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The Call of the Wild

South Dakota's first winery makes a $32 red from vitis riparia

by Loretta Sorensen Some of the same challenges Jamestown settlers encountered in 1609 as they attempted to cultivate imported grape varieties in what is now Virginia still confront South Dakota vintners like Eldon Nygaard, who pioneered his state's first vineyard, winery and winery legislation. Just as the Jamestown community discovered long ago, Nygaard found there can be great benefit in harvesting native grapes that abound on their own, without any coaxing.

"I read in Lewis and Clark's journals about the native grapes--vitis riparia--which they ate when they were traveling through this area in 1804," Nygaard said. "Soon after that, I found some of the vines growing right on the property where I built Valiant Vineyards Winery (above). It's possible the Corps of Discovery walked right through this same site. We started harvesting the wild grapes in 1996 and have worked at developing a unique and pleasing wine from the fruit since that time."

Making wine from wild grapes was not a new venture for Nygaard. He made his first batch of mulberry and wild grape wine when he was just 14. "My family had been making homemade wines for generations," he said. "I did my winemaking in the stone 'cellar' of our Turner County home. Our challenge has been to create a commercial wine, as opposed to a homemade wine."

Nygaard trademarked the name "Wild Grape" after creating the first commercial wine from vitis riparia in 1996. It is a unique wine now sold in the United States and in Paris, France. It was Wild Grape that opened the door for Nygaard to provide wine to the White House. The now sought-after vintage also is available at Parisian wine superstore Lavinia. Wild Grape retails for $32 per bottle in the U.S. and 87 euros in Paris.

In 2007, Wild Grape 2003 won a silver medal in the Long Beach Grand Cru, one of several awards Nygaard has garnered by working diligently to elicit a distinct, appealing flavor from South Dakota's native fruit.

About the wine

"Our 2004 Wild Grape is deep in color, almost indigo," Nygaard said. "It's a big wine, ripe in flavor, fruit forward with lush plum, fig and black cherry undertones that are tastefully framed with oak character on the long finish."

Nygaard described Wild Grape as a complex and distinctive native wine. "I would characterize it as a young Cabernet Sauvignon," he said. "It has more body than a Merlot, but not as much as an aged Cabernet Sauvignon."

The typical acidity of the grapes at harvest is 1.6 TA. The pH is around 3.2. After primary and malolactic fermentation, it's .7 TA and 3.5 pH. Nygaard uses 71B yeast and Hansen's malolactic bacteria from Presque Isle winery supply in Pennsylvania.

"We just recently bottled 2004 Wild Grape," he said. "It had aged in World Cooperage's hybrid medium toasted oak barrels (28% French Oak and 72% Missouri Oak) for approximately four years."

Nygaard says he prefers to pick the grapes between 24° and 27° Brix. "In fact, it's best to pick vitis riparia after a frost," he said. "The flavor of the wine produced is enhanced by picking a significant portion of the grapes after the leaves drop off the vines. By then, the grapes have almost turned to raisins."

A large number of the grapes Nygaard requires for his wine are found on the Rosebud Indian Reservation in southwestern South Dakota. The vines often grow close to the riverbank and are scattered across the countless grass-covered acres of the reservation. When they're ready to harvest, the miniature fruit shines black in the sunshine. The fruit itself is very tart and tannic.

"The ground where the grapes grow has never been plowed or used for more than grazing a few horses or cows," Nygaard said. "We don't take any steps to cultivate the vines. They simply grow there as they have for centuries."

Nygaard organizes a harvesting crew made up mainly of youths from the reservation. The grapes are handpicked as the first step in the winemaking process.

Special processing required

One of the first obstacles Nygaard encountered with vitis riparia was the size of the grapes in comparison to cultivated varieties. "They're quite a bit smaller, which can make them difficult to process," Nygaard said. "For example, the grapes have to be run through the crusher and destemmer twice in order to get all the grapes off the stems."

Through his experimentation, Nygaard has learned to improve pressability of the wild fruit by adding a purified pectinase with very low cinnamyl esterase activity before he begins processing, saying it stimulates release of the grape's full potential. The wild grape itself is small in comparison to most winegrape varieties. It is also very durable and holds onto its color and juice, which is another reason the winemaker crushes and destems twice.

"The pectinase with very low cinnamyl esterase activity helps reduce the formation of vinyl phenols, which increases the yield from pressing," Nygaard said. "That same process also aids in releasing desirable pectin-trapped aromas. Overall, I believe it helps bring out the full aromatic potential of vitis riparia. The enzyme I use is Cinn-Free from Scott Laboratories."

Nygaard's fermentation process requires delicate handling of enzymes involved in the fermentation process. With all his wines, he utilizes stainless steel tanks for the fermentation process.

"Enzymes are inhibited by too much SO₂," Nygaard said. "I never add SO₂ and the enzymes at the same time. I have found that adding the enzymes after the SO₂ is adequately dispersed throughout the juice makes a significant difference in the taste of the wine. I've had the same success by dispersing the enzymes first and then adding SO₂."

To assist the thorough dispersion of the SO₂ and enzymes, Nygaard prepares a 10% solution of the enzymes dissolved in cool water, which he sprinkles over the grapes after crushing and destemming. "I prefer to add the enzymes and SO₂ before fermentation," he said. "I believe this creates benefits in settling, clarification and filtering."

The time and effort Nygaard has invested in the wild grapes has resulted in a unique flavor that makes Wild Grape one of his best-selling varieties every year.

"We've developed a process that gives us a wine that explodes with taste when it's sipped," Nygaard said. "It's just the right blend of acidity and tannins."

The Nygaards cultivate Edelweiss, La Crosse, Kay Gray, Seyval, St. Croix, Frontenac and Leon Millot in their own vineyard. They have approximately 20 acres of grapevines.

In addition to Wild Grape, Valiant Vineyards produces 10 other wines: 

• Wild Grape Port (19% alc. in 375ml bottles)
• Rushmore Red (a semi-dry red wine blend of St. Croix grapes from South Dakota and Zinfandel from California)
• Sturgis Merlot (an American Merlot made by blending S.D. Frontenac 11-16% with Merlot from Washington)
• Wild Plum, Raspberry, Cock n' Hen (white table wine made by blending Chardonnel and Seyval)
• A rosé wine made from LaCrosse and Frontenac
• Full Throttle American Syrah (a blend of 75% Syrah, 12.5% Zinfandel and 12.5% Cabernet Sauvignon with 17% alc.)
• Sweet White table wine (Niagara grape)
• Sweet Red wine (a blend of four red wines: St. Croix, Frontenac, Leon Millot and Merlot)
• Jungfräulich (a white wine made from the Edelweiss grape that tastes much like a Riesling)
• Honey wine.

Because the demand for quality wine continues to grow, Nygaard anticipates that the market for Wild Grape and similar unique wine flavors will continue to expand as well. Since 1996, when Nygaard and his wife Sherry established Valiant Vineyards, South Dakota's first winery, 14 other farm wineries have been licensed in the state.

"My Norwegian grandfather was among the many pioneers who participated in development of the agricultural industry on the plains," Nygaard said. "It has been a thrill for us to continue that tradition as we invest ourselves in the evolution of new wineries and wines in our home state."

Freelance writer Loretta Sorensen, based in South Dakota, has followed the growth and development of wineries in her state for the past 10 years. She has written for publications including Farm Progress and Farm Journal magazines and has ghostwritten several book-length works. Contact her through edit@winesandvines.com.

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