NYT: The Hard Stuff Now Includes Wine (higher percentage alcohol)

[DeepModem Mom]

The Hard Stuff Now Includes Wine
By ERIC ASIMOV

Published: April 13, 2005

NOT so many years ago, back when Americans sought out compact cars and calculated their gas mileage, most California wines clocked in at an economical 12 to 13 percent alcohol. It was perhaps a shade higher than what their European colleagues achieved, but California was blessed with generous sunshine that made ripening grapes an easier proposition than in the cooler climates of Bordeaux and Burgundy.

Twenty-five years later, the 12 percent California wine seems as quaint as the gas-saving hatchback. Today, it's the rare bottle from California, red or white, that doesn't reach 14 percent alcohol. Many now hit 15, even 16 percent, a difference that may seem insignificant until you realize that a 15 percent bottle contains 25 percent more alcohol than one labeled 12 percent.

Casual consumers seem to pay little attention to the small print on the label that indicates the approximate alcohol content. And while these extreme wines do not hide their alcohol levels, few winemakers trumpet them, either....(Among) California producers and those who follow wine closely, the wines have provoked sharp debate.

Opponents have called them wines on steroids, and insist that the qualities of elegance and subtlety, and the ability to evolve gracefully with age, so prized in traditional wines, are completely lost. Wine's place on the dinner table, they say, is in danger, too. These wines, they argue, overwhelm food instead of enhancing it. High alcohol can create the impression of sweetness, which can clash with food. And then there's the headache factor, not to mention the issue of driving....


http://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/13/dining/13alcohol.html?8hpib

[dhinojosa]

1. A TOAST!!!!!

to good times ahead!

[supernova]

2. You know, I've been wondering lately

why I can't seem to drink 2 glasses of wine in the evening without getting a morning slight hangover, or feeling fatigued the next day. I just atrributed it to getting older, not being able to hold my liquor anymore.

But the alcohol content creep could explain it.

[crispini]

3. Very interesting

Every single wine they named in the article, I think, was a red wine. I wonder if the same thing is true of white wines?

High alcohol levels are not completely new in California. Zinfandels have a long history of surpassing 15 and 16 percent. What's different are the wines from grapes not known for producing blockbuster alcohol levels. The Heavyweight 2003, a blend of cabernet sauvignon, merlot and two other grapes from Behrens & Hitchcock in the Napa Valley, weighs in at 15.6 percent. A 2001 roussanne from Sine Qua Non is at 15.5 percent. The 2002 Hard Core, a blended red wine from Core in eastern Santa Barbara County, hit 15.7 percent. Syrahs from Pax Wine Cellars in northern California regularly approach 16 percent, while the Bulladóir, a 2002 syrah from the Garretson Wine Company in Paso Robles, reached nearly 17 percent. Each of these wines has received scores of 90 points or higher from Robert M. Parker Jr., the influential wine critic.

I may have to start paying more attention to the % of alcohol, just out of curiosity.

[Shakespeare]

17. They mentioned one white--Roussanne.

It's a rhone white, so it does well in higher temps than white burgundy or bordeaux varietals. Still, though, it's indicative of the bigger climate problem that even whites are clocking in at higher alcohol levels.

This story really irked me--the reporter didn't even use the common terminology for high-alcohol wines (a "hot" wine), which just makes no sense. Sloppy, sloppy reporting.

[napi21]

4. That was a foolish headline!

The "proof" is the alcohol content of distilled liquors. It is the percentage of alcohol multiplied by two.

If you look at any "hard stuff" bottle, you'll be very hard pressed to find any that are 28 proof! Most are 80 and above.

Sure there are wines that are higher % than others, but you sure can't ever catagorize them as HARD STUFF!

[zipplewrath]

5. Yes, hyperbole basically

The over all trend of alcohol products has been the reverse, beer around 5% and lower content spirits has been the long term trend. Even the various spirit based fruity drinks were part of this trend, watering them down to around 5% or so. But it is true that California wines have always had more alcohol and oak than most of the rest of the world. Why I'm not sure. 18% used to be considered "fortified wines".

[rodeodance]

6. I will raise a glass to the fruit of the vine

[Shakespeare]

7. ARGH-what a half-assed story! The main cause of this isn't even mentioned

This is primarily a climatological problem, and something I'm pretty familiar with living in Sonoma county (I visit wineries almost weekly, and have had many conversations with winemakers about this very problem).

