Going Pro with Online Wine Science Education

When Higher Learning recently talked to students in the WSU professional certificate program in enology, we learned that they not only come from all over the country, they’re also making connections, starting businesses and getting jobs in wine regions all over the place. Hear what certificate program students have to say in this short video.

The two-year certificate programs in viticulture and enology are continuing education programs offered through Washington State University Extension. These non-credit, professional certificate programs are tailored for people who are seriously interested in working in the wine industry — grape growing and winemaking — but are not interested in obtaining a college degree.

Mapping Complexity in Washington Wine Country

As you read this, a graduate student in Prosser is sitting in front of his computer, for the umpteen millionth hour, bashing his head against the mapmaker’s perennial problem: the map can never be as detailed as the terrain it represents.

But that doesn’t mean the mapmaker doesn’t try. Especially when there is tremendous pent up demand from Washington grape growers for a vineyard site-selection tool.

Ian Yau is the mapmaker, and he’s a grad student based at WSU’s Irrigated Agriculture Research and Extension Center in Prosser. Yau is trying to wrestle a vast amount of information to the ground in order to turn raw data into useful knowledge.

“It’s a lot of spreadsheet manipulation,” Yau said, the wry understatement of his project causing a smile to play across his face.

Consider what you’d want to know if you wanted to plant a vineyard in Washington. You’d want to know, of a given plot of land, how many growing degree days it got at a certain elevation on a particular slope. You’d want to know about the soil beneath your feet: is it going to drain properly so the grape vines don’t wallow and rot? Is there hardpan or some sort of other restrictive layer close to the surface that will prevent the plants from sinking their roots deep into the soil? And what’s the soil’s water-holding capacity and pH?

Bodegas Illana 2006 Casa de Illana Tradicion

1626 made a pretty hefty dent as a page in the history books.

Much like this blog entry, it started on a Thursday.

King Charles the First was crowned in February, remaining on the throne until his timely execution 23 years later (the guy attempted to start not one, but two civil wars in the greater British empire, which was of wealthy stature at that time!)

In May, the Dutch explorer Peter Minuit arrived in “New Netherland,” now more commonly known as Manhattan Island. Ever heard of it?

An earthquake in Naples killed nearly 10,000 in July.

November of 1626 brought the consecration of St. Peter’s Basilica, which still to this day has the largest interior of any Christian church on the planet, busting at its seams with a maximum of 60,000 people.

Also in 1626, Bodegas Illana y Vinedos established itself as a full-production winery in Cuenca, Spain.

A House Divided: The Crumbling of Antiquated Liquor Laws

A house divided against itself cannot stand.
–Matthew 12:25

It seems appropriate to open here a little bit biblically, since what we’re about to talk about has as its roots the puritanical principles of the Prohibition Era, roots that have withered and died in many places around America, yet have lingered in Washington State. These anemic roots are the liquor laws that are simultaneously and paradoxically both nourishing and stunting the public’s consumption of liquor, beer and wine. But, there are exciting developments that may change that very soon.

Casey’s Top Ten: Wine and Book Pairings

Ah, summertime. The sun creeps over the edge of the earth a bit earlier every day, smiling down upon the bikini-clad, the surfer, the runner. God’s flashlight illuminates the previous night’s debauchery, but cloaks it in a warm smile that hides the regrets so akin to winter. Summer is a time of freedom, of possibility, of the shift in debate from “What should we do today” to “What will we do today.” An optimism infuses every dog-walk. A pep infects every step, and yet a walk takes a bit longer. Quite literally, a time to stop and smell the roses, the marigolds, the dandelions. Views become expansive, sun-drenching becomes a favored afternoon activity. Hope flies from the rapidly growing grass. Fireflies flit within the reach of children with dreams of overnight glows in a hole-punched jar. Sundresses replace sweaters, the hoodie finally gets a much-deserved washing and rest, journeys are undertaken to the edge of the earth, relationships flower, the scent of barbecue drifts on the breeze, the drinks go in a cooler, the fruit becomes fresher, the street performers go to another level. Patios open, and eyes hide behind dark lenses.

The city is abuzz with activity. You are going hiking, camping, rock-climbing, kayaking, shopping, walking, dancing, heading to baseball games, parks, frisbee golf tournaments, meeting friends for pub crawls, cooking out, hitting the beach and JUST A DAMN MINUTE! Can I get a little bit of ME time?

Indeed. After all, it IS summer. So take a second. Heck, take a few. Grab a good book, and a bottle of wine. Sit in the sun, breathe. Soak it in. Relax, and escape for a while the hustle and bustle that can take over during a summer, the feeling that you MUST NOT WASTE THIS WEATHER! I am offering you an alternative. I am presenting to you the Top Ten Wine and Book Pairings for Summer Escapism.

Pretty specific, huh? Well, there is a reason for that. Chew on this, if you will: Washington State alone has over 530 wineries. As for books? Good lord, I have nearly 15000 myself. There are literally millions out there, especially with Google Books offering many public domain titles in eformat. I love to read and drink, but trying all of that would take a little too long. And would involve quite a few bad wines and more than a few terrible books.

