Fermentation: The Daily Wine Blog

Barbie Death Camp & Wine Bistro

My wife being a long-time veteran of Burning Man, I have  soft spot for the festival of the Alternative that is currently taking place in the Nevada desert. Reading the San Francisco Chronicle today, that spot just got a bit larger:

"At Barbie Death Camp & Wine Bistro, Jim Jacoby of New Castle showed off his art installation of nearly 1,000 Barbie dolls in various states of expiration. There were Barbies crucified on hot pink crosses, Barbies hanging from the gallows, Barbies crushed under the wheels of Barbie vans and hundreds of the emaciated plastic dolls marching into a Betty Crocker Easy Bake oven at G.I. Joe gunpoint.

"Would you like some wine? I have a 2001 Zinfandel that won the silver medal at the California State Fair," Jacoby said, pouring wine into Barbie Dixie cups for visitors."

"Barbie Death Camp & Wine Bistro"!!

Maybe I'll give in next year and let my wife drag me out to the desert for a few days of dust, sun, nudity and Award Winning Zinfandel.

The New Wine Blogs

It has been a while since I did  survey of new wine blogs, recommending those that I like and believe have potential. No better time than the present. I'm partial to wine blogs that update on a fairly regular basis and have an original voice or an experienced voice.

NO BULL GRAPE
An engaging blog that goes beyond just reviews and ventures into the wine business and consumer consumer concerns. Started in July and just getting going.

WINE TASTINGS
A wine blog mainly focused on reviews, and substantial ones at that. I've enjoyed their democratic approach to reviews, moving to wines from a variety of states.

CRUSHING GRAPE
Born in January, Crushing Grape offers a combination of posts and podcast. They are trying to keep it simple, delivering good, basic information for those learning about wine.

THE OENOPHILE
The product of an Ohio wine retailer (Chateau Pomije) with a good eye and a pretty good pen too. I've enjoyed their tasting roundups quite a bit. Begun in June

BLOG AU VIN
A project associated with the Fine Wine Press and some of our best wine writers including Michael Bettane, Thierry Desseauve and Fabian Cobb. GREAT reading.

AUSTRALIAN WINE SOCIETY
Blogging about Aussie Wines from Toronto, Canada. You've got to love the Internet. This blog works for anyone interested specifically in Australian wines. They taste the same in Canada as they do anywhere else.

VINODIVERSITY
Pretty interesting stuff and a wine blog that's been around a while. The main focus is on Australian wine made from the slightly more obscure varietals.

THE CORK AND DEMON
A truly fun wine blog to read by a Texas Gal who describes her writings as: "A Smartass South Texas Wine Blog." Well, it's more with good, engaging personal views.

The Wine Judges

Alan Goldfarb has an interesting column (as always) in the St. Helena Star, a Napa Valley newspaper. Alan is the wine business columnist.

With John Roberts' confirmation hearing for Associate Justice of the Supreme Court coming up, Goldfarb took it upon himself to call up Kenneth Star who worked for the pro-shipping contingent in the direct shipping case that was decided earlier this year. Goldfarb wanted to know how Starr thought Roberts would have ruled in the case.

Starr is clear to point out to Goldfarb that his belief that Roberts would have ruled in favor of the Direct Shippers is pure speculation. However, it is interesting speculation.

The article is HERE.

The Winemaker

When I come across an example of the near reverential devotion that some wine lovers can develop to not just wine drinking and appreciation, but also to the act of winemaking, I’m want to dismiss it at no more than a bit of winsomeness for a career that only SEEMS so special and different and attractive. Yet the curious thing is, when I  think about it, it is that it’s really my own familiarity with the wine industry that too often prevents me from seeing what the devotees see…and appreciating their winsomeness for what it really is: an understanding that winemaking truly is something special.

Consider the specialization that has overcome us all in our  careers. We are not merely lawyers, but “real estate lawyers.” Not publicists, but “wine publicists.” Not fashion retailers, but “purveyors of fine toddler clothing for the naturalist-minded.”

