Importer, distributor and winery owner Anthony J. Terlato, chairman of Paterno Wines International, has strong opinions about issues facing the industry, and the knowledge to back them up. In his Opinion/Analysis column he presents the case for maintaining vintage requirements.
Changing Vintage Date
Requirements: a step backward
As most of us in the wine industry are aware, a
debate has long been raging about Wine Institute’s
proposal to change U.S. vintage date requirements.
Under the current rules, at least 95% of grapes in a
vintage-dated wine must be from the vintage year
listed on the label. WI is asking the TTB to lower that
minimum to 85% for wines bearing a state, county
or multi-county appellation (for example, Sonoma
County or Central Coast). While this change wouldn’t
apply to wines from specific regional appellations,
like the Napa Valley, it would affect every wine
producer in the country—and not in a positive way.
It is my considered opinion we should not reduce our
standards in America’s most prominent viticultural
areas for any reason, most emphatically not in the
interest of competing with countries that are focused
on the volume of cases they produce rather than the
quality.
We should continue using our energy and resources
to not just maintain the standards, but to raise them
when possible to protect the integrity of our wines, so
that in the coming decades we can be recognized as
the finest wine growing appellations in the world.
Over the last 30 years we have come a long way.
The image and prestige of our appellations have
grown dramatically, and most of the credit should
go to those dedicated producers that placed quality
first—through their efforts today we are the envy of
wine producers from all over the world.
Why denigrate the celebrated appellations of Napa
County, Sonoma County and Santa Barbara County
that are revered throughout the wine world to benefit
wineries where cases, not quality, are the focus?
WI presents the proposed new regulation as a “compromise.” It says the proposal protects names
such as Napa Valley by keeping the 95% requirement
in place for such appellations of origin, only
the standard for Napa County would fall to 85%.
Whether this argument is naïve or misinformed, I do
not know; but in any case it is wrong. How many
consumers will make the distinction between Napa
Valley and Napa County? Further, if this new
regulation goes through, the news headlines read
throughout the wine world will be that the U.S. wine
industry has lowered its standards. All producers,
large and small, will suffer as a result.
Our focus at this time should be to take advantage
of the opportunities to improve our wines and image
in the global arena. Let us not be dragged down
by compromise to commercialism. There is enough
ordinary wine in the world; our wines should be
the wines all others aspire to be.
This becomes improbable if we allow lower
standards. It’s nonsense to say that the concept
of blending 10% more wine from another vintage
will improve the overall quality of our wines. From
my point of view, this is a blatant effort to stretch “good” vintages with “off” vintages.
The Aug. 30 deadline for sending comments to the
TTB has passed, and in a few months a decision will
be handed down. If the agency decides in WI’s favor,
it will certainly be a loss for our industry. But that
wouldn’t mean that producers of integrity would be
forced to comply with the new ruling.
It is my belief that everyone dedicated to quality will
continue to oppose the compromise, and keep high
standards as the rule of conduct. It will be to the
benefit of all of us.
- by Anthony J. Terlato
©2005 by Wines & Vines.
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