Why everyone loves old vines

Winter pruning of old vines (planted between the 1920s and 1940s) in Stampede Vineyard, one of Lodi's premier old vine Zinfandel plantings.

Of all the different sides of Lodi winegrowing, none is more compelling than the region's old vines. There is beauty, to begin with it, in the thick, creviced, tree-like trunks of vines over 50 years old, and in their long, sturdy, twisting, muscular arms, or "spurs." There is beauty in each vine's story, what we know of them or what we just imagine. Older vines have histories, and the more we know, know, know about them the more we love, love, love them. 

So let's learn more about old vines. At least, those of the Lodi Viticultural Area, where thousands of acres of old plantings have been thriving since as far back as the 1800s (although, granted, in the late 1800s the vines considered "ancient" today were still young bucks). For starters...

Oct 8, 2021 at 8:00 AM Permalink

Zinfandel is the ideal autumnal wine

2021 Zinfandel harvest on the east side of Lodi's Mokelumne River AVA.

Zinfandel is the ideal autumn sipper. Make that quaffer. Why fool around?

Why Zinfandel? Because it is one of the few red wines with a propensity for spice qualities in the nose and flavor. By spice, we mean a pungent quality ascribed to an aromatic compound called rotundone, the or sesquiterpene (or class of terpenes) responsible for the "spicy" or "peppery" aroma and taste commonly found, first and foremost, in peppercorns, but also in other plants like juniper, geranium, and various kitchen herbs... 

Oct 5, 2021 at 11:00 AM Permalink

What six visiting wine influencers are saying about Lodi

Six visiting wine influencers with Calhoun & Company's Katie Calhoun (center) in Phillips Farms' Bare Ranch on Lodi's west side, they they helped pick 2021 Primitivo.

Last week (September 19-22, 2021) Lodi growers and vintners hosted six wine influencers in a 3-day study of the Lodi wine region.

Sometimes it helps to ask someone what they think moments after their experience. Said one of the influencers, L.A.'s Elle Rodriguez, in a video/message transmitted while waiting to leave at Sacramento International Airport: “Omigosh, I'm shocked... Lodi is such a gem."

Upon further thought, Rodriguez added: "Lodi has all the right vibes. If you are into good people, great wine, authentic experiences, this is the place for you. It’s not at all corporate. The winemakers are hands-on. You see stains under their fingernails, and an absence of Rolexes. If this sounds like your kind of experience, come to Lodi before the word gets out..."

Sep 30, 2021 at 7:00 AM Permalink

The fresh grape packing action (for the nation's home winemakers) in Lodi vineyards

Old vine Carignan, field-packed by Lodi's M & R Company, decked out with a vintage Sabor e Ducura (Portuguese for "Flavor and Sweetness") crate label, and headed out to home winemakers across the country and in Canada.

Every mid-September through early October, one of the common sights in vineyards in Lodi is pickers loading grapes into 40-pound lug boxes. Next to the vines, the pickers weigh each lug box on scales in order to be as precise as possible. At the edge of the vineyards, on the side of the road, the lugs are then emptied into colorful wooden boxes by grape packers. 

Each crate — filled with grapes such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Zinfandel or Carignan — is sealed with a curved wooden top, and the boxes are bundled together with steel strapping on 36-box pallets, before being loaded onto trucks...

Sep 24, 2021 at 10:00 AM Permalink

More wine myths we have known

Do wine bottles need to be stored on their side or upright? We explore this and other common wine "myths."

The world is full of myths and legends. Why? Because, evidently, it's in our nature to be captivated by them. It's like in Peter Pan... "I do believe in fairies."

Sep 16, 2021 at 12:00 PM Permalink

Three grapes of the moment during Lodi's 2021 harvest

Close-up of 2021 Carignan harvest in Lodi's Spenker Ranch, planted in 1900.

As we come into the middle of Lodi's 2021 wine grape harvest, it is as good a time as any to focus on three grapes that represent three sides of the Lodi winegrowing industry today:

• Innovation
• Tradition and history
• Terroir...

Sep 10, 2021 at 12:00 PM Permalink

The meaning of brix and the start of Lodi's 2021 harvest

Harvest morning this past Saturday, September 4 in Lodi's historical Bechthold Vineyard, planted to Cinsaut in 1886.

Brix and alcohol levels in wines

The term Brix (also called Balling) is the name of the system for measuring sugar content in grapes, fermenting grape juices (musts) or finished wines developed by Adolph Brix in the early 1800s. Brix is credited with adding precision to the measurement of sugar content on a density scale known as Balling. 

Grape sugars have a direct impact on alcohol levels of wines and the resulting sense of body in the taste. Potential alcohol by volume (i.e., ABV) is typically calculated by multiplying Brix readings by .55. However, the reality is that conversion rates can be as high as .64, especially for grapes such as Zinfandel or Chardonnay that are known for uneven ripening (clusters with "hens-and-chicks"-sized berries), which usually results from millerandage or shot berries... 

Sep 7, 2021 at 2:00 PM Permalink

Lodi is about to pick its first Assyrtiko

Ripening 2021 Assyrtiko in Perlegos Vineyard, east side of the Mokelumne River-Lodi AVA.

The Assyrtiko grape is pronounced ah-SEER-tee-koh, according to Jeff Perlegos, a second-generation winegrower of Greek heritage, who farms vineyards on both the east and west sides of Lodi with his brother John Perlegos...

Aug 31, 2021 at 5:00 AM Permalink

Nothing wrong with hot climate winegrowing

Contrasting the distinctively different soils of France's Châteauneuf-du-Pape (left, all the rocks in the world) with that of Lodi's Mokelumne River (right, extremely fine sandy loam) — two regions where Mediterranean grapes thrive because of "hot" sun-soaked climates.

I once attended a Hospice du Rhône in Paso Robles — which used to be a yearly (but is now an occasional) celebration of wines for lovers of grapes grown in Mediterranean regions — and I was suddenly struck by a recurring theme voiced by guest vintners who were attending from France’s Rhône Valley, as well as from Australia, and Spain’s Priorat, Jumilla and the lesser known Méntrida region: They all grow grapes, they seemed to gleefully say, in “hot climates..."

Aug 26, 2021 at 9:00 AM Permalink

A former New York sommelier realizes his Italian dreams... in Lodi

A New York sommelier dreams of producing the ideal American wine... in fiascos.

The latest two red wine releases by former Manhattan sommelier, Patrick Cappiello, are both fulfillments of one of his dreams: to produce a style of red wine Italians (and Italian-Americans) drank in copious amounts, which is out of traditional fiascos —the big, fat, straw-covered bottles long associated with wines from Tuscany's Chianti region.

It's not so much the age-old packaging Cappiello is looking for, but a style of red wine: bone dry, sturdy, yet zesty and light, with a little bit of a silky feel that makes the wine go down with an ultra-smoothness. The ultimate "food wines"...

Aug 24, 2021 at 5:00 AM Permalink