The trend toward the specialization of the species was noticed as far back as the Renaissance, has proceeded without stoppage, and has define the progress of society in nearly every field. Some decry this, others take it for what it is and merely accept the consequences of the world they live in.

But consider the winemaker.

The winemaker really lies outside the lines of specialization and has so for centuries. Instead, their careers demands they interact with their culture, their senses, their own scientific age and the natural world in a way very few of us are asked to in our careers.

The winemaker literally lives, all year long, with his eyes pointed skyward, wondering what cards nature will deal him this vintage. And it’s not just a matter of invoking chants to handle a deluge or a drought. The winemaker also interacts with nature, deploying defenses to and responding to “acts of god” with technology that can only be used if one understands how the natural world works.

The Winemaker is equally charged with critical mechanical tasks, an entirely different type of response to the world around him than his duel with nature demands. They must understand how liquids flow, the implications of an overworked press, the best way to maneuver though a damp field on a tractor, and the best method to pack all those barrels and cases in one small structure. Here, the winemaker is mechanic.

The Winemaker is also asked to create something that will prove inspirational and satisfying to an audience. They are artists. They employ their interactions with nature and their mechanical abilities to draft then refine what is literally a four dimensional piece of art: wine. Here they make decisions concerning the interaction of color, of textures, of taste, of aroma. The very best and most creative winemakers have an idea in their mind, an idea of a wine to which they aspire. Their mastery of technique and appreciation of nature are the tools that get them closer to that idea.

This is not to suggest the glamorization of winemaking, but it is putting winemaking on a pedestal as a career and act distant from the specialized grinds the vast majority of people live with. And this is why the devotee is reverential in their appreciation of winemaking: it is a rare field that falls into the category of generalist. Like the astrophysicist, evolutionary biologist, artist, writer and priest, the winemaker deals in subject manner spanning broad swaths of topics and disciplines.

How is this not special? How is this not an approach to life and career that we who toil in hyphenated careers with extended titles at companies that specialize in specialization could not put on a pedestal?

Wine Retailers & CA Consumers Get Bent Over...By Wineries

There have been quite a few articles recently about a soon to be signed California law that allows any winery to ship to California and all California wineries to ship to other states that allow direct shipping to consumers. It's California State Senator Wes Chesbro who authored the law and it is being hailed as a boon for California wineries and California consumers.

Yet, in reality it is a complete and total dissing of California's wine retailers who aren't provided the same privileges under the new law. How could this be? Thank the California wholesalers and California wineries, the former for their self preservation efforts and the latter for their disdain for a sector of the wine industry that did relatively little to help in the direct shipping battle of the past decade.

That said, I'm always interested in the legal rationale for a good screwing of a particular group. In this case the rationale used to not include retailers under the new law comes from Chesbro's office in this form as related by the Napa Register:

"As Chesbro sought to bring California into compliance with the (recent Supreme Court) decision, he argued for leaving wine retailers under the old reciprocal law. This was appropriate because the Supreme Court decision mentioned only wineries, Kernan (Chesbro's press Secretary) said."

I need some one to show me where in the Supreme Court decision's use of the Constitution and precedent and legal reasoning there is no reason to believe that retailers too should not be discriminated against and thereby covered by the decision.

Someone? Anyone?

No in fact there is no way to make that argument without also relying on political calculations. To rely once again on the Napa Register article:

"One can easily say that if it's discriminatory for the wineries, it's not a stretch to say that it's discriminatory to retailers," said Mike Falasco, a spokesman for the Wine Institute, the lobbying arm for California's wineries."

Indeed! So my question is, why didn't the Wine Institute insist that retailers be included in the new law? Why didn't Family Winemakers of California insist retailers be included in the new law?

Payback. It's a fact that retailers have, as an industry, sat on the fence throughout the direct shipping battles, some liking the opportunities that come with direct shipment, others fearful of the competition that comes with wineries shipping direct.

Then of course there are the wholesalers who surely insisted that the State be "conservative" in its interpretation of the Supreme Court decision.

The new law is nothing short of a political fiasco and a brilliant display of purchased political power, political payback, the consequences of shortsightedness and really bad lawmaking.

Vintage-Smintage: Does it Matter?

