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Wine of a different stripe.

Print | Comments () Posted by Stephen Meuse November 20, 2010 11:04 AM

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Some guys dream of owning a vineyard and making an estate wine; others - with a little more savvy about the wine business and a little less ego - decide that creating a brand is the way to go. You don't own land, a winery, or a distribution facility. You probably don't even have employees. Instead you purchase grapes, have someone with the skill and equipment make the wine, arrange to get it bottled, boxed up, and shipped out. You can do it all with a cell phone and a fax machine - if you know what you're doing.

We're used to seeing these kinds of wines marketed with little mammals on the label or maybe red bicycles, and frankly these motifs often front deeply dull mass-market products. So our interest was piqued when we encountered what you see above: an Oregon pinot blanc and pinot noir whose labels sport handsome gallery-quality illustrations of a striped bass. It turns out that these distinctive labels represent a wine brand with a difference; one that's worth a look.

The venture (Fish Hook Vineyards) is a partnership between two veterans of the wine business who also happen to be avid saltwater anglers: Massachusetts-based Mark Seymour and John Heus, one of the founders of the original Salmon Creek brand. Their website makes it all look a little less serious than it actually is, with an emphasis on causes dear to the hearts of the founders ($3 is donated to the Ocean Conservancy for each High Hook case sold), lots of photos of fishing trips (looks like fun), and reminders not to take your groceries home in those flimsy plastic bags.

Beautiful labels and endearingly amateurish website notwithstanding, the wine is quality stuff and plenty appealing. Fruit is sourced from a single, sustainably-farmed vineyard in the McMinnville district of Willamette Valley, Oregon and put together by Stephen Cary, winemaker at Yamhill Valley Vineyards. These are appetizingly brisk cool-climate wines with transparently pure fruit, authentic varietal character, and a bit of complexity - well worth the modest prices (around $18 for the pinot noir; $15 for the pinot blanc). Either (or both) would be a splendid addition to the Thanksgiving table. Consider the labels decor.

High Hook wines are available at Andover Liquors, Andover, 978-470-0500; Whole Foods, Dedham, 781-329-7100; Cambridge Wine & Spirits, 617-864-7171.

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