Grape Homogenization

The weekend was spent bottling some wine from 07 that was sitting in 6 gallon glass carboys. A Gewurztraminer from Washington State, A blush of Grenache and Chambourcin and a Grenache, Zinfandel, Syrah blend, all grapes from Lodi. It is a labor of love that pushes me to do this; It will only pay in experience and appreciation for the "Vignon", one who grows grapes and makes the wine, and their own labor of love.

My vineyard that was set out some seven years ago to allow me to produce wine from my own grapes has changed varietal mix twice since and it looks to be two more years before I am released from purchasing California fruit for this hobby. As bottling proceeded the mind wandered towards other wine styles and blends and questions arose of unique flavors and styles. Has the present state of grape grower gone uniform? Have we lost our individual style for the almighty euro or dollar?

I am reminded of an experience in a wine shop in L.A. in the late 1980's. There was a clamor from several wine reps commenting on a stack of wine taking up floor space. The comments went something like, "enjoy your odd wine tonight", envey no doubt over the loss of opportunity for these middlemen, but the mix in the stack was noteworthy to me at the time; Nero d' Avola from Italy, South African Pinotage, a Malbec from South America, Tempranillo from Spain and a Vinho Verde from Portugal. Interesting mix for the day as California was in the magnetic rise of Barrel Fermented, big Malo-lactic Chardonnay, Big over-zealous Cabernet and over-wooded Sauvignon Blanc. Merlot was yet to make it's grand entrance in the market and everything had oak pasted to it. Big, heavy toasted, oak. Homogenization was on the way.

Homogenization is defined by Webster as a blending into uniform mixture. That is where I fear the world of wine grapes is headed. Where once there were hundreds of wine styles by mixtures of unique grape types to choose from, there are few, or fewer to say the least. Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Cabernet, Merlot, Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling (enoying a present day renaissance), Syrah/Shiraz, and then everything else. As the market demands so the grower plants and we see less and less of unique styles by unique grapes. It was not very long ago that one would be hard pressed to find Pinot Grigio produced outside Italy as an example, but now the array of U.S. Producers that jumped on the band wagon is mind blowing. And the general consumer sitting in XYZ wine bar could care less as long as the juice was Pinot Grigio. Trends, in my opinion, will erase individual winery style and we the consumer will pay the price in experience for it. The thing that made Burgundy unique is everywhere now, and aside from subtle differences, that unique stage is now shared by dozens of Chardonnay & Pinot Noir producers world wide. Cabernet, Merlot & Syrah have followed. The difficulty for a "flavor seeker" is finding uniqueness in a sea of homogenized selections.

There are Rogues among us, Randall Grahm was one, the original Rhone Ranger in a time when everyone else was planting Cab & Chard in the U.S.; The Late Bob Pepi, who ripped out Cabernet in Rutherford for Sangiovese was another, but these rebels are few and far between and the grower like the wine maker want a sale to pay the bills and would rather swim with the current rather than against it, sacrificing their individuality for the TREND-OF-THE-DAY.

It makes the search for something different akin to being Indiana Jones seeking the Holy Grail. Looking for that very unique, tiny production of a grape that only the surrounding village experiences. In a way that's O.K. but the world might be in a better state of flavor experience if the grower sought out their individuality over the trend of the day thereby creating a demand for something no one else was growing or producing.

FYI, That little test plot I started went from Zinfandel, Syrah, Grenache & Viognier seven years ago to Corot Noir, Noiret, Traminette, and Seyval Blanc. Partly due to a resistance to be homogenious while the growers around me harvest Cabernet Franc, and Riesling and partly due to the Eastern weather patterns. It makes me feel like Bob Pepi in a way and all my friends think I'm nuts too. Only time will tell.