How are wine drinkers affected by lowering the required amount of grapes that must be from a single vintage in order to put the year on the bottle?

Answer: Not at all.

Currently U.S. winemakers are required have 95% of the grapes coming from a single vintage in order to put a vintage on the label. The Wine Institute, a lobbying organization of California wineries, is urging the federal government to lower that requirement to 85%. Currently the law in Europe, Australia and New Zealand is 85%. In Chile and South Africa it is 75%.

The Wine institute argues argues the change will allow winemakers to produce better, more consistent quality wines. And indeed it will. When you can blend more wine from a better vintage into a wine from a lesser vintage, you get a better bottle of wine.

The question is: Does this better bottle of wine have any relationship to the year that will be placed upon the label? This blogger says NO.

It seems to me that if you are going to market and promote your wine as the product of a place and time, it really should reflect a definitive place and a specific time. Yet those who will gain the most from the rule change, those who are already putting a "California" designation on the label, are not concerned with promoting a wine from a particular place and a particular year. They are concerned with getting bright, happy wines on the shelves that are drunk within days of their purchase. We are talking $3 to $7 bottles of wine.

So here's a tip: Anyone buying wines at $3 to $7 really shouldn't care that much about either the vintage or the geographic designation on the bottle.  Just drink it and enjoy it. Don't invest to much consideration in the wine.

Smaller vintners who are concerned with serving customers who do invest consideration into the quality of the wine are the ones concerned with this rule change. This group of vintners are concerned with variation among wines, specificity of place and year, distinctiveness of their product. These are the vintners who talk a great deal about "terroir", the notion that a wine should have the character of the place where its grapes are grown.

These vintners are opposing the proposal suggesting it will lead to further homogenization of wine. They are correct—it will do this, a little bit. But what they don't address in their opposition is that the vast majority of small winemakers actually give up any REAL devotion to REAL terroir when they produce a wine made from grapes grown in different vineyards, even if those vineyards are in the same small appellation. This makes their opposition to the vintage change a bit less substantial when they base it on the notion that a wine should be distinctive of the the place and time it was made.

The acquisition and exposition of real terroir can really only be achieved when you are working with a single vineyard. The variations in soils and even climate from two vineyards no more than a mile apart can be terrific. The wine that is produced from grapes grown in various, though nearby, vineyards really doesn't expose anything in particular besides a varietal and the winemaker's style of winemaking.

So, if the vintage rule changes to 85% from 95%, don't all of a sudden claim you have lost your ability to make a distinctive, terroir-driven wine. That bunch fell off the vine a long time ago.

Still, the Wine Institute has tried to accommodate the concerns of small vintners by proposing that only wines that carry American Viticultural Area designation on the label will still be required to have 95% juice from a single vintage, while wines carrying a county-wide or broader appellation would be able to take advantage of the new 85% rule. What this means is a wine labeled Napa Valley must have 95% juice from ma single vintage, while a wine labeled Napa County could have 85% juice from a single vintage.

As Peter Haywood, former owner of Haywood Winery, current owner of the spectacular Los Chamizal Vineyard in Sonoma Valley and a former president of the Sonoma Valley Vintners Association notes in a Press Democrat article, this little legal twist will lead to more wines labeled "county" rather than with a smaller geographic designation.

However, it doesn't matter.

Lessons Learned While At Work on Wine

I think it must be rare to have the opportunity to evaluate the work we each do in the form of a written publication. Much more rare at least than sitting back and evaluating the way we just made a sale or missed a sale or the way we got that plank to level or the way we were able to get a passing grade on a test. We think about these things, but rarely write down the process that gets us from here to there.

Perhaps even more rare is the opportunity to get paid to evaluate our day-to-day occupation.

I recently completed a project in which I wrote a short book on wine public relations, its best practices, it's do's and dont's, its purpose. It's a project I should have undertaken years ago without prompting by a payment for the work. It should go without saying that by committing to "paper" the best way to do what we do is a revelatory experience in a number of ways and I recommend it highly.

