DIRECTIONS 1. Attach the key ring to the screw eye first. 2. Dab the screw eye in glue (can skip this step, but after time cork may come unscrewed). 3. Twist the screw eye into the top center of the cork. Corks are pretty stable so don’t worry about using a little muscle to screw it in tightly. 4. Voila! You’re done! Bonus: cork floats! Saturdays in April All Locations Join us throughout April as we celebrate Michigan Wine month by showcasing our popular varietal-Riesling. Taste through our collection as we pair each with small bites. $10/per person. $8/Wine Club. April 18 Paw Paw Each course is paired perfectly with one of our newest spring releases. Winemaker Nancie Oxley works together with the chefs of Millennium Restaurant Group to create this unforgettable event. RSVP required. Limited availability. April 25 Frankenmuth A new twist on the Pick-Up party exclusively for members and guests. Learn how different wines are created during this informational walk-a-bout. $5 per person. RSVP required. May 9 Frankenmuth Join us for a training of the senses. An afternoon that will redefine the terms aroma, taste, and flavor. $25/per person. $20/Wine Club. RSVP required. Limited availability. May 15, 16, 17 All Locations Wine Club members receive 25% off mix & match cases at all locations and on all shipping orders. A perfect time to stock up for the summer. May 30 Paw Paw An event for all bold red wine lovers. Come barrel taste, while learning about the “cap drain” process. Be among the first to taste these special wines right out of the barrel, while enjoying cheeses and gourmet small bites in the cellar. $30/per person. $25/Wine Club. RSVP required. Limited availability. June 13 Mt. Road Estate Vineyard Join us at our Mountain Road Estate Vineyard to learn about the vines and sample the wines, while enjoying small bites and a breathtaking view! $35/per person. $30/Wine Club. RSVP required. Limited availability. Please Note: This is only a taste of what’s going on. Give us a call, we would love to send you a list of upcoming events at your favorite location. FOR INFORMATION & RESERVATIONS 800.732.6002 EXT.785 STJULIAN.COM GOVERNOR RICK SNYDER HAS DECLARED APRIL “MICHIGAN WINE MONTH.” SO GRAB A GLASS, POP OPEN YOUR WINE CLUB BOTTLES, & JOIN US IN CELEBRATING! TO ADD TO THE CELEBRATION, WE HAVE PROVIDED YOU WITH EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO CREATE A ST. JULIAN CORK KEY CHAIN TO SHOW OFF YOUR LOVE OF MICHIGAN WINE. CHEERS! We are excited to introduce two new flavors of Cider- Gunga-Din Cherry & Gunga-Din Cinnamon. Both are currently available at all of our tasting rooms & arriving at local retailers daily. As always, our cider is made from 100% Michigan grown apples and is Gluten Free. See which flavor you prefer today!
Transcript
DIRECTIONS 1. Attach the key ring to the screw eye first. 2. Dab the screw eye in glue (can skip this step,
but after time cork may come unscrewed). 3. Twist the screw eye into the top center of the
cork. Corks are pretty stable so don’t worry about using a little muscle to screw it in tightly.
4. Voila! You’re done! Bonus: cork floats!
Saturdays in April All Locations Join us throughout April as we celebrate Michigan Wine
month by showcasing our popular varietal-Riesling. Taste
through our collection as we pair each with small bites.
$10/per person. $8/Wine Club.
April 18 Paw Paw Each course is paired perfectly with one of our newest spring
releases. Winemaker Nancie Oxley works together with the
chefs of Millennium Restaurant Group to create this
June 13 Mt. Road Estate Vineyard Join us at our Mountain Road Estate Vineyard to learn about
the vines and sample the wines, while enjoying small bites and
a breathtaking view! $35/per person. $30/Wine Club. RSVP
required. Limited availability.
Please Note: This is only a taste of what’s going on.
Give us a call, we would love to send you a list of
upcoming events at your favorite location.
