wine in any of 11 styles if it contains at least 75% of the specific grape, such as Sangiovese, Zinfandel and Syrah, the same standard as in all other states. Oregion previously had required 90%.

Considering that Oregon growers have 65 different grape varieties, continuing to require 90% presence in 54 styles -- including Chardonnay, Riesling, Pinot Noir and Pinot Gris -- isn't a huge move, but it is a start.

For a look at Oregon's wine trails, just click here.

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Moselle Rieslings growing more popular in U.S.

The quality of American Rieslings, led by wineries in New York's Finger Lakes region, has been rising exponentially in recent years. Nevertheless, German winemakers in the Moselle River region (as seen here) report exports of their famoius Rieslings rose 21% in the year ending in July, fueled by rising demand from U.S. consumers.

About 43% of the region's wine output was sold outside Germany, with more than half going to the U.S. where sales rose 29% in the year through July. The bulk of the remaining exports go to Norway and the Netherlands.

"Americans prefer more and more expensive, high-quality Riesling,'' said Adolf Schmitt, Moselle Wine Growers Association president, at a press conference in Mertesdorf, Germany.

The Moselle region, in the southwestern part of the country, is one of 19 German wine regions.

Schmitt also said the quality of the 2007 vintage will be "superb.'' The grapes ripened about 130 days instead of the average 100 days due to favorable weather conditions in the Moselle area that differed from widespread negative weather in many parts of Europe.

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Wine sales up nearly 6% in Canada

Canada remains a "beer town," according to the latest statistical report on purchase of alcoholic beverages, but wine is the fastest-growing category.

Canadians bought 2.2 billion liters of beer, worth $8.4 billion, last year. They also purchased 378.7 million liters of wine, worth $4.6 billion, and 202.6 million liters of spirits, worth $4.3 billion, according to Statistics Canada.

While sales of beer and spirits in liquor stores were up 2.9% by volume from 2004-05, wine sales, including those by wineries themselves, were up 5.9%. Overall, sales of wine, beer and spirits hit the $17.3 billion mark.

A few other findings:

• Red wines accounted for 60% of wine sales. Three-quarters of reds and half of all whites were imports.

• Quebec consumers bought 35% of all wine, and 42% of the reds, sold in the nation.

• White wines outsold reds in Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick.

• Imported beer grew in popularity last year from 9.9% to 11.1%.

• Whiskies, including scotch and bourbon, accounted for nearly 30% of all spirits sales.

• Nearly 70% of spirits sold were Canadian products, although imported spirits rose 6.4%.

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'World's best' Riesling picked

If it's a 2006 Weingut Juliusspital Iphofer Julius-Echterberg Riesling Beernauslese, it's got to be good.

The German wine was named "World's Best Riesling" at the 8th annual Canberra International Riesling Challenge on Friday night. A record 482 entries from six countries made up the field.

The wine comes from the Franconian region, east of Frankfurt. Challenge Chairman Ken Helm described it this way:

“It's smooth and extremely elegant with a pleasant flavor that hangs around. You can still taste it five minutes later. It is in the middle range of sweetness and is very well-balanced in acid and flavor."

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Veritas competition doubles up on 44

Judges in this year's Veritas wine competition, the longest-running such event in South Africa for native wines, handed out 44 double gold medals to a field of mroe than 1,900 entries.

According to Veritas, wines are tasted blind by panels that consist of seven experts judging 10 wines at a time. The wines then are discussed and scores are awarded according to the international 20-point scale, with discussion and consensus.

A double-gold medal is awarded through a consensus decision by the panel if the wine scores 17 or more out of 20. Gold is awarded when a wine notches-up 17 points, a silver sticker will go on a bottle of wine if the wine scored 16 points, while bronze medals go to wines that scored 15 points

The double-gold winners:

