Remembering John Munch: A Paso Robles Legend

By Chelsea Franchi

On Saturday, August 17^th, some 300 friends, family, and members of the Paso Robles wine community gathered to celebrate the life of John Munch. The gathering included people from the many diverse interests that John pursued, from food and wine to music to motorcycle riding and woodworking.

The thriving Paso Robles wine community of today owes its pioneering spirit to that of its founders. As is the case with so many beloved and dynamic wine areas, Paso is a region founded by renegades and dreamers. We are fortunate that so many, from Gary Eberle to Ken Volk to Niels and Bimmer Udsen, are still a part of that fabric. We at Tablas Creek are humbled and honored to call these renegades and dreamers our mentors and peers. And perhaps no one in that founding group was as creative and unconventional a dreamer as John Munch.

John became a winemaker, as he told it, by accident: agreeing to help friends from France make sparkling wines at the old Estrella River Winery, where Gary Eberle was head Winemaker. From there he became a founding partner and winemaker at Adelaida Cellars in 1981, making Adelaida one of the first ten wineries in the region. Less than a decade later, while still running Adelaida, he launched his own small winery, Le Cuvier, on his Adelaida Road property just a few miles west of Paso Robles. But even while he was winemaker at Adelaida, John was a person who always had a few irons in the fire; in the mid-1980s he had already planted Syrah on his own property, and according to lore, a barrel tasting that the Perrins and Robert Haas had of the 1988 vintage of that Syrah was influential in their decision to search the west side of Paso Robles for the property that would become Tablas Creek.

His connection to Tablas Creek was important in other ways. In 1991, John gave our very own Neil Collins his first winemaking opportunity. Neil tells the story of the day he rolled up to his interview in a 1965 Volvo held together by baling wire and duct tape. John apparently took one look at Neil’s vehicle and concluded that if he could keep that thing running, he could certainly keep a winery running. Neil got the job that would change the trajectory of his life and the lives of countless others; the ripple effect of mentorship in a tight community like Paso Robles creates far-reaching and indelible changes. 

Some things never change: to this day, a cold beer and good conversation remain the gold standard after a hard day's work

While Neil and John were working (and likely getting into plenty of tomfoolery) together at Adelaida, Tablas Creek was making forward progress. Bob Haas and the Perrins had purchased land, and vines imported from the nursery that supplied Beaucastel passed quarantine at Cornell University. While those vines were being propagated in our nursery, the partners selected a handful of Rhone varieties available in the US from trusted sources to plant and get some grapegrowing and winemaking experience. Today, we use the acronyms AV and VF to differentiate between “American Vines” and “Vignes Française” (French Vines). The American vines, planted in 1992, bore fruit starting in 1994, and Bob and the Perrins reached out John to rent space at Adelaida Cellars for an interim home to make their first vintages. The partners would fly out for harvest, and there are amazing photos from this era of Bob Haas and Jean-Pierre Perrin sitting on tanks, holding hoses, driving forklifts and operating pumps, like the one below. But they would have admitted, even then, that most of the hands-on winemaking was done by John and by Neil. And in 1997, when we finally built our winery, it was with John’s encouragement that Neil reached out to Bob and started the conversation which ended up with Neil as Tablas Creek’s winemaker, which he is to this day. Given that John mentored Neil and Neil has mentored me, I owe a personal debt of gratitude to John Munch.

Jean Pierre Perrin topping Tablas Creek barrels

Those first few vintages of wine from Tablas Creek grapes, made at Adelaida Cellars, were bottled under various labels including Adelaida Hills, Vineyard Drive, and Tablas Hills. In advance of John’s celebration of life, we pulled some of the original bottles he had helped craft, with the goal of picking one to provide to his celebration of life. My notes on the three wines we tasted, which were amazingly vibrant given they were all nearly 30 years old and made from third- and fourth-leaf grapevines:

1994 Adelaida Hills Assemblage Rouge
On the nose, tobacco leaf, forest floor, iodine, anise, blackberry and pomegranate. The palate is pleasantly minty and herby with dried flowers and undertones of blue fruit with cloves. The wine carries a cool dustiness with vibrant acidity but there’s a slight oxidative note on the finish. Very chewy.