F O R I N F O R M A T I O N & R E S E R V A T I O N S
8 0 0 . 7 3 2 . 6 0 0 2 E X T . 7 8 5 S T J U L I A N . C O M
GOVERNOR RICK SNYDER HAS DECLARED APRIL “MICHIGAN WINE MONTH.” SO GRAB A GLASS, POP OPEN YOUR WINE CLUB BOTTLES, & JOIN US IN CELEBRATING! TO ADD TO THE CELEBRATION, WE HAVE PROVIDED YOU WITH EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO CREATE A ST. JULIAN CORK KEY CHAIN TO SHOW OFF YOUR LOVE OF MICHIGAN WINE. CHEERS!
We are excited to introduce two new
flavors of Cider- Gunga-Din Cherry &
Gunga-Din Cinnamon. Both are currently
available at all of our tasting rooms &
arriving at local retailers daily.
As always, our cider is made from 100%
Michigan grown apples and is Gluten Free.
See which flavor you prefer today!
POLAR VORTEX Nancie Oxley, Winemaker
When the tasting notes say “flavors of mango,” does that mean that you really put
mango in the wine?
- Mara Matison
Kalamazoo, MI
As a lover of wine, you have no doubt read many
wine tasting descriptions like: aromas of orange
blossoms and apricots with tropical flavors of
mango and lemon zest. People often wonder if
winemakers are actually blending mango into the
wine. As delicious as this might be, the answer is
no. With exception of our fruit wines like Cherry,
Peach, Blackberry and Blueberry, our wines are
made exclusively from locally grown grapes. A
wine grape is a unique fruit in that it contains
natural chemical compounds that are also found in
other fruits and vegetables. Fermentation, a simple
chemical reaction, releases these compounds, and
so we smell and taste these same aromas and
flavors in the finished wine. For example, the
strong black pepper aroma and flavor of our Syrah
comes from a compound called, rotundone, the
same compound that gives black pepper its spicy
kick. And the tangy apple flavor found in our
Chardonnay comes primarily from malic acid, the
tart acid found in apples. Sauvignon blanc has a
molecular compound called pyrazine that creates
the distinct grassy flavor. Organic compounds
called esters, come from the acids in the grapes and
give apple, strawberry, raspberry, banana and floral
flavors to many wines. It’s these acids that create
the crisp mineral characteristics in our Rieslings.
Wines like Late Harvest Riesling and Late Harvest
Vidal blanc actually developed a mold called
Botrytis, or Nobel Rot, from hanging on the vines
longer. This is a wonderful thing because it adds a
richness and honeyed flavor to the wine. And of
course, aging wines in oak creates very distinct
flavors, depending on the barrel age, oak type and
toast level. Oak can impart clove, nutmeg,
cinnamon, caramel, chocolate, coffee and the
vanilla flavors you are tasting. All this combined is
what makes my job so exciting and why each time
you open a bottle of wine, it’s an adventure!
Send your questions to Nancie at [email protected]. If your question is used, we will send you a jar of our famous Apple Riesling Salsa
W
blistering -20 degrees. Although we did lose many grapes, the ones that survived
made outstanding wines. And what better way to celebrate a harsh winter than to
name our new super sweet wine after it! Vidal grapes were the perfect varietal for
making this dessert style wine. With the cooler days of the 2014 harvest, these thick
skinned grapes hung in the vineyard until they froze on the vine. The first pressing
of the frozen Vidal grapes produced our St. Julian Ice Wine. As the grapes thawed
slightly, we pressed again and voila… more super sweet, high acid juice was
produced that was jam packed with flavor. A blend of these two pressings created
the new Polar Vortex!
hen Mother Nature brings upon a deep
freeze in winter, wineries always fear the worst.
Wine quantity is drastically reduced due to
many of the vines not being able to survive the
harsh cold conditions. As many of you may
recall, in 2014 Mother Nature stuck Michigan
with a “Polar Vortex.” This deep freeze brought
actual temperatures around a
Grape: Vidal blanc is a French American hybrid. It’s a hardy variety that
produces large clusters of straw-colored berries with tough skins that resist
cracking through successive frosts, thaws and freezing. They hang tenaciously
onto the vine well into the winter.