So what do I mean by “escapism?” I am not looking just for a book that is mindless entertainment. Truly enjoyable escapist books engage your mind in a way that allows you to forget where you are, and to get carried away to another place (you know, kind of like too much wine). They are also not filled with heavy themes, or difficult reading. The words flow like water through the cavernous depths of your mind. As an example, The Modern Library called Ulysses by James Joyce the best novel ever written. Please. You can appreciate Ulysses, but you will never convince me you enjoy it. If you have to stop every five minutes to process exactly what in the hell is going on, it is not escapist. They also need to be books that are easy to carry and read outdoors. Therefore, while my favorite book to read with wine is Griffin and Sabine, the opening of letters and envelopes risks too much in the breeze, and requires two hands, so it doesn’t make the list. So that’s how I narrowed the books down.

As for the wine, this one was much easier. As anyone who knows me can attest, I love a thick, full-bodied Cab Sauv that punches me in both jaws with tannins; however, I consider that a winter wine. In the summer, I like to sit in the sun and drink lighter, more fruity reds or delightfully crackling whites. I enjoy the melon flavors that creep into some dessert wines as well. So I am limiting wines initially by my consideration of them as “refreshing.” Obviously, this can mean different things to different people. This is my list, though, so there. Further, I have found that one of my favorite places to sit and read is the patio at The Tasting Room in Post Alley, simply because I can intersperse my reading with some FANTASTIC people-watching. So this list includes only wines available there. That makes it much more manageable.
So, dear friends, here is your summer reading list. Papers will be due on Labor Day:

10. The Brooklyn Follies by Paul Auster:
Nathan Glass has lung cancer, and has returned to Brooklyn to die. Any story that starts here would seem to be too heavy for a good summer read, but Auster’s time as host of NPR’s National Story Project taught him to appreciate the authenticity and humor of modern urban fables, and he brings that wide-eyed wonder about human relationships and the seemingly far-fetched to bear here. Nathan’s interaction with his long-lost nephew and his attempts to write a memoir of his life bring a surprisingly Victorian feel to a delightful novel. This novel starts out very simply, but finishes with a powerful explosion of smoke. Try it with: 2007 Semillon from Wilridge Winery. The nose and opening flavors start simply, with a hint of melon to refresh, but then the burnt oak creeps in, and you realize that there is a lot of redemption in this glass.

9. The Mouse that Roared by Leonard Wibberly: This is a one-afternoon kind of read. It tells a hilarious, laugh-out-loud story of the Duchy of Grand Fenwick, a proudly pre-industrial nation only 3×5 miles in size that not only declares war on the United States, but through a series of mishaps, wins. Wibberly’s grand satire shows the laughability of superpowers that are actually vulnerable to their own progress and paranoia. Try it with: Well, the war starts because American winemakers produce a Pinot that is a rip-off of Fenwick’s only export, so you should probably have it with 2009 Pinot Gris from Naches Heights Vineyards. The grapes are grown in high-altitude volcanic soil, just like Grand Fenwick’s, and the fruity flavors have a deeper undercurrent of spice. The acidity and grapefruit give it a deeper meaning than just the light apple flavors would initially indicate.

8. A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole: Ignatius J. Reilly, the incredibly over-weight and over-educated “hero” of this picaresque fable, is one of those characters in literature that becomes a train-wreck: you hate how much you can’t stop watching him. His adventures in the seamy underbelly of 1960s New Orleans give an insight into white-trash Cajun culture that cannot be found anywhere else. He treats everyone around him with disdain, lives off his mother’s welfare checks, and pens (okay, pencils, he’s too fat to hold a pen) mighty Luddite diatribes in Big Chief tablets. And he turns the world of New Orleans upside-down in a raucous, good-time, Pulitzer Prize-winning comedy. Try it with: Justin Wilson, he of Cajun Cooking fame, always drank a strong shiraz while hosting his show. This leaves us with only one choice of wine, really, even though it kind of violates my rules for wine selection: the 2005 Minick Vineyard Syrah from Harlequin Cellars. This kicking little syrah carries a hint of beefiness and leather that hides behind a syrupy blackberry nose. Imagine a nice steak with blackberry cobbler, in a cowboy bar.

Ross Andrew Winery 2008 Meadow

I find it sad that I have to rely on the oracle that is Google to give me answers that my brain is gradually (and very slyly) erasing. Such as, have I already reviewed this wine?

Blame it on the alcohol, a worldly Jamie Foxx would recommend, but I am far too young to be forgetting things – placements of keys, movies I’ve already seen or wines I’ve consumed. Nay, recites the Oracle after multiple searches in several different word formations, I am safe. At least this time.

