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New Varietals from Midwest U.S.A Burgeoning Wine Industry Takes Root in Missouri
America's Midwest competes with California, New York, and the Pacific Northwest.
We've noted in our previous article that early America suffered more than a century of failure despite repeated attempts from Maine to Florida to make palatable wine from native grapes and natural hybrids. Plant scientists in France and New York continued to pursue crosses between European and American grapes, mostly without success. But several of their 20th century efforts paved the way for a new generation of dessert wines that would give Tokaji, Sauternes, and Trockenbeerenauslese serious competition. A Terrific Dessert WineWe recently tasted a Late Harvest Vignoles (veen-yole) from Stone Hill that proved to be one of the finest dessert wines we had ever evaluated. It's from Missouri! 2005 Stone Hill Late Harvest Vignoles Hermann; 10.8% alc., $30/375ml Luscious flavors of peach, honey, and perfumed roses. Excellent balance of sweetness and acid. This wine was named in Tom Stevenson's 2008 Wine Report as the greatest wine produced in any midwestern state. We agree and recommend it enthusiastically. When did Missouri start producing wine commercially?You may be surprised to know that the wine industry in Missouri probably pre-dates the more familiar one in California. The town of Hermann, MO, was settled by immigrant Germans in 1837 and immediately planted vineyards. The first harvest was in 1846. The wine was made from the Isabella grape, a native hybrid from the east coast. The Norton GrapeWhat catapulted Missouri to wine fame was an event that took place in 1850, just about the same time as the rest of the world was heading to California to pan for gold. It was the arrival of a promising, little-known grape from Virginia called Norton after the farmer who had planted a European vinifera vine near a native vitis aestivalis. The new grape enjoyed some success in Virginia, but became to Missouri what Cabernet Sauvignon is to Bordeaux and Pinot Noir to Burgundy. As a matter of fact, the Norton is Missouri's Official State Grape. What distinguishes the Norton grape from all other red competitors is that it displays none of the "foxy" flavors found in virtually all native American grapes and hybrids. It's cold tolerant and pest and disease resistant. And best of all, it tastes very good. Norton vs. European Red GrapesDon't expect, however, that wine made from the Norton grape will be anything like the red wines you are accustomed to. You won't mistake it for Cabernet or Grenache or Zinfandel. The closest European grape to the Norton is probably the Durif, or Petite Sirah. Norton wine redefines full-body. It is exceedingly mouth-filling and richly flavored. The Best Norton WinesWe tasted three Missouri Nortons: 2003 St. James Winery Reserve Norton Missouri; 13.5% alc., $28 2003 Augusta Norton "Cynthiana" Augusta; 13% alc., $15 2003 Stone Hill Norton Hermann; 13% alc., $28 We thought the Stone Hill Norton edged out the Augusta and was clearly the best midwestern red wine we had ever tasted. The Augusta was almost as fine and almost half the price, so we highly recommend it. The 2004 Stone Hill Norton (we didn't taste it) was a gold medal winner at the San Diego International Wine Competition this year and is attractively priced at $18.99.
The copyright of the article New Varietals from Midwest U.S. in New World Wine is owned by Alan Boehmer. Permission to republish New Varietals from Midwest U.S. in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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