The 2022 wine harvest is underway! I’ve been reposting some winery photos and videos over on my Instagram account as stories. This wine harvest incredibly early: mid-August for some grapes in Northern California, the third week in August for Champagne (incredible for one of the most northerly wine regions), and some pinot nero in Piemonte.

In case you haven’t been outside this summer, it has been incredibly hot and dry–everywhere. Nazi ships that sunk long ago have reappeared in the Danube because the water level has receded so much, the Rhine has been almost impassible, there’s even a drought in southeast England, and the Loire is showing way too much sandy bottom. And we haven’t even gotten to the wildfires that have battered Spain, Portugal and even Bordeaux…

We’ll have to see ultimately what this means for the quality of the vintage. But fingers crossed and best of luck to all those vignerons! The past three years have all been crazy, one way or another.

And just in case you think you’ve got the 2022 wine harvest made in the, er, shade, there seems to be a heatwave looming for Northern California (and beyond). Holy phenolic ripeness, Batman!

PS – harvest happens once a year, which is more frequent than posting on this blog! LOL

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I’ve been leading a ton of Zoom tastings during this quarantine period–a Zoom boom, if you will. We had this pair with a group recently and they really hit the ball out of the park: Pierre Peters, “Cuvée de Réserve,” Champagne and the 2019 rosé from Domaine du Bagnol in Cassis. (Find these wines at retail)

The Pierre Peters has incredible depth of flavor and is on my shortlist for best mulitvintage Champagnes. As Rodolphe Peters explained to me in my visit last year, it is entirely from the estate’s 19.98 hectares–fully half the fruit comes from the famed Les Chétillions vineyard. It has a big helping of the reserve wine, which is from a “perpetual reserve” (solera) started in 1998. Rodolphe said that he really wants this “flagship wine” to be “exceptional” because it will be most people’s first experience with their wines. Based on our Zoom call over the weekend, he just made a lot of people happy.

Rounding out our Mother’s Day duo, we had a stunner from the minuscule appellation of Cassis. Snuggled right on the Mediterranean between Marseille and Toulon and a national park, the tiny appellation has only 200 hectares (500 acres) of vineyards and a dozen producers. Domaine du Bagnol’s 7 hectares (17 acres) lies a short walk from the charming fishing village, under the spectacular bluff of the Cap Canaille. The estate has been certified organic since 2014 and this wine draws on grenache (55%), mourvedre (31%), and cinsault (14%). Although 2019 was a hot vintage, the wine is really stunning. It opened a lot of eyes to the potential of rosé being a wine of substance, rather than a toss-it-back quaffer. According to Rosenthal, the importer, only 500 cases of this make it to our shores. Run, don’t walk!

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I have led a couple of dozen during the quarantine, mostly for private groups and corporations looking to reconnect. While they do have certain limitations, namely, the fact that it’s hard for most people to open more than two bottles a night, they do have advantages including being able to display maps and photos and videos more easily than in many group settings.

One other huge advantage is that we can be joined by winemakers! Such is the case for a public tasting I am leading on Thursday, 5/28 at 6 PM eastern. Anthony Filiberti, winemaker at Anthill Farms in Sonoma, will join us. I ask him a few questions, then we will taste the elegant Anthill, Sonoma Coast, Pinot Noir 2018 together and have a general discussion. (find this wine) So grab a bottle if you can, or even if you can’t, join us on Zoom!

Anthill Farms site

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Here are three pieces I wrote on tariffs for Wine & Spirits magazine last month. And here’s my letter to the USTR:

January 13, 2020

Ambassador Robert Lighthizer,

I am writing to express my concern regarding the escalation of tariffs on wine.

The matter is the Section 301 in the Large Civil Aircraft dispute. On October 18, the tariff was raised to 25% on a variety of European wines; the prosed escalation would put that tariff at 100%. I am the author of two wine books, including one called Wine Politics.

Wine is popular in America today. Sales of wine have risen on a per capita basis for 25 consecutive years. European wines provide many of the most expensive wines in the market. But they also account for almost a quarter of the best selling wines at Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board shops. So it affects consumers of wines from the top shelf to the bottom in all 50 states.