Because our growing season is getting longer and hotter, growers are having a hell of a time trying to keep the brix level (the sugar that turns to alcohol) DOWN in their grapes.

Last year, for example, the growing season started almost one month earlier than usual, and was longer and hotter than most on record. Winemakers do not want "hotter" wines (meaning wines that are higher in alcohol), and struggle mightily to balance things out; the brix in recent years--because of the heat--develops at a much faster pace than other elements of the grape (the elements that give a wine structure and complexity). Likely cause? Global warming.

Someone above wondered why reds were the only wines mentioned--this is primarily a red grape problem, but some of the whites are getting hotter, too. The writer points out that zinfandels are traditionally higher in alcohol; well, zins are one of the hottest-weather wine grapes grown. The writer either didn't make the connection between climate and alcohol level, or simply didn't do enough (or thorough enough) interviews with winemakers in the region.

As long as the climate continues to heat up, the wines are going to continue having higher and higher alcohol levels, and will, as a sad consequence, lose much of their complexity. It's a serious issues for California growers, especially, and the reporter totally missed it.

[DeepModem Mom]

9. Thanks for an inside view, Shakespeare! nt

[BeeBee]

10. I work at a winery...

Our winemaker decides when to harvest based partially by taste. He literally chews on the grapes to test the flavor before harvesting them. Because of this, the grapes are generally higher in sugar (brix), therefore giving them higher alcohol content.

[Shakespeare]

11. Yes, that's mostly the case.

The tasting (literally chewing the grapes) has more to do with looking for structure and complexity than it does for actual sweetness. Sweetness is a highly subjective thing, and varies from varietal to varietal (and intense sweetness isn't necessarily a factor in determining whether the grapes are or are not ready for harvest). In addition to tasting, winemakers use a refractometer to measure the brix level.

It's a wonderful combination of science and art to decide when grapes are ready for harvest; our longer, hotter summers are giving winemakers heart attacks lately as they try to push the growing time (which builds complexity) without letting the brix get too high.

on edit: Which winery do you work for? We may have crossed paths! :hi:

[BeeBee]

15. I was trying to not be too technical...

for non-enologists here. Also, wineries have to pay quite a bit more in taxes for wines over 14% so financially it really doesn't make sense to jack up the alcohol level just to do it.

Hi Shakespeare :hi: I would prefer not to tell you the name of where I work because I want to keep a little anonymity but we're located in west-county (near Forestville).

[Shakespeare]

18. heh...I do get a little wine-wonky occasionally.

It's absolutely fascinating to me.

Understandable about the anonymity--if you want to PM me, we can chat that way. West county with bubbly does narrow things down a bit. A winery is such a great place to work--I'm envious!

[BeeBee]

20. Let's just say that there are two of us out this way...

and we're not the big cheap one. We're the small, family-owned, premium one.

[Shakespeare]

21. LOL!

Ok--I know exactly which one you're talking about now (and which one you aren't...too funny). I've always wanted to visit that one, but haven't made it there yet. You guys make one of my very favorite chardonnays (and there aren't a lot of chards that I particularly like).

[DeepModem Mom]

12. Wow! Another inside view -- thanks! nt

[Shakespeare]

14. And this thread is REALLY making me crave a big glass of zin! n/t

[BeeBee]

16. Maybe I'll walk over to the tasting room

and have a glass of bubbly!

[Shakespeare]

19. jealous, jealous, jealous....soooo jealous....

DEFINITELY opening a bottle of something yummy when I get home tonight!

[Piperay]

8. Great just what we need ...

more alcohol content in a society that can't even handle beer without getting falling down drunk. :-( :mad:

[Runcible Spoon]

13. I LOVE IT! EXXXTREME WINE!!

think of the marketing potential! Like totally XPOLODING with XXTREME flavor!

[Ian David]

22. How do these compare with our childhood favorites?

My friends and I used to spend many happy hours of our teen years drinking Night Train and Wild Irish Rose.

Actually, I couldn't stomach the stuff and stuck to beer.

[Runcible Spoon]

23. I dunno how old you are...

my mom had some pretty scary stories about Ripple, a crashed bicycle, and a ditch ;)

[Ian David]

24. I'm 35. My "drinking-crappy-stuff" years were in 1987-89

Ahh, Pbast Blue Ribon and Busch Beer.