What does all this cold California weather mean?

As most of us who live in California know, we are still waiting for the 2010 summer to begin. One only has to scan the internet, on sites such as Press Democrat and WineBusiness.com, or just walk around outside, and it will become clear that this has been the coolest summer in over 50 years. On average, this summer has been about 7 degrees cooler than previous years. So what does all this mean for our precious wine grapes, and the 2010 vintages? First, Relax, and take a deep breath, the Twisted Roots Petite Sirah will continue even in 2010.

All joking aside, many grape growers in California truly are concerned about their grapes, and when, or if, they will ripen this year. When growing grapes for wine, there is a process called veraison that must happen before flavors, and sugar, is developed in the grapes. As grapes near the time of harvest, they begin to change color (going through veraison), and with warm temps, begin to develop the complex fruit flavors that create the wines that we know and love. If veraison doesn't happen, then the grapes cannot be harvested, and if only partial veraison happens, then harvest becomes very difficult. On the other hand, veraison may actualy happen, but because of the lack of warm weather, the brixs levels will be much lower than normal. So what if the "brixs" are low, what does that really mean.(Our next blog will talk further about brixs and how they relate to alcohol levels in wine)Brixs is a fancy word for sugars, which in the end make wine, wine, and not just grape juice. Brixs are responsible for flavor, alcohol levels, and over all complexities. Many in the wine world will argue that without the right level of brixs (too high or too low), the resulting wine will be inferior. As with many things in the world of wine, there are as many opinions about this as there are wines on the market. It might be true that instead of your favorite wine coming to market at 14% alcohol, it may only be 13%. You may also notice a lighter, less complex, flavor, and generally a gentler wine, but overall you will still have great wine. While the concerns this year are valid, we are not generally worried about the 2010 wine supplies in California.

So if you are lucky enough to see a 2010 vintage of your favorite California wine be made, you should count yourself lucky, and your wine maker even luckier. We also appreciate the fact that the world is not only about wine, and that there are lots of other farmers in California who are struggling to make ends meet this year. We are proud of our farming background, and the farmers in the Twisted Roots family, and hope that very one else has a good year.

What's In a Name

In the world of wine, does the "name", or appellation on the bottle really make a difference? Can a four letter word on the front label (Lodi) really cause the wine inside to become better or worse? As we enter the world of wine, we have run into prejudice, pre-judgments, and comments like "I can't drink that, it's from Lodi." And to be honest, they have only strengthened my appreciation for "our" appellation. Not only are we proud of our wines, we think that they are great enough to compete with the likes of any other major California wine, oh wait just a min, some of the largest, most well know labels in the business, have their roots in Lodi, and are produced with Lodi grapes.
One only has to look back into the history of the Lodi wine industry to see just what an important role Lodi has played in the California Wine Industry. Let's see have you ever heard of Mondavi, Gallo, or Delicato. That's right, some of the largest wineries in the world are based in the San Juaquin Valley, and as many issues of Wine Spectator will confirm, produced high scoring wines. Now, I must say that we here at Twisted Roots do not put too much value in how many points a wine scores, we believe that great wine to each person is different, "Taste is in the mouth of the beholder".
Not only does Lodi produce top quality wines with the Lodi appellation on the label, but it also goes into a lot of those high priced wines from places like Napa, and Sonoma. Lodi, and surrounding areas, produce 20% of all the wine in California annually, and might I add, that is more than Napa and Sonoma combined. Lodi as been known in the industry for many years as the work horse of the industry, and those expensive wines you buy from "Napa" might only contain 85% Napa Valley grapes, and 15% Lodi grapes. This little known fact, not only makes me happy, but proud to have that four letter word on our label. Now Napa, Sonoma, and Monterey County (just to name a few) all have different climate and conditions, that make unique and great wines, and true be told we love wines from each of these areas, but we also love our Lodi wines.
So next time you taste a great wine, enjoy that wine for what it is, and not what it says on the label. Remember that someone, somewhere, has put their heart and soul into what you are enjoying, and their mission is to create something that represents them, and pleases you. Cheers.