You who have visited the Gundlach Bundschu tasting room since September 2009 may have noticed a new bottled product on our shelves, having little to do with Bacchus’ juice. Rhinefarm is now producing estate olive oil. There is a slight printing error on the front label – it reads “extra virgins”; not sure how that ‘s’ slipped in there…
We certainly are not the first winery to produce olive oil, in fact for years we purposely avoided its production because it seemed so trendy. Boutique olive oil has reached a ‘tipping point.’ And besides, we are practical farmers. Some years ago, while traveling through Spain researching the vineyards and wines of the Tempranillo grape variety, which we grow here on Rhinefarm, we took a side trip to Spain’s olive oil growing region. Mile after mile of olive trees stretching over hill and dale. Picture the endless wheat fields of eastern Montana and Colorado, except not flat. No way could the US ever hope to compete with Spain, not to mention Italy, Greece, etc.
In addition to our recognition of too much entrenched foreign competition, we conceded another practical fact. It is true Rhinefarm has many mature olive trees already growing amidst the vines and around the winery. They were in fact planted by Charles Bundschu, making them well over 100 years old. They have been left unattended for years, growing rangy with too much dead wood and too tall to harvest with anything but a sky hook.
These anti-olive oil production sentiments dissolved one morning when Jim Bundschu arose with the thought that his time was underutilized. He would revitalize the trees that his great-grandfather had planted.
Using hand shears and a chain saw, he lopped off upper branches from each tree until there was just a skeleton of lower branches. Now the trees could be harvested with the aid of a 12-foot ladder.
The first modern olive harvest on Rhinefarm was on November 7, 2007 – a whopping twelve gallons. In 2008, the trees produced 15 gallons, and this December 3rd, the trees gave up enough olives to produce 35 gallons. Things are looking up.
After three harvests we have found there seems to be a larger vintage variation in our olive oil than in our wine, whether due to vintage or the expertise of the farmer is unclear. In 2007, the oil reflected black pepper flavors, 2008 a walnut character and this year, the oil at only four days old seems to exhibit both characteristics.
Our favorite way to evaluate any olive oil is to drizzle it on freshly cut leaves of butter lettuce and a bowl of plain spaghetti, nothing more. Unless you count the bottle of Gundlach Bundschu Pinot Noir to satisfy any unforeseen thirst.
