Wine AS ART  

 

Wine is true art. As an art form, much has been lost in the modern age of mass production.  I use classical wine making methods and techniques to craft hand-made, small batch wines of depth, soul, and a sense of place with a deep focus on great reds.  I strive to work with the fruit of each individual vineyard and season to produce a unique stand-alone masterpiece. All of my wines are made with great longevity in mind yet delightful vibrancy when young. Every batch is a unique expression of what the grape can become. Postmodern wine art. 

To this end, I work with a collection of small vineyard owners in multiple regions of Michigan who’s dedication to the vine and love of truly great wine shows through. Every wine is carefully hand sorted. Classic techniques of carefully hand pressing the caps on ultra-small open top fermentations are practiced on every cuvée. Instead of chemical manipulation techniques passed down to me allow me to shape the flavors of the wine using what the grape has to offer. All wines are carefully hand loaded into a basket press to avoid the disruption of pumps. None of my red wines undergo fining or filtering. Instead, the magic of proper time in barrel and carefully repeated racking bring out the clarity and brilliance. Unlike painting and sculpture, wine is alive, thus possessing an element of time in its enjoyment. Thus, each wine goes through aging in-bottle until it is ready to show.  Only when the wine says its ready does hand bottling finally occur. 

In the end, is a collection of cuvées that, like a great live improvisational musical performance, is unique, has depth, soul, and is expressive. I hope you get the chance to enjoy one of these rare expressions crafted with love for the art of wine-making. 

-Nathaniel