Legendary Robert Young Family Awarded 2008 Viticulture Award of Excellence
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The Voice of The Sonoma County Winegrape Commission SUMMER 2008 Legendary Robert Young Family Awarded In This Issue… 2008 Viticulture Award of Excellence President’s Report. .2 Commission Election Results . 3 By Larry Levine My Thoughts/Duff Bevill. 3 The Robert Young family of Alexander Valley was awarded the Latino Community Honors. 4 2008 Viticulture Award of Excellence from the Sonoma County Wine Stars Announced. 5 Winegrape Commission (SCWC) at the group’s annual BBQ recently at SRJC Shone Farm. SCWC annually presents the Up-Close with Tim Carl. 6 Viticulture Award of Excellence to recognize individuals or families Annual BBQ . .7 who have made significant contributions to SCWC, to Sonoma Salmon Coalition. .8 County viticulture, and the greater wine and local communities. Growers Represented in Chicago 9 The Robert Young family deserves this Marketing Update . 10 honor for their many contributions to the grape growing community locally Marketing Your Vineyard . 11 and in California. The Youngs have been innovators in Sonoma County viticulture Getting Involved. .11 in such areas as vertical trellising, narrow- row spacing, new pruning techniques, diversity of rootstock usage, innovative integrated pest management, and grape- vine canopy management. The Young family calls its vineyard system “growing a balanced wine.” Jim (left) and Robert Young “It is a great honor to receive this year’s award,” says Jim Young, winery owner and vineyard manager. “We are proud to farm alongside the many growers that continually strive to sustainably preserve and protect our county’s agricultural heritage and diversity.” Little did the Young family know that they would become famous in the California wine industry when Peter Young followed his two older brothers Michael and George to California from upstate New York in the 1850s to make their fortune in the Gold Rush. After some success in that business, they bought property in the Alexander Valley. Peter left California in 1862 and went to the gold fields of Oregon, eventually returning to New York and then back to California to buy his own 210-acre unculti- vated ranch in the Alexander Valley. Pete Opatz on KRON-TV segment on global warming Peter then cleared the land and planted prune trees and pasture land on the hillsides. When Peter died in 1914, the ranch was divided into three farms, one of which went to Silas Young, Robert Young’s father. In 1919, Robert Young was born and grew up in the Alexander Valley, learning the farming business. Silas died at the young age of 51 in 1935, while Robert was still in high school. With the financial help of a relative, he was able to get a bank loan for the $70,000 note on the property. Continued on Page 8 PAGE 2 SUMMER 2008 SCWC NEWSLETTER President’s Report Vine News: By Nick Frey The Voice of the Sonoma It has been a difficult year for Sonoma County County Winegrape grape growers. There were many sleepless nights Commission due to frost, and many growers suffered damage, some severe. Fortunately, most growers avoided Commissioners: crop loss. But the prospects for the Sonoma County John Balletto (Chairman) harvest are average at best, and more likely below Steve Sangiacomo (Vice Chairman) last year’s 198,000 tons. Richard Mounts (Secretary/Treasurer ) But growers in the Light Brown Apple Moth Duff Bevill (Past Chairman) (LBAM) quarantine area near the town of Sonoma Joe Dutton face a greater risk. Their vineyards must be in- Mark Houser spected within 30 days of harvest and be declared Jim Murphy free from LBAM in order to ship their fruit out of the Pete Opatz quarantine area. In addition, any grower in Sonoma County who sells grapes outside Rhonda Smith California must also trap for LBAM and be declared free from this pest before harvest. Mike Rowan Contact the Agriculture Commissioner immediately if you ship grapes outside California! Richard Rued And if frost and LBAM were not enough, high winds, a little rain, and a heat spike all occurred during flowering. Fruit set was affected in some vineyards. Fortunately, Alternates: Sonoma County has many microclimates and many different grape varieties. The crop Kevin Barr will vary from vineyard to vineyard, and many vineyards have good yield prospects. Chris Bowen While the county average may be near that of 2007, many individual growers are Tim Carl suffering through a difficult year. Vicki Michalczyk Bill Munselle Even before the frost, market demand for Sonoma County fruit strengthened. Pinot Noir demand has outpaced supplies, and to a lesser extent the same can be said for Mark Pasternak Chardonnay. Cabernet Sauvignon demand has increased and growers have been selling Brad Petersen Merlot, although prices need to strengthen. Syrah remains a difficult sell. Overall, Steve Thomas strengthening prices will offset some of the weather-related yield losses this year. Hopefully, Wells Wagner