GrapeRadio – Wine Talk Show

British Columbia is one of those places you never guessed would be making dry wines. Even if you considered its close proximity to the state of Washington, it probably still wouldn’t dawn on you that Canada would produce anything other than Ice Wine. Well, surprise – they DO!

Occupying what is essentially the Columbia River watershed in Southeast British Columbia, the Okanagan Valley is about 110 miles long from north to south. It is bisected by the Okanagan River, which finally joins with the Columbia River in northern Washington State. Although the region is the driest in B.C., the valley also contains 6 lakes. It is the ancient home to the Okanagan people, an Interior Salish people who still live in the valley today.

The first non-natives arrived in 1811, and were mostly fur trappers. In 1846, the Oregon Treaty laid out the border between British North America and the United States west of the Rocky Mountains on the 49th parallel. The Okanagan Valley did not see many more outsiders for a decade afterward.

The Fraser Canyon Gold Rush of 1858 eventually encouraged more settlement. In the decades that followed, hundreds of ranchers came to settle on Okanagan Lake. A mining industry began in the southern Okanagan region, and more farmers, as well as a small service industry, came to meet the needs of the miners. Today, fruit production is a hallmark of the Okanagan Valley today.

Like much of Southern British Columbia, the Okanagan has a mild climate, although the Okanagan is considerably drier than many other areas. Areas in the north end of the valley receive more precipitation and cooler temperatures than areas to the south. Vegetation ranges from cactus and sagebrush in the south, to Cedar and Hemlock trees in the North.

Join us as we talk with Rasoul Salehi, General Manager of Le Vieux Pin and La Stella wineries. You’ll learn more about Canada’s second largest wine region – its differences and its similarities, and what its grapes bring to the proverbial wine table.

For more info:

Le Vieux Pin Winery: www.levieuxpin.ca/
LaStella Winery: www.lastella.ca/

Sponsor: Best Wines Online: www.bestwinesonline.com

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Show #328
(1:04:46 min 59.3 MB)

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‘All I want is a small place out in the country,’ is often how it begins. For Dr. Elias S. Hanna and family, what began in 1985 as a small getaway house/farm in the Russian River Valley, morphed into four vineyard locations. Beginning with 12 acres in the Russian River Valley purchased in the 1970s, he and his children began their foray into winemaking with homemade Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon. In the mid-1980s, Dr. Hanna hired a winemaker and expanded the vineyard holdings.

In the Russian River appellation, the Home Ranch on Occidental Road includes Hanna’s winery production facility, as well as the main 25 acre vineyard planted to Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Sauvignon Blanc. The other RRV property is the Slusser Road vineyard is planted to Sauvignon Blanc, as well as Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. With its cool climate, this 60-acre vineyard is all about aromatics and crisp mouthfeel. Their 88-acre Alexander Valley Red Ranch vineyard is planted to Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Malbec. And, the most recent acquisition is the Bismark Mountain Ranch. Located on the Sonoma side of the Mayacamas Mountains at elevations from 1,400-2,600 feet, the 67 planted acres of steeply terraced rocky volcanic soil are planted to Cabernet, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, Malbec, Syrah, Petit Syrah and Zinfandel.

Today, the Hanna family owns 600 acres, 250 of which are planted, split between four different vineyards. Dr. Hanna’s eldest daughter Christine has been running the winery for over 20 years. Join us as we talk with Christine Hanna about a simpler time in the wine-growing world, and what it takes to plan for the family’s future generations.

For more info:
Hanna Winery & Vineyards: www.hannawinery.com/

Sponsor: Wine Berserkers: www.wineberserkers.com

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Show #321
(1:01:51 min 56.6 MB)

Although it is considered New World, Chile has been growing wine since the 16th century, when the Spanish conquistadors brought vitis vinifera vines with them during their colonization of the region. About the mid-18th century, several French grape varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Carmenère were also introduced to the region.

Chile’s five viticultural regions occupy an 800 mile stretch, in a country 2,700 miles long and 109 miles wide. The most common red grapes grown are Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Carmenère – a grape originally from the Medoc region, but which has all but disappeared from Bordeaux since the phylloxera epidemic of the late 19th Century.

During the early 1980s, Chilean wineries modernized their production, bringing in stainless steel tanks for fermentation and oak barrels for aging. These were fast times, and the number of wineries grew from 12 in 1995 to over 70 in 2005. The increase in production was matched with wine exports as well, with Chile becoming the fifth largest exporter of wines, and the ninth largest producer in the world.

Join us as we talk with Andrea Leon, winemaker for Casa Lapostolle. Founded by Alexandra Marnier Lapostolle, her husband Cyril de Bournet and Don José Rabat Gorchs, Casa Lapostolle began as an effort to blend French expertise with Chilean terroir. Certified as Carbon Neutral for its recycling and renewable energy efforts, the winery practices biodynamic farming, and have been a leader in the “Green” movement in Chile.

For more information on Casa Lapostolle: www.casalapostolle.com

Sponsor: VinAssure, Wine Preservation System: www.vinassure.com

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In 1980, Barbara and Jim Richards were living in Midland, Texas, and began thinking about a second home. They had an interest in wine and started looking for some property in the Napa Valley to build a home and plant a small vineyard. They realized their dream in 1983 when they found a property located five miles west of St. Helena and over 2,000 feet above the Valley floor near the top of Spring Mountain. Vineyard exposure is generally east with many variations, and the soils are derived from the Sonoma volcanics and from Franciscan sandstone. Total acreage is 20 acres with 15 acres planted.

In 1985, after clearing, ripping, and terracing about ten acres, they planted 3,555 bench graft Merlot vines, and 945 Cabernet Sauvignon vines. By 1987, the Richards’ recognized their previous absentee landlord role was insufficient to monitor the vines. So, Barbara came to manage things from January through harvest, while Jim would come to help when he could get away from his business as a petroleum geologist. Their first small harvest was sold to Conn Creek Winery. In 1988, they planted another 2,300 Merlot vines in their last five acres of vineyard.

The early ‘90s were momentous for the Richards’. By 1993, Barb and Jim had moved into their new home in the vineyard, and Pride Mountain Winery released a 1991 Merlot, made from their grapes blended with Pride’s Cabernet Sauvignon fruit. The Richards’ agreed to sell their grapes to the Prides beginning in 1994 and their wine maker, Bob Foley, agreed to make wine from part of the grapes into Paloma Merlot for the Richards’ new label, debuting their Merlot-based blend in 1996. Also, Barb and Jim decided to plant a block of Syrah to see how it would do, and by 1996, they started making the wine commercially as well. Unfortunately, they’ve since pulled up the small Syrah vineyard, and replanted with Cabernet Sauvignon.

In 2000, the Richard’s finally decided to construct their own winery on the property. A few years later, their son Sheldon joined them in the business, and to this date the Richards’ Paloma Merlot still stands as one of the enduring benchmarks of the variety in California, and indeed the world.

Join us as we talk with Barbara Richards about Paloma – their early years, and what it was like to basically become pioneers on Spring Mountain, and well as Merlot’s place in Napa Valley.

For more info on Paloma Vineyard: www.palomavineyard.com

Sponsor- Gold Medal Wine Club: www.goldmedalwineclub.com

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View More Photos From ‘The Wines of Paloma Vineyard’