1995 Vineyard Drive Red Table Wine
The nose opens with dried rose petals, stewed plum and meat drippings. The palate is dense and meaty, with iron and flint notes softened by wild strawberry and mint.  The tannins feel velvety and plush, but still carry enough of a grit to hold tight. This wine is beautiful and still going strong. 

1995 Tablas Hills Cuvee Rouge
A lovely meaty character on the nose, accompanied by lilacs, rib eye steaks, cola and clove. On the palate, cranberry and plum skin are tempered by a white pepper and black licorice spiciness. The finish seems to tumble forth and stretch forever, adding raspberry and bramble with thyme sprig. Good acids, grippy tannins, powerful. This was the wine we chose to share at the memorial.

The three wines we tasted

I asked Neil to tell me a little bit about the John Munch he knew, since the two of them had been close friends since that fateful interview in 1991. Neil described John as fearless, innovative, and hilarious. He said John was never one to gloat despite the fact that he was a brilliant musician, an incredible writer, and a great speaker. All of us who knew him remember John fondly as being an animated and passionate human with a deep well of knowledge and ability.

Neil (left) and John (right) at tastings through the years

I think John would have been delighted to taste the wines he helped Tablas Creek create. Thirty years later, they are beautiful and strong with just enough wildness to them. Cheers, John. Thank you for helping to pave the way for the next generations of renegades and dreamers of Paso Robles and beyond.

When co-workers are friends, the line between work and play becomes blurred.  Or in this case, completely non-existent

Harvest 2024 begins under ideal conditions as moderate temperatures return

At around 5am today, we kicked off the 2024 harvest with six bins of Viognier from the top of our tallest hill. Conditions were perfect; it was in the low 50s, which meant that the fruit got into the cellar chilly. As we were finishing up, the sun started to rise over the eastern hills:

As we’d expected, this was neither a particularly early beginning harvest (like 2022, when we started on August 17th) nor was it a late start (like 2023, when we didn’t bring in estate fruit until September 14th). That’s not surprising given that the first half of the summer was quite cool, though not as cool as 2023, while for six weeks starting early July it’s been hot. Now it looks like we’ve settled into an ideal pattern. Check out the temperatures compared to average (and compared to the previous six weeks) since August 12th:

The first pick is always a milestone, with the cellar team joining the vineyard crew out in the field. The crew, many of whom have been here for decades, always get a kick out of this. David Maduena, our long-time Vineyard Manager (pictured below at the back of the bin trailer) is starting his 31st harvest here.

In the cellar, we’ve been spending the last few weeks washing everything and checking that all our equipment is working properly. It’s all so empty that it feels like we’re working in a new facility. It won’t feel like that for long.

The team has already done a bunch of sampling today, and we expect some reds in tomorrow. Nothing off the estate yet (and maybe not for a week or two) but we should get the Pinot Noir from our place in the Templeton Gap and some Syrah for Patelin de Tablas. We’re thinking that yields are likely to be similar to last year, maybe a little better in grapes like Roussanne and Syrah. We’ll know more, obviously, in a few weeks. 

One thing that is clear is that we're looking at a harvest that seems more like a marathon than a sprint. There isn't any major heat in the forecast, with a minor warm-up this week (highs likely topping out in the low-to-mid-90s) followed by a weak low pressure system likely cooling things down so that our highs will be in the mid-80s. All of the red grapes on the estate, with the exception of some of the hilltop blocks of Syrah, are still in the middle of veraison. In some blocks it’s barely started. These photos of Grenache (left) and Counoise (right) were taken late last week.

All this is normal, and good. Ripening conditions appear ideal. The vines look healthy. An extended harvest always allows us more time to sample and to make better use of our tanks. It’s always good to ease into harvest rather than have it start like an avalanche. We’ll have lots more to share with you soon. Stay tuned.

