My Lastest in Wine Business Monthly:
“Pushing the Envelope: Oregon Still White Wines from Red Grapes Find a Unique Niche”
by L.M. Archer
“Pinot Noir doesn’t want to be a white wine – it wants to be red. I’m asking it to be something that it naturally doesn’t want to do. You can do it – you just have to talk nice.” -Tony Rynders, Tendril Wine Cellars
Have you ever had a white wine made from a red grape?
My latest article for the February 2023 print edition of Wine Business Monthly entitled “Pushing the Envelope: Oregon Still White Wines from Red Grapes Find a Unique Niche” explores white wines made from red grapes.
The article showcases four Oregon producers: Anne Amie Vineyards, Tendril Wine Cellars, Winter’s Hill Estate, and Valcan Cellars.
Calling
Some consider making white wines from red grapes a calling.
“Since I grew up in Mondoza, I’ve been around Malbec vines and wines for a very long time,” explained winemaker J.P.Valot of Valcan Cellars, who makes nearly 200 cases of “Bare” White Malbec annually. “The white Malbec idea: it’s bee in my head for a long time,” Valot says.
Pragmatics
Others approach it more pragmatically. “With our estate vineyard int he Dundee Hills AVA, we naturally focus on Pinot Noir,” noted Winter Hill’s Estate winemaker Russell Gladhart. The family owned winery offers approximately 100 to 200 cases of”Pinot Noir Blanc” each year. “We have had a successful Rosé of Pinot Noir program since 2001 and we were interested in exploring another aspect of Pinot Noir.”
Novelty
Others like the novelty. Tony Rynders of Tendril Wine Cellars claimed fame decades ago as a white Pinot Noir winemaker at Domaine Serene. After leaving there, he eventually created his own “The Pretender” white Pinot Noir. “It’s a true discovery wine for our customers when they come to the winery,” stated Rynders. “The style we’re making is a serious, interesting, and, hopefully compelling expression of Pinot Noir, but in a form that people don’t come across every day It’a a real celebration of texture.” Paid subscribers may access the full article here.