I am by no means, a wine conniseur. I’m not even sure if I’m spelling “conniseur” correctly.* This is not to say I’m not a wine enjoyer (enjoyeur?). I just couldn’t tell you the difference between a sommelier and a sommelflange.**
There is one type that I am curious to try, though: Norton. In 1873, Norton wine was deemed the “best wine of all nations” at a competition in Vienna. It is described as “dark in color with big fruity flavors, firm acidity, and a sweet taste that does not deliver typical ‘foxy’ flavors and fragrances.”***
The main reason, though, is that if history had played out differently, Norton wine may have been called LeMosy instead.
The gist of the story is that Dr. Daniel Norborne Norton developed the ”Norton” grape on his farm in Richmond, Virginia in the 1820’s. In 1861, though, an article was published by a certain Mr. Francis William LeMosy (my Great-great grandfather) stating that his father, Dr. Francis Augustus LeMosy (my Great-great-great grandfather) had, in fact, originally found the grape growing in the wild on Cedar Island in the James River.
The whole history of the thing is a bit murky. It’s pretty well established, though, that Dr. Norton did, in fact, develop the grape himself, and wine historians tend to paint my ancestors as a pack of loons.
So, the moral of the story is: Horticulture is a cutthroat business, man.
More info: American Wine Society Journal – Fall 2004 – Volume 36, #3 (2.64 MB PDF)
Chrysalis Vineyards // Wannabe Wino: The All American Grape
* Spellcheck assures me I am.
** I know what a sommelier is, but even the Thundercats don’t know what a sommelflange is.
*** And, I’m guessing, it’ll get you wicked crunk.