Veraison 2024 suggests an early-September kickoff to harvest... then a break… then a mid-September kickoff to harvest

By Ian Consoli

Veraison, if you're unfamiliar with the term, is a physiological stage of grape development where the berries stop accumulating mass and start accumulating sugar. More visibly, red grapes start their color change from green, while white grapes take on more of a yellow tint. Both red and white grapes start to soften. The onset of veraison comes roughly six weeks before the beginning of harvest, and gives us our best estimate for what sort of schedule we're likely looking at. And it's lovely. Witness this massive Grenache cluster, from the dry-farmed section of our Crosshairs block. At roughly 10" in diameter, it showcases the vigor we're seeing in our dry-farmed blocks specifically. It's a sight to behold:

The story of this year's veraison is its irregularity. We attribute this irregularity, in part, to an early budbreak for Syrah, Viognier, and some Grenache blocks that was followed by a cool down at the end of March and start of April, culminating in a frost event on April 6^th. That cold spell forced soil temperatures down and kept the other varieties in dormancy. Between that and the series of heatwaves pushing temperatures over 100˚F (the threshold at which vines shut down for the day), we're expecting a somewhat staggered start to #harvest2024. With that observation in mind, the weather is at an optimal temperature pattern right now, and things are moving fast. I thought I'd take a quick romp through all the different red Rhone varieties to give you a sense of where each stands. At the end, I've included a chart with how this year compares to other recent years and made some predictions about when we're likely to start picking.

We spotted our first color in the vineyard in Syrah on July 23rd. Now, a little more than two weeks later, every variety is showing at least the first stages of color change, and the early grapes are mostly red. I'll start with Syrah, as usual the first Rhone red to enter version and the fastest to change colors, and go roughly from most-veraison to least. The cluster here is a bit ahead of the average in the vineyard, and I'd estimate that we're probably around 80% through veraison in Syrah overall:

Next is probably Muscardin. It came in second last year and we were unsure whether it was unusual or not, since it is our newest arrival and we don't have many years of history. As we're getting to know it better, it does seem to go through veraison on the early side. It's not as dark red as Syrah (nor will it be at harvest) but overall it looks like it's about 60% of the way through:

Grenache is next in line, at roughly 40% veraison overall. It's always a particularly pretty grape to watch change color, with the berries turning jewel-like in the sun. Look for lots more Grenache pictures in the next month:

Next is Mourvedre. Mourvedre is an unusual grape in that it can start going through veraison on the early side, but is one of the last to be picked. This characteristic long-ripening period means it just takes longer than the others do in this stage. These clusters are fairly typical, and I'd estimate it is 30-40% through veraison overall:

Counoise is the next one up. It is relatively impossible to find clusters with color at the lower parts of the Counoise block, with clusters similar to the one below about mid-way up. The clusters at the top of the block have a bit more color, putting our estimate around 20% veraison overall. Note the characteristic large berries still have some growing to do:

Veraison in the last three Rhone varieties we grow are just getting started or nearly non-existent.

Cinsaut is surprising because it's not typically a late ripener, and the literature says it ripens pretty much in sync with Grenache. But the cluster below was one of just a few with any color at all. Maybe 5% veraison overall:

Terret Noir took some searching to find any color. This cluster, with a few pink-purple berries in a sea of green, is about as advanced as it gets. I'd estimate we're around 2-3% on Terret overall:

Vaccarese simply had no color at all. I searched through the entire block (which isn't difficult, given it's only eight rows) and couldn't find a single berry with color. Vaccarese tends to be one of the latest varieties to reach veraison every year.

Although it's less visually exciting than with reds, white grapes also go through veraison. The grapes turn from green to something a little yellower and soften and start to get sweet. They also become more translucent. The process happens over a continuum as it does in the reds. Viognier goes first, followed by Vermentino, Marsanne, and Grenache Blanc, with Picpoul and Roussanne bringing up the rear. You can see the slight translucency that the berries of Grenache Blanc (left) and Vermentino (right) are starting to pick up:

While the veraison posts you're likely seeing from your favorite wineries may make it seem like veraison is a moment, like Christmas, it's probably better understood as a continuum, like winter, and first veraison is like first frost, or first snowfall. It will likely be a week until all the Syrah clusters at Tablas are red, and 3-4 weeks until the last clusters of later grapes like Mourvedre and Counoise have finished coloring up.

