As a Northern California native, I spent the better part of my childhood completely unaware of the significance of my home region to the wine industry, and the majority of my adulthood as the ‘go to’ with questions from my East Coast colleagues on where in wine country to visit. It was not until I left Marin that I truly understood the importance of our neighboring county, and how far people travel to visit year after year. Growing up, my siblings and I assumed that the annual harvest day at our family friends at Grace Family Vineyard was all just a big party to make grape juice like our juice boxes, not amazing wine. As I have gotten older I have come to appreciate the richness of this part of the world as it relates to wine, and hope to understand it even better after this class.
I am taking this class first and foremost so that I can be a better and more knowledgeable steward of California’s wine tradition, and so that I can gain a more complete understanding of this fascinating industry that I have almost unwittingly been raised around. I am also excited to take this class in order to understand how California fits into the global wine market, and where it sets itself apart. I look forward to our great range of guest speakers, and hope that the knowledge I gain from this class will have a lasting impact on the way I think about not just wine’s consumption but its production, distribution and industry nuances.
I recently came across an early phase product at ABInBev called Kombrewcha. As the name suggests, Kombrewcha is a version of Kombucha (the popular fermented tea-like drink that has taken the “healthy” consumer community by storm, promising to improve gut health and more) produced to have higher alcoholic content.
“EVER HEARD OF HARD KOMBUCHA? PROBABLY NOT. THAT’S BECAUSE WE ARE THE WORLD’S FIRST. LET US EXPLAIN: TO MAKE OUR HARD KOMBUCHA, WE TAKE TRADITIONAL KOMBUCHA – MADE WITH TEA, WATER, SUGAR, ORGANIC YEAST, AND SCOBY – AND BREW IT TO 3.2% ABV. THE RESULT IS A REFRESHING, DELICIOUS, ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE THAT’S GLUTEN FREE, ORGANIC, AND LOW IN SUGAR. AKA: THE PERFECT BREW TO SOCIALIZE WITHOUT COMPROMISE.”
If I think about any of the other prominent alcoholic options in this category, the examples that come to mind are largely of the Skinny varietal- mixers and alcoholic beverages that have less sugar, are lower in calories, and frankly don’t taste as good.
For me, and for many other consumers, a glass of wine, a martini, or a margarita are all treats, indulgences. Whether I am celebrating a happy success or the completion of a long day, I want to savor the drink and the experience of unwinding or celebrating. While I consider myself a health-conscious individual, and value the healthy options in most other categories, in these moments calorie count is not top of mind. Instead, I am more concerned with achieving the satisfaction that I derive from a rich flavor profile, as well as the other positive effects of alcohol.
Despite this resistance, Kombrewcha doesn’t come across to me in the same way. Because Kombrewcha is essentially emphasizing a component of Kombucha that already exists, it doesn’t feel like one of the other alcoholic options you find in the “healthy” category. I would liken Kombrewcha more to a cider or a cocktail with natural/organic ingredients.
Reflecting on what consumers hope to feel through an experience, particularly when it comes to F&B and luxury products (in the case of some wines), is crucial to understanding what will attract them to a new offering and what will turn them off. I’m interested in exploring the organic and biodynamic wine markets further to understand the impact of that production strategy on flavor, how the products are marketed to consumers, and how consumers are responding to the product. I would like to explore the idea of adding a “healthy” property to wine as opposed to stripping it of ingredients that are part of its core composition, as a way to add value and appeal to the health-conscious consumer.
Our discussion in the last class left
me thinking about the role, and value, of history in winemaking. Christine Wente shared her family’s impressive
history, but also couched it with the fact that there were families in Italy
that had 20+ generations in the family wine business. On the surface, it seems like that storied
history should give old world countries an insurmountable advantage in the knowledge
of wine making, yet there are many instances where winemakers (and countries)
new to wine can make inroads, such as in the case of Inniskillin.
Similarly,
a tradition in wine making doesn’t necessarily mean that wines will be high
quality – for example, I traveled this summer on a GSB Global Seminar to Greece,
which has been producing wine for the last 6,000+ years and has a strong
culture of wine consumption (pretty much every meal we had was served with
wine). You would think that this might provide
Greece a strong advantage in wine making, but the winery we visited (Ktima
Gerovassiliou) was only established in the 1980s and was one of the few
wineries on the Greek mainland that produced wines with high enough quality for
export, since ~90% of Greek wine is consumed domestically. That winery collected artifacts from ancient
Greek wine production – indeed, the Greeks developed some of the earliest wine
containers and wine presses found to date (see picture below). It was interesting to see how strong the
history of winemaking is in Greece, yet how difficult it has been for that
country to produce wines on par with the likes of France and Italy. I’m sure political, regulatory, and economic
forces most certainly played a role, as we have been discussing in class.
