Fast times at Slow Food Nation • by BY Glenn Bardgett
Posted On: 08/01/2008 E-mail This To A Friend!

The Slow Food movement, which began in Italy in 1989 as a countermeasure to the growing emphasis on fast food, encourages more attention to traditional products that are local, distinctive and often family owned – and that includes wine. So I was excited to learn that Slow Food USA planned to include a wine bar serving wine from all 50 states at its inaugural Slow Food Nation event in San Francisco late this month. At this writing, 30 states have committed wines.

I heard about the event – and the wine bar – when I got a call early this year from Rebecca Marsh, founder and co-leader of the St. Louis Slow Food convivium, who asked me to assist in obtaining wine for the event. I was thrilled at the thought of introducing Missouri wines to such a large group of open-minded foodies from around the world.

So which wines to choose? To showcase the uniqueness of Missouri wines, I thought about the styles that would have the most international appeal. Although wines made from Catawba and Concord grapes may have won awards at international competitions in the 19th century, my thought was to exhibit the wines that truly complement food.

Obviously, Norton came to mind first. Our official state grape has a national reputation but is still largely unfamiliar to even the foodiest of foodies. I called Patty Held-Uthlaut at her family’s Stone Hill Winery in Hermann, and she was very happy to send a case of her great red to San Francisco. Although many of our wineries produce a Norton (aka Cynthiana), Stone Hill’s winemaker, Dave Johnson, has been working the same vineyards since he came to Hermann 30 years ago.

I also wanted to showcase a Chardonel, which will seem familiar to most Slow Food Nation attendees, but with a Missouri twist. The first one to come to mind was Chaumette Vineyards’ in Ste. Genevieve. Many wineries produce Chardonel, but Hank Johnson has been planting, growing and generally beating the drum for this white grape for many years. The newly released, unoaked 2007 was very fresh and crisp when I tasted it at the Saucy Soirée, which featured samples from some of the winners of Sauce’s Readers’ Choice (Chaumette was voted one of the favorite wineries). Many European attendees will probably think of Loire Valley or possibly even Alsatian dry whites.

Showing Missouri wines would not be complete without something on the sweeter end, so my logical choice was Vignoles. There is no other white grape that makes a more consistently high-quality sweet wine, thanks to its beautiful acidity, which perfectly balances the sugars. The Adam Puchta Vignoles was my choice for two reasons. First, it is one of our most consistent and award-winning sweet wines. Secondly, I thought that Slow Food Nation attendees might be interested in this winery, the longest continuously family-owned and -operated winery in the United States, having been established in 1855. The style is also very reminiscent of the late-harvested whites of Germany.

I have been a fan of sparkling wines as long as I can remember, so I wanted to bring a Missouri sparkling to San Francisco. While I no longer drain untold bottles of cheap pink champagne and Cold Duck as I did during my formative years (hey, I admit it), I do remain dedicated to the position that any day is enough of an occasion to pop open some bubbly. On a hot summer Sunday in June, I was privileged to attend Lambstravaganza, Slow Food St. Louis’ multicourse lamb feast at a farm near New Florence. Cory Bomgaars, winemaker at Les Bourgeois Winery in Rocheport, was pouring his wines at the meal; at the first sip of his sparkling Brut, I knew that I had my bubbles for San Francisco. When I asked him to support the Slow Food wine bar, he quickly responded, “How much do you need and where do I send it?”

Up to 50,000 are expected to attend this first major international Slow Food event in the United States, and I am so pleased and proud that they’ll be drinking Missouri’s distinctive wines.

Certified sommelier Glenn Bardgett has overseen Annie Gunn’s award-winning wine list for the last seven years.

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