Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/1037369
{ SOMMjournal.com } 89 farming the vines develop a deep root system that exploits deeper levels of less-fertile soil, producing more interesting avors while adding minerality. "Number two, we rmly believe that the best wines can only be made from older vineyards. It's a cruel fact that with chemical farming you only get 20 to 22 years out of your vineyard—that's a very young age for a grape vine. Our oldest vineyard is 125 years old, and the average age for our Yountville Cabernet is 59. "Number three, there's an economic benet. When you use chemical farming, you get big benets right away because you are pushing your plants to produce a big crop the second year. It takes us four years to get the rst crop, because we are developing the entire plant—its root system and its trunk—for the rst three years. We're looking for the plant to be alive and producing for 50 or 80 years. If you look at the business plan in terms of 50 years, you are far ahead." According to Jeramaz, each of the estate's ve vine - yards requires individual attention due to differences in soil, aspect, and microclimate. "In cooler American Canyon and Carneros, the biggest problem is mildew," he says. "Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay are both sus- ceptible. There are also different types of soil—there's more clay in Carneros, for example—so you have to adjust your farming practices accordingly." Proper vine pruning has also become an obsession for Jeramaz. Several years ago, he contacted Italian pruning specialist Marco Simonit after seeing a video of him working in vineyards in Bordeaux. "I thought, if the French let an Italian prune their vineyards, he must be good," Jeramaz says jokingly. Simonit now consults annually on pruning in the Grgich Hills Estate vineyards, making sure that each producing vine shoot has direct access to the nutrients supplied by the roots and trunk. "Pruning is an art," Jeramaz says. "It's one of the best things we've done in many, many years." He notes that yields have almost doubled since Simonit's arrival, while quality is also up. Organic from the Ground Up "We don't make organic wine," says Grgich Hills Estate Winemaker Ivo Jeramaz, emphasizing the difference between organic farming and organic wine. He's quick to note the restrictive nature of the latter descriptor : "You're not allowed to add any sulfur dioxide, for example, which can compromise the wine's stability." Violet Grgich, Mike Grgich's daughter and the company's President, also explains that some consumers have a concep - tion that organic wines are of inferior quality. For these reasons, Grgich Hills sticks with long-proven organic farming, noting its organic vineyards on the back labels of its wines. The strategy pays off in the marketplace. "More and more sommeliers care," notes Jeramaz, "not because they are on the organic bandwagon, but because they perceive the avors to be more interesting." Grgich Hills Estate is a family winery in a very tangible sense. "We're successful because we're here, we're involved, we're passionate," Violet says. (The next generation—Jeramaz's children and her own—is already helping out in the winery.) She says the estate is functioning at an op - timal level of production, with no immediate plans to expand in terms of vineyards or varieties. "For some people, success means acquiring more and more, always growing. For us, success means doing what we do better and better every year," she says. As Mike Grgich approaches his 100th birthday in a few years, organic farming will con - tinue to be a top priority at Grgich Hills Estate. "For us what's foremost is quality," Violet says. "Organic farming is a means to that end." Grgich Hills Estate President Violet Grgich, the daughter of founder Miljenko "Mike" Grgich, in the cellar. The Grgich Hills Estate Cabernet comes from some of the oldest vines in Napa Valley. Grgich has long been known for its outstanding Chardonnay. Ivo Jeramaz assures that the Grgich estate vineyards are a polyculture, as in his native Croatia.