• Anura Merlot Reserve 2004
• Klein Babylons Toren Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot 2004
• Badsberg Red Muscadel 2006
• Bellingham Sauvignon Blanc 2007
• Bellingham The Maverick Sauvignon Blanc 2005
• Boland Merlot Winemakers Selection 2005
• Bon Courage Hillside White Colombar/Chardonnay 2007
• Bon Courage Pinotage 2006
• Boplaas Tawny Port N/V
• Boplaas Vintage Port 2005
• Boschendal Reserve Collection Sauvignon Blanc 2007
• Buitenverwachting Cabernet Sauvignon 2003
• De Grendel Koetshuis Sauvignon Blanc 2007
• De Grendel Shiraz 2006
• Zonnebloem Ltd Edition Sauvignon Blanc 2007
• Fleur du Cap Unfiltered Merlot 2004
• Fort Simon Chenin Blanc 2006
• Glen Carlou Gravel Quarry Cabernet Sauvignon 2005
• Groote Post Shiraz 2004
• Hartenberg Cabernet Sauvignon 2005
• Dombeya Boulder Road Shiraz 2005
• The Auction Crossing Syrah/Viognier 2005
• Jordan Blanc Fumé 2006
• Kleine Zalze Cellar Selection Chenin Blanc Bush Vine (O/D) 2006
• Longridge Pinotage 2004
• Meerendal Chenin Blanc Natural Sweet 2006
• Monis Rooi Muskadel 2000
• Nederburg Edelkeur Private Bin Chenin Blanc NLH 2005
• Nederburg Private Bin R163 Cabernet Sauvignon 2004
• Lord Neethling Weisser Riesling NLH 2006
• Neil Ellis Pinotage 2006
• Nuy Wit Muskadel 2003
• Nuy Wit Muskadel 1998
• Alexanderfontein Sauvignon Blanc 2007
• Saronsberg Full Circle Shiraz 2005
• Saronsberg Shiraz 2005
• Seidelberg Roland's Reserve Merlot 2005
• Simonsig Redhill Pinotage 2005
• Spier Private Collection Chardonnay 2006
• Sejana Merlot 2005
• Sumaridge Chardonnay 2006
• Montagu Jeripiko Muscadel 2005
• Uitvlucht Montagu Rooi Muskadel 2005
• Wamakersvallei La Cave Pinotage 2006

Go here for the full competition results.

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60,000 bottles gone in Irish warehouse blaze

Story from the Western Mail newspaper, photo from the BBC:

Around 60,000 bottles of fine wine have been destroyed in a blaze which gutted a massive warehouse.

The sound of corks popping on vintages worth up to £350 each (US$716) could be clearly heard as firefighters fought in vain to save the merchant’s premises in Mullingar, County Westmeath, in the Irish Republic.

Paddy Keogh, owner of Wines Direct, said his warehouse was destroyed by the inferno as he prepared for his busiest time of the year.

“It’s like farming –- there’s a harvest season, and Christmas is our harvest season,” he said.

Thousands of wooden cases to protect the wines during shipping added to the intensity of the blaze, which took more than two hours to bring under control. No one was injured.

Mr Keogh said he could hear the sound of corks popping off his stock as he frantically tried to rescue computer records so he could continue in business.

“We were lucky we managed to rescue our computer equipment and our records that were on software,” he said. “We had good procedures in place that if something like this happened we could do that.”

Fortunately, about 90% of the business’s stock is kept in bond in Dublin and Mr Keogh assured his staff that they would not be losing their jobs over the fire.

“We’ve located a new warehouse overnight, we’re trying to get our phones re-directed, we’re trying to get our computer re-established and we’ll have stock down here tomorrow.”

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A new wine from an old bombshell

Joan Lucille Olander earned her first public acclaim at age 15 when she was named Miss Palm Springs.

She'll get her latest on Tuesday, Oct. 23, at the Fountaingrove Golf & Athletic Club in Santa Rosa, CA. That's when she'll launch her first, limited edition of collectible Mamietage wine bottles.

The younger generation(s) may not recognize Ms. Olander, but those of a certain age certainly will if you say the name "Mamie Van Doren." She was one of the Hollywood "Blonde Bombshells" of the 1950s and '60s along with Marilyn Monroe and Jayne Mansfield, although definitely the least of the group. Now, at age 77 and the lone survivor of the group, she's getting into the celebrity wine game along with the likes of Lorraine Bracco, Fess Parker, Francis Ford Coppola and Oliva Newton-John.

The wine labels on 1.5 liter bottles feature three images of Mamie. Two of the images are of Mamie today, and the third image is of Mamie at age 21. The labels feature nude poses of Mamie covered up by a top, clear peeloff label with strategically-placed stars. Peel the label away, and there she is.

The wine, a Bordeaux blend from Sonoma County's Armida Winery, is called Mamietage and is a limited production of 2,000 bottles of each image, individually numbered. The blend utilizes Cabernet sauvignon, petite verdot, syrah and malbec.

Van Doren, who has been married five times, was known for her sexual image rather than her acting chops during her Hollywood days. One of the memorable quotes attributed to her was this: ""I don't wear panties anymore. This startles the Hollywood wolves so much they don't know what to pull at, so they leave me alone."

She dated Howard Hughes and a string of actors and had roles of varying size in such motion pictures as "His Kind of Woman" (1951), "Yankee Pasha" (1954), "Untamed Youth" (1957), "Sex Kittens Go to College" and "Vice Squad"(1960), "Voyage to the Planet of Prehistoric Women" (1966) and other forgettable epics, winding up with only four bit-part appearances in the past 40 years, including 2002's "Slackers."



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Maryland winery gets in the spirit

When it comes to alcoholic beverages, Maryland is best known for beer.

True, a chunk of Kentucky's bourbon is shipped to facilities in Maryland for bottling, but beer and a bit of winemaking covers what is produced in the Free State. Until now.

Fiore Winery in Pylesville, Harford County, plans to make grappa and limoncello as well as a spirits-fortified wine.

