Give Peace (Water Winery) A Chance

04 Sunday Oct 2015

Posted by Howard in Indiana, Newspaper Column 2015

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Carmel, IN., Peace Water Winery, Scott Burton

All 80 Indiana wineries offer something a bit different. Sometimes that’s good different and sometimes not. Many have a unique niche’ in the Indiana wine industry.

Peace Water Winery, Carmel, is one of the state’s newest and probably most unique wine operations.

Owner Scott Burton owns a winery in Northern California. He employs a California winemaker. His wines aren’t sold there. The Peace Water Winery tasting room is in downtown Carmel, Indiana.

“Indiana has many wineries,” Burton said. “But several (of those wineries) source fruit and juice from outside of Indiana to supplement grapes grown in state. We grow all our grapes from the vines and do everything in Napa. The entire process from vine to bottle occurs in California but we sell all of our wine here in Carmel; therefore, making us the only locally-owned California winery in Indiana.”

Scott Burton

The concept is certainly unique but it doesn’t stop there.

Burton, a very successful corporate lawyer and entrepreneur, opened the winery in the fall of 2014 as a family business and as a philanthropic endeavor. He designates 50 percent of his winery’s profit to seven different local charities. His seven children picked the charities which would benefit from wine sales.

The unique twist is when a consumer buys a bottle of Peace Water wine at the tasting room they are given a ticket. They drop the ticket in a basket representing one of the seven charities of their choice. Burton uses the customer picks to determine the percentage of profit each charity receives.

“It’s an interactive experience,” Burton explained. “A lot of businesses have a charitable aspect. Here, you have to physically go make your donation instead of participating in a mindless transaction where you have no concept of who you’re helping. It resonates a lot better when you make that decision yourself. Hopefully, it creates a more lasting impression.”

Buy a bottle then select a charity.

The business has been a success in its first year. Burton said wine insiders said he’d be successful if he could sign up 100 wine club members in his first year. In late August, his wine club membership was more than 200. “Local restaurants have been talking to us about our wines so we’ll be on menus soon. That’s the next phase of our growth.”

His urban-feel tasting room was filled on a late August Thursday evening. The newly opened patio was also busy. His wines have done well already in the wine competition business. The high-end Cabernet and Sauvignon Blanc both scored well at the World Wine Tasting Championships in Chicago.

The Cabernet Sauvignon “Passion” has been his biggest seller. The $32 bottle is a good representation of California wine. The wines are definitely made in a consumer-friendly, fruit-forward style. The winery tasting notes suggested a lusty red with notes of blackberry and plum – right on target.

Most of the Peace Water wines range from $25-$48. The white, Rose’ and two reds tasted during my visit were all well-made wines. I particularly enjoyed the reds.

There is one indulgence and that’s “Nirvana” – a Howell Mountain, Napa Valley Cabernet which sells for $120. Howell Mountain fruit is one of the most sought-after regions in all of Napa.

Peace Water Winery, 37 W. Main St., Carmel. www.peacewaterwinery.com

Wine Glass Makes a Difference

25 Monday Nov 2013

Posted by Howard in Food & Travel, Gizmos & Wine Gadgets

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Carmel, Riedel wine glasses, Vine and Table, wine tasting

A tasting event at Vine & Table, Carmel, was a near sell-out event!

CARMEL, IN. – Anyone serious about wine has probably learned the size of the glass can have an impact on the taste of the wine. You’ve probably seen all those different size and shaped Riedel crystal wine glasses in shops or advertisements and thought it was all silly.

It’s pretty easy to be skeptical when checking the prices on Riedel crystal. Still, there really isn’t anyone in the world doing what they do. Riedel has been creating grape varietal specific glasses for nearly 50 years.

Members of the Austrian Riedel family, and their sales staff, travel the country constantly putting on tasting seminars to sell their product. A recent event at Indianapolis’ Vine and Table Market provided convincing evidence the glass makes a bigger difference than most novice wine drinkers might think.

The seminar included three glasses made specifically for Oregon Pinot Noir, Syrah, and California Cabernet. The more than 40 participants poured each varietal into all three glasses then were led through a tasting. The difference on the nose and palate was striking.

Julio Ruiz, Riedel

“No one else out there does what we do which is create a glass specifically for a grape,” said Julio Ruiz, a Regional Sales Manager for Riedel. “Through workshops, more or less like the consumer experience of a tasting like this one tonight, we create a new glass.

“We actually go to a region, for example Mendoza (Argentina) which is traditionally a Malbec region, and with the experts and the winemakers we sit them down and do what we did tonight. We throw 20 different glasses in front of them and eliminate one glass at a time until there is one remaining glass. Everybody has to agree upon one glass and then that is the perfect Riedel crystal glass for Malbec.”

That example was timely because one of Riedel’s latest creations is a Malbec glass created in a partnership with the Argentinian label Graffina.

Riedel is not the only company in the world making different sized glasses, by any means. But they take it to levels far beyond anyone else in the business. The company history is fascinating with the birth of Johann Christoph Riedel in 1678 and the family’s start with luxury glass goods. Maximilian Riedel is the 11^th generation to head the company business in Kufstein, Austria.

An Oregon Pinot, Syrah, and Cabernet glass.

Riedel crystal makes an outstanding wedding gift, holiday gift, or a special treat for your wine cabinet. Let’s be honest here – it’s not cheap. Most Riedel glasses start with the factory made crystal from Germany which runs in the $20-$30 a glass range. The hand-blown wine glasses from the historic Austrian plant produces stunning stemware that costs up to $159 a glass.

No one is going to rush out and purchases pairs of the 30-40 different wine glasses. Ruiz offered some advice for getting started.

“Depending on the grape you drink the most, that is the glass I would recommend,” he said. “For example, you drink Cabernet or Pinot Noir buy a Cab or Pinot glass. Don’t forget your spouse, boyfriend or girlfriend or whatever but that’s where you start. Then as your palate progresses, you move on to the next one.”

Howard’s Pick: I’ve never recommended anyone go buy Riedel crystal and that’s not the point of this column. I think a nice smaller glass for whites and big-bowled glass for reds is a good place to start for most wine drinkers. For those more serious about their wine, the crystal wine glasses are worth the investment.