posted by Jim Bundschu
This time of year, we usually see lots of news stories about our local weather and projections for quality and size of the wine grape crops. But the news regarding the 2009 harvest seems to be less about the vintage itself than the state of the business. It’s been a fantastic year for quality so far, but economically, things are tough this 09 season.
Independent grape growers are worried about selling their vineyard’s produce at all – forget profiting from their year’s toils; break even is their battle cry. There are roughly 30% fewer white tablecloth establishments across the U.S. than there were in 2008; wine list sales are way down. Wineries are cautious about purchasing grapes, and when they do, they are mostly not willing to pay as much as it costs to grow the finest grapes. This scenario is not unique to the wine industry; times have been economically tough all around.
We at Gundlach Bundschu feel we have a different perspective than most any other producer, and it is a result of our family’s longevity. One hundred fifty one years of growing wine have brought it all – phylloxera, fires, earthquakes, prohibition, the Great Depression, wars, Bernie Madoff and more, in addition to the cyclical uncertainties of farming and business.
At Gundlach Bundschu, we need only look over our shoulders to see how previous generations survived tough times. They constantly pursued quality and value in their wines, buttressed by their confidence in the joy wine provides to you. Our family has been able to stay the course, to enjoy it even, through all the calamities. This has been the constant that we have over time learned to rely on for six generations.
At times such as this, it is easy to stray from the right path. Undoubtedly decisions are being made throughout the wine industry that compromise quality in the pursuit of savings and stability. But history tells us those that invest in quality strengthen their business and are better off in the long run.
We are, as this is being written, in the middle of harvest on Rhinefarm. We have finished picking gewürztraminer, chardonnay and pinot noir and we are awaiting the maturing merlot, zinfandel and cabernet. If you visited us this harvest you would have witnessed new winemaking techniques and seen new equipment in use, all improving the gentle handling and rigorous inspection of grapes to improve our wines’ quality and therefore your enjoyment of them.
Briefly explained, a new technique with gewürztraminer. We rented a cold storage container into which we placed 30% of the fruit harvested, freezing them at 30°F. The resulting juice should reflect more intensity, more body and less astringency. The theory, brand new to the industry, is the cell walls closest to the grape skins will break down as they freeze due to expansion. This releases more of the berry’s positive components and allows the grapes to be pressed more gently, thereby avoiding the astringent agents that are released with heavy pressing.
Next, to Pinot Noir. Undoubtedly you have heard that of all the red grape varietals, this is the one that needs to be spoiled, pampered and treated gently. We purchased a new grape receiver in 2008 that allows us to unload bins of pinot noir onto a sorting table to check fruit and slowly deliver it to the vibrating destemmer. This year, once the plump, whole, uncrushed berries are shaken free of their stem, they are caught in another bin, and then poured directly into a fermentation tank. Not once in this process have the berries been roughed up by an augor or a pump.
Yet one more innovation this season. In our main fermentation tanks, we have installed meshed screening devices for the purpose of keeping the grape seeds away from the draining valve. Seeds are extremely astringent, and if they are broken or crushed by the impellers of a pump, their astringency goes directly into your wine. The screens prevent the seeds from being sucked into the hoses when freshly fermented wine is transferred or pumped.
These are just some of the innovations our new winemaker Keith Emerson proposed introducing to our winemaking regimen when we first discussed having him join the team, back when the economy was still in high cotton. All of us at GB are proud that we are able to stay focused on the golden ring and implement these improvements this year.
Those generations that preceded us set the pace – continue the pursuit of the highest quality wines, and your best customers will be there for you. You have been since 1858. Thank you, WOMers.
