Sustainable Solutions - Chapter 3

The Relationship Between Wine, Spinach, and Happy Chickens

This consistency in quality has been achieved through the long-standing commitment by major European wine producing countries to preserve the terroir of their wines.  Throughout France, for instance, the regional origin of the wine is of paramount importance.  Even in New World wines, which are generally named for their grape varietal, region remains an important part of the label.  Anybody who drinks even an occasional glass of wine knows there’s a difference between Cabernet Sauvignon from the Napa Valley and Cab from, say, Vermont.  (Sorry, Vermont.  Sometime I’ll write about your cheese, and we’ll blast California together.)

Sustainable Solutions - Chapter 2

The History of Syrah

It was in the year 77 AD that the Syrah grape was first documented in literature.  In fact it may have been cultivated in the Rhone Valley as much as 600 years prior.   There are a number of legends surrounding the origins of Syrah:  that the Romans brought it from the Sicilian city of Syracuse, that it originated in the Persian city Shiraz, which was known for a regional wine called Shirazi, that the plant itself was brought to France by returning crusaders.  Or maybe earlier, by the Greeks.

Sustainable Solutions - Chapter 1

My initial intention in creating this blog was simply to write about wine, but as I delve deeper into sustainability studies, particularly in relation to our modern industrialized foodshed, I have often been struck by the fact that there is already a well-established model for modern, sustainable agriculture:

Winemaking.

Goddard College: The Rhetoric of $10 Wine

Clocktower

Yes, people, it's a wine blog.  However, as many of you know, I recently plunged back into school.  I feel incredibly lucky to have been accepted at Goddard College, where individuality reigns supreme.  And this is worth writing about, you see, because Goddard programs are built around an intense ten-day residency during which a huge amount of serious work is accomplished.  Along with the work, or perhaps because of the work, or perhaps in spite of the work, an enormous amount of cheap wine is imbibed.  Late at night, after the workshops, usually around a fire, often directly from the bottle.  And not, I swear, just by me.

Apple Picking in Charlotte

It's the peak of leaf-peeping season here in Vermont.  The treetards are out in force.  Rather than hide from the New Jersey license plates swarming the roadways, my sisters and I decided to join the fray - in our own way.  After all, who could have asked for a more perfect October day?  Picking fallen apples up off the ground at Shelburne Orchards, with the panorama of Adirondack color reflected off Lake Champlain and the sky a striated mess of rushing clouds and crystalline blue, made me realize that Fall is here, and I am glad.