Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/620640
2 4 V I N E YA R D & W I N E RY M A N A G E M E N T | J a n - F e b 2 016 w w w. v w m m e d i a . c o m like Allegro Moscato, that have prospered in that space for a very long time. I discussed the frizzante wine category with Peter Eastlake, a longtime tastemaker on the West Coast, a former buyer for World Market and founder/owner of Vin- tage Berkeley wine shops. "I think it sprung out of Moscato," East- lake said. "Some things, like Stella Rosa, are more gateway wines for people who don't like the bitter- ness of red wine or feel that red wine makes their teeth black. "We have a carbonated culture," he continued. "It fits nicely into what people are used to drinking, like soda. Carbonated wine, but not necessarily sparkling wine, is a nat- ural fit for our sort of palate. That's the Txakoli wine nerd and the Mid- west mom who goes to Costco and picks up a wine that has fizz in it for six or seven bucks a bottle. It's for everybody." Vintage Berkeley's three stores do, from time to time, see small- production wines in the frizzante category. Some of them do really well, but they don't all last – some- times because they were one-off productions from a winery that doesn't own its own vineyards and the fruit source has dried up. "Anthony Yount, the winemaker from Denner Vineyards in Paso Robles, made an 11% alcohol Pinot Gris, and I heard it blew Kermit Lynch away," Eastlake recalled. "It essentially a re-marketing of the wine spritzer, and Barefoot has a similar product called Refresh. Beyond that you have to look pretty hard to find examples of American wines that are innovating in the cat- egory. Perhaps they are still bub- bling under, as they say. Though, in fairness, there are some examples, Peter Eastlake, founder of Vintage Berkeley wine shops, points out that Americans have an affinity for carbon- ated beverages. Photo: Cal Bingham ® © 2015 StaVin Inc. StaVın Inc, P.O.Box 1693, Sausalito,CA 94966 (415) 331-7849 f (415) 331-0516 stavin.com One of our staff scientists, Dr. Jeff McCord has developed a micro-oxygenation system which enables stainless tanks to breathe in precisely the same manner as oak barrels. When used in union with StaVin's array of Oak Integration Systems, The OxBox can effectively transform a stainless tank into the oak barrels of your choice. For about a third of the price. MARKET WATCH TIM TEICHGRAEBER