Having attended dozens of American Wine Society conventions over the past forty years, I thought it might be time to teach one. Considering the great sessions I’d attended, this would be a high bar to reach. The following is more or less a transcript of my presentation.

Being retired now, I’ve had time to do the leg work of putting it together. I had initially planned on doing a small seminar for 25-30 people and paying for the wines myself. When I was notified that there would be 86 people attending, I wondered if I could find sponsors. As it turns out my previous connections with various wineries in Michigan and California proved to be of no value for sponsorship or donations. Luckily, my acquaintance with a Missouri grape grower opened many doors for me. Considering the topic, Missouri wines proved exemplary for my purposes. The only wine I could not initially source was a Native grape white wine that was neither foxy nor sweet. A tip from a New York Finger Lakes wine producer to seek a Pet Nat solved that issue. So, below is what I presented to those attending my session.

AWS Session A6: Native, Hybrid, Vinifera; What’s the difference?

While I greeted the audience and explained why half of the skin on my face doesn’t match my complexion (skin graft after cancer) I encouraged everyone to taste the Pet Nat as well as the other wines. With 86 attendees, I had to wonder if the draw was the topic or if it was everyone’s third choice. The way AWS sets it up, all of the sessions are pretty much full but no more than 100 people in a session. You have to list a first, second and third choice when you sign up for the convention.

All of the wines were tasted and evaluated double blind. No one but Alice and I knew anything other than what was visible in the glass.

I chose the wines because each has a demonstrative characteristic. That might be an emphatic bouquet, a unique fruit essence, an earthy rustic terroir or some other nuance that makes each of these wines a distinct and unforgettable tasting experience. It is my hope that the species is more subtle than whatever smells and flavors are derived from where it comes from, how it is made and the fruit flavored characteristics of its variety. It will be interesting to see if this collection of flavors that none of us experience every day are enjoyable.

Pet Nat is an abbreviation for Petillant Naturel. That is, the wine is fermented almost to finish and then bottled with a bit of fermentation left to go. It finishes fermentation in the bottle and is never disgorged. So, it is cloudy and often possesses a “hefe” beer-like yeastiness. Some might compare it to natural hard cider. It is always best to open Pet Nat over a sink. Because it is a natural wild fermentation, if is really unknown even to the winemaker how many atmospheres of pressure is in the bottle; sometimes just barely a perceptible pop (like Moscato d’Asti) and sometimes something akin to a wine explosion. My fist presentation of Pet Nat to our Grand Rapids Rude Tasters left me soaking wet after a wine shower. Methode Champenoise wines employ a vigorous yeast like Prix de Mousse to finish the job but this wine and most Pet Nats allow only wild yeasts for the entire fermentation making the end result unpredictable. We tasted the following four white wines and I asked with a show of hands which wine was the favorite. In the first group all of the wines were liked with the favorite being pretty widely divided between the wines with the Rkatsiteli being the least favorite and the Pet Nat was slightly more chosen as the favorite than the others.

2022 Montezuma Winery Diamond Pet Nat, Finger Lakes, NY (11.2% abv) $25 has the most wonderfully aromatic nose one can imagine. It is even more expressive and pure than St. Julian’s Niagara. Though this wine screams NATIVE, the fruit is absolutely pristine with every aspect cleaner than clean. I have never had a “natural” wine made from wild yeast so stunningly fresh, appetizing and pure. This wine is a wonder when you consider that Native varieties often possess a slightly “foxy” (wet dog) character that is often covered up with an abundance of sugar. But this wine is DRY!!

Diamond is referred to as a Native varietal because both of its parents are of the native species Vitis Labrusca. However, both of its parents (Concord x Iona) do contain Vinifera DNA. Diamond was the first white wine that I fell in love with about 1970 when I first tasted a bottle of Widmer Moore’s Diamond from the Lake Canandaigua area of the Finger Lakes. Somehow, it just spoke to me.

Vitis Vinifera (translated from Latin “true vine”) goes back several millennia to the Caucuses Mountains in what is today Georgia and Armenia. With human migrations, birds and animal migrations, the vines spread into Western Asia and most notably into the Middle East and Europe. Over many thousands of years as this species adapted to new climates with differing terroir, many varieties developed naturally. However, these are varieties, not species. Vinifera is the only species of grape found naturally in this part of the world. There are also many crossed cultivars, some naturally occurring some developed by humans but they are still all Vitis Vinifera. For example, if you crossed Cabernet Franc with Sauvignon Blanc you’d have Cabernet Sauvignon which is a crossed cultivar but, because both parents are Vinifera, Cabernet Sauvignon is also Vinifera. It is not a Hybrid. It is still 100% Vinifera. Many other varieties are crossed cultivars such as Kerner, Scheurebe and many others. However, when one crosses a Vinifera with another species, then one has created a Hybrid.