Vineyard Management: Dan Nitz manages a crop of clean, ripe grapes that
are ideal to save for ice wine. The grapes hang on the vine in the Tierre Alto
Vineyard for several months past normal harvest and endure several cycles of
frosts and Indian summer. These cycles bring out the honey and raisin flavors that
add complexity in the wine.
Harvest: Picking began at 2am on November 18th with a temperature of 14°F.
Picking lasted approximately 7 hours, finishing up at 9am. Usually ice wine
harvest takes place in December or January, but this day in November was ideal
for harvest due to the low temperatures.
Pressing: Dan Nitz loaded the frozen grapes into his basket press, which
crushes them to yield a trickle of juice high in sugar content. At the start of
pressing, the sweetness of the grapes is about 42° brix. He continued pressing
until it declined to about 30° brix, pressing for several hours.
Fermentation: We fermented this wine with CEG (Epernay II) yeast at our
usual 50°F to preserve the most delicate flavors. The finished wine exhibits a
perfect balance of lively citrus notes, sweetness and acidity that finishes out with a
lovely round mouthfeel.
MEET OUR GROWER:
WHAT WE ARE DRINKING IN
How did you get into the growing business? I started farming my grandfather’s place when I was still in high school
and it just went on from there. In 1967, I bought my own 40 acre farm
and I’ve just expanded on it from there a little at a time. Now I have a
total of 1,000 acres and 600 are grapes comprised of over 16 varieties.
When did you first start growing for St. Julian? In 1970, I started planting wine grapes and I would take them to St.
Julian. The first variety was Auroras, a white French American hybrid
that made a nice sparkling wine. And of course sweet wines were
really popular back then and I sold a lot of Concord and Delaware
grapes for those. Dave (St. Julian President) wanted to get into more
premium wines and encouraged me to plant French hybrids and
eventually European Vinifera. Up until then, most local growers only
had Native American varieties. Dave needed to get growers to plant
these more premium vines and he had a clever idea. The winery would
buy plants for the growers and then recoup the cost of the plants once
the grower got them into production. It was a great incentive to plant
something that was a little risky. It’s very costly to plant a vineyard
and that was a way to reduce the burden a little on the growers-
something St. Julian still does today.
What grape varieties do you grow? I have the Native American varieties of Niagara, Concord, Delaware
and Catawba. Also the French American hybrids Chancellor noir,
Foch, De Chaunac, Sevyal blanc, Vignoles, Frontenac, Frontenac gris,
Valvin Muscat, La Cresent and Traminette. The European Vinifera
varieties we have are Chardonnay and Grűner Veltliner.
What is the most challenging varietal to grow? Definitely the European Vinifiera like Pinot gris and Chardonnay.
They are not very winter hardy and last year we lost all of our
Chardonnay. We still don’t know how they fared this winter.
What is your favorite to grow? Chancellor noir. It grows really well
here and it makes a great red wine.
It’s hardy and we control it by hand
cluster thinning to balance the crop
load. It’s a great producer year after
year because it can withstand the
winter. It makes a nice dry red wine
that is very fruit forward and people
love it. In the whites, I like the
Seyval. It has to be hand cluster
thinned, but it’s also winter hardy
and not prone to disease. As a
grower you have to be willing to
make adjustments. For example, we
recently pulled our Pinot gris from
one site because it wasn’t doing well,
and planted Grűner Veltliner in a
better location with higher elevation.
Great wine begins in the vineyard and at St. Julian we pride ourselves as being a
“Pure Michigan” Winery. The weather in the Great Lakes state is always
keeping us on our toes, but that is what makes our wine and us as a winery so
unique. In being Pure Michigan, we have a very close relationship with all of
our growers. Allow us now to introduce you to Ed Oxley. Ed, along with two of
his sons, Rick and Chris, has been growing grapes for St. Julian on their farm in
Lawton since the 1970s. As one of St. Julian’s largest growers, Ed is also a very
close personal friend with Winery President David Braganini and is the Father-
in-Law to Winemaker Nancie Oxley. A tradition at the Oxley Farm is “Thirsty
Thursday;” a monthly gathering of family and friends celebrating their love of
wine. It was on one of these Thursdays that we learned a little more about Ed.
