Harvest by John Beck

Check out this video trailer for a movie by John Beck.  It looks to be a great view of all of the hard work and sacrifice that goes into a single bottle of wine each and every year.

a long time coming

i know that i have been away for far too long but good things have been happening for me.  there comes a time when you realize that this is exactly where you wanted to be and all the hard work was worth it.  i definitely have not reached the holy grail but the path has been lit.

i always thought that my mentors and mother were a little crazy when they said that if you like what you do youll never work a day in your life.  i mean work is work right? no.  to me work is passion, its art, its science, its lending a voice to nature.

most people in the wine industry have an aha wine.  the wine they try and realize this is the industry they want to engulf and bathe themselves in.  for me my aha wine was from my least favorite varietal at the time, chardonnay.  dont get me wrong, now i love a great chardonnay but 98% of the chardonnays i love dont come from the U.S. they come from France.  i know youre sitting on the edge of your seat, what could this aha chardonnay be? well my friends it was a chassagne-montrachet morgeot from henri germain et fils.  i was lucky enough to try this wine in two separate vintages, the first was a 2005 that was tried here in California and the second was from the 2007 vintage tried in the wonderful town of Morogues, France.

i still think about these wines from time to time; i can almost taste them in my mouth.  it was as if a romanticist had been awakened within me.  i had visions of many others tasting this wine before me speaking in tongues and dissecting the wine as i was doing.  these visions accompanied with memories of my former self and dreams of my future self magnified the moment and made that moment more impactful than one can imagine.

today i look to each moment in my career as a moment like this.  everyday i am challenged and everyday i learn more than what i thought possible at my age and with my experiences.  i can only hope that the rest of my career is as exciting, nerve-racking, and adventuresome.  even if the excitement dies down a little i could handle it as long as i am accompanied by good friends, a love for life and a great glass of wine in hand.

cheers my friends.

passion

when you follow your passion it lights you up, it gives you a power, it makes you get up everyday with a sense of excitement; it makes you want to know it inside and out; its more than a feeling its an energy that is exuded from you onto others; its an aha moment everyday.

lucky for me my passion is also my career. i get paid to do what lights me up and sometimes its literally…

Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir Tasting

the age old question

i hated this question so much when i was little.. i had no idea what i wanted to be.  It started with a clown, then dolphin trainer, architect, laywer, and writer.  its funny though because as soon as i stept foot in a winery and got my hands stained purple i knew.. when i grew up i wanted to make wine.

do you know what you want to be when you grow up?

to cask or not to cask…

Many places around the world use neutral oak tanks for fermentation of red and white wine instead of stainless steel, concrete, and plastic tanks. While they are known to be part of “old world” winemaking they are used all over the world to add depth and structure to the wines. Because the oak is neutral, older than 3-5 years, it does not impart taste to the wine. Unlike the past it’s not the number of new French oak barrels in your cellar that determines the quality but how you can integrate the flavor of the grape itself with structure, complexity and longevity..

Some favorites right now: 2007 Kenneth Volk Garey’s Vineyard Pinot Noir, 2007 Jonata El Desfio de Jonata, 2008 Vogelzang Vineyard Sauvignon blanc, 2008 Paring Pinot Noir

traditional or effortless?

so you’ve had a long day, you get home from work and all you want is a glass of wine to relax and enjoy.. without thinking you grab a bottle of wine and reach into your miscellaneous drawer in your kitchen to pull out the wine opener which is strategically laying under the masher and next to the whisk. or do you? now the traditional waiters wine opener has been replaced by gadgets and gismos that allow you to flawlessly open a bottle of wine but is it worth the money?

with so many options to open a bottle of wine which route do you take?

1. the traditional waiters corkscrew.. somewhere between $5-12

i would say this is probably the most commonly used corkscrew.. its light, easy to store, easy to use, easy to bring along, efficient and cheap. not to mention it doubles as a bottle opener

2. the lever style corkscrew, aka the rabbit… somewhere between $20-55

while the storage and cost do not compare to the traditional waiters corkscrew the rabbit is undeniably the easiest way to open a bottle of wine. it takes very little strength and is extremely efficient.. the downsides its gonna cost you and if your opening an older bottle of wine it is not gentle to fragile slightly worn corks (more likely to break a cork in half)

3. the twist style… somewhere between $25-60

i would say this falls in-between the waiters and the lever. it can travel with you and can be used quite effortlessly, but if your going to be paying the same amount why not get the rabbit?

