The American Wine Professional

When I was a young, novice wine drinker, the idea of a book devoted to American wine would have struck many people as preposterous. A pamphlet maybe, but not a book. There was wine in Northern California (that is St. Supery fantastic Napa Valley Dollarhide Ranch in the header image above), there was a little wine made in Ohio and a few people were talking about the possibility of wine growing in Oregon and Washington state. Wine in the United States was a concept greeted with bemused skepticism by European visitors and by many Americans as well. Nearly 50 years later, it’s a very different situation.

An illustrious, if recent, history

As hard as it is to believe now, when Robert Mondavi opened his eponymous winery in Oakville in 1966 it was the first new winery in the Napa Valley since the end of Prohibition more than 30 years before. There was a wave of exhilaration in Napa at the time, and I well remember one winemaker telling me on my first visit there in the early 1970s that Napa “is the future – we can grow anything here!” Since that time we’ve gone through many phases – not only the ascent of Napa Valley (and their realization that they cannot in fact “grow everything,” but they can do very well with a few things like cabernet sauvignon), but the discovery in Oregon that they have thrilling potential with pinot noir, and the realization in New York’s Finger Lakes region that they can succeed with red wines as well as white wines. And it would make Thomas Jefferson proud to learn that several properties are making great wine in the great state of Virginia.

Wine is now being commercially produced in every state in the Continental United States, and with wonderful examples coming from New Mexico, Texas and Arizona, intriguing wines from Ohio and so much more, this is a great time to offer a two-day course on the wines of the U.S., and thus, Fine Vintage and I are very excited to offer the American Wine Professional.

We certify your expertise

Over two days, we’ll survey the various producing areas of California, and dig into the newest trends in Oregon and Washington. We will spend a good amount of time tasting our way through New York and Virginia, and an afternoon on wines of the Southwest and much more. I can assure you we have great wines from every corner of the U.S., and this is a great time to discover them. Over the two days of the course, we explore various laws and regulations affecting wine availability, we look at the distribution system (and explain why it can be so hard to get what you want where you want it) and of course we taste. We will taste 32 wines showcasing the styles and approaches in all the major wine growing regions and share all the excitement of today’s diverse American wine scene.

Dates and locations:

Atlanta - August 20 & 21, 2022

I’ll be offering the American Wine Professional course in Atlanta at The Whitley in Buckhead the weekend of November 13 & 14, 2021 with the course running from 9:30am to 5:00pm each day. Make sure to register early to be assured of having a place in this exciting course - class size may be reduced to adhere to social distancing guidelines, so be sure to get your place locked in now. Click the button below to go to the registration page on the Fine Vintage website.

Miami - August 27 & 28, 2022

We’ll have our survey of American wines available in Miami over the weekend of August 27 & 28, 2022. I have some great wines in store for you!!