While six weeks is a good basic guide for the duration between the onset of veraison and the beginning of harvest, it's not totally constant and will be influenced by the weather that we get in the interim, as well as by the amount of fruit the vines are carrying and the inherent tendencies of the different varieties. For example, a consistently cool summer and a plentiful crop in 2010 gave us a full seven weeks between veraison and our first harvest, while 2021's consistent heat and low yields gave us just a five-week interim. Each vintage since 2010 is compiled in the chart below, with each year linked to Jason's blog post about that year's version:

 

Year	First Veraison Noted	Estate Harvest Begins	# of Days
2010	July 30	September 16	49
2011	August 5	September 20	47
2012	July 25	September 5	42
2013	July 17	August 26	40
2014	July 9	August 23	45
2015	July 18	August 26	39
2016	July 13	August 18	36
2017	July 20	August 30	41
2018	July 29	September 10	43
2019	July 30	September 4	36
2020	July 21	August 25	35
2021	July 21	August 24	34
2022	July 12	August 17	36
2023	August 7	September 14	38
2024	July 24	?	?

Using the range of durations between first veraison and first harvest (34 to 49 days), we can try to predict when we might begin harvest in this irregular year. Those raw numbers suggest that we’ll start sometime between August 27^th and September 12^th, which seems safe enough but also a wide range. Vineyard Manager Jordan Lonborg sees us beginning harvest on the first week of September for grapes that bloomed before the cool down, like Viognier and Syrah. Then, we'll likely have two slow weeks before the real push of harvest begins. The weather between now and then will determine where in the range we'll fall, influenced as well by the crop levels, since lighter crops ripen faster than heavier ones.

Overall, we're seeing crop levels similar to last year, with exciting standouts in much-needed white varieties like Grenache Blanc, Picpoul, Marsanne, and Bourboulenc. It is interesting because, even with all the rain we received the last two winters, we see relatively small berries, but large cluster sizes make up for it. That may be due to the hot summer. We averaged highs of 98.5˚F in July and 99.3˚F so far in August. Heat is good until temperatures exceed 100˚F and the vines shut down for the day. Those periodic shutdowns can result in uneven ripening. As we push to the second half of August, we're in a perfect heat pattern in the mid-90's, and everything should proceed as scheduled if this pattern continues.

What's next for the vineyard? We'll watch the different grapes go through veraison. That progress is already happening fast, and the view in the vineyard is changing daily. We'll be posting regular photos of veraison's progress on our Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram pages. In a few weeks, we'll start sampling the early varieties, looking for the moment when the flavors are fully developed and the balance of sugars and acids is ideal. In the cellar, we've already started to get ready by finishing our blending of the 2023s and pulling out and checking on all the tanks and equipment we'll need once harvest begins. It's likely too that we'll see some grapes from Patelin or Lignée vineyards, and from the Haas Vineyard Pinot Noir, before anything comes off our estate. Those grapes should start coming in a couple of weeks.

So, now we wait and enjoy the show. We have an idea of how much time is on our timer, and we know Mother Nature has pushed “start”.

AI and Wine Marketing – A Current Assessment

By Josh Kaiser

Exploring AI's Role in Wine Marketing

In today's world, artificial intelligence (AI) is no longer a distant concept that’s associated only with science fiction; it has seamlessly become a part of our everyday lives, whether we realize it or not. From voice-activated assistants like Alexa and Siri to personalized recommendations on Netflix and Spotify or Grammarly helping edit this blog for grammatical errors, AI is everywhere, doing its best to make our lives more convenient and tailored to our preferences while providing moments of unintentional comedy as we realize the limits of the technology. Marketing is one area that has seen a boom in the use of AI recently, with marketers looking to leverage the tool to streamline their processes and make their content more personalized. With its rise in popularity, I’ve been studying the many uses of AI in business during my time at Cal Lutheran University as well as my previous internship before Tablas Creek. When I arrived at Tablas for my summer marketing internship, Ian (our Director of Marketing) suggested we dive into AI’s potential uses at a winery like Tablas Creek to better understand its capabilities, figure out its shortcomings as well as strengths, and decide if we think AI might be a viable tool in wine marketing.

