Let the Harvesting and Festivals Begin!

As I sit at my desk writing, I hear the whirr of a helicopter overhead, in response to the latest breaking news story in Los Angeles. This harkens back to my early days in LA, when the choppers raced up the 405 Freeway in hot pursuit of the white Ford Bronco driven by OJ Simpson; which reminds me of the cross-country trip I took to get from NYC to the land called “California,” where an El Niño storm system seemed to be washing the entire city out to sea. Ah, good old California, where the drama is high … and the weather is perfect.

And now, as the end of summer is upon us, and the days are getting shorter, and the kids are getting ready to leave for college, the harvesting of the wine grapes has begun.  And just as importantly, so have the wine festivals!

Based on some discussions I’ve had with vintners recently, the year 2013 is showing signs of being a very good year for grapes in California, with crops being harvested approximately 2-3 weeks earlier than last year.  And yields are looking good too, which is excellent news in lieu of the horrific news out of France, where up to 90% of the crop in some regions was destroyed by summer hail storms.

The huge State of California is a land of varied and perfect microclimates for grape growing, and the boom in the wine industry over the last few decades has been a huge boost to the state’s economy. Per the Wine Institute (www.wineinstitute.org), California has 3,800 bonded wineries, responsible for more than 90% of all wine production in the United States, with a retail value amounting to a whopping $22 billion in 2012. In terms of yields, which are measured in hectoliters (hl) per hectare – where 1 hl is approximately equal to 133 bottles of wine – the US is the world’s fourth largest wine producer, behind France, Italy, and Spain, with yields close to 21 million hl. That’s a lot of wine, and the majority of it is made in the Golden State.

Living in Southern California, I feel lucky to be so close to some of the most spectacular wine country in the world, whose beauty rivals that of Old World wine regions in Italy and France (which are not too shabby, either). I try to get up to California wine country regularly, and wine festivals are now a big part of my life. The one event I never miss is The Garagiste Festival (www.pasogaragiste.com) in Paso Robles, held at the glorious Windfall Farms, a 724-acre thoroughbred breeding farm (formerly owned by Jeopardy’s Alex Trebek). This year’s festival, the third, runs November 7-10.

Garagiste (pronounced “gar-uh-zhē-stuh”) is defined by Collins Dictionary (www.collinsdictionary.com) as “a small-scale entrepreneurial wine-maker, originally from the Bordeaux region of France, especially one who does not adhere to the traditions of wine-making.” The Paso Robles and Santa Ynez regions (as well as many other areas of the world) are chock full of entrepreneurial garagistes, artisanal wine makers who are producing bold wines that in some cases defy traditional, old-world winemaking, typically being fruit forward and higher in alcohol and residual sugar. 

The Garagiste Festival focuses on wineries producing fewer than 1,200 cases per year – quite small when compared with larger wineries like Kendall-Jackson (www.kj.com) that produce upwards of 5 million cases annually. “The fact that [the garagistes] are producing in such small quantities means that they are very hands on and paying very close attention to what they’re making,” says Doug Minnick, co-founder with Stewart McLennan of the festival.  And this attention “shows in the product,” he adds.

Minnick says that virtually every winery at the event has the actual wine maker or owner or both pouring their wines, not their tasting room employees, so talking with these artisanal winemakers is one of the biggest treats of the festival. Their stories of how they came to make wines are each unique and inspiring. Their passion is contagious … and their wines are delicious.

The Garagiste Festival last year attracted wine lovers – who tend to be more knowledgeable than average wine festival attendees, per Minnick  –  from  as far as Australia, and from about 18 different states. As Minnick says, and I agree, “There’s nothing else like this festival out there.”

Another positive aspect of the The Garagiste Festival is that its proceeds go to support young winemakers at the Wine and Viticulture Program at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. 

Go to www.pasogaragiste.com for ticket information. I hope to see you there.

Until next time, cheers!

Wines Are Not Always Vegan Friendly

Egg whites may be used to "fine" wine.

In looking into organic wines last week, I was reminded of something else that’s relevant to a large group of wine drinkers – vegetarians and vegans. While not fitting into either category myself – I love a good steak here and there – I don’t often think about the peripheral products used to make the wines I drink, but to many of my vegetarian and vegan friends, as well as those with certain food allergies, knowing this can be enlightening. If you’re not informed about how wine is processed, you may not even know that wineries often use animal-based products during vinification.

The primary use of these products, and I’ll list them shortly, is as “fining agents.” Fining is the process by which tiny, sometimes microscopic particles are removed from the wine to make it, for instance, less harsh to the taste or hazy or cloudy in appearance. Fining should not be confused with “filtering,” which removes larger particles like excess yeast at the end of the fermentation process, just before bottling.

Fining usually takes place earlier in the process, and helps speed up what would eventually happen naturally. The microscopic particles that fining removes are comprised of things like tannins and proteins (called unstable colloids). When fining agents are added to the wine, they clump together with the colloids and drop to the bottom of the vessel, where they form a sediment that the winemaker can easily remove.

Generally, white wines are fined to preserve their lighter color and to prevent cloudiness in the wine; red wines are fined to reduce their astringency and the bitterness of tannins, which come from the skin and stems of the grapes.

Because fining can stabilize wines, it is almost universally practiced, however, some makers of fine (in this case meaning “better”) wines do not, believing that it can interfere with the flavor of their wine.

