Washington State winemaker Owen Roe often thinks outside the box. Over the years I have enjoyed many Owen Roe wines. And, the grape composition is not always obvious from the flavor profile. You need to read the back label.
That brings us to Owen Roe’s Abbot’s Table. I spotted this unique wine (there are just 3,700 cases produced) while surveying the always interesting collection at Accent on Wine in Summerville. The blend was intriguing…Sangiovese (40%), Zinfandel (34%), as well as some Malbec and 12% Blaufrankisch(!!!).
I assumed that this was a field blend until I noted the Blaufrankisch. This is a unique grape that is usually linked to Eastern Austria. I was unclear how the Blaufrankisch ended up as a part of the blend. But, interestingly, you can find a few acres of the grape growing in Eastern Washington (Columbia Valley AVA). The creative genius (and creative palate of the Owen Roe team) had discovered the grapes in near proximity to each other and simply blended them. And, indeed, it is marketed by Owen Roe as a field blend (more on field blends later in this post).
First, some background on Owen Roe and Abbot’s Table.
The winery is named in honor of Owen Roe O’Neill, a 17th century Irish Patriot. Jerry Owen, who manages the vineyards, and David O’Reilly, the winemaker/owner (with wife Angelica), suggest that O’Neill’s dedication to the highest principles of political equality and freedom, established the model that they follow with a motto of “only the best is good enough”.
Owen Roe sources the grapes for its total production from both Oregon and Washington State (Willamette, Mid-Columbia, Yakima, and Walla Walla). The winery has long term vineyard contracts in all of those locations “with strict controls on yields and vine development”. Pesticides and herbicides are not utilized.
In the winery they allow “only minimal handling, racking by gravity, and excellent cooperage”.
The Abbott’s Table is dark with a dense ‘mouthfeel’. There is excellent balance that offers dark fruit elements on the nose and through the palate. The palate also offers a hint of tobacco and earth that extends through a medium finish. This is an excellent wine for virtually any roasted meat meal.
Now for a short discussion regarding field blends.
In the viticulture world before engineered wines, grapes grew in the field simply where they would without regard to variety, and winemakers worked with whatever grapes (often a few white grapes with the reds) grew there regardless of those varieties. There was an assumption that if grapes grow together they are likely to agree with each other in the bottle. Thus…the term ‘field blend’. These “are single-vineyard wines whose grapes are grown, harvested, and vinified together-the blending is done in the vineyard, not in the winery”. The growers and the winemakers must collaborate on the most tricky element of the process. What is the perfect day to pick multiple varieties that are likely ripen at different intervals?
Any differences in the flavor profile of the wine vary by the percentage of each varietal the ‘blend’ might contain. With many field blends the winemakers are unable to identify all the varietals in the blend. Sean Thackrey admits that he can “only identify about 2/3 of the grapes in Orion, his flagship wine”.
Most field blends are reds. There are some white field blends, but winemakers suggest that white varietals do not produce sufficient grapes from old vines, and that white varietals, according to Mike Officer of Carlisle Wine, “have a greater susceptibility to disease”.
Joel Peterson, the founder and for the past four decades, the winemaker of Ravenswood in Sonoma, suggests that throughout history many European winemakers produced field blends (some still do). And, awareness of field blends influenced the work of the ‘father’ of Northern California wine and the founder of Buena Vista Winery, Hungarian count Agoston Haraszthy. He toured Europe in 1861 (as the American Civil War raged in the East) collecting and eventually transporting more than 100,000 vine cuttings to the California. The cuttings, from multiple varietals, were simply planted, and they made wine.
Unfortunately, many of the vines and their cuttings offspring that survived the Haraszthy efforts, were affected by the phylloxera louse during the 1880s. When replanted, it was decided to organize vineyards by varietal. Zinfandel was dominate in those late 19th century vineyards although other traditional blending varieties (such as Petite Sirah, Carignane, and Alicante Bouchet) were planted in smaller percentages.
The American palate, however, likes consistency, and field blends do not generally offer consistency. The flavor package of each variety will vary widely due to the unique climate elements of a specific vintage, and the subsequent joint fermentation in a single tank guarantees each vintage is unique. And, of course, profits come into play. Labels identified with a specific varietal generally have a higher price point. Some Carlisle and Ravenswood wines, which are produced as field blends, are generally labeled as Zinfandel because their blend is 75% or more Zinfandel.
There are some excellent field blends available. Ridge Geyserville (particular the 2014) is produced from vines that are nearly 130 years old, and Thackery’s Orion has grapes sourced from 111-year-old vines. California producer, Fog Mountain (available at Total Wines) produces a wine labeled as a ‘Field Blend’ and sells for under $15.
There are some ‘unlikely mixes’…like The Prisoner (blended from Zinfandel and Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Petite Sirah, and Charbono). Less expensive Menage a Trois and Apothic are also unique combinations of varieties. However, these wines are blended from varietals vinified separately and then blended to assure consistent flavor package.
The Owen Roe is according to the winemaker, “a true field blend, its composition varies from year to year. Again, the 2016 combines Zinfandel, Sangiovese, Malbec, and Blaufrankisch. Regardless of the vintage and the composition, the wine is always rich, warm, silky, smooth, and flavorful.”
Available at some Total Wines (not Charleston), and at Accent on Wine. The wine is generally priced at around $25.