Updated News on Seafood Consumption, Landings & Aquaculture

I've been urging people to eat more seafood, and I've not been alone. There has been a significant number of people, groups, and companies which have been trying to get Americans to eat more seafood, especially because of its significant health benefits. The important questions is then, have people been listening?

The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) has just released their annual yearbook of fishery statistics for the U.S. though they note that "Data in this publication are considered to be preliminary and are subject to revision as better information becomes available and updates are made by our regional partners." For our purposes, we'll accept the information as relatively accurate, and I will update matters if their information changes. The report is 130 pages long and contains numerous charts and data on all sorts of fishery items. I've gleaned plenty of interesting data from the report and want to discuss four key topics from it.

1) Seafood Consumption
Are Americans eating more seafood? Some of the statistics sound promising, or at least until you place them in context. In 2013, Americans ate 4.6 billion pounds of seafood, making the U.S. the third largest consumer of seafood in the world. That sounds great, but it doesn't tell the whole story. China and Japan occupy the top two spots, which isn't a surprise. When you break the U.S. numbers down, you find that the average American consumed only about 14.5 pounds of seafood in 2013. That figure is very close to the 2012 amount of 14.4 pounds. We can even determine where the tiny increase in seafood consumption originated. It seems there's been an increase in canned salmon consumption, partially due to a significant pink salmon harvest.

In comparison, average seafood consumption was 15.8 pounds in 2010, so consumers have been eating less seafood. And according to USDA Dietary Guidelines, Americans should be eating about 26 pounds of seafood. Americans apparently are not listening to those encouraging them to eat more seafood. That means more outreach is needed. We need more positive articles in the media espousing the health benefits of eating seafood. We need to overcome the obstacles that prevent people from consuming more seafood, such as its high cost and the difficulties many people have cooking seafood at home. We need to get Americans to eat more than another 10 pounds of seafood each year. It's a formidable goal, but it can be accomplished.

2) Imported Seafood
I previously noted my alarm at the increased amount of imported seafood that Americans have been consuming. In 2010, about 86% of the seafood Americans ate was imported and that even increased to 91% in 2011. I pleaded with people to support local fishermen, to eat more domestic seafood. Once again, it appears Americans are not listening. In 2013, it's estimated that Americans are now eating about 94% imported seafood, another significant increase. That must stop!

Now, NOAA acknowledges that their model may not be fully accurate, and that the percentage could be overestimated. However, even if the figure is off by as much as 10 percentage points, it would still be much too high. There are many reasons why you should be eating more domestic seafood, from supporting local economies to health reasons. It is easier to monitor domestic seafood than it is imported seafood. We need to demand that our seafood shops and restaurants sell and serve more domestic seafood. For example, they could buy more Gulf shrimp rather than Asian shrimp. We all must do our part.

3) Seafood Landings
How much seafood did U.S. fishermen catch in 2013? They landed nearly 10 billion pounds of seafood,worth about $5.5 billion, a small increase over 2012. While most of that was eaten as seafood, over 20% ended up as pet food, fish meal and oil. The top five states which landed the most seafood by volume include: Alaska, Louisiana, Washington, Virginia and California. The top five states which landed the most seafood by value include: Alaska, Massachusetts, Maine, Louisiana, and Washington. Alaska is the seafood king, landing over 50% of the nation's seafood by volume, and about 35% of the nation's seafood by value. It was good to see Massachusetts and Maine on the list too, showing the importance of the seafood industry in New England.

As for specific ports, Dutch Harbor in Alaska has the largest volume of seafood landings, and has held that spot for 17 consecutive years. Nearly 90% of those landings are from Alaskan pollock. As for the port with the highest value of seafood landings, Massachusetts can be proud that New Bedford occupies the top spot, for the 14th consecutive year. About 80% of that value comes from sea scallops.

4) Aquaculture
I've said that the U.S. needs to engage in more aquaculture, to produce more local, sustainable seafood for American consumption. In 2012, the U.S. produced about 594 million pounds of aquaculture seafood, both freshwater and marine, valued at about $1.2 billion. We have seen a steady growth in aquaculture since 2007, roughly 8% each year. However, the volume of aquaculture is only about 6% of the wild catch so there is much room for growth. Worldwide, aquaculture makes up about 50% of all seafood, and that figure continues to grow. The more aquaculture the U.S. conducts, then the more local seafood Americans can eat.

