Fred Swan

Fred Swan takes on the complex topic of terroir, outlining the many factors and decisions that affect a wine's character and providing new analogies for considering terroir.

Despite thousands of years of winemaking history, we’re still refining our understanding of the myriad factors leading any given wine to taste and feel as it does. Arguably, no other consumer product has such variety or involves so many minute, often inscrutable, factors. A wine’s personality is influenced by geology, microbiology, chemistry, plant and human physiology, agronomy, entomology, geography, weather, and more…

Santa Barbara County is a wine region that established itself slowly, over time. Today, it is worthy of international attention for the great wines being produced by several generations of talented winemakers.

In 1782, Junípero Serra ordered wine grapes planted at what would become Mission Santa Barbara in 1786. More vineyards followed, peaking at about 45 plots, 260 total acres, and 17 winemakers in the late 19th century…

Juniper is the essence of gin, in both senses of the word: it is the defining feature and the primary flavoring agent. Gin has been with us for about 300 years, yet non-alcoholic beverages flavored with juniper go back thousands of years. The early use of juniper in beverages, typically in combination with other herbs, fruit, and sweeteners, had two aims. First, juniper’s strong flavor improved, or at least overshadowed…