Something dirty and rowdy this way comes.

If there’s a single migratory pattern worth mentioning since the last US census, it would have to be renegade wine bloggers moving west to stake claims in the wine business. Whether in wine writing, social media, or winemaking, there are plenty of fresh faces and interesting projects.

And if one person blazed the trail, it would have to be Hardy Wallace. From the Dirty South Wine blog, to high profile social media work with wineries, to finding a home championing and then making minimal-intervention “natural” wine, Hardy’s smiling face and genuinely enthusiastic (yet sarcastic) wit have become something of a personal brand. All of this has culminated with the first release of Dirty and Rowdy Family Winery, a partnership of Hardy and fellow Atlanta ex-pat and food blogger/videographer Matt Richardson.

Their winery features aesthetics more akin to an indie rock band than a winery. A surreal cartoon involving a leopard, snake, weedwhacker and hedge clippers adorns the label. Artsy still life photos of people and winery scenes and iron skillet fried chicken are prominent on a website proclaiming them as “America’s #1 Winery.” As a Generation X’er informed by the counter-cultural and subversive aesthetics of 80’s hardcore punk, these are all things that I enjoy and appreciate. It’s kitschy and clever without undermining the integrity of the winery.

As for the wine, the varietals are Sémillon and Mourvedré. The first release features a 2011 Semillon from the Gamble Vineyard in Yountville in Napa Valley, and a pair of Mourvedré wines (2010 and 2011) from the Santa Barbara Highlands Vineyard in a remote eastern corner of Santa Barbara County.

I opened a bottle of the 2011 Dirty and Rowdy Sémillon, Yountville,Napa Valley ($28) to pair with rosemary roasted chicken. This is from valley floor silt soils. Fermentation was divided into to two native fermentations, one taking place in concrete egg and the other on the skins in open-top fermenters. Aging took place in neutral French oak.

In the glass the maceration on the skins showed in the rich and cloudy gold color. The bouquet presented a mélange of interesting expressions – running the gamut from dried floral, to white pepper & herb, to mushroom & earth, to frommage and then to citrus zest. Complex but wound tightly. It was surprisingly rich on the palate considering the low alcohol (+/- 12.5%), with crisp freshness along with mineral and earthy highlights accenting the floral fruit and spice. It had that nicely weighted gliding thing going on throughout the palate before finishing with fine tannin. Rich and complex and structured are the keys here.

This is serious Sémillon. If you ever pine for aged Hunter Valley Sémillon then sock this baby away for a bit and let it unfold- this could satisfy that urge. Or just open it and let it breathe and enjoy – it’s beautiful stuff, and an exciting new addition to the new wave of California wine. 

What's In Your Tech Sheet?

Like many wine lovers, I have at least some interest in the details of how a wine is made. I don't however, have the time to research the small details of every wine that I drink.

Much of what I learn comes from the wine's tech sheet. It's usually available in some form from the winery website. Sometimes as a separate PDF file, and other times as listed on the main description page. I'm interested in any information that the winemaker is willing to share on the tech sheet, but at a minimum I like to know a few things. Site specific information; time in oak with percentage new; native or inoculated yeast, brix level at harvest, general fermentation information, viticultural info, and clones used (on high end wines) are a few things that are useful for me when listed in tech sheets.

There are other items that would be interesting to know about, but aren't going to appear on a tech sheet anytime soon. Things such as acidification, watering down or other alcohol lowering techniques, added enzymes, etc are certainly of interest. However you're probably going to have to do some serious reading to get this information. Recently I've found some pretty candid information from winemakers in books like New Classic Winemakers of California and North American Pinot Noir.

What kind of information is an interested consumer owed in the form of a wine tech sheet? I'm sensitive to the different angles that this question addresses. As a wine lover, I want to know and understand wine more fully. The decisions made in the winegrowing and winemaking process, and the different means and philosophies behind those decisions, are endlessly fascinating. I try to keep an open mind in any of the possible directions. It's the same kind of interest in reading album liner notes where the musicians give you information about the recording process, the different equipment that was used, and the players on the album.

On the other hand, I understand that much of this information is seen as proprietary, to be doled out at the discretion of the vintner. The information that can be withheld is not of a concern to the immediate health of the consumer, so maybe it is up to the interested consumer to search out what they're interested in on their own. We're free to make buying decisions based on the information given or not given. As in music, there are plenty of great albums that share very little information in the liner notes.

With all this in mind, I've linked five tech sheets below. These are wines that I've written about over the last year. I'm listing the information beside each that is given; click the link for the wines. As you'll see, it's an interesting variation. There's definitely no standard format or level of information.

Tech Sheet 1 (domestic)- total production, release date, site specific information, soils, clones, fermentation details, time in oak with percentage new, harvest yield, alcohol by volume.

Tech Sheet 2- (imported)- grape varietals, alcohol by volume, acid level, pH level, sugar level, harvest dates, type and temperature of fermentation, fermentation techniques, type of oak, time of oak w/percentage new.

Tech Sheet 3- (imported)- alcohol by volume, basic aging information, winemaker name, very basic harvest and fermentation info, grape varietals.

Tech Sheet 4- (domestic)- winemaker name, vineyard name, time/type/percentage new oak aging, growing season/harvest overview, harvest period, brix at harvest, alcohol by volume, total acidity, pH level, grape varietals.

Tech Sheet 5- (domestic)- vineyard/harvest overview, time of harvest, brix at harvest, detailed fermentation information, use of inoculated yeast, time in oak w/percentage new/1yr/neutral, percent estate vineyard, grape variety, clones, alcohol by volume, total acidity, pH level, residual sugar, winemaker name.

How important is the technical information to you, and how much should be offered to you vs you seeking it out?