The top U.S. marine aquaculture species by volume was Atlantic salmon with oysters as a close second. By value though, oysters take the top spot with salmon in second. As for freshwater aquaculture, catfish firmly occupies the top spot by volume and value. Second place by volume and value goes to crawfish. We need more aquaculture in the U.S., to take advantage of our bountiful waters.

Let us hope that all of these statistics have significantly improve by the time the next annual report is released. 

Quintessential Wines: 5 Wines of Merit

The autumn is always a busy wine tasting season, a great way to get exposed to the diversity of wine, to expand your palate. One of the recent tastings that I attended was hosted by Matt Demers of Quintessential Wines, a wine importing, marketing and sales company owned by father and son, Stephen and Dennis Kreps, and headquartered in Napa, California. Their portfolio includes wineries from all around the world, from Chile to South Africa, and their recent Boston event presented some of their most highly rated wines. I've selected five for special mention, those wines which most appealed to me.

My favorite wine of the tasting was the 2011 Quinta do Vallado Reserve:($64.99), a unique Portuguese blend. The Quinta do Vallado, established in 1716, is located on both banks of the Corgo River, a tributary of the Douro. For much of its history, it apparently sold its grapes, but in 1993, they started producing their own wines. Currently, they have about 70 hectares of vineyards and make still wines and Port. In 2009, they created a new state-of-the-art winery, though they still use some traditional wine making practices, such as foot-treadded grapes in granite lagares.

This wine is a unique mix of a 70% field blend of old vines (about 80+ years old), 27% Touriga Nacional and 3% Sousão. The field blend consists of over twenty different grapes, including & Tinta Roriz, Tinta Amarela, and Touriga Franca. The grapes were foot-trodden in traditional, granite lagares and each parcel was vinified separately. The wines were matured in 225 liter French oak barriques (70% new, 30% used) for about 17 months, and the final wine has an alcohol content of 14.5%.

With a medium red color, this wine had an alluring nose, one which makes you sit and smell the wine for a time before tasting it. Once you sample it, you'll discover a complex and enticing melange of flavors, including ripe plum, black cherry, fig, dark spices, mineral notes and hints of earthiness. Silky tannins, a long and pleasing finish, and excellent structure & balance. It is a hedonistic, delicious wine which will make you crave another glass. It possesses a certain exotic element which I equate with Portuguese wines, a terroir element which appeals to me. If this wine were from any other region, they probably would be charging $100+ for it. I highly recommend it, and it is well worthy of a splurge.

The 2010 Tinto Figuero 12 Tempranillo Crianza ($31.99) is made from 100% Tempranillo, with about 20% from vines that are over 50 years old. Tinto Figuero is owned by José María García and Milagros Figuero, and they have about 130 acres of vineyards, with almost half being older than 60 years, and a state-of-the-art winery. The wine is aged for twelve months (hence the "12"in its name) in two year-old barrels (70% American/30% French oak) and another two years in the bottle before release. I found the wine to have an interesting aroma of black fruit and cedar, and on my palate, there was a nice mix of juicy plum, black cherry, spice, vanilla, eucalyptus, and chocolate notes, especially on the finish. Restrained tannins, a nice elegance, and a lengthy finish. A fine example of the potential of Tempranillo.

The next three wines, all Barolos, are from the Attilio Ghisolfi winery, which is located in the Piedmont region of Italy. In 1985, Carlo Ghisolfi bought 9 acres in the Cru Bussia area and began making wine. Eventually, his son and grandson purchased another 21 acres. The vineyards are not certified organic, though much of their practices would be considered organic and eco-friendly. They are well known for their Barolo wines.