While the intent is to inflict economic pain on Europeans in the context of the aircraft dispute, the most immediate effect would be (and has been since October) felt on American businesses. The proposed 100% tariff would effectively shut European wines out of the US market. An unintended consequence of the action would be to devastate small distributors. These same distributors who sell small production wines from Europe also sell small production wines from the US. The repeal of Prohibition set up a so-called “three-tier system” that compels domestic wineries (as well as imported wine) to use a distributor to sell their wines out of their home state. Inflicting economic damage on the distributor tier through tariffs would also limit outlets for some of the most exciting American wineries.

For a European wine that sells for $20 on the shelf in, say, Wisconsin or Michigan, only about $8 of that goes to a European winery. Thus more than half goes to American businesses. And when that wine is sold in a restaurant in, say, Ohio, the profit for American business is even more because the restaurant depends on wine to be a draw for guests as well as a center for profits.

An additional point worth considering in international trade is that this action would be a win for China. The world’s top wines are produced in minuscule quantities where global demand far outstrips supply. So if the share reserved for the American market no longer comes to our shores, the Europeans will easily sell it elsewhere, such as China, and suffer no economic hardship whatsoever. Thus the Chinese would not only be eating our lunch, but also drinking wine intended for us.

I understand your frustration in the large civil aircraft dispute, which has been ongoing since 2004. But I encourage you to keep the action areas limited to aircraft, where the tariff rate is already lower than agricultural products. The EU may have the WTO rule in their favor and might then impose retaliatory tariffs on an assortment of US goods, including US wine.

Uncertainty as already led to a noticeable reduction in European wines in our supply chain. If tariffs are further escalated on wine—which I hope they are not—I strongly encourage you to at least set an effective date three to six months out, which would provide some stability and help mitigate economic hardship on American businesses.

Thank you.

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Another day, another wine tariff post…

Last week, news trickled out that the US Trade Representative might raise the tariff on European wine to 100%. Oh, and the tariff on 31-pages of other items. Unsatisfied with progress in the aircraft dispute with Airbus, which was the cause of the 25% tariff imposed on some European wines on October 18, the USTR has threatened to take it to 100.

I discussed the issue with Blake Murdock of Rare Wine Co, Dixon Brooke of Kermit Lynch Wine Merchant, and Rocco Lombardo of Wilson Daniels. Each of them is taking a different approach–I filed two stories for Wine & Spirits magazine that you should check out.

If you don’t want European wine prices to double next year in this country, make your comments heard over at regulation.gov. Comments accepted until January 13.

Ugh. How long will they last, if imposed? It’s anybody’s guess.

Full list of items in the federal register

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Late yesterday, the US Trade Representative unsheathed a champagne saber. But it wasn’t for sabering champagne in celebration; rather, it was for dealing it a blow by threatening tariffs of 100%. French sparkling wine (not still wine) as well as cheese, handbags, makeup and enamelware would be affected. (See the whole list here.)

While that would be very bad news for consumers as well as producers, there is some cause for guarded optimism. This was, after all, saber rattling, not actually putting the tariffs into effect. The core issue here is a “digital tax” that France has imposed on big tech companies, mostly American, doing business in France. France has threatened to retaliate if the tariffs announced yesterday (not the ones from October!–do try to keep up) are imposed so maybe it is all just a bargaining position? And there’s Trump’s relationship with LVMH founder Bernard Arnault, on display in Texas recently, which may have played a part in why champagne, handbags and cognac were not on the first round of tariffs.

But, of course, there’s also the case for pessimism: this is the self-proclaimed “tariff man” whose relationship with Macron has deteriorated. There’s a lot of uncertainty in trade these days. Importers may plan for the worst case and bring in boatloads (or planeloads) of bubbly as soon as they can to duck under the wire of a potential tariff. Sadly, if enacted, this will be fatal to the category of crémant wines, sparkling wines from France outside of Champagne. While many of them are very good wines, their main selling point is value, which the tariffs would obliterate.

Napoleon supposedly said about champagne that in victory you deserve it while in defeat you need it. An important corollary to that all-purpose reason for popping bubbly next year might be “providing you can afford it.”

A hearing is scheduled on the champagne tariffs for January 7 in Washington DC.

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The book gained a new lease on life when Jancis Robinson became a co-author in the fifth edition. Jancis and her team do the heavy lifting now and this eighth edition has been fully revised. The tome has added new areas of coverage such as the Savoie and the Judean Hills. In all, it has 300,000 words, 230 maps, 400+ pages and weighs almost five pounds. Even with all this heft, it is admittedly not going to be the last word on any region. But, because of its breadth, it is often the first word for many readers, particularly on far-flung regions.

