There’s a family in Creston that loves wine…so much so, that they grow it and make it, and they do an awesome job. Their goal is to grow grapes and make wine that represents where the grapes come from. The focus is mainly on Rhone varietals, but they have some other interesting grapes mixed in there, too. The Graves’ grow their grapes and make their wine in a sustainable manner, in order to leave the smallest footprint possible, all pointing back to their mantra: “The whole is greater than the sum of its parts”.
We got to meet Hilary Graves in a very cool environment; in the lab at Denner Vineyards where she makes her wine. She poured her wines for us, letting us taste several vintages of the same varietal, which really gave us a good idea of how her wines age. There was a great white blend, mostly Grenache Blanc, that was light and refreshing. There were several reds, some blends and some single varietals, that knocked our socks off. To give you an idea of our experience, it wasn’t just that we tasted a Mourvedre, but that we got to taste the ’03, ’04, ’05, and ’06 Mourvedre! In doing a tasting like this, we really get to see where the wines are going and what the subtle differences are between vintages. Hilary explained to us what the changes in weather and soil conditions from year to year can do to the wines and we got to taste those differences first hand!
http://www.graveswinegrowers.com
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m2MuHm09720[/youtube]
Looks like a great time!!!
It was, Mike! We learned to spit!!!
Anyone that’s lived in Hawaii (Hilary!), or in my case watched Lilo and Stitch with the kidos, knows ‘Ohana’ means ‘family’ in Hawaiian. Hilary named her vineyard for the former.
Why?… Every stake, drip-line and most importantly vine was prepared and planted at her Ohana Vineyard by Hilary and her family. I’m not making this up, she touches every molecule of her wines from vineyard to glass (that is if she’s in your house pouring for you) …which can happen around here. Meet her, taste and the aloha pumehana comes through!
Two of my favorites; 07 Monkey Wrench, and 0anything Rock Candy.
Order your Thai take-out a little spicy, pair it with Monkey Wrench and prepare for an Ohanagasm!… Did I just say that ;-o
Hi Scott…thanks for all the info on Hilary and the Graves Family Winemaking style! I think all that personal attention and care definitely shows up in the Graves’ wines. The Monkey Wrench was definitely one of our favorites, as well! We’ll give it a try with some Thai next time! Cheers!