After two decades of making a name for himself producing wine, owner Michael Fiore told the Baltimore Sun he sees a distillery as a way to expose Maryland wine aficionados to uncommon types of beverages.

"I want to do some new things to bring a little bit of Italy to Maryland," said Fiore, 63.

Fiore told the Sun he is employing a $12,000 copper still for small-scale testing before purchasing a larger system that would cost about $100,000, he said. He makes about 40,000 gallons, or 200,000 bottles, of wine per year, using grapes that he grows in his 13.5-acre vineyard.

Fiore said he plans to distill grappa, the brandy made from wine byproducts; limoncello, a lemon liqueur made from grappa and organic lemon peels, and port wine, a mix of wine and grappa. The grappa and port will cost about $30 a bottle, the limoncello slightly more.

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Rare wine find in England

Every so often someone finds a cache of forgotten wines that provide fuel for excited conversation. The latest is a 400-bottle collection of rare vintages dating to 1875, found in England.

Xenia Irwin (right), wine expert at the St. Austell Brewery in Cornwall, came upon the wines in a side room that hadn't been used in years. She says she thinks it was a collection amassed by previous directors over the decades.

Irwin tells the BBC the collection includes an 1875 cognac which may have belonged Walter Hicks, the brewery's founder. She also points out:

• A 1916 Chateau Rieussec: Bottled in World War I, very few war-time vintages would have left France.
• A 1950 Mouton Rothschild: One of only five Premier Cru Classe wines from Bordeaux.
• A 1953 Chateau Lafite Premier Cru Classe: One of France's top wines and a classic vintage.
• A 1961 Rauzan Segla: 1961 is renowned as one of the best vintages of the 20th century.

Irwin said she is confident that some of the wines had survived and would be drinkable.

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Drinkin' good in the neighborhood

Any idea which restaurant chain leads the industry in beverage alcohol sales?

A hint: Its name puts the emphasis on the food part of its service rather than on the drinks.

If you guessed Applebee's Neighborhood Grill & Bar, you get a gold star.

Applebee's 1,942 restaurants had total alcoholic beverage sales of $567,864,000 in 2006, accounting for an average of 12.5% of each guest check. That's according to the Technomic Top 500 Report, published in Cheers magazine.

The rest of the top 10:

(2.) T.G.I. Friday's, $499,380,000.
(3.) Chili's Bar & Grill, $475,116,000.
(4.) Outback Steakhouse, $327,375,000.
(5.) Buffalo Wild Wings Grill & Bar, $252,024,000.
(6.) Olive Garden, $233,177,000.
(7.) Red Lobster, $210,103,000.
(8.) Hooters, $205,875,000.
(9.) The Cheesecake Factory, $167,310,000.
(10.) Ruby Tuesday, $157,950000.

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Niagara Wine Trail booming

New York State's wine industry keeps expanding -- now topping the 240 mark, and no other region seems to be doing it any faster than Niagara County, home of the Niagara Wine Trail.

Schulze Vineyards and Winery in the town of Burt opened Sunday. Leonard Oakes Estate is scheduled to open in November. And Arrowhead Springs Vineyards is targeted for a February opening.

The Niagara Wine Trail started in Cambria as a two-winery organization in 2002 and already has grown to include 10. State lawmakers have approved splitting the trail into east and west branches.

Go to Dowd's Guide to American Wine Trails for links to other wine trails in New York and around the nation.

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Wine bar chain takes wings

Bars and beer pubs are commonplace in airports. Now, wine bars are vying for flyers' dollars.

Vino Volo, a true wine bar, opened this week at American Airlines' new terminal 8 at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York. Selections are available by the glass or by themed flights, along with a menu of 14 small plates.

The establishment is the fifth in a chain of airport wine bars owned by a San Francisco company that is aiming for 50 establishments over the next several years. Its first opened in 2005 at Dulles International Airport in Washington, DC. That was followed by Seattle-Tacoma, Baltimore-Washington and Sacramento airports.

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Microsoft goes into microwine biz

Just when you thought Microsoft had thought of everything in its quest for world domination, a new angle has been found.

Try Blue Monster Reserve wine. Created by the South African winery Stormhoek for Microsoft and its employees, the label will not be commercially available -- at least at first. It is being referred to as a "social object" for geek dinners and people inside the Microsoft ecosystem.

According to the winery's Web site, it and Microsoft "are still working on the final details of how we’re going to get the wine to people who want it."

Right now that means the people who belong to the “Friends of Blue Monster” Facebook group rather than all the 79,000 MS employees in 102 countries.

As the folks at Stormhoek note, "Own-label wine and personalised bottles have become increasingly popular in the corporate world, particularly among investment banks, as gifts to clients and offered to guests of corporate events. The companies hope the corporate vintages will add an air of class and sophistication to their image."