LESSONS LEARNED (Obvious and otherwise) FROM WRITING
ABOUT WHAT WINE PUBLICISTS DO

1. Everything a wine publicist (or any publicist) does revolves around telling a story.
This is really marketing/branding 101, yet oftentimes it's not the way we think about our work. The same can be said for those in sales, education, entertainment and even food production. Facts are nice and facts are vital, but outside the context of a well-told story facts are just leaves floating on a great expanse. They have little context. In the end I am working to tell my deliver the a compelling story to the consumer that will intrigue them enough to investigate the wine around which their story revolves. ADVICE: As you go about your business, think about your work as an act of story telling.

2. There is no downside to self evaluation
Patterns are the path to stasis. It is so perfectly easy to follow a pattern once established. The pattern becomes easier and easier to recognize and duplicate, yet it becomes and the fall back position preventing from looking at challenges in a different light. Writing about "what wine magazines want" for example appeared simple to me at first. Yet as I started down my well worn path of understanding, I bumped up against assumptions I'd not considered in some time. As I looked at those assumptions, spelled out on the computer screen, it became obvious there were certain wholes that had developed over the past five or six years, particularly with regard to technological developments that have changed the way magazines work.
ADVICE: Challenge those ideas and practices that seem to be holding up well.

3. It's rare that the best product is developed in isolation
I think it is literally impossible to spot every problem, opportunity or situation that faces you in the course of your work if you go about that work in isolation. Even the artist is enlightened by the words of the critic, no matter how much it hurts. The now completed publication on wine PR went through six editings, and it got better every single time. Its structure was discussed over many conversations with many people. Its flow and intuitive qualities are far better for it.
ADVICE: Show your work to others, test your assumptions with other eyes.

4. Base your philosophies on principles that won't change based on fads or technology
Perhaps a better way of expressing this is that "standards are standards". In writing about what works in Wine PR it quickly became obvious that certain best practices would have been the same 10 years ago, 15 years ago, 25 years ago. Yet the way I practice public relations today is radically different than how I went about it just 15 years ago. Nevertheless the philosophy of the work is unchanged. In how best to deliver a story, how best to choose a media list, how best to work with a writer...the basic principles at play here are unchanged even though I employ these principles in vastly different manners today then I used to
ADVICE: Identify the essential principles that relate to what you do and keep focused upon them

Impressive Wine Finds From the Family Winemakers Tasting

IMPRESSIVE WINES FOUND AT THE FAMILY WINEMAKERS ANNUAL TASTING

BOCAGE 2004 Monterey Unoaked Chardonnay.
Amazing Fruit profile

Bucklin 2001 Sonoma Valley Old Hill R%anch Zinfandel.
Pure old vine decadence with structure.

Sierra Vista 2004 UnOaked Chardonnay
More proof the "unoaked" trend is producing spectacular results

Skewis 2003 Anderson Valley "Floodgate Vineyard" Pinot Noir
Classic, rich AV Pinot that has long been the best rendition from this vineyard

Aubin Cellars' 2003 "Verve" Russian River Valley Pinot Noir
Tremendous Pinot Noir. The find of the Show. Only 125 Cases. $30. Buy now!!

Three Families 2001 Mendocino Cabernet Sauvignon
Really rich, varietal, intense Cab. $14. One of the Best Buys at the show.

What Wine Tasting Type are You?

I spent a good part of Sunday standing behind the Astrale e Terra table at the Family Winemakers of California Annual tasting pouring a mountain grown Cabernet blend and Syrah for anyone who wanted to taste it. And that was a lot of people. I've done this sort of thing before, many times, on behalf of numerous wineries. You have the opportunity to observe people pretty closely under these conditions. Specifically, you have a chance to distinguish the variety of wine tasters. And there are a variety of types.

