This week, we’re featuring John Graziano, the winemaker at Millbrook Vineyards & Winery in New York’s Hudson River Valley.
The winery traces its roots to 1979, when John Dyson – who had recently left New York politics to chair the state’s Power Authority — planted one acre of vinifera grapes on his father’s farm in Millbrook as an experiment.
The plantings were successful, so together with his wife Kathe, John purchased a 130-acre dairy near his father’s farm – knowing he would turn it into a vineyard and winery. The first grapes were planted in 1983. It was the first vineyard in the Hudson River Valley dedicated exclusively to vinifera grapes. (If “John and Kathe Dyson” ring a bell, it might be because they’ve owned Williams Selyem Winery since 1998.)
John Graziano was brought onboard in 1984 as the Millbrook’s first winemaker. He had graduated a few years earlier from Cornell — where he studied Plant Pathology and Entomology – and learned about wine in New York’s Finger Lakes. He’s been at Millbrook ever since.
Today, Millbrook grows Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Cabernet Franc, and Tocai Friulano and produces about 10,000 cases of wine each year.
What is your general winemaking philosophy?
Grow the best fruit possible and use winemaking techniques to carry its character through to the finished wine. Balance and integration of flavors are the most important qualities for wine to compliment food.
What’s open in your kitchen right now?
Pinot Noir, from both the Hudson Valley and Burgundy.
Who are your favorite winemakers in history, through personal account, or their wines?
I’ve met and spent time with Alejandro Fernandez, Bruno Prats, and Jacques Lardiere. They are my favorites and I have great respect for all they have accomplished in viticulture and winemaking.
What new winemakers are you most excited about, and why?
Winemakers from all over the world that are new and combine energy with good skills of observation and taste wines from all regions to improve on their own.
What’s the best wine you’ve ever tasted? The most interesting?
It’s always hard to pick a “best,” but the most interesting wine I’ve tasted was a 1983 Lynch Bages.
What’s the oldest bottle in your cellar? The most expensive?
Right now, the oldest bottle I own – and probably the most expensive — is a 1982 Cos d’Estournel.
If you had to pick one red and one white to drink for the next month with every dinner, what would you choose?
Alsatian Pinot Blanc and Cru Beaujolais.
What’s your biggest challenge as a winemaker?
My greatest challenge is dealing with the weather in the Hudson Valley. Winters are harsh, frosts, rain, summers can be unpredictable, though most of our vines have been in the ground for a couple decades and are able to cope with the varying patterns.
What’s your favorite wine region in the world — other than your own?
Burgundy!
Is beer ever better than wine?
After a 90-degree day in the vineyard, and just before dinner — no question.
What would people be surprised to know about you?
I try to sing opera in the cellar.
How do you define success?
The coolest thing for me has been the three times I’ve had winemakers from Burgundy visit. Time and again, they were impressed with our Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs and were excited to bring bottles back to taste with their tasting groups. Also, that our winery has continued to grow and build a strong following since opening our doors in the mid-80s. When people think of Hudson Valley wine, they think Millbrook.
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