The Fizz #20: Reflecting upon the American wine industry and the last 20 weeks
It's been 20 weeks of The Fizz, and there has been so much information shared. Let's keep pushing the conversation about American wine forward.
For today’s 20th edition of The Fizz, I’m going to do something a little different. I want to reflect on the last 19 interviews and all that I’ve learned from these fantastic folks in the wine industry. When I first started The Fizz, it was just over 9 months from the start of the pandemic, and I was feeling like my wine education had stalled. I missed the incredible connection that wine folks have when we meet and talk about something so incredibly interesting to us, that makes up a major part of our lives.
I was yearning for experience-based knowledge from the people in this industry that often get overlooked, but that have a huge depth of information and wisdom to share. I wanted to shine a light on all that the United States has to offer in terms of production, information, connection, history. The Fizz allows me to explore all of this and so much more. I chose to focus on United States contributors because I believe in our wine community and I think it has something special to offer.
American wine culture is unique. I love the ability of winemakers in the states to experiment and to thrive off of the feeling that they don’t have to be tied to specific winemaking rules. I love the commitment that many winemakers make to take care of their land. I love how closely they pay attention to their vines, and the connection they make to their regions.
In the first Fizz interview, Rosalind Reynolds of Emme Wines spoke about keeping up a culture of experimentation, fermenting the same grape in a vineyard block with skin contact and without, playing with smoke tainted juice and pressings to see which would give a less-tainted wine. Tracey Brandt of Donkey and Goat spoke about having to pivot from making a red wine to making a more-white-than-red wine, her New Glou, thanks to smoke damage on grapes. Chenoa Ashton-Lewis of Ashanta Wines managed to rescue thought-burned Pinot Noir vines in her family vineyard. American winemakers are resilient, and they’re learning to respond to a changing climate.
When I drove up to speak with Camila of La Montañuela and Dierdre of La Garagista, they explained to me how they experimented with different pruning styles, taking care to understand how the plant liked to be pruned (or not!). Kelley Fox of Kelley Fox Wines spoke to me about the importance of observation as a winemaker, and being in touch with how plants respond to their environment. This feeling of intense, almost spiritual awareness is something that comes up frequently in many of my interviews with winemakers.
With every interview, I’m delighted by how much there is to learn in the wine world, and how much there is to consider and act upon. Wine is more than the names of grapes and their locations—over everything else, wine is people-first. Human beings make wine, and they have to be treated fairly and with respect. It’s inspiring to see change-makers like Gabriela Fontanesi rally around labor rights and making sure the wine industry sees, stands up for, and supports the farmworkers that get the grapes to the wineries.
Our industry has a long way to go in order to create a wine world that is just, caring, welcoming, environmentally sound, and looking to the future. It’s up to all of us to participate in getting there. I’m inspired by the important work that Sunshine Foss of Happy Cork is doing in order to get representation for and information to non-white producers by connecting them to the resources and connections they need to grow. Jahdé Marley is sharing important information around how the wine industry interacts with colonialism and how important joy and community is for underrepresented folks in the industry. Isis Daniel is using social media to highlight Black winemakers and create relatable content for folks just getting into wine.
Often I hear folks say that they don’t really drink American wines, or that they have “an old world palate”. I challenge everyone reading this to push yourself in exploring what lies in our local areas. There’s so much that our makers have to offer, and not just in California. Lisa Hinton of Old Westminster talks about making wine in Maryland and the unique conditions in the area, Lee Campbell champions wines from Virginia, and Ed Lutjens of Bluet talks through making wine out of wild blueberries in Maine. Tess Bryant touches on cider making around the islands of Washington State. As the climate changes and as we become more in tune with our regions, I’m seeing more and more winemakers turn to growing hybrid grapes that have adapted to our regions and are less taxing on our environment. I’m so excited about the New York State hybrid-based wines from Pascaline Lepeltier, Osmote, Oyster River, and others, that are opening our eyes to what hybrid-wines can be.
Thank you so much for supporting The Fizz, and for supporting me as I gather these interviews and learn from movers in our industry. It’s been an honor, and I’m excited to see what the next 20 issues will bring. If there’s anyone you know that you think has an interesting story to tell about American wine, please just reply to this email.
Finally, the best way to support The Fizz is to become a paid subscriber. Subscriptions are just $5/month or $50/year, and they help me travel to these locations—more travel based issues are coming—pay for Zoom, and pay the folks I interview. (If I’m interviewing folks who are not selling a product, I send them a stipend.) You’ll also get my subscriber-only tasting note posts, that do a dive into one particular wine, its region, history, and what makes it worth knowing. Sharing The Fizz over social media definitely helps, too! Cheers, everyone, and see you with a new interview next week.
P.S. If you’re around on Sunday, join me and Oregon winemaker Brianne Day for a conversation around climate change, community support, her winemaking practices, and how she managed dealing with smoke taint.