THE SAGE
The SAGE is not the most common taster at these big events, but they are among the most interesting to just sit back and listen too. Of course with the SAGE, you really have no choice but to listen. They do all the talking. The SAGE knows everything about your winery, the wine you are pouring, the growing conditions in which your grapes grew and the exact quality of the wine they are tasting. It's pretty amazing to come across someone who knows everything, which is why the best strategy is to sit and listen.  My favorite SAGE Comment from yesterday's event came from a distributor sales representative who walked to the table and held out his glass and listened to me explain the grapes were grown at 1,300 feet in the Atlas Peak appellation. He proceeds to explain to me that the only reason Atlas Peak was able to get ripe grapes was because, "you get that wonderful afternoon sun from being on the west side of the Napa Valley." When I explained that Atlas Peak was in the south eastern part of the Napa Valley I was sternly corrected then told that "Merlot is really the best grape to plant up there." It's at that point you just step back from the table and allow yourself to soak it all in.

THE STUDENT
They are questioners who are so purely interested in learning more you are almost taken aback by the multitude of questions they ask and their willingness to stay, talk, listen and question. They tend to be younger and you just know that they've decided to make a career in wine. You know you have a STUDENT at your table when they ask, "How deep is the top soil on Atlas Peak?" Or.."Can you compare this wine to the other mountain appellations surrounding Napa Valley. I love these people.

THE SILENT ONES
They are either anti-social or so into tasting they can't be bothered. The SILENT ONES almost always operate like this: 1) approach the table with carrying bag over one shoulder, glass in one hand, note taking book in other hand. 2) Silently point to a bottle and hold out glass. 3) Spend a good minute with each wine, smelling, sniffing, swirling and spitting.  4) They write notes...long ones...silently. 5) Repeat with every other wine at table. Leave table. I've found the best way to accommodate the SILENT ONES is to service their apparent desire for efficiency as promptly as possible and hand them something informative to take away. Sometimes I'll ask a question about their affiliation noted on their name tag they are wearing. This is just about the only way to break them out of their shell.

THE NAME DROPPER
They have been in the wine business about five years of so and have met a few well known people, or at least tried their wine while the well known person looks on. This usually means to them that they've made an intimate contact with a famous wine person. As they taste the Astrale "ARCTURUS" or Syrah they begin dropping names of other wines they've tasted that are similar, but more important they make note of the people they've been hanging with. My favorite from yesterday was this: "You know I was just hanging out with Josh and we were.....Oh, Jenson, Josh Jenson of Calera...and we were talking about the craziness of the business over the past few years. Josh and I both think, and you know so does Carole Shelton, we all think the Industry isn't in it's boom stage yet." They have nothing to say about the wine in front of them. But they are very excited to be able to drop names of people they've just met. I like these people for their enthusiasm. They are clearly happy to be where they are.

THE BUSINESS TYPE
These people have attended more walk around tastings than many people at the tasting. They are there to find new wines that fit into their wine list, their brokership, their wine shop, etc. They know what they like. They always ask the same things: Who handles your wine? "What's the price (They mean wholesale price)? How much to you make? "Who's your winemaker. These are the people you talk business with, find out what you can about their business and appreciate for their directness.

THE HAPPY DRINKERS
They stay late. They do not discriminate. They drink rather than spit. They socialize. They seek out common acquaintances. They are often very fun people. And they tend to get tipsy.

I've always enjoyed pouring at these types of wine tastings. It's always nice too when you are pouring a wine that has a good story behind it and that was the case yesterday. But what I really enjoy is meeting and talking to the different types that make it to my table, trying to quickly evaluate what they are looking for and engaging in conversation.

As for tasting at these events, I've identified what type I am. I'm a combination of the Happy drinker and the student. Depending on how long I've been tasting I can be more one than the other.

Finally, it was great to meet so many FERMENTATION readers yesterday. Thanks for coming by and introducing yourselves. It was really a pleasure.

Wine Smog?

California's Central Valley wineries (mainly California's REALLY BIG wineries) are being asked to adopt pollution control measures that will reduce the amount of ethanol that is released into the air.

The concern is that the measures necessary to reduce immission will compromise quality. So, it appears there will be put in place regulations that allow wineries to "buy their way out of" the regulations being proposed by reducing emmission of smog producing elements from other sources as well as paying a fee to help other businesses reduced their emmissions.

This is the first I've heard of wineries being a significant source of pollution, outside perhaps of their attracting numerous vehicles to wine touring regions.