4. the pump.. for the extremely serious snobs. somewhere between $25-50

this is the newest, practically no work necessary corkscrew. just place it on the cork push the button and down it goes and out comes the cork (with a pop).

so how do you decide on which is right for you? do you take the traditional route or go for the new gismo pump? whats your method? for me i prefer the traditional waiters corkscrew or the good old shoe method…

wine power

while i was doing some research to find out what wines the royal couple toasted with i found out that the aston martin will and kate took for a spin following the ceremony was powered by WINE! surplus british wine used as fuel… i cant think of a better way to be sustainable!

nostalgia

well its been a while since i have been back in the good ole usa and i have been neglecting il piu nell uno for far too long now… so im back.  i titled this post nostalgia because although i am back in the good ole usa there are quite a few things i miss about europe.

1. cornichon et pate sur de pain avec sauvignon… for breakfast! (pickles and pate on bread with sauvignon)

breakfast at Pelles

2. spanish tomatoes on anything and everything…

straight off the vine

3. tank pilsner in the character driven old pubs

the golden tiger

4. pronouncing foreign street signs and words

translation: keep driveway clear

5. some of the best wines my palate has ever tasted…

one nights worth of drinking

Encus

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España: the beginning

I have dreamed of coming to Europe to see and learn their winemaking styles and traditions for the last five years and this dream is finally coming true! I have begun my journey in Spain in the Pyrenees Mountain region at Castell d´Encus.  The winery is situated 800-1000 meters above sea level and is a sight to see.  The wine history began here with the monks in the 12th century when they planted vineyards and used rock caves as fermentation vessels (which are still being used!!)  Now the winery, Encus, is 3 years old and they have a state of the art gravity flow production facility that is quaint but magnificent.

I am lucky enough to be here for a short time because of a friend, Mireia, who is the winemaker and head of this facility (besides the owner Raul).  She is my boss, my roommate, my Spanish teacher, driver and above all a great person to learn from.

The vineyard consists of 11 varietals: the main two this harvest are Pinot Noir and Sauvignon Blanc but they also produce Semillon, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Riesling, Cabernet Franc, Syrah, Muscat, Albariño and Petit Verdot.  For the second year in a row the vineyard has been hit hard in its maturation stage by hail.  This has been so devastating not only for their production but also for the owners and Mireia.  I can see it in her face as we walk through the vineyards.  The site and grapes hold so much potential but certain blocks, ie Cabernet Franc, have been completely wiped out with nothing to harvest.

The hail completely annihilates a vineyard.  It dehydrates it, puts it in a state of shock, shreds apart its leaves and impales its berries.  While the leaves protect the grapes from the sun and dehydration they also feed the grapes their proper nutrients, without the proper canopy, or should i say without a canopy, the fruit is left to fend for itself and the following year becomes in danger.  The result is that a retardation occurs in the vine and the grape will rot. The fruit that is not as badly damaged and could be used nearly in whole are the most northern blocks of Pinot Noir and Sauvignon Blanc.  The vines and fruit are beautiful with hardly any leaf or berry damage.  It is amazing to think of what this winery could produce if it were to have a year with out hail.

As i return to the winery and winemaking after a 2 month hiatus i can feel it in my muscles and bones.  My body though sometimes sore or tired from working and standing all day is feeling rejuvenated.  I start my mornings in the vineyards pulling samples for analysis.  I begin when it is still dark to ensure i can finish before the heat changes the samples analysis.  As the sun rises over the vineyard and almost becomes parallel with the horizon and peeking out to say good morning to the still hanging moon I can feel my confidence in the vineyard increasing.  I no longer worry about what i might be stepping on or what could possibly be in the vine as i reach my hand in to search for grapes.  By the time that I am finished I have sweat dripping down my back and my hands are sticky and drenched with juice from the grapes.

At the winery we have been comparing kinetic analysis of grape samples to see the maturation changes in the grapes over time.  It is fantastic to see that despite the hail the grapes are maturing at a constant rate and are similar to the previous years.

We are now preparing the winery for harvest which will begin at the end of this week for the Pinot Noir.  Cleaning tanks, adding SO2 to barrels, bottling last years wine and sampling and tasting grapes everyday.  More updates on harvest as it comes!

Encus Winery