Rows
of corn may be a familiar sight in rural illinois, but grapevines
really get the juices flowing for one family about 90 minutes southwest
of Chicago. The five-year-old Faltz family vineyard covers 26 acres
of land overlooking the Fox River.
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the Video: Wine Tasting
Right now 13 grape varieties are grown there. They finished up
the harvest in September. A little earlier then usual and that's
thanks to the hot dry summer. That these grapes loved.
"That's the kinds of summers that California and other grape growing
regions typically have. We typically don't, and it wasn't exceptional
here," said Brian Faltz, Vineyard Manager.
In the years before prohibition, vineyards were actually quite
common in Illinois. While California now produces more than 90 percent
of domestic wine, the Illinois industry has resurrected thanks to
a relatively small, but dedicated group of grape growers and winemakers.
"In Illinois we're a family and the Midwest the whole wine region,
everything. We're a family, we work together, we learn from each
other. We do testing out here in our vineyard nor do we make more
Illinois winery more successful and they do the same," said Kori
Faltz, Winery Retail Manager And Event Coordinator.
Growing pure vinifera grapes -- the best-known varieties
such as pinot noir and chardonnay -- is difficult in this region
with such harsh winters.
"We have a lot of high breads which are basically those same varieties,
like Pinot noir and chardonnay that are actually crossed blended
with cold hardy varieties like. For instance Chardonel has a cross
blend between Chardonnay and Savout. Which qualifies it as a French
high bread, but lets us be able to grow it with our cold winters?"
said Faltz.
Once the grapes are harvested, they're transported in refrigerated
trucks -- 22 miles east to the Fox Valley Winery in Oswego.
The winery includes a tasting room for the public and the family
has opened a second room in the nearby town of Sandwich. All of
this started when real estate developer Dick Faltz was inspired
on a vacation to German wine country.
"Our first impressions were that it was going to be very easy
and that it was just a nice little family hobby to get into. As
we really got into it, we found out that it was a lot of hard work
a lot of family involvement. Think god that we have a large family.
So that provided a lot of labor for the initial vineyard, getting
it started," said Dick Faltz, winery president.
As evidenced by the large-scale winemaking equipment, this sophisticated
family business is no "mom-and-pop operation."
"It's fragmented musk that's in this tank. Cabernet Franc, which
is the skins the seeds all the solids from the juice, but its finished
fragmenting know. So it has alcohol, and what it's going to be then.
Is that it's going to run out into the snider screw pump, out and
through into the press and what the press does then. Basically is
just a sieve. Strains out all the skins, the seeds, any stems that
might have been left over, after the stemming. And then what happens
is that the wine will actually drain out through the slots into
the pan. Then get pumped back into the holding tank, next wards,"
said Mike Faltz, winemaker.
Once the wine is pressed fragmented and aged, Fox Valley Winery
fills over 180,000 bottles a year.
For more information:
Fox Valley Winery
5600 West Route 34
Oswego, IL 60543
(630) 554-0404
www.foxvalleywinery.com
