Author: Judi Scherrer

For me, I try to allow a message to remain in the bottle from the vine’s environment, be it one that speaks of a specific site or from a specific region, if not of an individual variety and the kind of growing conditions that year. But I also want it to give pleasure while delivering the message. Sometimes this is a fine line to walk. If done right, nobody notices the ‘I’ part.

I was so pleased at how the ‘core group’ played together and so unhappy with how a few delicious ‘fatter’ barrels affected the delicate balance that, to do it right, I decided to go for the slimmer, more energetic blend. If I had not been in the cellar actually doing the physical work this opportunity would have been missed.

As we work with different varieties and sites that encompass the warmer and cooler parts of Sonoma County, there is usually a small break in the action of harvest activity. It allows me some rest and time to reflect on the wines we are offering in the fall. This year, things were so steady and constant that this luxury was not available. It was a real positive for the new wines, but takes its toll on me and the amount of time I have to present this offering.

While there are afew wines that age at a similar rate to people, for the most part wine moves much faster than people do. Of course, looking at my dad still running the tractor in his mid-80’s, would make just about any wine on this planet think twice about comparing its vitality and longevity to certain humans’ potentials.

It’s also important to remember that any sense of ‘heat’ in the wine is also affected by how much other ‘stuff’ is in the wine to balance it. The alcohol number alone tells us little about the acidity and sense of freshness in wine. Just as Nigel’s gum chewing rhythm says little about the tempo of the song he is playing [how can he do that?] or the connection between the title of one of his songs and its style [why would he do that?].

Choices we make during the growing season and at harvest must be lived with for the entire life of a wine. The huge number of options and the gravity of this can be staggering and sometimes paralyzing. As the years pile up, I’m finding it becomes easier to decide what to do given what nature offers.

When I started this project 20 years ago, the mission was to make wine that recognized the hard work that goes into growing grapes and give credit where due – to the farmer and vineyard. I ultimately wanted to be able to support myself and family and, with your support, I’ve been able to do that.