Kluge celebrates 10th anniversary

To all but the most expert eye, the row upon row of grapevines holding firm to the southeast slope of Carter Mountain in Albemarle County are simply beautiful.

But a keen-sighted viticulturist might see beyond the esthetics, and decipher a message encrypted in the strong, healthy vines that cover 220 acres of Kluge Estate Vineyard. Noticed will be the fact that the ranks of gnarled vines are slightly closer together than the traditional distance found in European fields.

Obviously, this serves to increase capacity of the land. What isn’t so apparent is that this planting technique also stresses the vines.

Much like a difficult childhood can burnish the character of an individual and make he or she better and stronger for it, this also translates to the tangled vines. Their constant struggle for a fair share of space and nutrients results in their producing superior grapes.

In addition, the closer spacing also causes the vines to set strong, deep roots straight down into the soil. This barely discernable planting pattern suggests brilliance, innovation and permanence.

A decade has passed since Patricia Kluge helped plant the first vines. They were the vanguard of her ambitious dream to create wines to rival the finest in the world.

On a recent autumn morning Kluge and her husband, William Moses, spoke candidly of the challenges and triumphs of the last 10 years. The founder, owner and chairwoman of Kluge Estate Winery and Vineyard summed up the last decade in two words — “Very tough.”

“When we started in 1999 the tech bubble was in place, and then it burst,” Kluge said after taking a sip of morning coffee. “Then came 9-11, the invasion of Iraq, the stock market tanking.

“In addition to all these very sad and tragic things, trying to make a fine wine in a state unknown for fine wine was a challenge. But I tell you, we have come through this.

“We have not given up, we have continued to make fine wines and we have continued with our dream team. We are focused on our distribution, and we’re now in 15 states and hope to be in 20

within the next few months.

“Ultimately, we want to be in every state in the country. We also want to be in Europe and Asia, and that’s what we’re working toward right now.”

Next month the couple is traveling to China to put a distribution deal in place, and speak with potential customers. They also have brand managers in Paris and Hong Kong.

Kluge said the crop so far this year has been superb, what the Europeans would call a vintage year. Already harvested are the grapes that produce their sparkling wines, which have earned a reputation for excellence.

35,000 cases a year

About to be harvested are the grapes that produce the winery’s top of the line New World Red, consisting of the estate’s finest Cabernet Sauvig-non, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot. These grapes stay in the fields the longest in order to gain the maximum amount of sugars.

The vineyard’s output this year is estimated at about 35,000 cases. Kluge believes the vineyard will eventually be able to produce as much as 75,000 cases a year.

Being a workday, husband and wife were dressed in a manner reflective of their roles in the enterprise. Kluge, the possessor of farming genes that go back centuries, wears a polo shirt, jeans and green rubber boots. Her realm of expertise embraces the creation of the wines, and overseeing all aspect of the vineyard, winery and marketing.

Moses, in sport jacket and tie, functions as the chief executive officer. His main focus is on the business side, managing the finances, sales force and distribution networks.

What both spouses share is a passion for promoting Virginia wines, regardless of the winery name on the bottle.

“We started with a concept imparted to us by Robert Mondavi, one of our mentors,” Moses said. “His advice was, ‘Don’t compete against your neighbor, compete against the finest wines you know.’

“One of the things we do in whatever market we’re in is talk about the future of Virginia wines, and the fine wines being made in other wineries in the state. It’s important for the customers to know there are more wines from the region coming.

“We say we’re the first ones in, but there’s more really good wines coming. That’s important, because we have to present Virginia as a wine region.”

Kluge and Moses have also been instrumental in helping set local educational roots in the fields of enology and viticulture. In 2005 the Kluge-Moses Foundation presented a $1.2 million gift to Piedmont Virginia Community College to support science and health programs and laboratories at the school.

The Kluge-Moses Science Building at PVCC will be the centerpiece in this effort. The 34,000-square-foot facility is scheduled for completion in March 2010.

“We believe in the PVCC system,” Moses said. “The wine industry needs a work force, and what’s better than to develop the next generation of winemakers right here?

“This is a real employment opportunity for Virginians, but they have to get the education. We’re also working with the University of Virginia’s engineering school to develop a variety of programs relating to sustainability.

“These include things like solar, geothermal, waste water treatment and rainwater collection. We’re also looking at creating programs with Virginia Tech. This is not just a question of funding.

“In many cases it’s a question of providing enough onsite opportunities for people to come and try things. This summer we opened our doors to the engineering school, and they conducted a whole series of studies in the vineyard and winery.”

In 2000 Governor Mark R. Warner appointed Moses to a two-year term on the Virginia Wine Board, and named him co-chair of the Gubernatorial Wine Industry Study Commission. Current Governor Timothy M. Kaine reappointed him to the Virginia Wine Board where he served as chairman for four years.

Annette Ringwood Boyd, director of the Virginia Wine Marketing Office, said the overall impact that Kluge and Moses have had on the Virginia wine industry is multi-tiered.

“Whenever you have a winery like Kluge Estate Winery that’s producing top quality wines that are reaching folks at the national level, it helps everyone in the Virginia wine industry,” Boyd said. “I think their SP Rose sparkling wine is world class.

“Secondly, they’re so involved both philanthropically and with promoting Virginia’s wine industry. Bill worked with Governor Warner on Vision 2015, the development of the strategic plan for the Virginia wine industry.

“That document has guided the industry’s development. It’s a blueprint for where we need to be putting our time, energy and resources as we move forward.

“The wine industry in Virginia is relatively new, and they’ve really been pioneers in meeting the challenges. Their foresight and leadership has been phenomenal.”

As Kluge and Moses are acutely aware, the challenges are demanding and varied. One of the most daunting is the weather that can mimic the Sahara region for weeks, then drench the area with rain for days on end.

Kluge pointed out that the capricious swings of Mother Nature has destroyed the wine industry in Virginia more than once.

“My husband is becoming sort of the Virginia wine industry’s historian,” Kluge said. “During his research he found that there were 3,000 acres [of grapevines] planted in Albemarle County in the 1860s.

“It was a thriving wine industry that was even exporting wines to England. Then they had two bad years of weather, and the industry vanished. So when you have a tumultuous climate like we have here, you have to know what to do.

“We have put together a team of experts from France, because their weather is like ours, but not as challenging. They’re teaching us how to survive the bad years, and fortunately it’s working.

“We want to work with all the other wineries to help them survive the weather as well.”

Surviving history

Like the vines that have been strengthened by struggle, Kluge’s dream has only brightened during the last “character building” decade. With survival comes time, and time creates history.

“Now that we’re in our tenth year we are beginning to feel we are part of the families around the world who are also making wines,” Kluge said. “Rothschild, Stags’ Leap — we’re all friends and we all share Michel Rolland [influential French oenologist] in common.

“That kind of camaraderie and acceptance for a little winery in Virginia is big. We have a history now. And most importantly the state is recognizing what we’re trying to do to take Virginia forward and really drive a major wine industry.

“My greatest satisfaction comes when people taste our wines, and they don’t think they’re American. They think they’re French, European.

“That tells me that Virginia’s climate and soil, though difficult, has huge potential. And the wine is getting better and better as the vines get older.”