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A young champion from South Africa

If you crave something new to amaze and amuse your friends, the recent South Africa National Young Wine Show (SANYWS) results might offer some helpful suggestions.

The annual event gives SA wineries a chance to showcase their most recent vintages prior to blending and bottling. Thus, winners often are subsumed in blends. However, one of this year's major winners caught my eye because it will be released in its winning state later this year.

Graham Beck Wines’ 2007 Pheasants’ Run Sauvignon Blanc won the prestigious John McDonald Trophy for the Best Sauvignon Blanc.

The victory is no fluke. Beck winemaker Erika Obermeyer (left) won the same tropy for her 2005 vintage at that year's SDANYWS as well as double golds at the 2005 Michelangelo International Wine Awards and Veritas Awards. She twice has been a finalist at the SA Woman Wine Maker of the Year Awards, in 2005 and 2006, with the Graham Beck Wines’ Pheasants’ Run.

According to the winery, "Earlier vintages of this wine were made from grapes grown at a high-quality vineyard in Durbanville, from which the name Pheasants’ Run is derived (the original farm’s name is Fisante Kraal, the Afrikaans phrase for ‘The Gathering of the Pheasants’). The 2007 vintage, however, was made from grapes sourced at Graham Beck Wines’ best coastal vineyard in Firgrove, near Stellenbosch as well as Durbanville and Darling vineyards."

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French wine scandal in the making

There's a scandal percolating in the French wine industry, if a consumer rights group is on target.

According to France's UFC-Que Choisir, one in three of all wines marketed under France's regional appellation system -- from Bordeaux to Cahors, Saint-Emilion or Sancerre -- do not deserve the label.

The French classification system recognizes wines from 470 regions as an "appellation d'origine controlee" (AOC). The system, based on the notion of "terroir" according to which wine-growing areas have specific characters, is being enforced poorly, the consumer group charged on Monday.

"For a number of years, we've seen a steady fall in quality in a number of AOCs, which has completely undermined consumer confidence," Alain Bazot, the association's head, told a news conference.

UFC said one-third of AOC bottles are of sub-standard quality or insufficiently linked to the region. It questioned the impartiality of the AOC award panels made up of local wine professionals. This is particularly troublesome since AOC wines account for 44% of all French wine production.

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Beaujolais Nouveau will be more mature

PHOTO BY WILLIAM M. DOWD

Attention Beaujolais Nouveau revelers. Your infant wine will be a bit older this year.

The earlier harvesting of grapes in many parts of Europe, caused by unseasonable weather, is having a variety of effects on winemaking. In the case of Beaujolais Nouveau, the usual harvest begins around the start September. This year it already has begun, two weeks earlier. That, however, isn't expected to change the release date of the nouveau, traditionally the third Thursday of November -- the 15th, this year. That also is a time many fundraisers using the new wine are held around the world.

"It's the fifth time in my life that we have seen such a phenomenon. It's a bit exceptional," said Georges Duboeuf, head of one of the Burgundy region's biggest vineyards. He said the previous years were 1947, 1976, 2000 and 2003.

Duboef said the earlier harvest won't affect the quality of the new wine.

"For Beaujolais Nouveau, like many wines, if it's good at the start, it will be good at the end. It's not because the harvest is earlier that the wine will be more rounded or structured, or the taste will be different," he said. "Each vintage has its own characteristics."

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Europe may be forced to rethink its grapes

Many European grape growers are concerned that the strong possibility of an early harvest is looming.

Italy, which stretches into a number of growing seasons because of its length, may be the most affected. Grapes in some areas, such as around Rome, are ripening three weeks ahead of schedule. Other regions that normally harvest grapes in October are finding the fruit ready now.

The situation is being blamed on two separate heat waves that broke records across southeastern Europe in June and July.

Attilio Scienza, a professor of horticulture at the University of Milan with an expertise in vineyards, spoke with the Chicago Tribune about his advice on how to experiment with new varieties of grapes and his reluctance to blame the situation on global warming.

"There are records of early harvest across history," Scienza said, and those early harvests can have some effect on how growers look at the next season. If the pattern continues, he said, "this will likely change the variety of grapes in Europe. Growers will have to find grapes that fit the weather cycle."

However, the Italian Trade Commission's Web site isn't at all reticent about placing the blame.

"Unfortunately," it says, "early harvests are becoming progressively more common due to erratic weather patterns and rising temperatures caused by global warming.

"In Italy, the 2007 harvest comes even earlier than the record 2003 harvest. It is quite extraordinary to have two harvests like this in a short four-year span. 2007 weather patterns have been extreme across the continents with violent storms in Asia, exceptional flooding in England and extremely high temperatures in Europe this summer.

"Grapes were garnered a month early in many areas as the sweltering heat caused them to rapidly ripen. For example, Sicilian grape growers are now hastening to contract seasonal workers as their grapes now must be picked in early September instead of October. The grapes of the Northern sparkling wine regions of Veneto and Trentino also have been harvested approximately three weeks ahead of schedule."