Someone recently asked me what is the one wine book I would recommend: this is it. If you are trying to generally to learn more about wine and have a slightly more than casual interest, and are not looking for a edge-of-your-seat narrative, this is the one for you. I consult to a restaurant where I put together the wine list and work with the staff. I have this book on the shelf there. It is essential. I use it all the time to show where wines hail from. It’s useful to drill down from a country map, to a regional map and then even villages to let the staff and even some guests see where the wines come from.

There is really a ton of interest in wine maps. Many are available on the internet, but it is fun to really pore over a map in your hands, such as this World Atlas of Wine, or hang them on the wall. Steve DeLong has been making the latter for a decade now, blending his architect’s visual sensibility with his love and knowledge of wine. He has a kickstarter going now for a new product, “Wine Maps of the World.” This set of foldable maps blend cartographic precision with a good design aesthetic. His kickstarter campaign has raised/sold $50,000 and has four days to go.

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The Kincade fire has already burned 54,000 acres in Sonoma County, roughly the size of the area also under vine. There have been mandated evacuations of 180,000 residents and the 3,400 first responders have it only 5% contained. Strong winds have blowing sparks and embers huge distances but the winds are moderating. The governor has declared a state of emergency. Power outages have further disrupted many lives in the Bay Area.

It is terrible. Follow Twitter #kincadefire for the latest updates. Fortunately, for all the loss of property, no human lives have been lost. Please post in the comments about places where we can donate to help. Symbolically, buying a bottle of Sonoma wine could help show that we are thinking of them.

And then there are they Getty and Tick fires in Southern California…

Floods, hail, late frosts, and fire have all threatened vineyards around the world in recent years. The changing climate has really affected winegrowing dramatically.

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But first, those oddities. It is not really going out on a limb to say that this administration has a haphazard, govern-by-tweet style of policymaking. So it should not be a surprise that there were some head-scratchers in the wines affected by tariffs. since not all of the $2.1 billion of wines that the US imported from France last year were included. Notably omitted from the list was the high-value category of champagne (sparkling wines were all exempted). Cognac and French spirits were not affected, another large, high-value. (And neither were French handbags or fashion–by contrast, cashmere sweaters from Scotland were hit). And wines over 14% alcohol were not affected. And those in “containers” of over two liters. And Italian wines were exempted since Italy is not a part of Airbus–yet parmigiano reggiano was hit with a 25% tariff? Hmmm…

For a possible clue for explaining some of those loopholes, we take you to Johnson County, Texas

on Thursday of last week. There, in between a fundraiser and a rally, President Trump attended a ribbon-cutting ceremony at a new 100,000-sf facility for making handbags. Louis Vuitton handbags. And beside him was the LVMH founder and chairman, Bernard Arnault. And next to him Ivanka Trump.

The NYT sent fashion columnist Vanessa Friedman to the event and her article has some great color, including Trump saying in his remarks that Louis Vuitton (pronounced “VOO-ton”) was “a name I know very well. It cost me a lot of money over the years.” The article also asks what was LVMH getting out of it, balancing “the immediate brand equity risks” with “political rewards if Mr. Trump wins a second term.” The article points out that Bernard Arnault visited Trump after the 2016 election at Trump Tower.

In his remarks in Texas, Arnault said: “I am not here to judge his type of politics. I have no political role. I am a business person. I try to tell him what I think for the success of the economy and the country, and the success of what we are doing.”

One importer asked about it suggested that champagnes already had to pay a higher excise tax so floated that as a reason for their avoiding the tariff hammer.

So maybe we have some clues to the exclusion of sparkling wine and cognac. And we can raise a glass to the fact they were not affected. But we are still left to ponder the 14.1% alcohol exemption and who had a hand in that. Maybe Robert Parker?!?

Photo

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Rick: How do you suppose this will affect futures orders that are in place?

Dr. Vino: They will be hit by the 25% levy if they arrive in the US after October 18. This could lead to the smart collector’s money either (A) diverting toward wines already in the US that are available at auction (they have the added bonus of being perhaps more ready to drink) or (B) perhaps the merchant that sold you the future is prepared to hold off on taking delivery until the tariffs are called off. This trade dispute can’t go on forever, right?!