The 2009 Attilio Ghisolfi Barolo Bussia ($59.99) is made from 100% Nebbiolo, 5-15 year old vines, from vineyards in the Visette area of the village of Monforte d’Alba. Fermentation occurs with native years and the wine is aged in French oak barriques for 30 months, and then 6 more months in the bottle before release. With an alcohol content of 14.5%, the wine is a light red in color, with a nose that is more floral with red fruit accents. On the palate, it is elegant and smooth, with restrained tannins, and pleasant cherry and raspberry flavors, with subtle spice notes, and a hint of cedar, especially on the long finish. This is a Barolo you could easily drink now, though it will age well too.

The 2006 Attilio Ghisolfi Barolo Bricco Visette ($79.99), is made from 100% Nebbiolo, 20-50 year old vines, from vineyards in the Visette area of the village of Monforte d’Alba. Fermentation occurs with native years and 70% of the wine is aged in large, French oak barriques, while 30% is aged in small barriques, for 30 months, and then 10 more months in the bottle before release. With an alcohol content of 14.5%, this wine is a light red in color, with less floral elements in the nose and more fruit and spice. On the palate, it is elegant, with a bit stronger tannins than the Bussia, with compelling and complex flavors of black cherry and plum, subtle spices,and some minerality.This is a stunning wine, one to slowly savor and enjoy with friends. It would be an excellent food wine as well.

The 2007 Attilio Ghisolfi Barolo Fantini Riserva ($119.99) is made from Nebbiolo, from over 40 year old vines, from a single vineyard in the Visette area named Fantini. Fermentation occurs with wild yeast and the wines is first aged for 12 months in large tonneaux, 36 more months in smaller oak casks and finally 12 more months in the bottle before release. With an alcohol content of 14%, this wine was the darkest red of the three wines, and presents a more earthy, rustic nose. It is also an elegant wine, with rich fruit flavors, mixed with earthy and spice elements, and moderate tannins. Complex and balanced, this is another stunner of a wine, one that might benefit from a bit more aging, though you still could drink it now. Would love to have this wine with some wild boar or other wild game meat.

All three of these Barolos get my highest recommendation, and they are worth the splurge. Remember, the holidays will soon be here, the perfect excuse to buy any of the five wines I recommend in this post.

Sequoia Grove Winery: 2011 Cabernet Sauvignon

"Fermentation is a more important discovery than even fire."
--Michael Trujillo

I've previously met Michael Trujillo, the President & Director of Winemaking at Sequoia Grove Winery. You can read my prior post about that meeting, and get some background and details on Michael and the winery. We dined together, tasting through several of his wines, including the 2009 Sequoia Grove Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. I enjoyed that wine so much that it ended up on my list of 2013: Top Ten Wines Over $15.

Recently, I received a media sample of the 2011 Sequoia Grove Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon ($38), and opened it with dinner the other night. The wine is a blend of 81% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Cabernet Franc, 8% Merlot, 1% Petite Verdot and 1% Malbec. It has an alcohol content of 14.2%, spent about 20 months in American oak (40% new), and was released in March 2014. The 2011 vintage was challenging, with a late and wet spring, a cool summer and rain in October. Compared to the 2009 vintage, this wine had a slightly different blend and a little less new oak.  

When I reviewed the 2009, I wrote: "This dark purple colored wine possesses an alluring aroma of subtle black fruit and spice, and on the palate it presents as silky and elegant, with delicious flavors of black cherry, ripe plum, subtle spice, vanilla and hints of leather. A well balanced wine, the smooth tannins lead to a lengthy and satisfying finish."  As for the 2011, much of my prior review applies to this vintage except that it seemed to possess more herbal notes and a little less spice. So, it was similar in many respects, but with some subtle differences It remained an impressive wine, one I highly recommend. The slight vintage differences don't detract from the quality of the wine.

Rant: DON'T DRINK & DRIVE!!

It couldn't be any simpler so listen carefully.

If you've had too much alcohol to drink, if there is any doubt in your mind, don't drive. 

Any questions?

Once again, I step forward with probably my most important Rant of the year. It is an absolutely vital issue for everyone who enjoys alcohol of any type, from wine to beer, from Scotch to cocktails. As November begins, and the advent of holiday season is upon us, we reach a potentially dangerous period for those people who over indulge, who drink too much at parties, feasts and gatherings. There is nothing wrong with that, and you can drink as much as you desire, as long as you give up your keys to someone who is sober, and do not drive.