we will avoid further weather extremes through harvest! President: If you still have grapes for sale, I encourage you to post those on the Grape Marketplace Nick Frey at www.SonomaWineGrape.org. Commission trade advertising to promote Sonoma 707-522-5861 County grapes continues through August. Those ads direct grape buyers and brokers to the Grape Marketplace and the Wine Map to begin their search for Sonoma County grapes. You should also call grape brokers and grape buyers to help them fill any late Vice President Marketing season demand due to the short crop. & Communications: Larry Levine The events of the current year are certainly important to grape growers, but the 707-522-5863 Commission must look three to five years into the future to build demand for Sonoma County grapes and wines. We have spent many months working with the Sonoma Grower Outreach: County Vintners to develop messaging that both organizations will use so that we proj- Ginger Baker, 707-522-5864 ect consistent messages to the marketplace. This summer, we are asking each American Viticulture Area (AVA) in the county to develop its messaging to complement the Sustainable Practices Coordinator: county messages, and that differentiates each AVA within the county. Those mes- sages must be unique and communicate the core strengths of each wine region as part Judy Tuhtan, 707-522-5862 of Sonoma County. Our distinct AVAs differentiate Sonoma County from other wine regions because of the diverse microclimates that allow Sonoma County to produce www. SonomaWinegrape.org all the great wines of the world. But we must communicate that diversity in ways that 707-522-5860 set us apart from other wine regions. This is truly important work and I hope that each AVA will rise to the challenge. The goal is to consistently communicate the unique President’s Report continued on page 3 SCWC NEWSLETTER SUMMER 2008 PAGE 3 attributes of Sonoma County, its AVAs, and the quality grapes Mike Rowan has served as an Alternate Commissioner and and wines we produce to consumers around the world. member of the marketing committee previously. Mark Pasternak has served as Commissioner since 2006. Bowen, Petersen, Reed One of the criticisms when the Commission was formed was and Thomas are newly elected Alternate Commissioners. that we had too many organizations already. That is true if those organizations are not working together – or worse yet compet- ing with each other. But the Commission has been committed Alternate Members 2007/2009: to collaboration, and the Sonoma County Vintners have shared Kevin Barr • Alexander Valley that commitment. The Commission’s Cooperative Marketing Tim Carl • Knights Valley Program with the AVAs provides a financial incentive for those Vicki Michalczyk • Russian River Valley organizations to join our efforts – consistently communicating Bill Munselle • Alexander Valley the Sonoma County messages along with their own AVA market- Wells Wagner • Sonoma Valley (Bennett Valley) ing and messaging. We thank Steve Hill (Sonoma Valley) for his service as Commission Cooperation and collaboration are not swift or easy, but if Vice Chair, and Doug Lumgair (Chalk Hill), Allan Nelson Sonoma County is to succeed long term, it will be due to the (Dry Creek Valley), and Becky Jenkins (Sonoma Valley) for their cooperative efforts of growers, vintners, and the AVAs to market service as Commission Alternates. our county, its wine regions, the grapes and wines we make and the Wine Country destination to consumers around the world. Does this sound like important work worthy of your support? My Thoughts If so, get involved with your AVA, with our Marketing Commit- By Duff Bevill tee, or in delivering the messages to grape buyers, to those who sell our wines, and to consumers you meet here or in your travels. As the outgoing chairman of the Sonoma County Winegrape Commission, I want to thank Commission Election Results all of my fellow commissioners who have volunteered their By Nick Frey time to serve on the board The Commissioners and Alternates elected are as follows: these past two years. Together, along with Nick Frey and his Board Members 2008/2010: dedicated and inspired staff, Duff Bevill • Dry Creek Valley, retiring Commission Chairman we wrapped our arms around Joe Dutton • Russian River Valley the challenging task of creating a reality from a vision. We Mark Houser • Alexander Valley recognized that we had an opportunity to solidify our position in Pete Opatz • Sonoma County the premium grape growing world and, more importantly, expand Mike Rowan • Dry Creek Valley the recognition of Sonoma County along with the premier, world Rhonda Smith • Public Member, UCCE class grape growing regions found within its borders. Board Members 2007/2009: I also want to welcome and thank those who chose to run for John Balletto • Russian River Valley, Commission Chairman the position of commissioner and will be seated for the next two Steve Sangiacomo • Sonoma Valley, Commission, Vice Chairman years.