YOUR BUSINESS AUTHORITY

Springfield, MO

Log in Subscribe

Wine Review: With wildfires, all eyes on 2018 vintage year

Posted online

One of the most interesting facets of wine as an agricultural product is it has a constantly changing character due to the whims and fancies of Mother Nature.

Too much rain, too little rain, too hot, too cold, hail stones and the list goes on. Those natural factors resulted in the adoption of the centuries-old tradition of year-dating wine, as well as the rise of the ever-present wine critic, in print or in person.

A huge question mark has now risen over the condition of the 2018 California grape harvest. It is not that the vineyards have been damaged by the plethora of fires currently occurring in California; in most cases, they have not. The problem this time arises from the smoke coming from those fires. Has that smoke adversely affected the vines and the grapes by limiting the amount and concentration of the sunlight needed to make them grow?

To date, very little has been said or written about the prospects for the 2018 vintage. There is an old axiom in the wine industry that “stressed vines produce the best grapes.” The reasoning is simple, the fewer the grapes, the more character the vine forces intro them. The flip side of that is that if conditions are too harsh, the grapes may, pardon the cliche, die on the vine.

If wine production is down in 2018 or not up to expected standards, it will give foreign producers an opportunity to flood this country with their wines to fill the gap. This will create an even bigger diversity of wine labels in the marketplace and perhaps seriously affect the future sales of domestic wines.

Continuing with the cliches, the proof will be in the tasting and that will not occur until well into next year when the wines have been finished, aged and bottled. To insert my two cents, I believe the 2018 vintage will be a hit and miss affair, with some wines benefitting from the stressing and some not. The quality of the final product will be determined by the vineyard’s specific location, so stay tuned and I will do my best to point out those wines that are worthy of your attention.

After all of that doom and gloom, a bright spot appeared when I encountered two very fine wines from Sonoma County, California-based MacMurray Estate Vineyards: a pinot noir and a pinot gris. Sonoma County, like other wine areas in California, has been subject to wildfires.

MacMurray Estate Vineyards 2016 Central Coast Pinot Noir ($23)
This wine offers everything that has singled out the great pinot noirs of the past: an inviting ruby color, a firm body, a captivating aroma, a positive and definable flavor, and an enduring finish, all wrapped in a smooth, velvet-like robe. The aroma displays cherry, raspberry pomegranate and oak. The flavor is about as classical as it can get with black cherry, spice and a hint of truffles. All of these carry over to the finish where they linger on the palate for a long time. This is a great pinot noir made in the tradition of the Burgundian classics and reconfirms beliefs that exceptional wines from the variety can be made in the United States.

MacMurray Estate Vineyards 2016 Central Coast Pinot Gris ($20)
Pinot gris is a heavier-bodied form of the pinot grigio wine. This wine presents the flavors and aromas of the pinot grigio in what could be best called a bigger and more flavorful form. This is a soft, straw-colored, dry wine with a rich, fruity bouquet and a lively flavor. The wine is dry and has the aroma of summer fruits, most specifically, apricots and pears. The flavor is crisp and has a raisin-like quality coupled with the acid bite of limes. The finish is long, clean and fresh. This wine is the ideal accompaniment to pasta, seafood and oriental dishes.

Wine columnist Bennet Bodenstein can be reached at frojhe1@att.net.

Comments

No comments on this story |
Please log in to add your comment
Editors' Pick
From the Ground Up: Republic Intermediate School

The Republic School District is on track to open its Intermediate School for fifth- and sixth-grade students for the 2025-26 academic year.

Most Read
Update cookies preferences