a message from tina jones TINA’S FAVES The experience of walking into a restaurant in Cape Town and discovering that the extensive wine list had only “natural” wines. I was completely out of my comfort zone but with some help from the Sommelier had an amazing experience! Visiting wineries around the globe and seeing the growing appreciation for low-intervention techniques, with large and small wineries paying closer attention to sustainability and organic farming, with gentler, less intrusive winemaking practices. The wine world is better for it!
A common question has circulated around the store—and around this issue—about natural wines: “How do you define ‘natural’ wines?” The short answer is that there is no consensus. The long answer is: this issue! We are devoting this issue to the study of a wine development that is proving to be not a trend, but an evolution. For example, a few short years ago, wine lovers looked suspiciously at cloudy wines as potentially faulted. Now we know why some winemakers choose not to fine or filter that character from their wines, and we know why it matters. A few years ago, we learned about organic grape growing practices and wine production. Now we are learning how low-intervention approaches to wine growing and winemaking are not only creating interesting and vibrant wine styles, they are contributing to a more environmentally sustainable approach to grape growing. Having lifted the lid on these ideas, there is really no going back. I invite you to open this issue of The Cellar Door with your natural curiosity alive. You will be as interested as I was to read the interview with dynamic Isabelle Legeron, MW, founder of the RAW WINE fairs and champion of the sustainable practices that produce natural and low-intervention wines. Elsewhere in the issue, Andrea Eby explains the origins, styles, and politics that surround natural wines. Mike Muirhead looks at the wine influencers trending in the wine trade; Gary Hewitt gives us a snapshot of the last 80 years in winemaking; and Sylvia Jansen offers us a glimpse into our own noses and palates. We are also excited that the iconic Doug Stephen of WOW! Hospitality joined us to develop a menu of the best pasta and wine pairings to get us through the winter. Enjoy!
Tina Jones
12 http://banvilleandjones.cornervine.com