We thought this info might be useful or interesting to our readers as well.

Image generated by Gemini AI using prompt: "Please tell me what AI software looks like in an image."

State of AI Today

Artificial Intelligence is a field of software engineering concerned with building computers and machines that can reason, learn, and act in a way similar to how a human can, using its access to a vast information database. AI has seen a major rise in popularity over the last several years, and the many uses for AI software have fueled a tech boom over the past few years. From risk assessment in finance, to streaming service algorithms and online shopping recommendations, to more personal uses like designing diets and workout plans, there are thousands of AI programs for just about any need you can think of.

Uses for AI in Marketing

Based on my previous experience with AI systems, I was aware of how easily one can get overwhelmed by the number of options there are out there. To stay focused we took into account all the potential uses we were interested in, and narrowed it down to three main categories of features that seem to be in the broadest use:

• Generating written content such as social media captions, website information, emails, or blog posts. We found AI can generate copy of varying length for all these different channels quickly and easily. Whether you need a catchy Instagram caption or multiple email drafts, you simply instruct the AI software on what you want (for instance, an Instagram caption detailing different Rhone grape varieties) and poof! In seconds, the software scans its vast database and uses its knowledge about Instagram post captions and grapes from the Rhone Valley to generate text that is formatted like a caption and should fit the parameters set. That’s the plus side. There are two negatives, neither insignificant. First, there are still real issues with the reliability of the information generated, especially when working with more obscure topics like unusual grape varieties or topics where information in one part of the world may or may not have relevance in another, such as viticulture or weather phenomena. Quite often, the information generated by the AI was factually incorrect or interpreted in a way that wasn’t quite right. That means that every result has to be checked and cannot be used directly from the software. The second negative was that the language was often full of adjectives and adverbs: flowery and sometimes overdone. There’s a classic bit of writing advice that is “show, don’t tell”. The AI output always skewed toward the “tell” side.
• Generating photos. There are now programs that allow you to input any text and it will generate an image of what you input. While this was pretty impressive, the accuracy was certainly not perfect, and the systems often generate random additions to the photo on top of what you asked for. Think of the photos that circulate online where upon closer investigation people have extra fingers, or the lighting is inconsistent from element to element. One use we were hoping for was to find AI software that would allow us to edit text on an image while keeping the same font – think updating the vintage on a bottle in a lifestyle shot -- but we never got an image that we found convincing. AI still struggles with adding or editing text on images.
• We found that many marketers are using AI to assist in brainstorming ideas for all sorts of different content. A big part of marketing is trying to stay on top of trends and come up with fresh ideas to engage with your audience, and AI should theoretically be a great help in both of those. Instead of the marketing team scrolling through hours of social media posts and websites to try and discover new trends, AI can generate trending topics, hashtags, headlines, keywords, and even titles of trending music for things like Instagram Reels in mere seconds. This can be useful, although a critical aspect is ensuring the system has real time data. Some AI engines do not have up to date databases, for instance before the update in September of 2023 ChatGPT only had data up to 2021, two years behind. Meaning the “trending” ideas it generated would be what was trending in 2021, not current day. Real time data is becoming more and more common, so you probably don’t need to worry too much, but it’s definitely something to be aware of.

Concerns with AI

As with any new technology there are a few concerns that anyone experimenting with AI should be aware of.