Carol: Since Italian wines are not hit by tariffs, will this be a Prosecco New Year’s Eve?
Dr. Vino: Champagne somehow dodged the tariff bullet so your choice of bubbly will be tariff-free.

Carol, with a follow-up: So will wine prices be rising this holiday season?
Dr. Vino: It is unclear if there will be price hikes on store shelves (and restaurant wine lists as soon as December). Many shops or restaurants could conceivably buy now to insulate themselves and distributor warehouses are probably pretty full in anticipation of both year-end madness and perhaps this tariff move. One rep I spoke with said their distributor is not expecting price hikes for six months. But who knows–others may not be as well positioned and have to pass these tariffs on to consumers sooner.

Jade: Should I pre-buy my wine now for the rest of the year?
Dr. Vino: Sure! I never would tell you not to! There are so many great wines in the market right now plus a lot of stores offer discounts on 12+ bottles. And you know the holidays are coming…oh, and have you seen the news recently? Oh, man…might make you want to crack into your stash.

Juliette: so will French rosé next year be 25% more expensive?
Dr. Vino: If the issue remains unresolved and the tariffs are still in place, then yes. Any 2019 wine from these three countries would be impacted–even Beaujolais Nouveau!

Leslie: How exactly do the tariffs affect the auction market? If a past vintage passes from an affected EU country will that be subject to tariff? Do auction wines now become more valuable if they are unaffected by the tariffs?
Dr. Vino: Wines in the US before Oct 18 are not hit by tariffs. So, yes, there’s a chance that if futures buyers like Rick divert their funds to collectible wines that are slumbering in cellars across America now, then, yes, there could be a bump in the auction market for French (and German and Spanish) wines.

Okay, that’s all the questions for now. But I did want to reproduce the text of the directive on French wine tariffs (and Spanish and German and UK wine): “Wine other than Tokay (not carbonated), not over 14% alcohol, in containers not over two liters.”

So weird that wine over 14% alc gets a pass! so all Chateauneuf du Pape comes in unaffected? To Juliette’s point above, maybe we will see some 14% alc roses? Also, game on for double mags of French wine! And champagne!

Also, final fun fact: $16 million of wine was imported from the UK last year! I knew it was, uh, small beer, but that is actually more than I thought!

UPDATE: this post was edited to reflect the fact that champagne will not be affected by the tariffs. Neither will cognac or handbags so a big wine for LV to the MH.

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Late yesterday, word came down that the Trump administration will impose $7.5 billion in tariffs on goods from our European allies. The impetus is subsidies to the plane consortium, Airbus, which is backed by France, Spain, Germany and the UK. Thus the tariffs affect symbolic goods from those countries, including all wine, olive oil, whisky and some camera parts. The long-simmering dispute entered a new phase yesterday as the WTO ruled in favor of the US. Hopefully there will be a negotiated settlement but as announced yesterday, the levy will be imposed on all goods on the list that enter the country as of October 18.

The fourth quarter of the year is by far the biggest quarter for wine sales. Many of the wines that will be sold during that time are already in (climate controlled) warehouses on our shores. But not all. If these tariffs become reality, it remains to be seen how importers of French and Spanish (and German and British) wine will adjust prices in the near term. But, if these tariffs linger, prices for these wines will inevitably rise sharply in the new year. It is worth noting that tariffs are paid by importers, not the producers (although in some instances, importers may request producers share the pain to mitigate price increases but with a tariff this large, there’s not a lot they can do other than see prices on store shelves rise and placements on wine lists decline.)

Wine is highly symbolic of France. Thus, it has been the subject of protests and over time, such as in New Zealand over the Rainbow Warrior or in 2003 over the Iraq war. (See the wines served at Macron’s state dinner.)

France was the biggest supplier of imported wine to the US market, sending $2.1 billion of wine to the US in 2018. Spain was fifth with $383 million, Germany ninth with $103 million, and the UK 14th with $16 million in wine (!). [source]

Clearly, the biggest winners here are domestic wineries, which provide two of over three bottles of wine consumed in America. Italy, the second largest provider of imported wine to the US, is not hit by the tariffs since they do are not a part of the Airbus consortium. As such, they stand to benefit greatly and the Italians, New Zealanders, Chileans and Australians are probably slack-jawed at this opportunity that has been handed to them.