Unlike the single species Vinifera with hundreds (thousands?) of varieties covering Western Asia, the Middle East and Europe, on the American continent, there are numerous different species of native grapes but each species has only one or a few varieties. Other than wild grape vines growing in remote areas, all of the grape varieties that are cultivated in vineyards are actually Hybrids. Here the terminology is not accurate. As I stated, we refer to any vine that is a cross of more than one species as a Hybrid. However, for a reason unknown to me, we refer to Native Hybrids simply as Native varieties. All of the horticulturists who developed what we call Native varieties claim to have used selective breeding exclusively in developing varieties such as Concord, Niagara, Muscadine, Catawba, Norton, Cynthiana and many others. But, all of these “Native” varieties contain Vinifera as a large portion of their parentage. Furthermore, varieties such as Diamond, Duchess, Delaware, and Chelois are considered Native Hybrids or simply Native varieties because their developers claimed that both parents are Native. But, we know by DNA analysis that the parents are not pure Native but rather hybrids themselves of Vinifera and Native species. So, for this exercise, I will use the technically incorrect terminology and refer to all varieties said to be a result of Native selective breeding as Native even though we know that this is scientifically incorrect. Species such as Vitis Labrusca, Vitis Riparia, Vitis Rupestris, Vitis Rotundifolia, Vitis Aestivalis and others are alive and well in forests across America but those found cultivated in vineyards are all crossed with Vitis Vinifera.

So, when I and most other wine professionals speak of Hybrids they are referring to the intentional crosses between Native species and Vinifera. Those developed in the mid 1800’s mostly in Europe, were a result of the phylloxera vine louse that was devastating European vineyards. Varieties such as Marachal Foch, Leon Millot, Vidal, Vignoles, Seyval and many many others were all developed to have immunity to phylloxera while having a pleasing aroma and flavor. More recent Hybrids developed at US Universities and American hybridizers include Marquette, St. Croix, Itasca, La Crescent and many others. These were also bred for immunity to phylloxera but also for cold heartiness to the Upper Midwest climate while still offering a pleasing aroma and flavor.

As we taste the rest of the wines, it is my hope that whether you score them according to the AWS 20 point system or just enjoy them, each of us will notice what makes each of these distinctive and enjoyable.

2022 Dila-O Rkatsiteli/Mtsvane Amber, Kakheti, Republic of Georgia $17 (13% abv) is much milder and less emphatic than I would have expected based on the small sample of Rkatsiteli based wines I’ve enjoyed from Concannon Vineyards in Livermore CA and Dr. Konstantin Frank in the Finger Lakes NY. It was suggested to me by one of the participants that perhaps this wine was aged in underground amphorae to reduce the strong aroma of these varieties. He is absolutely correct and I should have known this based on the term “Amber” which is the indication that this wine was aged in this manner. This wine was chosen because it is in fact, an ancient variety born in the cradle of Vinifera. Although it was enjoyed, it received the least number of favorite votes.

2023 Defiance Ridge Vineyard Poppy’s Vidal Blanc, Defiance MO $25 (13% abv) opens with a big fresh floral nose. This variety tends to be a bit acidic and tart apple-like yet here we have an example a wine with richness, body, clean pure fruit and a long lasting finish. Missouri just seems to present Hybrid varieties with far more luxuriant characteristics than Hybrids grown in Michigan, New York, Ohio and other areas of the Upper Midwest. Vidal’s parents are Ugni Blanc grown mostly in Western France and Rayon d’Or itself a Hybrid with Seyval as a parent. Most of the Hybrids growing in today’s vineyards are crosses and re-crosses of other Hybrids.

2022 Augusta Winery Barrel Fermented Chardonel, Augusta MO $39 (12% abv) is a wine I’ve admired for many years. Barrel fermentation allows for the very bright, fresh varietal aroma of citrus, pear and apple to come forth while the palate becomes soft, supple, rich and creamy with a palate memory of the fruit it started with in the aroma. Chardonel is a cross of Chardonnay and Seyval which is already a cross of Chardonnay and Native crosses. So, from a DNA perspective, it is actually 75% Vitis Vinifera in its parentage. As I keep mentioning crosses emphasizing the plural form, one needs to appreciate that it can take generations of hybridizers to come up with these varieties. Each trial takes many years from the time it is planted to the time a mature vine is capable of producing quality fruit made into wine that can take years to mature. Selective breeding and hybridization is not a profession seeking quick rewards.

