A visit to either of Black Walnut’s tasting rooms makes it obvious that a passion for excellence drives this local winery. Lance Castle’s winemaking expertise is a true treat for oenophiles and occasional wine drinkers alike, and Black Walnut boasts a portfolio that ranges from terrific dry reds to deliciously sweet whites. Winemaking and co-running Black Walnut with his wife, Val, and friends, Karen and Jack Kuhn, is a fun outlet for Lance. When he’s not spending time at the winery he works full time at The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, is President of The Brandywine Valley Wine Trail and is also President of the Phoenixville Area Business Association. I had the opportunity to chat with Lance about upcoming releases and this year’s harvest.
Nathan Garber: What wines are you most excited about that will be coming from this year’s grape harvest?
Lance Castle: Right now I’m probably most excited about the Syrah. We got a limited volume of the Syrah this year, but it was dark, in really good shape and had really good flavor. So, we’re not going to get a lot of it, but I think it’s going to be a very tasty wine. I’m equally excited about the Sauvignon Blanc. I haven’t tried it in a few weeks, but it had a lot of grapefruit tastes to it, kind of like the New Zealand Sauvignon Blancs.
Did this year’s harvest present any specific challenges or “strokes of luck?”
It was rainy. We were all worried about it. Until the fall, where it actually got really dry. When the dry spell came it was great. The moisture in the grapes started to dehydrate out and the flavors began to concentrate. This was a good year, we ended up doing pretty well. Yields were down, so not as much fruit, but if the fruit’s good I don’t mind.
Will BWW be releasing anything new to their portfolio this coming year?
2010 Pinot Noir: Our 2010 Pinot Noir. We’re going to release it next week. My tasting-room manager, Alan, in Phoenixville tried this last fall and he wanted it released in the worst way. It’s gotten much better sitting around in the bottle for a year. I went pretty heavy on this. It’s a little more like a red burgundy out of France than an American Pinot Noir.
Deception–White Port: This is our first white port. We took 400 gallons of our Syrah wine, shipped it out to a distillery, and got it turned into 35 gallons of brandy. The brandy came back at 170 proof. Our Vidal Blanc is the base…you need to have a decently big white wine to handle the brandy that gets added into it. [The brandy] brings it up to about 20% alcohol, so it’s got a little bit of a kick to it; this is also why we called it deception, because it doesn’t taste like it’s got a lot of alcohol in it.
Seduction–Red Port: Our red port is made with a base of Merlot. This is our 2010 merlot with the same Syrah brandy [as the white port]. I have a friend with connections down at Maker’s Mark bourbon. We ended up aging this in a Maker’s Mark barrel that still had residual bourbon in it, so it ends up having some nice bourbon flavors to it. It was a lot of work. We first did oak aging in the Merlot, then did the brandy additions, and then aged it in the bourbon barrels to layer the flavors. It ended up being a very nice port with a lot of different levels of flavor to it.
As a winemaker, do you still find yourself drinking other wines on the market?
Always. Never stop drinking other people’s wines, because it’s amazing what you can get used to. If I start making a wine and it has some kind of flaw or weird flavor in it but I drink it all the time, it seems normal to me, and then I don’t realize that I’m doing something inappropriate. I drink Pennsylvania wine, California wine, South American wine, everything. It’s fun to taste things and go: oh that would be a fun flavor to get!
What does harvest time mean for a winery?
Harvest is crazy. If it’s Monday and a storm is coming through Tuesday night, I could get a call saying, “Hey, we’re picking three tons of Merlot today and you’re processing it tomorrow.” I talk about having Plan A, B and C [because] it happens all day long.
Although wines from this year’s harvest won’t make the shelves for some time, Black Walnut always has a lot to offer. With Thanksgiving just days away and the winter holidays right around the corner, you may be wondering what Black Walnut wines would pair well with the festivities. For Thanksgiving, try the Bank Barn Red or the 2012 Apple. The Bank Barn Red pairs nicely with everything from the turkey and mashed potatoes to green bean casserole and the cranberry relish.
The refreshing 2012 Apple is equally versatile, but has lighter body and will be popular with white-wine drinkers. The 2009 Smitten has added spices that lends the wine to pairing well with pumpkin pie, or being gently warmed in a crockpot. For winter holidays, you would be remiss not to give Seduction a try. Don’t worry, despite the name it won’t land you on Santa’s naughty list.
Find Black Walnut Winery’s HQ at 3000 Lincoln Highway in Sadsburyville. The Phoenixville-based tasting room may be found at 260 Bridge Street. For more information, visit blackwalnutwinery.com or “like” them on Facebook.
Photographs credited to Sarah Hammons.