If the tariffs indeed get imposed, how long they remain in place is an open question. So far, Trump has not rolled back any tariffs against China, so it is entirely possible that the only way for the tariffs to be removed is when there is a new occupant of the Oval Office.

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One winery I wanted to be sure to visit when I was in Champagne last month was Pierre Péters. I have always tremendously enjoyed the racy wines in the US and Rodolphe Péters not only commands a lot of respect in the wine world for his Champagnes but I had heard he had a new (sparkling) wine project in California I wanted to learn more about. Despite wanting to find it, I drove right by the winery in Le Mesnil-sur-Oger–there’s no sign and it looked like a construction site.

Rodolphe Péters, who has made the wine since taking over from his father in 2007, met me and apologized for the mess. He said the project was taking longer than expected (which renovation hasn’t?). Rodolphe is a sixth generation farmer and a fourth generation winemaker. The estate is a renowned producer of blanc de blancs Champagne from their 19.98 hectares, which contain 65 parcels on the thin topsoil and chalky subsoil of the famed Cote des Blancs area. Only his grand cru wines are available in the US market (While he does make wine that is not grand cru, that stays in the French domestic market and the US receives only grand cru wines.

Rodolphe graduated as an enologist in 1992 but didn’t dive right in to

the family business. Instead, he had other jobs in the wine industry, such as selling closures for a big company, an experience that he said made him better at the business side. He also likes to list things, I learned, and he enumerates two things he learned about winemaking in this period of his life:
1. The best terroirs are stronger than the best winemakers, who shouldn’t even think to influence the best terroirs in the cellar
2. There is no recipe. His father once told him that every year is a new canvas. Rodolphe underscores how right he was, particularly with climate change, as conditions change year-to-year even more than before.

“If the best terroirs are very well farmed, if we pay enough attention just before and during the harvest–the key period of the year, more important than vinification–there is nothing much more to do to make champagne.”

He had a lot more to say about growing and harvesting, and he again enumerated:

1. The balance of maturity. “The magic of champagne is that we were able to pick ripe grapes that are unripe,” he said referring to what he called the “golden age” of champagne making that lasted until a couple of years ago. He says that growers in the region were able to pick grapes in perfect condition, which contributed to the increase in quality seen across the region. But things are changing. He says that the warming seasons now mean that sugars can outpace phenological ripeness of the grapes–the season used to take about 100 days from flowering to picking but last year some harvested in only 83. And rains at harvest can be particularly damaging.

“Most people think the quality of a vintage comes from the whole farming season–most actually comes one week before the harvest to the picking. A spring frost, for example, will affect quantity, not quality.” Also, he judges when to pick by taste. Sure, there’s a lab test, but he says taste is key.

2. Freshness of the fruit: he has set up a way to get the picked fruit pressed within three hours. “We need to avoid crushing, which would start pre=-maceration. Even for chardonnay. Every extra minute between picking and pressing diminishes freshness.”

3. The press matters. He is a fan of the pneumatic press over traditional He also says that managing the flow of the must–the unfermented juice emanating from the pressed berries–to have it flow through the skins acts as a natural filter which clears the must without the need to filter. To clarify (!) though, he doesn’t want perfectly clear juice since he keeps the wine on the gross lees and these add important flavor components, such as a nutty character, down the road.

4. Regulations limit the amount of juice that can be pressed from the grapes at the rate of 25 hectoliters for 4 metric tons. Of that 25 HL that flow, the first 20 are called “cuvée” and the last five are called “taille” (tails). He had a lot to say about taille, but in order not to turn this whole post into something fit or a Master of Wine seminar, I will just highlight what he has to say about the cuvée. He said that common wisdom is that the first drops (well, liters) of that free run juice are the best but he disagrees and only uses about 17-18 HL of the cuvée.

Okay, we’re almost at the tasting part! But first, a word (or two!) about his reserve. He maintains a “perpetual reserve” made from 50% of the current vintage and 50% previous vintages. For example, when he added 50% 2016 vintage to the reserve, this brought down the 2015 portion to 25%, and 2014 down to 12.5% and so on all the way back to trace amounts of 1998, when the reserve was started.