In Hungary, Bulgaria and the Czech Republic, the same problem is taking place. In Slovenia, where wine exports have been steadily rising, the harvesting already has begun.

The head of Goriska Brda, the nation's farm advisory service, said the western region that ranks as the nation's leading wine grape area, will begin the harvest at the end of next week with Chardonnay, White Pinot and Sivi Pinot.

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Dr. Melfi's latest case, of wine

Celebrity-owned wines are commonplace. Think director Francis Ford Coppola, actor Fess Parker, musician Jerry Garcia, golfer Greg Norman, singer Olivia Newton-John and so forth.

And whatever you do, don't ignore Lorraine Bracco. On Sunday on Long Island, NY, she will unveil her ninth Bracco Wines label, this one called Rosato. It's a new rosé from Salento, Italy.

Bracco, whose film and TV career was most recently highlighted by her role as psychiatrist Dr. Janet Melfi on "The Sopranos," lives in Bridgehampton, Long Island.

Rosato is described as a medium-bodied rose made from the Negroamaro grape grown in vineyards located along the Adriatic and Ionian seas."

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Sippy box Bordeaux a big gamble

Boxed wine is nothing new on the American market, and many European countries are selling it as well. The thing is, most such wines are run-of-the-mill. Would they sell even better if they came from a high-level French producer?

Cordier Mestrezat Grands Crus (above), an upscale Bordeaux house for more than 100 years, is hoping that will be the case with its new offering, called Tandem. It's quite a departure from Cordier's top-shelf wines which can go for four figures.

Tandem is packaged in an 8.5-ounce carton containing red, white or rosé wines. Each carton has a straw with four holes, which is supposed to spray the wine into the consumer's mouth and, thus, mimic the sensation to drinking from a glass.

The winemaker is test marketing Tandem in 600 supermarkets in Belgium at $2.50 a carton. It will go on sale in France next year and abroad as well.

Cordier officials says they are trying to attract younger consumers in a market that is seeing a dropoff in sales of French wine in favor of American and South American imports and, indeed, a dropoff in wine sales in general as spirits gains market share.

"It is a product that can sell in stadiums, hotels and airlines," Vincent Bonhur, Cordier's head of marketing, said in a press release. "In France, the wine market is still very traditional, but in markets such as Canada, the U.K. and Northern Europe, this new format should be a hit."

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Washington wine groups split

For those who keep up with such things, Washington state's two wine agencies have split.

The Washington Wine Institute is breaking off from the Washington Wine Commission.

The Commission is a state agency responsible for promotion and development of the state's wine industry. It receives funding through fees levied on growers and producers. The Institute is a nonprofit formed in 1984, three years before the commission, to advocate on regulatory and legislative issues affecting the wine industry. Its members are mostly wine producers, but also include wine grape growers and wine associations.

The Commission will remain headquartered in Seattle and the Institute will move to Olympia to focus on its advocacy efforts.

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Upstarts top the New York field

PHOTOS BY WILLIAM M. DOWD
(Double-click to enlarge images)

Judges Rene Chazottes (left) of Newport Beach, CA, and Mike Dunne of Sacramento, CA.
NAPA, CA -- For the second time in five years, the 22nd annual New York Wine & Food Classic headed west to spread the gospel of Empire State wines.

Following its 2003 debut here at Copia: The American Center for Wine, Food & The Arts, the New York event returned for its annual competition for New York-only wines. Nearly 800 entries were judged by 24 experts from California (10), New York (6, including yours truly) and other states (6) as well as one each from Canada and the United Kingdom.

Rather than the usual suspects -- Herman J. Weimer or Konstantine Frank -- emerging on top, two relatively unknown entries took the top awards.

The Thirsty Owl Wine Co. from the Finger Lakes region won the Governor's Cup as best of show while winery of the year went to the Red Barn Winery of Central New York.

Thirsty Owl won with its 2006 Dry Riesling, the flagship wine of the Finger Lakes. En route to the Governor's Cup, the wine also was voted Best White and Best Dry Riesling. Thirsty Owl, one of the region's newest wineries, is located on Cayuga Lake on a tract of land that was part of a post-Revolutionary War grant awarded to Sgt. Florence Marony for his courageous service. The company was founded in 2002 by Jonathan Cupp.

Red Barn Winery is located in North Syracuse. It received a double gold (unanimous pick of the panel), two golds, one silver and two bronzes en route to its overall win.

"We maintain that many New York wines are now world-class in quality," said Jim Trezise, president of the New York Wine & Grape Foundation which sponsors and runs the competition. "The fact that we held this New York-only competition in Napa, and have three-fourths of all judges from places other than New York,, confirms our confidence in that belief. these are all very qualified judges, so we let the wines speak for themselves."

The event is organized by Teresa Knapp of the NYW&GF, and is open to all 239 New York wineries.