I’m looking forward to learning
more in the new few weeks about how different countries rose to prominence in winemaking
while others have lagged behind – which will lead into our midterm project to predict
where the next big wine regions to rise to prominence will be.
An overlook of the Douro River in Porto, Portugal.
Last class's discussion of Portugal's idiosyncratic wine export market gave me reason to reflect on my 2016 vacation to Porto and the Douro Valley. I chose this region as the final stop on a wandering Iberian road-trip (also the trip during which I decided to apply to the GSB... coincidence?). I liked port wines, but I did not expect to be so thoroughly charmed by the history and geography of the area, which seemed fully devoted to its namesake libation.
I had no idea until visiting, but port wine's development spans two regions. It is grown, pressed, and barreled in the Douro Valley, and then sent down the Douro River to Vila Nova de Gaia (the town on the other side of the river from Porto) for aging. Historically, the barrels were sent in these quirky flat-bottomed boats called "barcos rabelos," (see below) although nowadays the boats are just for show and the wine is trucked. The rationale for this geographic shift is that the climate in the river valley is preferable for growing, but the cooler temperatures in the city near the coast are preferable for aging. It's a marvelously natural solution to climate control from centuries ago.
The tasting rooms in the city all offer tours amongst the barrels and other touristy charms (I definitely splurged on a live barrel-adjacent fado performance, Portugal's mournful vocal tradition, in exchange for some so-so wine, but anyone who has ridden the gondolas at Sterling in Napa can sympathize). Porto is a gorgeous and well-preserved historic city, but the real stunner is the Douro river valley itself (it's also a UNESCO world heritage region), where every inch of hillside is cultivated with vines, and the slopes spill right into the winding river.
Another layer of confusion for me was identifying which grapes went to which bottles. All of the quintas (or vineyards) contribute to a variety of port blends, with the winemakers tasting to ensure that the taste of Dow's or Graham's remains consistent year over year, rather than highlighting the idiosyncratic flavors of various vintages. As a plus, it was one of the only wine tours I've been on where the guide invited us to pick and taste grapes right off the vines! I do not see that happening anytime soon in California...
There is literally oodles more history and detail, but I'll leave that to our academic pursuits. I encourage all of you to add Porto and Douro to your travel lists. You won't regret it!
The barcos rabelos parked along the shore of Vila Nova de Gaia, with Porto in the background.
The rooftops of the tasting rooms and barrel houses of Vila Nova da Gaia, with Porto in the background.
A fado performance in the Calem barrel house in Vila Nova de Gaia.
A scenic first glimpse of the Douro River Valley on the drive over from Porto.
A look at the Douro River from the village of Pinhão.
Panning slightly to the left...
A scenic tasting at Quinta do Bomfim in Douro, who primarily supplies Dow's.
I spent last week traveling about Kentucky for a policy trek on the rural economy. Given that Kentucky is the "Bourbon Capitol of the World," our group couldn't help but spend an hour at Buffalo Trace Distillery in Frankfort to learn about how it's made. (Especially since Kentucky produces 95% of the world's bourbon.)
Buffalo Trace Distillery is an American family-owned company and prides itself on it's over 200 year history of distilling spirits (including bourbon, rye, and vodka), calling itself the oldest continuously operating distillery in the United States. Even during Prohibition it managed to stay open, but only to distill for "medical purposes." It is a National Historic Landmark and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Buffalo Trace has also won 17 distillery titles since 2000 and was named "Brand Innovator of the Year" by Whisky Magazine.
While here, I learned about what makes whisky different from bourbon, so I thought I'd share with you all!
1) Bourbon has to be at least 51% corn. Though most distillers use between 65% to 75%. The rest is usually rye, wheat, or barley.
2) It has to be made in the United States. Congress even passed a law in 1964 declaring bourbon "America's Native Spirit" and decreeing that as such, bourbon must be made in the U.S. (Althought if you ask people in Kentucky they say it must be made in Kentucky. Similar to Champagne versus sparkling wine.)
3) Nothing is added to the bourbon except water during the distilling process.
4) Bourbon gets it's flavor from charred oak barrels that are used only once.
5) At a minimum, bourbon is left in the barrels to age for two years. During this time, the bourbon evaporates through the barrels while soaking up the flavor from the oak barrel.