As I've said multiple times before, and which I'll repeat year after year, "If there is any question, no matter how small, whether you are too intoxicated to drive, then don't. If your family or friends think you have had too much to drink, don't drive. Just don't. It is not worth the risk by any calculation." Err on the side of caution so that if you have any doubt of your capacity to drive, then please do not drive. Take a taxi, catch a ride with someone else, walk or sleep it off. Just don't drive!

Rationally, we all know the dangers of drinking and driving. We endanger our own lives as well as the lives of others. Every year, we hear multiple news reports about terrible auto accidents, some with fatalities, that occur because a driver was intoxicated. Families are torn apart, lives are ruined, and much more. Why don't we learn from all these incidents? Even if you don't get in an accident, you might get arrested for drunk driving, with all the attendant high costs, and not just economic. You might even end up in jail.

About 17,000 people are arrested for drunk driving in Massachusetts each year. That is a huge figure, showing that far too many people still don't understand that they should not drink and drive. How difficult is it to understand? DON'T DRINK & DRIVE! I'm sure drunk driving incidents in other states are just as significant.

Each time you drink and drive, you endanger yourself, your passengers, pedestrians, cyclists, and people in other vehicles. Let someone else drive you, whether it be a friend or family. Take a taxi or public transportation. Leave your car where it is parked as you can always pick it up the next day. You have plenty of options so there is absolutely no reason to drink and drive. Be responsible.

I don't want to lose any family or friends this year due to a drunk driving accident. I don't think anyone wants to lose their loved ones either. So please just don't!

(This is a repeat of a prior post, with some minor changes, but as it is always my most important Rant of the year, it bears repeating as the holiday season begins.)

TasteCamp At Hudson Valley: Hudson-Chatham Winery

In organizing TasteCamp in the Hudson Valley, Lenn Thompson had assistance from Carlo Devito (pictured above), an author, publisher, writer, winery owner and probably more. He and his wife, Dominique, own the Hudson-Chatham Winery, located in Ghent, and it was the first winery in the Colombia County. One of our TasteCamp visits was to his winery, where he served us lunch, sampled us through many of his wines, and ran a tasting of wines, ciders, and cassis from other local wineries and cideries

I've met Carlo before on other wine trips, and found him to be personable, jovial, self-deprecating, passionate about wine, and hard working. When you consider everything that he does, you might wonder when he finds time to sleep. For example, he has authored over 15 books, writes the blogs East Coast Wineries and Hudson River Valley Wineries, and operates Warren Street Books, And he still finds time to operate and promote his winery, a winery that has garnered attention from the national media.

Carlo and his wife purchased the 14 acre property in 2006, and planted about 1000 vines of mostly hybrids. In 2007, they opened their winery and would subsequently plant more vines, so that they now have about 5 acres of vineyards, mostly hybrids. They hired Steve Casscles as their winemaker, and expanded the winery in 2012, increasing production and storage capacity, and now produce about 4000 cases annually. Besides table wines, they also make Port-style wines, Sherry-style wines, Cassis and Grappa. Carlo has a diverse palate, and wants to emulate some of the wines he loves in the best way he can in the Hudson Valley.

On the day of our visit, they were pressing grapes. As you can see, this is a very hands-on, artisan operation.

Carlo loves Spanish Sherry and has a dream of making a Sherry-like wine that will taste like amazing aged Sherry. He created his own Solera, in a small building behind the tasting room. Using mainly 25 year old, Italian chestnut barrels, he is trying to make a three stage solera, drawing no more than 1/3 from a barrel each time he takes any wine. At this time, the wine is an average age of four years, though he wants the Solera to last for many more years, even though his children might be the ones that ultimately benefit from it. He knows that his dream will take many years to accomplish but that doesn't discourage him.

