Curious about how all that wine joy made it to that one little glass? The opportunity to learn about the journey from grape to glass will take place on Saturday, August 27, 11:00am to 3:00pm, at the Lawrence Dunham Vineyards in Pearce, Arizona, just south of Willcox.

To help them celebrate this year’s harvest and learn more about the wine grape-growing and winemaking process, sign up to attend the second annual Grape to Glass Symposium held at the winery. The event is limited to 80 participants who will tour the vineyard and winery with the winemaker and enjoy a gourmet lunch paired with Lawrence Dunham Vineyards’ wines. Lunch features locally-grown cheeses and produce as well as mesquite grilled flat iron steaks paired with Petite Sirah, grilled salmon and shrimp perfectly paired with Sky Island Grenache, and a variety of salads and desserts.

Unique to this event is that the attendees participate in the state’s largest tasting panel. The panel input provides the winemaker valuable feedback on the upcoming 2010 blending process. Wines are evaluated throughout the maturing process typically only by the winemaker or trusted wine enthusiasts. The Symposium allows participants to taste and evaluate several different blends compiled by the winemaker directly from the barrel.

Lawrence Dunham Vineyards creates hand-crafted Rhone-varietal wines that reflect its unique Southeastern Arizona environment. The 5000’ elevation provides warm days, cool nights, mountain breezes, and four-season climate essential for quality wine production. The transformation that wine grapes go through as they journey from the vineyard to the bottle centers around the gentle handling of the grapes through the winemaking process.

“We process small batches and do not fine or filter our wines which we believe creates an extraordinary mouth-feel and well-balanced taste,” said Curt Dunham owner/winemaker. “The harvest that began this month is a critical point in the journey from grape to glass as it culminates the growing season and begins the transition to the winemaking process,” Dunham said.

“Harvest has begun a little earlier this year and the timing of the Symposium could provide an added experience for participants. The Viognier grapes have been harvested and we are hoping for a bit more hang time in the vineyard for the Grenache, Syrah, and Petite Sirah. However, it has been warm and they are ripening fast,” said Dunham.

From veraison (grapes changing color) to harvest, the real skill of the vineyard manager comes into play as the weather is closely monitored. Last August, the Lawrence Dunham Vineyards received over ten inches of rain, a great deal more than the typical rainfall allowing them to reduce the irrigated water application. This summer rain has been plentiful too causing Ash Creek, which cuts the property in half, to overflow its banks.

Time will tell if the journey from the vine to the wine exceeds the winemaker’s expectations. But one thing for certain, the quality of the wine produced will be heavily influenced on the unpredictable journey from the grape to the glass.

Several spots are still available to experience this symposium. To register for the Lawrence Dunham Vineyards’ Grape to Glass Symposium email your attendance to info@lawrencedunhamvineyards.com or call 602/320-1485. Cost is $45.00 and includes lunch and wine, tours, and barrel tasting panel.

Monument fire...view from the Rancho Rossa Vineyards in Elgin, AZ, 6.15.2011

As Rod Keeling of Keeling Schaefer Vineyards in Pearce, AZ, learned of Horseshoe 2 fire’s encroachment into Rock Creek about three miles east of his vineyard late last week, he drove northwest to Casa Grande and picked up his brother’s old fire truck. He filled the truck with water the next morning and set up extra emergency water tanks and generators for the water pumps, in case the power was shut off.

“Hope we don’t need any of it,” he posted. At a US Forest Services’ meeting in Sunglow, AZ, he learned that had some time before they had to worry…or not.

Early the next morning, Keeling went up Rock Creek a mile or so to the fire line and discovered about 100 firefighters just finishing-up the night’s operations. They had burned-back against the fire all along a 4-mile line and through the creek.

“Looks like the fire no longer has a direct fuel line to the vineyard. The mountain is black from the base to the top; lots of trees still green,” he posted.

Another Willcox region winemaker was not so fortunate. Over at the Colibri Vineyards, located near Portal, AZ, closer to the heart of the Horseshoe 2 fire, Bob Johnson, owner and past-president of the Arizona Winegrowers Association (AWGA), was examining the damage. Fire had swept through his vineyard in East Whitetail Canyon. The thirty-foot-high wall of flames spared the house and winery, but caused damage to the vineyard; they are still accessing other damages.

The outpouring of support from fellow winemakers is swift and sincere.

Meanwhile, other Arizona winemakers in the Sonoita/Elgin region keep a watchful eye on the Monument fire that is raging about 25 or more miles away, in and around Hereford and Sierra Vista, AZ. Like other major raging fires in Arizona for the past two months, this one is fueled by extremely low humidity, low dew point, high temperatures, bone-dry vegetation, and raging winds. Additionally, the Monument fire’s path has been unpredictable, currently traveling through a more densely populated area and has destroyed many residents and buildings in its path.

According to Peggy Fiandaca, president of the AWGA from the Lawrence Dunhama Vineyards,  “We are very concerned about the impact this fire has had on Colibri Vineyards and hope the damage is not great. It is my understanding that they are still assessing the damage. As a result of the current wildfires we must also be concerned about the debris run-off from the mountains when the summer monsoons begin that can impact vineyards in the Chiricahua foothills. Basically the grape growers are dramatically impacted by the weather and winemakers are impact by the quality and quantity of grapes that they can get. There is not enough wine grapes being grown in Arizona to meet the demand so any crop that is damaged has a ripple affect. Let’s hope that we have a perfect summer and wonderful harvest season. The Arizona wine industry needs one.”

The Arizona winemakers are a hearty and heart-full bunch; growing grapes and producing wines in this terroir is not the most weather-blessed experience and there are continual challenges. But when times get tough, the entire community rises to the occasion and supports one another. In spite of it all, the good grapes grow, they are picked, processed, and produced to yield gratifying and amazing wines that rival any and all produced around the world.

Cheers to this genial bunch of grape growers; and please pray for rain in Arizona soon.