American Whiskey Pinot Noir United States Oregon Pre-Arrival

The United States of America is a country of great cultural diversity, influenced by migrating nations from across the world. As such, its whiskey industry is a fascinating and complex one, which represents the range of regional differences found there.

The Irish were the original pioneers of American whiskey, and when they emigrated in their thousands from the old country, they brought their skills, knowledge and distillation techniques with them, to give them something to remind each other of home in the New World. This is why American whiskey goes by the Irish spelling, with the additional ‘e’, and why many traditional American whiskies closely resemble the original Irish style.

Today, there are several different types of American whiskey, and the styles and production techniques are now set out in US federal law, cementing a set of characteristics and production methods to preserve and protect the industry.

Corn whiskey, which is made from a minimum 80% corn in the mash and aged for a short period, is probably the most historic of the American whiskey styles, but others like rye whiskey, which is made from a minimum of 51% rye and aged in charred barrels, are growing in popularity among a new generation of drinkers looking for something unique, interesting and independently produced. Alongside these styles, we find Tennessee whiskey, which uses maple charcoal for sweeter notes, the softer wheat whiskies, the world-dominating Bourbon whiskies, and others which are peculiar to specific states and regions.

Regularly described as being the grape varietal responsible for producing the world's most romantic wines, Pinot Noir has long been associated with elegance and a broad range of flavors The name means 'black pine' in French, and this is due to the fact that the fruit of this particular varietal is especially dark in color, and hangs in a conical shape, like that of a pine cone. Despite being grown today in almost every wine producing country, Pinot Noir is a notoriously difficult grape variety to cultivate. This is because it is especially susceptible to various forms of mold and mildew, and thrives best in steady, cooler climates. However, the quality of the fruit has ensured that wineries and vintners have persevered with the varietal, and new technologies and methods have overcome many of the problems it presents. Alongside this, the wide popularity and enthusiasm for this grape has ensured it will remain a firm favorite amongst wine drinkers for many years to come.

Of all the New World wine countries, perhaps the one which has demonstrated the most flair for producing high quality wines - using a combination of traditional and forward-thinking contemporary methods - has been the United States of America. For the past couple of centuries, the United States has set about transforming much of its suitable land into vast vineyards, capable of supporting a wide variety of world-class grape varietals which thrive on both the Atlantic and the Pacific coastlines. Of course, we immediately think of sun-drenched California in regards to American wines, with its enormous vineyards responsible for the New World's finest examples of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot based wines, but many other states have taken to viticulture in a big way, with impressive results. Oregon, Washington State and New York have all developed sophisticated and technologically advanced wine cultures of their own, and the output of U.S wineries is increasing each year as more and more people are converted to their produce.

The beautiful state of Oregon has, over the past few decades, become increasingly well known and respected for its wine industry, with several small but significant wineries within the state receiving world wide attention for the quality of their produce. Whilst the first vineyards within Oregon were planted in the 1840s, the state's wine industry didn't really take off until the 1960s, when several wine producers from California discovered that the cooler regions of the state were ideal for cultivating various fine grape varietals. Today, Oregon has over four hundred and fifty wineries in operation, the vast majority of which are used for the production of wines made from Pinot Gris and Pinot Noir varietal grapes, both of which thrive in the valleys and mountainsides which characterise the landscape of the state.