The building where the Solera is stored lacks air conditioning or heat. He wants the weather to affect the wine, to let it do its worst. So far, that hasn't hurt the wine in the least. Carlo isn't seeking to emulate any specific style of Sherry, though he has previously bottled a Cream-Sherry style wine. His primary goal is consistency, to make a product that is essentially similar each year, though it might gain in complexity with time. Unfortunately, he didn't have any of his Cream Sherry available for me to taste. Carlo also wants to make Port-style wines, generally in a Tawny style. I got to taste a barrel sample and it showed promise. Carlo has very ambitious, long-term plans,

Carlo led us through a tasting of more than a dozen of his wines and spirits. His wines are about 70% dry reds, and all are produced from New York state grapes, with 85% being made from Hudson Valley grapes. All of their wines are also single vineyard, hand made, and hand pressed, Their tasting room was busy on the day we were there, and the guests seemed to be enjoying the wines very much, and buying a number of bottles. It was good to see that his wines were so well received.

Carlo believes they are making some of the best red wines in New York, especially soft, approachable reds at very good value. Carlo also told me an interesting story which provided me a clear insight into his goals for his winery. He was once asked by someone, "What is it you are trying to do here?" As he is a a big sports fans, and has written much about sports, he replied, "This I the only way I know how to say this. If we were a sports team, my goal would be to make the playoffs every year and to win a championship or multiple championships. I'm not in it for any other reasons than that. I want us to be among the best of them every year." As I said, he is very ambitious.

I was impressed with many of their reds. The 2013 Pinot Noir is the first vintage they have made of this wine, and it uses grapes from the Hudson Valley. It spends almost four weeks on the skins and is aged in French oak for about nine months. With a light red color, this wine is light in body too, with pleasant cherry and raspberry flavors and a hint of spice. Easy drinking and tasty. The 2012 Chelois is an intriguing wine, made from a hybrid grape, and saw about nine months in oak. With a little spritz, the wine presented an intriguing blend of black fruit flavors, nice acidity, spicy undertones and nicely integrated tannins.

The 2011 Empire Reserve is a unique blend of three grapes from 3 different regions of New York, including Hudson Valley Baco Noir, Finger Lakes Cabernet Franc and Long Island Merlot. It spends at least two years in oak. Smooth and easy drinking, it had a delicious and complex blend of red and black fruits, a spicy backbone and herbal notes. Good structure and acidity, it had a moderately long finish, and I'd enjoy a bottle with pork or beef. It's not a pure Hudson Valley wine, but was tasty and interesting anyways.

At the heart of the winery is their Baco Noir, another hybrid grape, and these wines have garnered lots of attention. Forget your preconceptions and prejudices about hybrids creating lesser wines compared to vinifera. If you tasted these wines blind, you would never suspect they were hybrids. These are well-crafted wines of character, possessed of excellent taste, and you really owe it to yourself to check them out.

The 2013 Baco Noir Cascades Middle Hope is from 45 year old vines, and the wine was aged for about 9 months in French oak. It possessed pleasant cherry and raspberry flavors, with an underlying spice, especially on the finish. Easy drinking, with mild tannins. The 2013 Baco Noir Reserve, Casscles Vineyard possesses more intense fruit flavors, and more ripe plum and black cherry flavors, with spicy accents throughout the taste. It was smooth, with nice acidity and a lengthy finish. Very tasty. The 2013 Baco Noir Block 3 North Creek Vineyard has a similar flavor profile as the Reserve, except that the spice notes and tannins are stronger in this wine.

My favorite of the Baco Noies was the 2013 Baco Noir Old Vines, which is made from 60 year old vines. It was complex and intriguing, presenting a delicious melange of flavors, including ripe plum, blueberry, black cherry, vanilla and baking spices. It possessed a silky feel, was well balanced and had a lingering and pleasing finish. This elegant and alluring wine is something to slowly sip with friends, savoring its complexity and quality. I bought a few bottles of this wine, and highly recommend it.

Even some of their Grappa is made from their Baco Noir! Essentially, this is a distilled spirit using grape skins, and they have the grappa produced by Harvest Spirits. The basic Grappa was aromatic and pleasant, with cherry and red berry flavors. The Grappa Reserve, which sees some oak, was even better, with a smoother taste, and the red fruit flavors enhanced by spice notes. This would be a pleasant digestive after a nice dinner.

In the "sports league" of New York wines, Hudson-Chatham Winery is definitely a worthy contender.