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SAVOUR WINE & SPIRITS

DOWN TO EARTH

Victoria Chow travels to California’s Napa Valley and discovers
a new generation of wine and spirits producers that are taking
the region’s reputation beyond cab sauv—and back to tradition

t was a rough morning for Braiden temperatures from his smartphone.
Albrecht, the 30-year-old winemaker We headed out for the harvest before
at Mayacamas, when we first met on daybreak the next morning, in the mist
the estate. A fancy dinner at the French and drizzle. Despite the less-than-prime
ILaundry the night before was taking its conditions, it was “the day”. After a spell
toll in the form of a red-wine hangover. His of heatwaves had driven temperatures
brother, Ian, was already armed with big above 40 degrees Celsius, it was time to
bottles of pink coconut water and locally act fast and pick the grapes while they
made kombucha. still retained their natural acidity. The
While it may be easy to write them freakish temperature spike is a not-so-subtle
off as stereotypical millennials, my trip reminder of the changes happening to our
to Napa Valley and the wider Northern planet’s climate—and the fragility of all that
California region showed me a new relies on it.
generation of producers with the drive to As I knelt in the dirt and watched the first
make the wine and spirits industry a more few clusters of grapes come off the vine,
sustainable place—and embracing every there was a sort of magic and romanticism
bit of hard labour that comes with it. The about it all. Braiden pointed out some leaves
move towards “organic everything” sounds with signs of disease or insect damage, but
faddish, but it was obvious to me that these he acknowledged that it’s a small sacrifice to
young people were ready to get their hands make for the long-term health of the terroir
dirty, literally, to bring us back to the earth. and the vines. Five hours in, and hundreds
As we drove around, exploring the of 50-pound bins later, the back-breaking
mountainous terrain of Mayacamas, Braiden work felt a lot less glamorous. I learned
reminisced on his time at the University not to underestimate the value of touch,
of California, Berkeley—he majored in as the march of time and the advancement
environmental economics and, while I of technology has done little to modernise
spent the weekends of my youth drinking Mayacamas’ choice to hand-harvest its
wine, he would spend his harvesting grapes crops—showing both a dedication to the
and actually making the wine. He joined craft and a respect for a land that cannot be
Mayacamas a few years ago with a mission tamed by machines.
to reinvigorate the brand. This includes The day after, I drove over the valley to
moving it towards organic farming to better Sonoma to find the Hanson brothers, Chris
nurture its mini-ecosystem, all the while and Brandon, painstakingly hand-labelling,
embracing the classic aspects of its cellars— signing and numbering their newly bottled Carlo Mondavi—
namely, ageing in historical casks. grape-based vodka at the aptly named grandson of the
“Creating food and beverages to sustain Hanson of Sonoma. legendary Robert
Mondavi—recently
and enrich our existence is a tradition dating Four years ago, Chris and Brandon set
set up RAEN
back millennia,” reflected Braiden, who out to create a locally and socially conscious
winery, producing
then added, with a smile, “Except now, we spirit while taking advantage of their
cool-climate pinot
have an app to help with that”—referring proximity to one of the world’s greatest
noir from the
to the real-time monitoring of vine health grape-growing regions. This may in and Sonoma Coast
and the apps that control fermentation tank of itself sound quite “millennial”, but to

44 | T .DINING 2018