Peter Marks, senior director of wine and food at COPIA, and one of the judges.

The winners in each category of the competition:

• Sparkling Wine: Swedish Hill Vineyards NV Spumante Blush.

• White Wine: Thirsty Owl Wine Co. 2006 Dry Riesling.

• Blush Wine: Barrington Cellars 2006 Buzzard's Blush.

• Red Wine: Pindar Vineyards 2005 Cabernet Franc.

• Dessert Wine: Mazza Chautauqua Cellars 2005 Ice Wine of Vidal Blanc.

• Specialty Wine: Red Barn Winery 2006 Raspberry Wine.

The best-of-class winners:

• Vinifera Sparkling: Osprey's DFominion Vineyards 2002 Rose de Noir.

• Other Sparkling: Swedish Hill Vineyards NV Spumante Blush.

• Dry Riesling: Thirsty Owl Wine Co. 2006 Dry Riesling.

• Semi-Dry Riesling: Rivendell Winery 2006 Soho Cellars Johannisberg Riesling.

• Oaked Chardonnay: econic Bay Winery 2005 La Barrique Chardonnay.

• Unoaked Chardonay: Cayuga Ridge Estate Winery 2006 Chardonnay.

• Pinot Gris: Hunt Country Vineyards 2006 Pinot Gris.

• Pinot Blanc: Glenora Wine Cellars 2006 Pinot Blanc.

• Gewurztraminer: Standing Stone Vineyard 2006 Gewurztraminer.

• Hybrid White Blend: Bloomer Creek Vineyards 2006 Reserve White.

• Vignoles: Anthony Road Wine Co. 2006 Vignoles.

• Vidal Blanc: Long Point Winery 2006 Vidal Blanc.

• Cayuga White: McGregor Vineyard Winery 2006 Cayuga White.

• Other White: Penguin Bay Winery 2006 Valvin Muscat.

• Other Blush: Barrington cellars 2006 Buzzard's Blush.

• Catawba: Hazlitt 1852 Vineyards Cabin Fever.

• Pinot Noir: Six Mile Creek Vineyard 2005 Pinot Noir.

• Cabernet Franc: Pinda Vineyards 2005 Cabernet Franc.

• Merlot: Bedell Cellars 2005 Merlot.

• Vinifera Red Blend: Osprey's Dominion Vineyards 2002 Flight Meritage.

• Native Red Blend: Fox Run Vineyards NV Fox Trot Red.

• Late Harvest: Swedish Hill Vineyards 2005 Late Harvest Vignoles.

• Ice Wine: Mazza Chautaqua Cellars 2005 Ice Wine of Vidal Blanc.

• Port: Red Barn Winery 2005 Pauley's Port.

• Mead: Torrey Ridge Scarlet Red.

• Fruit Wine: Red Barn Winery 2006 Raspberry Wine.






Linda Lawry (left) of New York City and Ann Miller of Rolla, MO, are intent on their judging.

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Missouri '07 vintage will be very special

Psst. Want to buy a one-of-a-kind wine, cheap? Think Missouri.

In a year in which grape industry experts on both the east and west coasts are forecasting bumper crops, Missouri is facing a year without precedent.

A prolonged warm period in late winter coaxed grapes to grow too soon, only to be hit with a prolonged cold snap. That left Missouri and its 72 wineries -- double the number of just a decade ago -- in a precarious financial position,

While late-opening buds such as Norton and Vignoles survived the freeze to some extent and can provide a Missouri base for the '07 vintage, the Chardonel, Concord, Catawba and Cayuga White grapes were devastated and such varieties as Chambourcin, Seyval and Vidal are in scarce supply.

So, why would this misfortune lead to a special status for '07 wines? Glad you asked.

With 95% of the wine grape crop destroyed, Missouri will have to take extraordinary measures to keep its little industry afloat. I discussed the possibilities with Ann Miller, a consultant for the Missouri Wine & Grape Board and a veteran wine judge, while we were in Napa, Calif., last week doing a competition judging together.

"We're going to find a lot of the regulations changed for this year,'' she said. "The rules on buying and using grapes from out of state are going to have to be modified just to get any sort of 2007 vintage in the bottle and out to market.

"I don't know what the final decision will be on what we'll have to say on the labels -- probably something to show this was an unusual year and the grapes came from outside the state -- but I suppose it will have to be made very clear.''

Whatever the outcome, any Missouri wine bearing a 2007 vintage on the label will be a unique product, in the truest sense of the word. And, considering that most Missouri wines are under $25 anyway, whatever you invest in one will buy you a very special product at a very reasonable price.

The crop disaster is a particular shame since Missouri wines were beginning to come up big in top-flight competitions and in the right publications. If you plan to go online to check out potential Missouri wine purchases, consider the following recent happenings.

Golf Connoisseur Magazine selected Stone Hill Winery's Norton -- rich with black currant flavor -- as one of its "Delectable Dozen,'' 12 wines it deems excellent value.

