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Interesting piece comparing our "Top 100" list with Wine Spectator's ("Annual '100' Lists Favor U.S.", winesandvines.com, Dec. 10). One thing you neglected to mention is that this year we created a separate list for wines designated as "Cellar Selections" by our editors.
One result of this is that our list of The Enthusiast 100 is not directly comparable to the WS Top 100, because it excludes wines we feel are "highly collectible and/or requiring time in a temperature-controlled wine cellar to reach their maximum potential," whereas their Top 100 presumably does not.
Wine Enthusiast's Top 50 Cellar Selections may be downloaded free from our website at winemag.com.
Joe Czerwinski
Senior Editor/Tasting Director
Wine Enthusiast magazine
Elmsford, N.Y.
Clear and dry
I recently reviewed the November article by Larry Walker titled "Dry, Dry Again." You bring good insights on the challenges of dry farming. In the article, you are referring to some of the farming techniques I use. I would like, however, to correct a couple of items which may have been inadvertently included.
The referral of deep ripping the ground up to 10-feet deep is a mistake, and should read two-feet deep. I do not know of any farming implement capable of deep ripping to that depth. The second item in the same sentence is referring to a pre-shank hook; this piece of equipment is actually called a three-shank hook.
Jean-Pierre Wolff
Owner/vintner
Wolff Vineyards
Edna Valley, Calif.
A truly dynamic topic
I enjoyed Rudi Graeter's article on "Uncovering Biodynamic Wine" in the December 2007 issue, and am glad to hear that so many established estates, as well as up-and-comers, are utilizing Biodynamic principles to grow their grapes. There was one point I wish Rudi had clarified: "wines made from organically grown grapes." While the U.S. market has seen an increase in wines marketed as organic, labeling laws require that the only "organic" wines have no sulfites of any kind added during the winemaking process, which differs drastically from the regulations in the EU.
The threshold for sulfites in a wine labeled "organic" in the U.S. is less than 10ppm, much lower than is accepted in Europe (60ppm for reds and 90ppm for whites).
Sulfites cause an allergic reaction in a very small percentage of the population, but under 100ppm it is debatable if even those few would be adversely affected. Many of the best and longest lived wines in the world have a sulfite content much greater than 100ppm, because it protects the wine from the debilitating effects of oxygen, even in an enclosed bottle.
Michael Duffy
Ecosurgroup
Salisbury, N.C.
Interesting piece comparing our "Top 100" list with Wine Spectator's ("Annual '100' Lists Favor U.S.", winesandvines.com, Dec. 10). One thing you neglected to mention is that this year we created a separate list for wines designated as "Cellar Selections" by our editors.
One result of this is that our list of The Enthusiast 100 is not directly comparable to the WS Top 100, because it excludes wines we feel are "highly collectible and/or requiring time in a temperature-controlled wine cellar to reach their maximum potential," whereas their Top 100 presumably does not.
Wine Enthusiast's Top 50 Cellar Selections may be downloaded free from our website at winemag.com.
Joe Czerwinski
Senior Editor/Tasting Director
Wine Enthusiast magazine
Elmsford, N.Y.
Clear and dry
I recently reviewed the November article by Larry Walker titled "Dry, Dry Again." You bring good insights on the challenges of dry farming. In the article, you are referring to some of the farming techniques I use. I would like, however, to correct a couple of items which may have been inadvertently included.
The referral of deep ripping the ground up to 10-feet deep is a mistake, and should read two-feet deep. I do not know of any farming implement capable of deep ripping to that depth. The second item in the same sentence is referring to a pre-shank hook; this piece of equipment is actually called a three-shank hook.
Jean-Pierre Wolff
Owner/vintner
Wolff Vineyards
Edna Valley, Calif.
A truly dynamic topic
I enjoyed Rudi Graeter's article on "Uncovering Biodynamic Wine" in the December 2007 issue, and am glad to hear that so many established estates, as well as up-and-comers, are utilizing Biodynamic principles to grow their grapes. There was one point I wish Rudi had clarified: "wines made from organically grown grapes." While the U.S. market has seen an increase in wines marketed as organic, labeling laws require that the only "organic" wines have no sulfites of any kind added during the winemaking process, which differs drastically from the regulations in the EU.
The threshold for sulfites in a wine labeled "organic" in the U.S. is less than 10ppm, much lower than is accepted in Europe (60ppm for reds and 90ppm for whites).
Sulfites cause an allergic reaction in a very small percentage of the population, but under 100ppm it is debatable if even those few would be adversely affected. Many of the best and longest lived wines in the world have a sulfite content much greater than 100ppm, because it protects the wine from the debilitating effects of oxygen, even in an enclosed bottle.
Michael Duffy
Ecosurgroup
Salisbury, N.C.
| Write Us Please send us your opinions on wine industry issues, or your reactions to any of our articles. E-mail to edit@winesandvines.com or fax to (415) 453-2517. Items may be edited for clarity and brevity. |
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