| Boutique industry awakening
in Central California |
Some people told Jim and Debbie Van Haun they
were making a mistake picking east Fresno County. But in 1999, the Van
Haun left Southern California and settled in Central California, where
they ultimately opened a bed and breakfast and began making premium wines.
Today, the B&B fills up quickly, the tasting
room is a popular destination and Jim's wines are winning awards.
Van Haun is one of a feisty band of boutique winemakers who've started
making premium table wines in Central California. As much as anything,
they battle the perception that Central California is the sun-baked
province of big wineries that mass produce inexpensive wine.
"Central California is the next hot spot of winemaking,"
says Cal State Fresno enology professor Ken Fugelsang. "It's the
new frontier. We're seeing vineyards producing for maximum flavor rather
than for maximum yield. And we're seeing small premium wineries pioneering
what we hope will be a flourishing winemaking region."
Nat DiBuduo of Allied Grape Growers says: "The
quantity of wine produced by boutique wineries isn't large. But they've
started tasting rooms and winery trails--which we've never had before
in Central California. These new boutique wineries are adding interest,
romance and respect."
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