By Linda

June 21, 2008 7:58 AM | Link to this

Arthur - but, here we have a case where the “judges” are instrumental in shaping the entire wine industry in Ohio, based on their personal tastes. By eliminating the grapes that nature selected for our region - they couldn’t be more obvious.

By Arthur, winesooth.com

June 18, 2008 1:54 PM | Link to this

Linda, As Donald R Outterson points out: not all judges are equal. Judging and evaluating wines should be from the standpoint of understanding the wine’s component varieties in the context of their place of origin. Only then, can one decide if the wine is truly flawed. Unfortunately, not every judge/critic does that, opting for rating based on their personal preference of the wine.

By Linda

June 18, 2008 9:36 AM | Link to this

MEMORABLE is in the mouth of the “judges”, winesooth. We have a Niagara port (100% labrusca) which won a Taster’s Guild Gold right before the state’s certifying judges called it “nasty, oxidized and the wrong varietal”(?) What kind of language is that for a judge? Medals sell wine - our labrusca will be getting shipped to international competitions outside the state. A program that discriminates against native varietals needs to be re-evaluated. Linda Outterson, Woodstone Creek Winery & Distillery,Cincinnati

By Arthur, winesooth.com

June 17, 2008 11:14 PM | Link to this

From a quick read of the comments and original post (and from an outsider’s point of view) this program seems like an interesting idea. The question is: what is the agenda behind it? Is the purpose of the OQW program to push the advancement of vinifera varieties (at the cost of abandoning labrusca) with the hopes that these varieties make for more globally appealing wines? On one hand, I think a region’s native varieties should be protected and promoted. On the other hand, if these varieties do not make for memorable wines then it makes sense to turn to vinifera if one’s goal is to enter the global scene.

By Linda

June 17, 2008 8:10 AM | Link to this

As the person who designs the labels for our winery, I frequently see the belief systems of the consumer collide with the practical concerns of the winery and the legal restrictions imposed by the federal and state governments. “American” does not preclude an Ohio wine in the bottle. It is useful term for a small winery who can’t afford to meet the prejudices imposed by wine consumers unaware of the legal requirements of labeling or it’s expense. Very often, the language on a label is more representative of the federal official who “suggested” it - while making it clear it would not be approved otherwise. As for the certification program - It promotes vinifera over native labrusca varietals by making the sweeter varietals ineligible for the seal. We don’t see it as an assurance of Ohio wine in the bottle but a value judgement against our best sellers - the wines that actually pay the rent. We make a range of styles. The awful truth is our typical customer wants labrusca. That’s a market we can’t ignore. Woodstone uses tons of labrusca to make our brandy and are concerned this program will make those grapes harder to come by as new winemakers, striving to meet imposed standards of “quality”, plant only vinifera. At a conference last fall, many winemakers complained wines refused for the certification seal went on to win gold medals in other competitions. It was clear many feel the program will come to mean that wines without the quality seal will be judged inferior (as it does in Canada). What consumers do not realize is this is part of a competition with fees for analysis and does not accept all Ohio grown varietals. It already disadvantages the smallest wineries that have limited resources. Ohio wineries need support, not another obstacle.

By Donald R Outterson

June 17, 2008 12:27 AM | Link to this

I don’t take part in the Ohio wine certification program, because they don’t use certified judges.

By Nancy Bentley

June 16, 2008 9:34 PM | Link to this

My personal feeling is that this is a very Ohio-centric program; and I think Ohio wineries should be on the international stage in international competitions. It’s also somewhat time-consuming… if you get the approval, you need to open sealed cases, pull out 12 bottles and stick little stickers on them. And all of these competitions/evaluations cost extra money to have your wine evaluated for this program. For little wineries like us, there’s a limit to how much money we can spend on evaluations and competitions we can enter at $50-$100 per entry plus 4-6 bottles of wine plus shipping. It adds up. We probably will not participate. We’re more interested in placing our wines in competition in the world market. Perhaps it’s worked in Canada. Time will tell if it’s meaningful here in Ohio.

By RD

June 16, 2008 8:10 PM | Link to this

It is ok to use out of state grapes you just should not be eligible for a Ohio Quality Seal as Keith stated. Only those wines with Ohio Grapes should be allowed the seal.

By keith

June 16, 2008 6:40 PM | Link to this

If you look on an Ohio label it will say either some sort of appellation Like Ohio River Valley, Grand River Valley, etc. or it will say “Ohio —— wine” on it or a county designation. If it is not Ohio grown it may say “American” on it if the winery is honest and obeying Federal Law. The program is currently overseen by a panel selected and under the supervision of The OSU wine and enology department at the OARDC (Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center) in Wooster, Ohio. As for further comments I wish to keep them to myself at this time.

By Woody

June 16, 2008 5:25 PM | Link to this

The Ohio Grape Industries program oversees the program; it is an division of the Ohio Department of Agriculture. It IS modeled after current existing programs. One major problem that is NOT being addressed is the current shortage of Ohio grapes. With well over 100 wineries in Ohio, there is a supply problem. Until this is solved, you will continue to see winemaker using out-of-state grapes. We don’t like to do it, but we have no choice on certain varieties. -Woody, Old Firehouse Winery-

By RD

June 16, 2008 3:53 PM | Link to this

Well, I agree with you I would like to know which wines are made from Ohio Grapes as well. One major problem will be who will be policing agency for issueing the seals. An unbiased entity must oversee the program. I.E.Ohio State University Agriculture Department would be a good choice in my estimation. Grape Samples taken at Harvest could be matched through viticultures to prove the grapes are actually from where they say they are. The Ontario, Canada VQA program would be a great program for Ohio to model there program after.