Some of the organic fining agents that may be used are:

Gelatin: This is the same gelatin found in products like jelly and Jell-O, and it comes from beef bones. Small amounts of it remain in the wine after fining (although some would argue that no trace is left).

Isinglass: This is a protein obtained from the bladders of sturgeon and other freshwater fish, and which has been used for centuries to fine wine.

Egg whites: The albumin in the egg whites creates an effective filter, particularly for red wines, where it absorbs harsh and bitter tannins.

Casein: A milk protein, this fining agent is principally used to remove the brown color from white wines.

Blood Powder: Historically, dried bull’s or other bovine blood was used to filter wine. This is rarely if ever used in current-day winemaking.

More and more winemakers are aware of and sensitive to the growing ranks of vegans, vegetarians, and allergic wine drinkers, so they use a variety of inorganic fining agents. Various kinds of clay are used, including bentonite (the most used and most effective), silica, and kaolin. Other possible fining agents are charcoal (to remove brown and other off-colors) and potassium ferroocyanide (to remove copper and iron).

Be aware that wine labels in the US and Europe do not require the listing of fining agents that are considered allergic substances, such as egg whites, but wines made in Australia and New Zealand do require it.

If in doubt when buying wine, talk to your wine merchant, who should be able to steer you toward wines that are good for you. Or, do your own research. Many of the details of the winemaking process are available on winemakers’ Web sites. And, finally, if ever in doubt, contact the winery directly. They’re a friendly lot, in my experience, and will give it to you straight.

Until next time, cheers!

Organic Wines: Lose the Headache

Living and working in New York City in the 1980s, my girlfriends and I often took weekends “upstate” to escape the hustle and bustle of big city life. On one such weekend, we decided to explore the Finger Lakes Wine District. Not really known as a major wine region, New York State nonetheless offered some spectacular vineyard scenery, and we were intrigued. What we discovered on this memorable trip was something quite wonderful.

You see, we “discovered” organic wines, at a vineyard called Four Chimneys. Yes, we thought we were the first ever to taste and get somewhat drunk on organically grown wine. And, to our great amazement, we did not experience the day-after hangover that normally accompanies the consumption of several bottles of wine. We, of course, attributed it to the wine’s “organic” state, with its lack of pesticides and other horrible additives. Were we on to something?

Four Chimneys (www.fourchimneysorganicwines.com) is still in existence and per its Web site claims to be the first organic winery in North America, having produced their premiere vintage in 1980. They further state that “nothing toxic or synthetic goes into the growing of our grapes or the making of our wines.” They also use lower levels of natural sulfites than many conventional wines, and do not use sorbate compounds or other preservatives, all of which they state can cause headaches. 

Is this why my friends and I didn’t get hangovers after our visit there in the 80s? 

I had this in mind last week as I began my semi-annual 30-day vegan cleanse, where I attempt to rid my body of the toxins built up from food and the environment. The one difference between this and my previous cleanses, however, is that this time I refused to cut wine out of my diet. So, off I went to my local health food store to stock up on organic delicacies, including a bottle of organic rosé from Chacewater winery (www.chacewaterwine.com), which I’ve had before and liked very much (priced around $15).

The front label states, “Made With Organically Grown Grapes.” Is this the same as "Organic" wine? No, says Paul Manuel, owner and general manager of Chacewater. “The difference between the two is the level of sulfites,” he says. While “organic” wine can have no sulfites, the label “made with organically grown grapes” (see label to right) allows for less than 100 parts per million, and, adds Manuel, “We’re comfortable making wine this way.” Because Chacewater sources some grapes from outside their own vineyards, their wines are technically not organic, but their facilities are certified organic and audited once a year by the California Certified Organic Farmers (CCOF). Manuel says that about 90% of his grapes are organically grown, and he’s urging his one non-organic (but sustainable) producer to go this direction.

Sulfites, which Manuel agrees can be the cause of headaches in people, also help retard spoilage in the bottled wines. He says that no-sulfite organic wines can spoil, which in some circles has given organic wines a bad reputation. But he’s seeing more consumers seeking out organic wines, and believes the quality of these is going to grow exponentially. “It’s a good market, an exploding market. It’s how people want their community to be – they want to see [organic] processing and farming.”

Located in the Sierra foothills in northern California, Chacewater started operation in 1990, growing grapes organically because “it’s the only way I know how to farm,” says Manuel. While proud of the organic grape label, his No. 1 concerns are his reputation and the quality of his wines. He must be doing something right, as Chacewater was named “Golden State Winery of the Year” at the 2012 California State Fair commercial wine competition.

The governing and granting of “organic” status varies from state to state and the European Union rules are separate from those in the US, but there seems to be movement toward more organic wine production, at least in the US. Per the USDA Web site blog (http://blogs.usda.gov/2013/01/08/organic-101-organic-wine/), which cites a 2011 survey by the Organic Trade Association, “organic beverages made up about 12% of total organic food sales growth. Organic wine contributed to that growth, matching pace with conventional wine purchases.”

Whether organic, made with organically grown grapes, or grown and processed conventionally, I agree with Chasewater’s Manuel that quality and reputation should be a winery’s the No. 1 concerns. But if organic viticulture and vinification become the norm, I’m all for it. No more headaches.

Shopping for organic wines? Check out your local health food store or go online to such sites as http://www.ecovinewine.com/.

Learn more about the Full Body Vegan Cleanse at http://fullbodyvegancleanse.com/. 

Until next time, cheers!