Thomas Jefferson worked for half a century trying to grow an American grape that would make a wine to rival those of Europe. He failed.
According to Todd Kliman, author of The Wild Vine, it was the only thing that Jefferson failed at. However, his quest lived on in the lives of like-minded, Enlightenment-driven, self-made scientists who trusted that they would understand the order of natural things by their own powers of inquiry.
Daniel Norton, a young contemporary of Jefferson and fellow Virginian, developed the grape that bears his name. It fell in and out of favor through the decades and, just within the past 10-15 years, Missourians got it right, according to me.
[I can't comprehend how Poeschel and Scherer's Norton made such as splash in Vienna in 1873. Was Norton better back then? Europe's wines worse?]
As recently as the mid-90s, my friend and mentor, Bill Toben (God rest his soul), said the quest for a palatable Norton was fruitless. It would always have that "foxy" taste. Somehow, the Missouri Nortons of the past decade have defied Bill's judgment. If anyone knows how it was done, please tell me.
My 11-liter jug of Norton, made of grapes grown by Michael Dennis of Tyler Ridge Vineyards, represents one of the stray shoots from the original vine of inquiry that began with Jefferson's failure. I'm really pleased to see this connection, thanks to Kliman's book.
Of course, my contribution is minimal. Dennis did all the work. I merely added yeast and followed sanitary and anti-oxidation procedures. So far, so good.
According to Todd Kliman, author of The Wild Vine, it was the only thing that Jefferson failed at. However, his quest lived on in the lives of like-minded, Enlightenment-driven, self-made scientists who trusted that they would understand the order of natural things by their own powers of inquiry.
Daniel Norton, a young contemporary of Jefferson and fellow Virginian, developed the grape that bears his name. It fell in and out of favor through the decades and, just within the past 10-15 years, Missourians got it right, according to me.
[I can't comprehend how Poeschel and Scherer's Norton made such as splash in Vienna in 1873. Was Norton better back then? Europe's wines worse?]
As recently as the mid-90s, my friend and mentor, Bill Toben (God rest his soul), said the quest for a palatable Norton was fruitless. It would always have that "foxy" taste. Somehow, the Missouri Nortons of the past decade have defied Bill's judgment. If anyone knows how it was done, please tell me.
My 11-liter jug of Norton, made of grapes grown by Michael Dennis of Tyler Ridge Vineyards, represents one of the stray shoots from the original vine of inquiry that began with Jefferson's failure. I'm really pleased to see this connection, thanks to Kliman's book.
Of course, my contribution is minimal. Dennis did all the work. I merely added yeast and followed sanitary and anti-oxidation procedures. So far, so good.
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