“In champagne we are blenders, we are the sole wine in the world allowed to blend multivintage wine, blend like port or sherry. I like the principal of the solera and perpetual reserve–there are very few cru good enough to be vinified as single vineyards in Champagne.”

We move to taste the Cuvee de Réserve. The wine has a bit from each of the 65 parcels and this rendition is from the base of 2016. He says that he wants the wine to be exceptional because it is the wine that most people will come to know them through since it accounts for half the bottles they produce each year. Thus it receives about half the total production from the famed Les Chétillons vineyard as well as a big helping of the reserves (hence the name). He says the chardonnay from the area can be “unfriendly when young” and that they don’t want to release an austere wine, so they strive to find the “ideal balance between tight and crispy chardonnay from Le Mesnil and the smooth character of the reserves.”

And he strikes the balance flawlessly. Refreshing zippy qualities of the blanc de blancs from the top sites of Le Mesnil and the Cote des Blancs combine with the lees aging, 6g dosage, and the solera reserve to give a more yeasty, biscuity qualities for an excellent blend.

(search for Pierre Peters at retail)

Les Chétillons is a top site in Champagne. Pierre Péters owns three parcels for three hectares total, a pretty big vineyard that is also old (especially by Champagne standards) with the first vines planted in 1936 and anther set planted in 1971. The vines are almost all from selection massale, not cloned, and they are now being “touched” by shortleaf virus, so they have started a new nursery that is protected behind the construction site that is the winery. Les Chétillons wine is vinified separately in three tanks and it is a blend of the best of the three tanks, which he says is always better than the best of the individual blends (1+1+1=4, I guess you could say).

Rodolphe pointed out that even though single-vineyard, single-variety, single-vintage bottlings from small growers have recently generated a lot of excitement in the region, he cautions that with only a small vineyard block, it can be a difficult trick to pull off. “You can’t succeed every time,” he says, adding that insisting on single-vineyard bottlings can also reduce the quality of an entry-level wine.

But back to his Les Chétillons. Since 2012 was a standout vintage, and this is a superlative site, its not exactly counterintuitive to let you know that the wine was outstanding. If you are looking to introduce someone to the joys of what next-level Champagne can be, start here. If you already know the joys of champagne, get in line for a few bottles (but not at the winery since they don’t do direct sales). It is taut and nervy, loaded with chalky minerality, It is not at all piercing and certainly should be tasted now because it is jump-for-joy delicious. But the real reward, I’m sure, will come in 2025 and beyond–if you can keep your hands off it for that long.

The big revelation for me was the MK 12, L’Etonnant Monsieur Victor “This wine is a selection of the best of the Chétillons plus the best of the three containers of perpetual reserve. Insane! It is like the Cuvée de Réserve but with age to make what Rodolphe says is “the very best possible nonvintage.” The label for this wine is designed by Rodolphe’s son Victor every year. This edition riffs on Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel and it does seem touched from on high–the nervy tension of the Chétillions Chardonnay is replaced by a bit more of a creamy texture from age and the presence of the big helping of reserve wines. This wine may have a goofy label but it is dead serious!

The final wine I tasted with Rodolphe is his rosé, the Cuvée Albane. Making a rosé was difficult for Rodolphe at first, since he did not want to make simply a pink blanc de blancs: ”it had to actually taste like a rosé! So the secret for him was Pinot Meunier, specifically from his friend, J.B. Geoffroy, whom Rodolphe calls the “saignée master.”

“I fell in love with the taste, pomelo blood orange–not not dark fruits. A light in went my mind–it’s a better match with chardonnay, sweeter, softer, less about the dark and red fruit, much more apple, citrus.” Well, there you go, he cribbed my tasting note! The wine, named after his daughter, is rare but well worth seeking out.

Why rosé? Rodolphe’s Cartesian mind again comes up with a list of reason: first, it’s good to go far from your roots; second, it’s important to have a connection with the next generation; third, friendship, since making something together with another winemaker “keeps you open-minded.”

Two of those reasons could be applied to his new project in California! As some may have heard, Rodolphe is a partner in a very exciting venture in Santa Barbara. The other partners are Etienne de Montille of Burgundy and Justin Willett of Tyler and Lieu Dit. The winery project had no name yet nor have they released the first vintage commercially yet. But they have sourced grapes from Bentrock and Wenslow and purchased 45 acres of hillside vineyards on diatomaceous subsoil. It sounds like our patience will be rewarded and one day we will be able to raise a fine glass of California sparkling wine to toast the release.

