California wine prices may rise despite bumper crops

I hope all enjoyed a wonderful Valentine's Day. Julie wrote, "Hey John, what is carbonic maceration?" Wow! Never been asked that before. Recent Beaujolais columns prompted some outside research. CM is basically squeezing bunches of grapes in a sealed bladder by pumping in carbon dioxide. When the CO2 goes in, the oxygen is bled out. In addition to squeezing the juice from the grapes, this prompts partial fermentation. Two common results are less tannin, because seeds, skins and stems are not crushed; and better fruit and/or floral aromas. CM is most commonly used for Nouveau Beaujolais. There is an excellent explanation of the process at WineMaker Academy including a section for employing the process at home. That site is an exemplary, easy-to-read, and very understandable reference. As an aside, I really enjoyed a recent quote describing Cru Beaujolais as it compares with Burgundy, from Madeline Puckette of Wine Folly, "Beaujolais is kind of like the smallest house in the fanciest neighborhood."

Recent ads for Single Lot Estates Lot 56 Cabernet Sauvignon are misleading. These folks are touting the 2015 as 95 points, selling for $213/case sourced from Oakville, home to Napa's Hallmark, Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyards, Screaming Eagle, Harlan, Opus One, Beckstoffer, Mondavi and Plumpjack, among others. On reading the $17.75/bottle price for Cab from great terroir, I had to take a look. Disappointing. Too bad, because the wine is about 87-88 points and did not need hyperbole to promote at $18/bottle. Nearly every industry leader agrees you can't produce wine sourced from To Kalon juice to sell under $150. RRs know I rarely pan wine. This promoter used proximity to prompt acceptance and cloak a decent wine in an ermine cape. I'm guessing very little of the juice, if any, came from To Kalon Vineyards, a world-famous source for grapes, which has been divided into very small parcels and is now owned by several wineries and vignerons. Initially the vineyards were planted by Hamilton Walker Crabb about 1868. He made them famous. Here is a quote from Pacific Wine and Spirits, May 4, 1891: "Among all the wine producers of California, none stand higher in public estimation than H. W. Crabb of Oakville." The To Kalon Vineyard designation has been fought over since the end of Prohibition. It is very complicated. Those with an interest may refer to an accurate, informative read on this legendary vineyard's history at www.guildsomm.com/public_content/features/articles/b/stamp/posts/the-tru....

Following are some housekeeping issues. You may have heard 2017 was a bumper year in California. Huge production numbers. Even so, prices will likely be rising. 2017 was horrible just about everywhere else, down 10 percent worldwide. Some of the major producers were disastrous. Italy down 23 percent, France 19 percent and 15 percent for Spain. I'm still awaiting South Africa but I know they were killed by drought. In fact, currently there is little potable water left in reservoirs, and the 2018 crop is in danger. Uco Valley down 30 percent in 2017 due to early frost. Chile growers claim down 22 percent compared to 2016; fires in Itata Valley were so bad, Miguel Torres is not producing his PN from 2017. Germany was ridiculous. Early warmth caused early bud break; then it became extremely cold in late March to April followed by high temps in summer and drought. Just as producers started contemplating the late-summer pick came rain and hailstorms. Many panicked and picked grapes with decent sugar but extremely high acidity due to being underripe. Katarina Prüm and my friend Nik Weis looked into their voluminous on-site histories and held off. They were rewarded with a beautiful long, warm fall and delightful October. All that said, Pfalz, Nahe and Rheinhessen were down at least 20 percent. Mosel harvest earliest in memory and ugly numbers that aren't available yet. Franken hit by frost early but recovered and actually increased production volume. The weather provided one bright spot, good conditions for Auslesen, Beerenauslesen, Trockenbeerenauslesen, provided hand selection is used. Several left grapes for possible Eiswein production. I'm still awaiting news.