As we move on to the reds, again keep in mind and make notes regarding your favorites. Again, I’ve selected wines which are distinct and offer new nuances that you many not have experienced previously. The species will probably not affect your opinion of the wine nearly as much as the unique fruit essences and enormous complexity derived from each one’s specific terroir. As I ask for favorites by a show of hands, the overwhelming favorite is the mature Norton, which is the last wine to be tasted.

2023 Adam Puchta Winery Chambourcin, Hermann MO $19 (13.4% abv) brings back memories of fording a stream to get to the winery many many years ago. Like the Vidal, Missouri seems to be the preferred natural home of Chambourcin. We do a great job with this varietal in Michigan but in Missouri the wine is extraordinary! The ripe, plump, rich and balanced texture lays a foundation for powerful black fruit, fine oak, spice and earth putting it in a very special category of fine wine. Chambourcin is a very late ripening varietal. Even in the warmest most sheltered sites in Michigan, harvest is at the same time as Cabernet Franc which is early to mid November. As a varietal, it retains characteristics of its Native parentage but also displays an elegance, complexity and finesse one often associates with European wines. It is a highly complex cross and re-cross of many Native, Hybrid and Vinifera species and has been grown in Europe since the 1860’s though has only been used in the US for winemaking since the 1960’s. It is a teinturier-type with the juice having color resulting in a very deep colored black/red wine.

2021 Stone Hill Norton, Hermann MO $24 (13.5% abv) is made at one of the oldest wineries in the United States. This is a winery that makes a lot of different wines and does all of them well. This Norton shows up nearly opaque with deep deep black red color, rich forest floor and piercingly fresh black fruit, full body and a long pleasant finish gripping the palate while bathing it in grape essences. Norton is a Native variety in the species Vitis Aestivalis along with Vitis Vinifera even though the developers of both Norton and Cynthiana swear that they employed only selective breeding and didn’t cross any species. So, we’ll refer to Norton as a Native variety. It is also a teinturier-type.

2022 Dila-O Saperavi, Kakheti, Republic of Georgia $17 (13.5% abv) sports pitch black color with a floral strawberry-like essence. The tannin is huge creating a rich long finish nuanced with hints of herb and earth. Saperavi is one of if not the darkest teinturier-type grape varieties in the world. Like Rkatsiteli, it is a Vinifera species that is thousands of years old hailing from the Caucuses Mountains. The juice and skins have so much color that the Saperavi concentrate used by many winemakers to darken their wines is known in the industry as “Mega Purple”! Like its stable mate Rkatsiteli, it offers up a wide palette of many smells and flavors.

2006 Stone Hill Norton, Hermann MO $38 (13.8% abv) is a wine for which this session was engineered. I see by the show of hands that it is clearly the favorite among the red wines. This wine offers the finesse of left bank Grand Cru Bordeaux, the complexity of Pomerol, the strength of Napa Cabernet, yet the finish screams NATIVE AMERICAN! It is all here! Todd Kliman author of “THE WILD VINE” hypothesized that if Thomas Jefferson had cultivated Norton (instead of very unsuccessfully cultivating Vinifera), and presented it to his colleagues in France, the US and the world could have evolved much differently. Jefferson’s vision was for the US to have an agrarian economy based on grapes and wine rather than cotton and tobacco. He never imagined the change to a British style industrial economy. Having tasted many good young Norton wines, I never quite bought into this theory that Native varieties might have totally changed the economic, political and social fabric of the new world until I tasted a 2002 Augusta Norton in which I witnessed every smell and flavor from every great wine I’d ever enjoyed. Clearly, this 2006 Stone Hill embodies those quailities stirring the possibilities of what could have been. I highly recommend reading “THE WILD VINE” to anyone curious about the origins and development of the Norton grape variety. Missouri proudly markets Native and Hybrid varieties as the essence of its wine industry.

I wish to express a special thank you to :

The AWS volunteers who set up and tore down this room making this session possible

Annette Alden, Marketing Director of the Missouri Grape and Wine Board

Nathan Held, 3rd Generation VP of Sales and Marketing, Stone Hill Winery

William Sadler, Grape Grower, advocate for the Missouri Quality Alliance*

Kyle Anne Pallischeck, Finger Lakes Wine Alliance

Phil Plummer, Winemaker of Montezuma Winery

*The remarkable quality of Missouri wines, particularly Hybrids and the Native Norton is a huge reason why I chose these wines. The new Quality Alliance effective with the 2024 vintage will not only guarantee that Missouri wines are in fact grown in Missouri but, like Canada’s VQA, the wines will be tasted and evaluated by a panel of peer wineries to establish that if is marketed as Missouri, it is of highest and most typical quality.