St. James Winery won the 2007 Spiegelau Gold Medal Champion award from the Tasters Guild International wine competition for earning more double gold and gold medal points than any other winery in the competition. At the Riverside (CA) International, St. James earned unanimous golds for its Country White and '05 Late Harvest Chardonel plus single golds for its Sparkling Blush, Chardonel Port, Strawberry and Blackberry won gold. Silver went to Augusta Winery '06 Seyval, '04 Norton, '06 Chambourcin, Mt. Pleasant '05 Claret, St. James '03 Norton, '05 Chardonel, '06 Vintner's Select Vignoles, Country
Red, Velvet White, Riesling and Friendship School White.

At the Finger Lakes (NY) International Wine Competition, Crown Valley Winery '05 Sweet Riesling and St. James Winery Strawberry earned gold while silver went to Cave Vineyard '05 Chardonel, Stone Hill Winery '05 Chardonel, and '04 Port, Oak Glenn Vidal Blanc, Les Bourgeois '05 LaBelle, Crown Valley '04 Meritage, Mt. Pleasant '01 Vintage Port and St. James Winery Country White, Velvet White, '05 Vintner's Select Vignoles, Muscatto, Riesling and Velvet Red.

At the San Diego Wine Competition, Stone Hill Winery Golden Spumante won best in class and won golds for its '05 Vignoles and '04 Norton. St. James Winery Pink Catawba also won a gold.

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Home winemaker's dream

If you've ever wanted to make wine but didn't want to use up precious basement space, you'll envy folks within reach of a full-service make-your-own facility in New Jersey.

The Home News Tribune has a fascinating story about The Grape Escape, a wine school that operates from a 5,000-square-foot warehouse, offering "a hands-on approach through the entire process — from the crushing of grapes, which are shipped in, to bottling."

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NY wine judging shipped to Napa again

For the second time, the New York Wine & Food Classic which decides the best wines made in the Empire State will be held in California.

Judges will begin arriving from across the U.S. and U.K. on Monday for the two-day event being hosted Aug. 7-8 at COPIA: The American Center for Wine, Food & The Arts, located in Napa. The same site was used for the competition in 2003.

The idea behind holding the judging of New York wines somewhere other than in New York State was to expose more labels to West Coast judges, sommeliers and wine writers, according to the New York Wine & Grape Foundation which conducts the event.

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Bordeaux 'garage winery' movement hits Napa

ARTIST'S RENDERING

Ready for the California version of "Les Garagistes"?

Most people probably don't know because they don't know the French term. To explain, the term was coined in the 1970s by Belgians Marcel and Gerard Thienpont who purchased land in Bordeaux and established Chateau Le Pin, the concept of "garage wines."

The movement, which allows smalltime winemakers to work in boutique settings at affordable prices, grew in the early '90s when St. Emilion's Chateau de Valandraud was created in Bordeaux.

Now, a self-contained "artisinal village" of 12 spaces custom built for limited-production wineries has been created in Napa Valley's American Canyon. It will offer spaces ranging from 3,500 to 6,500 square feet, located in four buildings surrounding a 16,000-square-foot courtyard. The complex is projected to open by August 2009.

Founders John Hawkins and Tony Cartlidge explain their idea this way:

"The garagiste winemaker, intimately involved in every step of the process, is practically bound to make a wine which reflects his or her personality, just as a painting reflects the personality of the painter. It can be wine made to your own standards, with passion coming before profit."

In other words, it is "for winemakers and owners of limited production, high quality wine brands who are dedicated to their craft and wish to affordably assume more control over winemaking and promotional activities."

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Ranch Winery big on storage

Sometimes you have to do more than just make wine to succeed in the wine business.

Take Joel Gott (right). He had entered into a partnership with Trinchero to produce his Three Thieves wines, then wound up heading a group that purchased the Trinchero family's Chicken Ranch Zinfandel Road winery in St. Helena, CA.

That led to creation of The Ranch Winery, a new custom crush facility under development. Its first stage is a 33,000 square-foot barrel-storage room Gott sees as helping meet "a big need for barrel storage in Napa Valley."

He plans to be one of his own major customers, storing Joel Gott Wines, in the open room that can hold 10,000 to 15,000 barrels. The company plans to build a second, similar storage area as demand grows.

The storage room and the other plans for the huge facility are being supervised by Mark Beringer, The Ranch's general manager and head of winemaking operations, and formerly winemaker at Duckhorn Vineyards.

The Ranch eventually will occupy a 120,000 square-foot casegoods storage facility. Gott is leasing part of the operation back to the Trincheros.