6) Fun fact: Kentucky has more barrels of bourbon than people in Kentucky! Buffalo Trace said that they have enough bourbon for the next 20 years in storage.
7) There are also various requirements for the level of proof the bourbon must be when it's distilled (160 proof), put in the barrel (125 proof), and bottled (80 proof or more.)
What was very interesting on the tour was how distilleries have different product lines to subvert some of the requirements. Most of the above requirements are needed for the classification of "straight" bourbon, but it is possible to use bourbon that has been aged less for other purposes. Like in our tasting we tried Buffalo Trace's new Bourbon Cream. Mix it with root beer or hot chocolate and you've found your new favorite drink!
Before our tasting, we visited the production line and got to see the 15-20 person operation that produced their Blanton's Single Barrel which by hand, was filled, capped, sealed with a wax seal, and packaged. A truly beautiful sight!
Sunday, January 21, 2018
A Night at The Nell
Last Saturday night I had the privilege of dining at element 47, the superb restaurant located
in Aspen’s The Little Nell. The evening was a delectable showcase of the finest
food and wine on offer, but perhaps the most memorable part of my night was
meeting Master Sommelier, Carlton McCoy, or “Chubby” as he is fondly referred
to by his colleagues. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the term ‘Master
Sommelier’ allow me to provide you with a little background. There are only 149
professionals in the Americas who have earned the prestigious title of Master Sommelier,
236 in the entire world. In order to qualify, you must sit a three-part exam
which includes a blind tasting of six wines before a panel in which you must identify
the grape, country, region, sub-region,
appellation, quality level and exact vintage of the wine!Unsurprisingly, only a miniscule percentage of applicants
actually pass. As far as membership goes…it is arguably one of the most
exclusive clubs in the world. So you can imagine my excitement when Carlton
talked us through the wines he had selected for our evening meal.
To begin, we were served a buttery white burgundy from Meursault (2007, Château de Puligny-Montrachet). I think I’ve
officially discovered my new favourite wine! Our mains were paired with a
beautiful Syrah from the Rhône Valley (2003, Michel & Stephane Ogier, Cote
Rôtie). Following dinner, we were taken downstairs to the Nell’s private
cellar. It was a cool, dark room, stocked floor to ceiling with exquisite
bottles from all over the world (over 20,000 bottles, we were told!) The
ceilings and walls were covered in the illegible scrawl of guests who had written
their names in sharpie pen, in an attempt to leave their mark on this underground
vinicultural gem. Of course, I made sure
to leave my signature as well! We were told that this room was where the magic
really happened. Outstanding food aside, element
47 is renowned for its extraordinary wine program and collection. Remarkably,
10 of the 149 American Master Sommeliers have graduated from The Little Nell,
more than any other establishment in the United States.
It was a very special evening and one I will remember for many years to
come. I was simply blown away by Carlton’s knowledge of his craft and the
passionate way in which he informed and educated his enraptured audience. Despite
my limited knowledge of wine, I was thankful that I could at least talk to him
about our class!
It was great having Christine Wente come into our class. As I listened to her, I wondered what are the effective/efficient ways to build a U.S. based wine brand? We talked about the experience aspect of visiting her winery to create the brand. However, that can only reach so many customers. So I was wondering if having those experiences, some of which are cost centers, at the winery are just considered necessities to build rapport with top critics and/or customers? I liked her wine but am not sure how I would have heard about it if I hadn’t tasted it in our class.
My SO (in the picture attached) and I went to find the wine down in SoCal for a family party. Unfortunately, Wente’s website said Riva Ranch wasn’t available at the stores near us. So, being a relatively uniformed wine consumer (though that is changing with each class!), I googled “best wines at Trader Joe's” because I was making a grocery run there anyways. I was going to pick one from the list I found based on the description that sounded most intriguing. As it turned out, Trader Joe’s had the Riva Ranch, I bought it, and my SO’s family loved it!
From this experience I wonder, how do wineries track where there wine is across multiple retailers who all have their own inventory systems? Clearly there are issues as I was led astray by the Wente Vineyards’ own website. The second thing I was wondering was, are there a few blogs that drive a lot of purchases? Or is influence disbursed? And how do you get in front of top bloggers/reviewers? To me, being in some of the first google result searches has got to be a high priority but I’m not sure how wineries are addressing the challenge outside of just having high quality wine and reaching out to reviewers they know. These are questions that I will ask other wineries that visit our class.