Read about a wine you didn’t receive?
As a Wine Club member any wine, in any
shipment is available to you at a discounted rate.
SALMON CAKES DIRECTIONS 1. Make Cilantro Ginger Aioli. In blender or
food processor, whirl mayo, cilantro, vinegar, soy sauce, ginger, mustard, and garlic until well blended. Refrigerate until needed.
2. In a food processor, working in batches, pulse salmon just until finely chopped. Scrape into a bowl.
3. Add cornmeal, shallots, mayo, soy sauce, mustard, garlic, ginger, and five spice to salmon. Gently shape mixture into 10 equal patties about 3 inches wide and 3/4 inch thick; set slightly apart on a sheet of waxed paper or foil.
4. Pour 1 tablespoon oil into a 10- to 12-inch nonstick frying pan over med-high heat; when hot, add half the cakes and cook, turning once, until browned on both sides and opaque but still moist-looking in the center (cut to test), 6 to 8 minutes total. As cakes are cooked, transfer to an ovenproof platter and keep warm in a 200° oven. Add remaining tablespoon oil to pan and cook remaining cakes. Serve with Cilantro ginger Aioli.
WINE PAIRING SERIOUS ROSE
This rose’ is crisp and bright with a touch of sweetness allowing it to pair nicely with the salmon cakes’ spicy flavors.
POLAR VORTEX
Opposites do attract with this pairing. The wine has an intense sweetness and fruit flavor that compliments the spices in this dish perfectly.
WINE TERMS: ROSÉ: a type of wine that incorporates some of
the color from red grape skins, but not enough
to qualify it as a red wine.
SAIGNÉE: pronounced “sahn yay” is the
removal of grape juice from the “must” before
primary fermentation to increase a wine’s skin
to juice ratio.
MUST: unfermented grape juice, including the
seeds, skins and stalks
PHENOLIC: compounds found in the seeds,
skins and stalks of grapes that contribute vital
characteristics to the color, texture and flavor of
wine.
HYBRID VARIETALS: grape varietals that are
the product of crossing two species together in
order to get the benefits from both sides.
SERIOUS: Intense, hardcore, involving or
deserving a lot of thought, attention and energy.
An incredible St. Julian rosé.
Thirteen years ago when I started at St. Julian, we produced a delicious dry wine called
Serious Rosé of Cabernet franc. I remember it was one of the first wines I drank with my
husband and in-laws. Last fall, while Dave and I were in the vineyard checking grapes,
we were talking about how much we loved this wine. That day sparked the decision to
bring back this delicious wine, perfect for warmer weather.
A Rosé wine is a wine made with red grapes but that has a much lighter, pinkish color due
to the way it is made. In the making of the Braganini Reserve Serious Rosé, we used the
traditional saignée method or “bleeding off” method, which produces the most fruity and
fresh rosés. The juice is obtained by stacking up the red grapes in a tank and allowing the
weight of the grapes to break open the berries. We “bleed off” some of this juice from the
must. Red wine gets much of its color, flavor and texture from contact with the grape
skins and by reducing the juice to skin ratio, we are able to intensify the phenolics, color
and flavors of the red wines. Rosés are made from the bled off juice, or saignée. This
juice only comes into contact with the grape skins for a short amount of time, which
results in a light pink color. Traditionally, this juice is then fermented and can either be
blended into other wines, or used alone to create rosés.
SERIOUS ROSÉ Nancie Oxley, Winemaker
The aromas and flavor of rosés are primarily influenced by the particular grape varieties
used. For the 2014 Braganini Serious Rose’, we took the saignée from our Pinot noir,
Chancellor noir and Chambourcin varietals to create this delicious, dry blend.
