Key people of the Californian wine industry Flashcards
Some of the key people who inmfluenced the Californian Wine industry.
Name 7 people who have been influential in the Californian Wine Industry.
- Father Junipero Serra
- Jean-Lous Vignes
- Count Agoston Haraszthy
- George Latour
- Andre Tchelistcheff
- Frank Schoonmaker
- Robert Mondavi
Father Junipero Serra.
1769.
Established a mission in Southern California and planted Mission Grapes.
Lead to 21 Missions doing the same.
Jean-Lous Vignes
1830 from Bordeaux.
Imported European vines.
First to export wine to Europe.
Count Agoston Haraszthy
Hungarian.
Started Buena Vista in 1856.
Brought many European cuttings to California.
Became first significant vineyard in California and the largest vineyard in the world.
George Latour
French
1900 founded Beaulieu in Napa.
First to concentrate on Cabernet Sauvignon grapes.
Andre Tchelistcheff
Russian born, French educated oenologist.
“The Founding Father” of the modern Californian wine industry.
Brought to California by George Latour.
Introduced cellar hygiene, temperature controlled fermentation, mastering of malolactic fermentation, preventing frost damage.
Consulted on Haraszthy’s Buena Vista in Sonoma and in Italy.
Trained other wine makers including the Mondavi brothers.
Frank Schoonmaker
New York wine writer and importer.
Introduced varietal labelling.
Encouraged the American wine industry to break the French-style labelling.
Steven Spurrier
Organised the Franco-Californian blind tasting in Paris on 26 May 1976 to comemorate the US bicentenial. I
Now referred to as “The Jugment of Paris”.
Robert Mondavi
Trained by Tcheistcheff.
Opened the first new winery in the Napa Valley after the 1933 repeal of prohibition.
Quality conscious.
Competed directly with the great wines of France.
Aggressively promoted labeling wines by variety rather than generically.
Who was dubbed the “father of California wine” and what winery did he found?
Argostan Haraszthy. Buena Vista Winery.
Describe the Pinots of Oregon as compared to the Côte d’Or and California?
Lighter in style and earthier than California, riper and more forward than Burgundy. The mild, temperate, rainy climate of the valley invites further comparisons to the Burgundy, and vintages are more variable than in Sonoma or Santa Barbara.
What is the dominant grape of Monterey county?
Chardonnay- accounting for over 50% of plantings.
Which champagne house based their US operation in Anderson Valley?
Louis Roederer
Which AVA in Mendocino boasts one of the coolest climates in California?
Anderson Valley
Where are Mendocino’s best wine producing areas centered?
At the confluence of the Russian and Navarro rivers.
What is the newest AVA in Sonoma County?
Moon Mountain District Sonoma County (est 2013)
what happened in Sonoma in 2011?
In Sonoma, all wines produced in the county are required to state “Sonoma County” on the label, regardless of whether or not the label also indicates an AVA.
What two areas of Sonoma AVA are known for Zinfandel?
Dry Creek Valley and the small Rockpile AVA
What is the warmest AVA in Sonoma County?
Knights Valley
What are the soils of Sonoma?
Fertile alluvial soils, such as “Goldridge” sandy loam, characterize the valley.
Which AVA for Napa represents a more supple style of Cabernet?
Rutherford AVA (valley floor style)
What are the soils of the Napa Valley?
volcanic, alluvial and maritime soil types, ranging from well-drained gravel loam to dense clays to the thin, rocky soils of the hillside vineyards.
What grape is Zinfandel linked to for descent?
Croatia’s Crljenak Kastelanski
What does Meritage mean?
“Meritage”, a term trademarked by the Meritage Alliance, is used by producers to indicate a premium blend in which no grape accounts for more than 90% of the wine. Meritage wines may be red or white, but must be produced from Bordeaux varietals
What is Washington State’s Largest and what is it’s smallest AVAs?
Columbia Valley AVA, Red Mountain AVA
explain how Napa gets cooled.
Cool ocean air funnels through the Petaluma Gap into the San Pablo. Bay and upward through the Napa Valley.
What is the largest and most important AVA in the Central Valley?
Lodi.
Home to large, value oriented brands as well as boutique wineries, may of whom specialize in Old-Vine Zinfandel.