• Probably the biggest issue with AI as of now is the information that the programs generate is not yet reliable enough to trust. It’s still necessary to carefully read and make edits to all the content an AI engine puts out. This is exacerbated in an age where misinformation on the Internet is all too common.
• Many systems also do not have data that is current and up to date. While this might not matter for rephrasing text or brainstorming ideas, it can be an important drawback when you’re looking to share information on new research or topics on which there is relatively little data available online.
• The content generated can sound robotic and not flow well, or just have a tone that feels inappropriate to your business. There are now things that can be done to train the AI in a tone or voice to try and avoid this (by giving the software content from a website, social captions, blog posts, etc. you can “teach” the AI your tone and how you write), but it is difficult to fully teach the system a voice, and there will often still be times that it does not come out the way you envisioned.
• Photo generation and editing is still lagging. Sure, AI can turn a text prompt into a photo quickly, but the accuracy was lacking. When generating photos there would always be a few details off, or a few unwanted additions. We hoped to find a program that easily edits text on images, like changing the vintage or the percentages of the grapes in on a wine label in a photograph. This could save needing to retaking photos each bottling. However, we found AI struggles greatly when trying to edit small details of text on images, and in general the photo sector of AI has a long way to go (the picture below illustrates one example of an attempt to change the vintage, as well as blend percentages on an Esprit de Tablas. The system tried to match the font and the size, but as you can see it was not very successful). In fact, strangely-rendered text is one of the surest tells on an AI-generated image at the moment. That said, now that apps like Photoshop and Illustrator are adding AI capabilities, I have no doubt the photo sector of AI will advance rapidly.

Bottleshot adjustment attempted using Canva AI

Pricing

In AI, as in much of life, you get what you pay for. Although the free versions of AI software like Chat GPT get a lot of the press, we found that they are often quite limited. These tools can handle simple tasks such as rewording sentences or generating synonyms quickly. There are also paid platforms such as JasperAI (starting at $40/month per account) or HypotenuseAI (starting at $56/month) which offer more advanced features including generating images or creating automated email workflows. In general, the paid platforms offer:

• A free version or free trial with minimal capabilities and limited trial periods aimed at enticing users to upgrade
• A basic tier, ranging from $10 to $50 per month, suitable for individuals or small teams interested in a few basic tools, with additional capabilities
• A premium tier around $60 to $80 per month, offering more accounts, more features, and increased personalization.
• Some platforms also provide more flexible “business” plans, that advertise “custom” or “flexible” pricing. These are targeted towards larger teams who are ready to heavily invest in AI, and likely offer more robust and personalized capabilities. But these were expensive enough that we didn’t try them out.

One challenge (or opportunity, depending on your perspective) is that at this stage of AI’s life there are a dizzying range of engines to choose from. Do enough digging that you find a software that fits what your needs may be. Then plan to put in the time to train that software to your liking. And expect that in order to access the latest technology, data, and optimal user interface, you’ll likely have to go beyond a free engine or the free introductory version of the platform you choose.

Key Takeaways

AI's ability to streamline tasks and personalize experiences is undeniable, however, as our exploration has shown, there are also notable challenges and limitations, particularly regarding the accuracy and reliability of AI-generated content.

Despite these hurdles, the potential of AI is vast, and its continuous evolution promises even greater capabilities in the future. For now, it's important to approach AI with a balanced perspective, leveraging its strengths while remaining vigilant about its shortcomings. Ultimately, AI is a tool that, when used thoughtfully and judiciously, is already capable of enhancing marketing efforts and providing value to our, or your, audience. But thankfully (as a marketing professional) it seems like it’s going to be a while before it can step in and do our job for us, particularly at a place like Tablas Creek where we value the human touch and authenticity of real experience. If we can use AI to enhance bringing that experience to you, we will. But the journey with AI is just beginning, and we look forward to navigating it together!

Artificial Intern image created by DeepAI using prompt: "Make the person in the image look like a robot"

Introducing Alouette, a chillable Grenache for which we leave the glass bottle behind

While we make a lot of wines at Tablas Creek, we don’t make a lot of new wines at Tablas Creek. Yes, we’ve added a few varietal bottlings in recent years, and we launched the Lignée de Tablas series in 2023. Those are always exciting. Before that, you have to go back to our Le Complice, which we came up with in 2017. But if you read my red blending blog from a couple of months ago, you’re already aware that we’re adding a new wine to our portfolio: a chillable Grenache that we’re calling Alouette.