(search for Pierre Peters at retail)

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I examine how some producers such as Ricardo Pérez Palacios (above) and Raúl Pérez in Bierzo and Telmo Rodriguez in Rioja are doing to unlock the terroir in their regions. This process not only ties into what’s happening in the larger wine world, it can also serve as a way to raise the price of grapes, land and wine.

These are exciting developments. I sought to capture them in an article at SevenFifty daily, published today. Check it out and let me know your thoughts.

“Why Spanish Producers Are Seeking Burgundy-Style Classifications” [SevenFifty Daily]

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On the sidelines of her NY distributor’s recent tasting, I grabbed a quick three minutes with the supremely lovely Evelyne de Pontbriand. She is the third consecutive woman in her family to run the estate Domaine du Closel located at the Chateau des Vaults in the Loire region of Savennières.

Aging Savennières: underrated or overrated?
I think it is quite underrated. I have a whole collection of old Savennières, unfortunately not older than 50 years old but they are fantastic. I did a big tasting a couple of years ago for the 50th anniversary of the appellation with 50 vintages. it was really very interesting. I think they get another dimension when they age and they are more and more, very interesting food wines.

Botrytis: underrated or overrated?
I think botrytis is…hmm, thatâ€s difficult. I donâ€t think people really know what it means. I think it might be overrated. Now that we are harvesting with no or very little botrytis, the wines are very pure and they really reflect the terroir more. And that is really our aim.

Chenin blanc: underrated or overrated?
Definitely underrated! It is a fantastic grape. Its versatility is really interesting. You have incredible sweet chenin blanc or very dry chenin blanc. You donâ€t really recognize the grape because it expresses the terroir, which is what I think is most interesting whether in Savennières or Vouvray or Swartland, it is going to taste very different. It always has this freshness because of its acidity.

So, maybe I need to rephrase: great grape, or the greatest grape?
Ha, I think the greatest grape of the future! It can face climate change because it has so much natural acidity so it doesnâ€t become flat. We are dong a big congress in July and this will be one of the questions.

(search for Domaine du Closel at retail)

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The biggest wine case the Supreme Court ever decided was Granholm v Heald in 2005. In their decision, the majority ruled that states could not discriminate between out-of-state wineries and in-state wineries—either they had to open up to shipping from all wineries or close the whole thing down. Fortunately for wine enthusiasts, almost all state chose to open up so consumers across the country now at least have the right to order wine from wineries.

But it has remained an open legal question whether this freedom for wineries to ship also applies to wine shops. In fact, only a handful of states allow wine shipments from out-of-state wine shops. It is arguably more important for consumers to be able to have wine shops ship across state lines than it is for wineries: while it is good to be able to receive wines from wineries directly, being able to buy from shops offers more price competition not to mention foreign wines, which account for a third of all wine sales in America.

The case to be argued on Wednesday, formally called Tennessee Wine & Spirits Association vs Blair, on face value is about whether Total Wine, a big box wine retailer with about 200 locations, should be allowed to open a store in the state. Local shop owners sued when Total Wine applied for a permit, arguing that only residents who have lived in the state for two years could own shops in the state, or as one new retailer told Forbes, it’s a “good ol’ boys system–economic protectionism at its worst.” Eric Asimov of the NYT describes the dynamic of how interstate retail sales were effectively stopped:

Urged on by the wholesalers, who lobbied and contributed heavily to state political campaigns, states began to crack down on interstate retail shipping, and carriers like FedEx and United Parcel Service specifically. Those companies have told retailers in recent years that they would no longer accept out-of-state shipments of alcoholic beverages unless they were bound for one of 14 states (along with Washington, D.C.) that explicitly permit such interstate commerce. Interstate wine shopping effectively ended for many people.

Groups such as the National Association of Wine Retailers have filed a brief in the case, as has a group of consumers. Paul D. Clement, they lawyer who filed the consumer brief and a former Solicitor General, had a convincing quote in the NYT:

“Your typical winery has a production function and a retail function, and Granholmâ€s focus was on the retail side,” Mr. Clement said. “The interstate activity protected by Granholm wasnâ€t production, it was sales.”

Case details on SCOTUSBLOG

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