Grower wines

One of the many recent trends in the wine industry has been the appeal of "Grower Champagne." This is champagne produced by the same folks that grow the grapes. We have tasted many great ones from LaSalle, Copinet and others. Non-grower champagnes are typically the larger producers like Veuve Clicquot where the grapes are purchased from other vineyards and the winery only makes the "bubbly."

Interesting to us as consumers here in North Idaho is that we have noticed more and more grape growers in the appellations around the states producing wine on their own from the portions of the crop they don't sell off to other wineries. While this may be partially due to an oversupply of wine grapes on the market, we like the trend none the less. It has allowed us to try many new wines that are priced competitively and are really delicious.

We recently hosted a winemaker dinner at Scratch in Coeur d'Alene and a tasting here at the shop with Airfield Estates out of Prosser, Wash. The winemaker Marcus Miller came to town for the events. Marcus is the fourth generation of the family farming more than 1,000 acres of grapes in the Yakima Valley. We found the wines to be well priced, and very well made exhibiting great balance, vibrant fruit and limited oak profile - just the way we like them.

Within the last six months too we also had Mercer Estates in town for tasting events. Growers too they farm even more land planted to both wine grapes and other crops. The wines were also very good and priced competitively. The list of grower names go on from there, the Milbrandt brothers from central Washington, the Havlinek family from the Rogue Valley in Oregon, the Balletto family from the Russian River Valley in California, and the Duttons from the same area are all primarily farming organizations that produce wine from a small portion of their annual harvest.

This is a compelling proposition for wine consumers and retailers like the dinner party for a number of reasons. As we mentioned grower produced wines represent great relative values. They are not faced with buying grapes either on the open market or under the restrictions of fixed contracts so their raw materials are less expensive leading to reduced cost of the finished product.

Quality is a big part of the equation too as they have the ability to pick the best lots of their crop for their own wine. This is no small thing as these growers are overseeing huge tracks of vineyards, they know which areas are producing their best fruit, and they are able to manage those vines specifically to their winemaker's requirements. Everything from how much of the crop they allow to finish the season, to canopy management to harvest levels of sugars and acids, the growers can precisely pinpoint all of the qualities they are seeking.

Also farmers are well tuned into their land, the weather and the changes and limitations of the vintage as it develops from the bud set in the spring all the way through actual harvest allowing them to adjust their practices on a moment's notice to accommodate the character they are developing in their wine.

While ultimately the appeal of "Grower Wine" will only go so far as the price and quality equation carries it we feel the trend will continue as we find the wines priced around 1/3 less than wines of similar quality from both smaller growers and those winemakers who purchase their entire stock of grapes. Identifying wines produced by the same folks that own and grow the grapes is easy as many times the winery owners will put it on the label, they are proud of their farming tradition and they should be.

The other way to know with certainty is to ask the wine shop owner or store wine specialist as we know which wines are produced by farming families. The best way to learn if these wines appeal to you is to start trying them, next time you are in your favorite wine shop look for some of the names listed here or just ask us about some of the growers we know that are producing award winning wines at great prices.

If there is a topic you would like to read about or questions on wine you can email George@thedinnerpartyshop.com or make suggestions by contacting the Healthy Community section at the Coeur d'Alene Press.

George Balling is co-owner with his wife Mary Lancaster of the dinner party - a wine and table top decor shop in Coeur d'Alene by Costco. George is also the managing judge of The North Idaho Wine Rodeo, and writes frequently for the online version of Coeur d'Alene Magazine at www.cdamagazine.com. His articles can also be found on the blog at www.thedinnerpartyshop.com.