It gets even a tad trickier when you’ve had a handful(s) of wines from the same producers. Such is this case with the wines of said Ross Andrew Mickel. I am guilty to have sauntered into The Ross Andrew Winery Woodinville tasting room to flirt with his beautiful Bernese Mountain dog (Galena, like the city in Idaho) and beg for the winemaker’s claim-to-fame bottle of Pinot Gris from the praised Celilo Vineyard in the Columbia Gorge. Refused many a’times for the limited wine, this purchase time I decided to dive for the Meadow White Blend, the alleged “little sister” to Mickel’s exalted white.

And why shouldn’t it be well-reviewed? The man is a direct descendant of the Bob Betz School of Fine Wine, having played in puddles of grape juice with Bob for nine years before breaking out on his own with the 1999 harvest. Before that, Mickel was gathering experience at Rosemount Estate in South Australia and later with DeLille Cellars also in Woodinville.

Kokomo 2007 Dry Creek Valley Petite Sirah

*Bottle #97: Kokomo 2007 Petite Sirah, Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma County
*Price Tag: $25
*Running Tab: $1,324
*Retailer: Kokomo Winery herself

Kokomo. Not the one in Hawaii or the island in Jamaica formerly known as such, but the Kokomo that is in Indiana. Kokomo, Indiana: the state’s 13th largest city, home of the famous “Gas Tower” and an unfortunate old-school notoriety for the Ku Klux Klan…

Kokomo, Indiana: the hometown of young Erik Miller, Purdue grad and proud-midwesterner, in which he named his Dry Creek Valley winery after. Erik moved west quickly after he turned his tassel and started building relationships with the wine industry vets around him in Sonoma County.

After putting in some grunt work in a few cellars, Erik went back to school at U.C. Davis to work on his oenology degree which lead him to a full-time job opportunity in the cellar for Amphora Winery. On the side, Erik got his start and launched his first release for Kokomo Winery in 2004 with single vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon from Dry Creek Valley.

Punkt Genau 2008 Sparkling Rosé

*Bottle #96: Punkt Genau 2008 Weinviertel Sparkling Rosé
*Price Tag: $19
*Running Tab: $1,299
*Retailer: Madison Market, Central Co-Op

You read it right. Punkt – as in the producer of the wine, not in an Ashton Kutcher sense of the word, thank God.

“Punkt Genau,” meaning “on the dot” in English, captures the quintessential Austrian’s own Blauer Zweigelt in a pink fashion. I’ll be the first to admit I do not know too much about Austria or fashion, for that matter.

With nearly 70% of Austrian wine production consisting of white wines (most familiarly Grüner Veltliner), the remainder made up mostly of the red wine varietals Blaufränkisch and Zweigelt. Austria is on the wine map for their unique grape varieties, a classification system that was put into place in Hitler’s rule and makes about as much sense as a screen door on a submarine and as the motherland of the Riedel wine glasses.

Palamà Arcangelo 2008 Salice Salentino

*Bottle #95: Palamà Arcangelo 2008 Salice Salentino, Puglia
*Price Tag: $15
*Running Tab: $1,280
*Retailer: None – gifted by my work hubby!

Winemaker Cosimo (aka Nini) Palamà made this wine in honor of his father, Arcangelo. Winemaker Nini Palamà’s family has been making small lot wines in the highly underrated southern heel of Italy, Puglia, for almost 75 years, rooting with his father.

Like most producers in Puglia back in the day, Palamà was pumping out bulk wine from the get-go in the small town of Salice Salentino, now a designated DOC region of Italy. Scattered with intermixing olive orchards and vines, homes and history were thrown in the midst, allowing families to thrive off the land.

Given this land and the fields of Negroamaro and Malvasia Nera surrounding them, Arcangelo’s original production of bulk wine gained finesse enough to be enjoyed and distributed to restaurants in the area, acquiring positive publicity and praise.

Bottleology – Lange Estate Winery with Winemaker Jesse Lange

An old soul, a go-getter, a bull-by-the-horns kind of fellow, a hot shot, a hard worker, an athlete and a winemaker who makes Oregon Pinot Noir exactly how it should be made: perfect.

Jesse Lange is a man that deserves a hug, a handshake, a pat on the back and your applause.  This arranged gratitude that I encourage is due to the fact that his winery, Lange Estate in Dundee, sets the bar for Oregon Pinot Noir–ask just about anyone.  Jesse has dedicated his life in no small way to delivering us pinot-philes the chronic pleasures that these grapes possess. Out of pure respect, I’m here to offer you his story and a glimpse into his world and the making of this fine wine.

Home Sweet Home: Jesse is a second generation winegrower and winemaker at his family’s estate winery in the heart of Oregon wine country: the Dundee Hills. He’s been growing grapes with his family since 1987 on their 60 acres, reserved especially for Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, and Chardonnay. LUCKY!

Neat Freak: Wine has some really neat aspects! Jesse was drawn to wine because he’s “always loved the way wine incorporates agriculture and science. And it’s such a compelling beverage.” He reflected on his first wine experience and said, “It was drinking a Pinot Noir straight from the basket press in our garage in Santa Barbara. Circa 1984.”

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