I have traveled from Temecula to Santa Barbara to Napa and Sonoma. Up and down the east coast. Canada. Spain. France Chile. I have had the immense pleasure of working with Kevin Zraly, Oz Clarke, Matt Kramer and a slew of great wine writers. And I owned a winery for 13 years that recieved four scores of 90 or more.
But now, I sold my business, my house, and even my car! And now I’m off to discover wine across America! I’m going to recommend wines from across the United States that will impress even the most hardened snobs!
(TV Guide description): THE GREAT AMERICAN WINERY STROOPWAFFLE is Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives meets wine. (It was originally a Cannon Ball Run meets wine, but the pandemic kinda slowed me down.) It’s meant to be fun, informative, and enjoyable. I’d like to think this is a work in progress, and that improvements and enhancements will evolve over subsequent episodes.
Truly, America is making wine like never before! Not just in California, but all over! From east to west and north to south.
I’ll be on the hunt for small, authentic, artisanal, quality wineries. Small bottlings, limited bottlings, with unique stories. Down in the dirt farmers and winemakers making real, good, serious wine. Small family estates. Unique grapes. New ideas. Innovative wines. Looking to find handmade wines made with heirloom and historic grapes, and new varieties as well.
I’ll be driving the road less traveled. Albariño from New York, Dornfelder from Santa Barbara, east coast Nebbiolo, Soviet grapes grown in Maryland, Mourvèdre from Texas, and Norton from Missouri. We’ll try traditional varietals, blends, cool climate wines, and pet Nats.
More than anything, I’m looking for wines to astound you. Impress you. And show you that America isn’t just making great wine in one place, but all over this country! And they are making great wine you’re missing out on! But not any longer!
EPISODE 1:MACARI VINEYARDS
Love Macari wines on the North Fork of Long Island. Joe Macari is a terrific vineyard manager. And Kelly Koch and her crew are doing a great job. Gibson Campbell took Cork Report Founder & Executive Editor Lenn Thompson and myself through the lineup. Great stuff!
Liner notes: Big thanks to Lenn Thompson who did his best try try and keep me on the straight and narrow, and keep me from embarrassing myself. His advice, his notes, his jibes were all thoughtfully given. And I tried hard to meet them. It may be a little rougher final product than he would have liked, but I tried to take his advice seriously. I think the final product is better because of it.
Second thanks to Babe Hack for her advice and thoughts on video and sound. And for the word “Stroopwaffle” which I love.
And finally thank you to all the winemakers who ate out there making quality, innovative wine. And especially those who were patient enough to help it up with me and indulge me. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
WHY STROOPWAFFLE ?
When I first explained the cannonball run of wine I was about to make Babe Hack remarked 'Oh you’re going to go on one of those Amish things." She could not quite recall the name, and just inserted "Stroopwafel." And we laughed. We both knew immediately what she was trying to say. Too lazy to look up the right word at the time, we both just started referring to it as my Stroopwafel
The real word she was looking for was Rumspringa. Rumspringa is a rite of passage during adolescence, translated in English as "jumping or hopping around" used in some Amish communities. For Amish youth, the Rumspringa normally begins around the ages of 14–16 and ends when a youth chooses either to be baptized in the Amish church or to leave the community. Amish adolescents may engage in wild or rebellious behavior. resisting or defying parental norms. A view of rumspringa has emerged in popular culture as a time of divergence and rebellion. A vacation from the norms of life.
That was my trip was intended to be. I just thought Stroopwaffle (misspelled was funnier.