According to Wines & Vines magazine:

"Gott is providing plenty of capacity for small start-ups, though he also expects to serve existing wineries and handle overflow from big wineries, too. Many of them have to process grapes out of county because of lack of capacity in Napa Valley. ... The Ranch is now installing 22 fermenters ranging from one to five tons in size, and expects to crush 500 tons there this year. There are plans to have 60 small fermenters and crush 2,000 tons in 2008, 5,000 in 2009, then 20,000 tons -- 1 million gallons -- in 2010. After that, the partners take over the whole facility, which has six million gallons of bulk storage and one million in fermentation tanks, as well as the presses and other equipment needed for this volume."

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Letters: Is my '85 Bourgogne Pinot worth anything?

Dear William:

I was wondering if you could tell me a little about the following wine that I have had laying around for some time. All the information on the bottle is as follows:

1985 Produit de France
Bourgogne Pinot
Appellation Bourgogne Pinot Controlee
Mis en bouteille par
Picard Pere & Fils
Chagny (s.-&-l.)

As you can see it is a little old. What do you think? Is it worth holding on to, or is it worth nothing? Any advice greatly received. Many thanks.

-- Adam Sutton

Dear Adam:

Your question sent me on a merry chase. Tracking down much information on a 22-year-old wine is spotty at best, given the explosion in available wines over the past two decades and how fast wine merchants shuffle their stock and get on to the Next Great Thing.

I can tell you unequivocally that Picard Pere & Fils is a respected Burgundian wine house, and the Bourgogne Pinots of this century have been generally of good quality. But I have my doubts about anything that has been around this long unless it was stored in perfect conditions as far as temperature and light are concerned.

Why? Well, the pinot noir grape is genetically unstable and susceptible to just about every vine disease that comes along. That sometimes affects its storability even if the wine is OK when young. Color retention is a problem as well.

You may very well have a gem on your hands, but the only way to really know is to open it and try it. Then, of course, you are left with an open bottle of wine and no particular value except for the taste of the moment. If you want to learn more about the fussy grape, I suggest checking in here with the Professional Friends of Wine.

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Wisconsin wants to tangle wine sales

While some states are untangling their cobweb of wine sales rules, Wisconsin may be going the other way.

A proposal slipped into the state budget document this week would require all wineries to go through a distributor when selling wine. That would effectively prohibit wineries from shipping directly to stores and virtually end direct mailing of wine to residences. It also might prevent wineries from selling their own products on their premises.

The proposal comes in response to a 2005 U.S. Supreme Court decision that all wineries should be on a level playing field, but some area wineries say the proposal will end up doing more harm than good.

The budget, along with the proposed wine law, was passed Tuesday in the Wisconsin State Senate. The Assembly version of the bill is scheduled to come up for a vote next week.

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Draining Europe's 'wine lake' a desperate idea

Sometimes widespread panic can last more than just a moment. In Europe, it seemingly is becoming a way of life for the alcoholic beverage industry.

Member nations of the European Union have been working themselves into a lather trying to redefine and re-regulate everything from niche products to entire swaths of the industry, such as Scotch whisky and wine. A September vote on a whole package of changes is scheduled by the European Parliament, which is creating enough tension as it is without the latest proposal.

The EP, headquartered in Brussels, Belgium, has proposed the destruction of hundreds of thousands of acres of European vineyards in an attempt to drain the "wine lake" and reconquer markets lost to non-European competitors such as the U.S., South America and Australia.

The European Union's annual "wine lake" of unsold wines is equivalent to about 1.7 billion standard-size bottles. The Parliament is proposing to pay producers of unsaleable wines to tear up their vines and, beginning in 2013, lift individual nations' restrictions to encourage wine-grape growers to shift to types of wine more in demand from consumers.

Part of the EU budget for supporting the wine industry would be shifted to a campaign to promote European wines on the international market. The distillation of surplus wine into industrial alcohol or disinfectants -- which costs about $680 million a year -- would end in 2009.

Mariann Fischer Boel, the European commissioner for agriculture and rural development, said the proposal would "boost competition, drain the infamous wine lakes and make things more simple. ... Until now we have been spending in an inefficient and indefensible way."

Some wine producers' organizations in France and elsewhere object to the plan, labeling it a "betrayal" of traditional European winemaking traditions to market forces and "ultra-capitalism."

According to the UK newspaper The Independent, "Much of the French, Spanish and Italian wine industry is already willing, in some cases eager, to take this approach. But there are fierce divisions between, and even within, wine-growing regions. The ban on the sugaring of wine would, for example, be very popular with southern French growers and disastrous for producers of cheaper red wine in Bordeaux.

"How much, and when, the EU plan would affect wine drinkers is unclear. The proposals will be fiercely opposed by some governments in the EU council of ministers. Much will finally depend on decisions still to be taken at national and regional level on the future of wine-making in Europe."

Despite a falloff in consumer demand in France, Italy and elsewhere, particularly among younger people, Europeans drink 60% of the world's wine. France, Italy and Spain are the EU's and the world's top producers by volume, but Europeans increasingly are drinking wine from beyond the EU. In 2005, the last year for which comp;ete figures are available, exports just barely outpaced imports.

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