A Post With A Purpose: Free the Grapes!

A year ago, I started this blog. I wasn't happy at work and I started thinking about my "dream job." Which, if I could get paid to do anything, getting paid to drink wine would be pretty cool. I was frustrated in my career, which felt stalled and like a day job. I started looking at just how to make money by drinking wine. Sommelier programs are not everywhere, are expensive, and require quite a bit of wine knowledge prior to starting (if not being required to already BE in the wine industry). I wasn't (and still am not) in a position to be able to quit my job and go to work at my favorite wine store. So I decided to start this blog, writing about wines that I like to drink. I also dared (dare?) to hope that I might eventually make some money, or maybe get some free wines to try out of it. Wine shipping laws were about to change in Montana, which would mean that I could chose to get wine shipped directly to me. And then ... we moved ... to South Dakota which has law prohibiting direct shipment via a "common carrier;" individuals are allowed to bring wine across the state line, but only in quantities of one gallon or less [good thing they didn't check us at the border!] Which means wineries cannot send me wines to sample -- and I have had an offer! However, being a good, law abiding citizen, I declined the offer, even if it might have worked (they do have a tasting room in the Rapid City area ...)

In Virginia, I had really started to enjoy and drink wines. We enjoyed going to the wine festivals and Rocky encouraged my growing interest. I was disappointed when we moved to Montana and I was unable to find any Virginian wine. My favorite wine while we lived in Richmond was Chateau Morrisette "Our Dog Blue," a sweet deck wine [it's probably sweeter than I would really like now, but it brings back memories of hitting the wine festivals and a time when life was a bit simpler for us]. Wine and liquor stores found it too costly to try to work with these small wineries. And state laws prevented me from having the wine shipped directly to me.

So I decided to learn more about these restrictions. Of course, it is not a simple thing. Some of it feels like a holdover from the end of prohibition, when alcohol laws turned from a federal issue to a state issue. Wholesalers control the choice and flow of wine shipments. People in places like South Dakota probably didn't get to places with lots of options for wineries and had to rely on others for selection. Wholesalers still fill this need. I love going into a wine or liquor store and picking out something new -- even if it's just by the label! But as a consumer, I'd like a little more choice.  If I want to try ALL of the Middle Sister varieties, why can't I just sign up for one of their clubs rather than hunt and search for Glamour Girl Bubbly, which may or may not be in stock. Wholesalers and liquor stores also won't always seek out the smaller wineries. It is cost prohibitive for a wholesaler or liquor store to attempt to keep a wine such as Our Dog Blue on the shelves -- a bottle in Virginia would cost around $9, add the wholesaler in and you are up to $15-$20. The winery is simply too small. I'm STILL going to purchase bottles of wine at the liquor or grocery store. That is simply too convenient to give up!

30 years ago, only 4 states allowed the consumer to purchase and ship wine directly from wineries; today that number is up to 41. I've emailed letters to the representatives for my area. If you would like to learn more about this issue, check out Free the Grapes! Their goal is to ensure consumer choice in wines. All I want is to be able to enjoy another bottle of Our Dog Blue without paying for a trip to Richmond, VA.

Stone Hill Vignoles

For Christmas, my boss gave me a bottle of Missouri wine, from Stone Hill Winery. I really enjoyed this bottle. A nice dry, semi-sweet white wine. Pineapple, strawberry and lime aromas greet upon first taste, a bit of sweetness, but vibrant acidity gives it a dry palate and is great on it's own. I enjoyed sipping this over the past weekend  with everything from chicken nuggets to Christmas cookies.

And in the continuing of it's a small world, my good friend Diane is, unsuprisingly, familiar with this winery as she is a native Missourian. The picture took her back.

J Lohr Chardonnay

I've said it before: never say you don't like a certain grape; eventually, you will end up eating, re, drinking those words. For a long time, I would say I don't like Chardonnays. Too oaky, or steel-y. The grape, I think, tends to take on a lot of characteristics of the barrel. But joining the wine club in Billings really helped me expand my palate and now I'm more willing to try those grape I swore I didn't like. And here I am enjoying a beautiful, oaky, buttery Chardonnay.

J Lohr has a Brookings connection (SDSU alum) and it's easy to find a great selection of his wines here in town. 

This Chardonnay has great pear & apple aromas. It has a wonderful lingering smooth oaky finish. This is a bit of a splurge as it is between $14-$20/bottle. But very worth the splurge!