What else did we taste while in North Carolina?

Alice and I were both quite surprised to find that most of the red wines we encountered whether from big industrial sized wineries or small boutique mom an pop operations, mostly seemed a bit lean, light, acidic and tired tasting. Considering the long frost-free season in North Carolina compared to Michigan, why on earth aren’t the wines significantly more robust, ripe and fruity, not less so? It wasn’t until we attended a couple sessions at the AWS convention that we learned that although frost is not a big problem here the humidity and persistent pressure from rot and disease are major factors preventing proper ripening and flavor concentration. A couple of methods used at some of the wineries who are making big rich full flavored wines are the Delestage (rack and return) and the appasamento (drying) processes.

Chris Nelson winemaker at Raffaldini posed the question “how do you make a big bold red wine from low brix, phenologically underdeveloped Vitis Vinifera?” His approach is to use the appassimento process wherein the grapes are partially dehydrated prior to fermentation. The results were remarkably good. The best is his 2019 Gallo Nero II $21 with its vibrant fresh lively aroma, great color with plenty of Chianti-like vigor that can easily be related to a young rustic Italian wine. This is one of the two best wines we encountered.

JW Ray, owner of both Rayson and Jolo wineries, presented his delestage (rack and return) process that allows for long skin contact extracting very rich concentrated flavors without extracting bitterness and overt foxiness from the seeds in the grape must. His 2022 Jolo Winery and Vineyards Crimson Creek Chambourcin $49 was the other really superb North Carolina wine we enjoyed. This wine made me think of Missouri Chambourcin with its fine fruit purity and rich palate. The finish was especially remarkable for is suave, lush, soft fruity finish.

We tasted at a few nearby wineries and most of the wines were largely disappointing. At Childress, we did have some lovely white wines and one very good red along with some weak tired reds. Here are the highlights. 2022 Cellar Select Traminette $18 has an brilliantly clean yet emphatically aromatic bouquet of pure citrus and ripe yellow fruit without too much emphasis on the Muscat-like peach/apricot scents. The 2022 Barrel Select Chardonnay $18 is “no oak” with fresh powerful varietal identity yet, it is quite mellow with a soft buttery mid-palate and a long round finish. This is a no oak wine that even a Kendall Jackson drinker would enjoy. While most of the reds were somewhat lean and tired the 2021 Black Spanish $50 which is said to be a Native Texas species (Lenoir) was remarkably good. The beautiful deep black color had just enough transparency on the meniscus to make one think of Rioja. The bouquet is full and complex leading into a mouth feel that is balanced, velvety and embodies the identity of the terroir.

At Hanover Park, while the reds all seemed old and tired, they do grow on you and would certainly enhance a meal calling for relatively tame wines. Our favorite, 2017 Amy’s Blend $40 was the oldest wine we tried and ironically the freshest and most vital. It is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Chambourcin. My guess is that the Chambourcin provides the back bone for this wine’s plump rich character and explains the longevity. I’m starting to see that growing Vinifera in North Carolina is no walk in the park.

On our way back to Winston-Salem, we stopped at Medaloni Cellars where it seems like they’ve gotten a handle on growing and ripening Vinifera. We tasted six wines all good. 2021 Kerner $28 is quite Rheingau-like with a round ripe sweet nose and a very clean, crisp, lemony finish. Casa White $28 which is a Chardonnay/Viognier blend comes across as bright and lively with fine subtle aromatics finishing with a rich Chard-like impression. 2023 Skin Contact $29 combines Traminette and Valvin Muscat greeting the nose with a huge floral presence while entering the palate perfectly balanced with a fresh, not too sweet mid-palate and a brisk, bright finish with good texture. 2023 Montepulciano $34 is actually a very deep colored rosé served cold, aged in stainless, ideal for quaffing with casual meals. 2022 Cabernet Sauvignon $38 has a nice plummy nose which reminds me of Côtes de Bordeaux. The fruit on this Cab is the purest we encountered in North Carolina. We finished our tasting with 2021 Petit Verdot $38 which spent two years in oak. Like their Cab, the black fruit is pure and emphatically varietal in the nose with the fine complex mid-palate. The finish is very long reminding me of chocolate almonds.

Overall, I believe that Native and Hybrid varieties are better suited to the damp climate here but, as the horticultural and oenological experience grows dealing with, as Chris Nelson said “making big bold ripe wine from low brix, phrenologically underdeveloped Vinifera”, more and more wineries will figure that out and we’ll see a much broader palette of well endowed international style wines.

Enjoy in Good Health,

A Brian Cain, the Michigan Vintner