Grenache always produces a range of wines here at Tablas Creek, from the chewy, black cherry and licorice lots that we use in our Panoplie and Esprit de Tablas to the spicy, red cherry and chalky mineral lots that typically form the base of our Cotes de Tablas and go into our varietal Grenache. It’s also a famously great rosé grape, because it comes with good fruit and good acid, and doesn’t need a lot of skin contact to pick up that fruit character. In the vineyard, it’s vigorous and generally productive, making large clusters of large berries and ample canopy to shade and ripen them.

Grenache’s vigor can lead to wider swings in production than any other grape we grow. A moderate year might give us three tons to the acre, where with Mourvedre we might get two. A productive year might see Mourvedre increase to three tons an acre, while Grenache could double to six. That means that in order to have enough Grenache in the lean years we sometimes have to be creative in the productive ones. This year, when we began our blending trials, it was clear we would have to find a home for a lot of Grenache. In fact, we had nearly as much Grenache as we did all our other reds combined! So after we blended Panoplie, Esprit, En Gobelet, Le Complice, and Cotes de Tablas (all of which include a healthy chunk of Grenache) we still had enough Grenache left to make nearly 3000 cases. From that we decided to make two wines: our traditional varietal bottling of Grenache, from the more classic, structured, deeper lots, and a new wine from the highest-toned, palest, and juiciest lots that we’re calling Alouette. In character it’s somewhere between a dark rosé and a light red, with high-toned cherry and cranberry fruit flavors, bright acids, a hint of tannin, and a lightly herbal finish like all the parts of a wild strawberry, from leaves to flowers to fruit.

The name Alouette literally translates from the French as “lark”, with both the meanings that it carries in English. Yes, the songbird, but also something done on a whim, or for fun. It’s also the first line of a common French children's song that I learned in middle school French class and which (I’m sorry) I’m guessing many of you are already humming to yourselves. It’s a fun name to say, has a fun meaning, and should be a great fit for a wine that’s eminently fun to drink.

As for a package, we’ll be sharing this wine in two ways. For our sales from the winery, we’re putting it into our three-liter boxes. This is a red wine that is lovely served chilled, so a box, which you can stash in your fridge and pour a glass from whenever you want, will be ideal. For the restaurant and wine bar world, we’re putting it into our 19.5-liter kegs. From there it can be poured by the glass or carafe while maintaining maximum freshness.

You might notice what we’re not putting the wine in: glass bottles. While they are unmatched at holding wine that you want to keep for years or decades in your cellar, they’re not a great container for wine that’s going to be opened and consumed in the near team. As we’ve written about in our blogs on the Patelin de Tablas boxes we’ve been making, glass is heavy and fragile, and requires lots of energy to mine, melt, mold, and transport.

When you look at the carbon footprint of various packages, both boxes and kegs pencil out well ahead of glass bottles. Stainless steel kegs are essentially infinitely reusable, and despite the additional energy costs of having to ship them back to their point of origin, our partners at Free Flow Wines have calculated that they offer a 76% reduction in carbon footprint compared to the 26 bottles required to hold the same volume of wine, not to mention the two-plus cases of cardboard cases and extra labels, capsules, and corks. They’re also zero-waste, which appeals to us. The 3L bag-in-box offers something like an 84% savings in carbon footprint compared to four glass bottles, as well as four pounds of savings in weight and a nearly 50% savings in packaging volume.

Plus, once you open a bottle, oxygen starts its destructive work on the wine within, and you only have a matter of days, perhaps a week if you’re careful, before the wine is compromised. With boxes, you have several weeks of prime drinking if it’s living in your fridge. With a keg, you have months.

Not that we expect it to be around that long.

Look for an email announcing the release of the Alouette the week of August 12^th.