the beautiful, bountiful, booziful world of New Hampshire wines

Arriving at the Flag Hill Winery on Thursday, June 28, the air was heavy with humidity and breathing felt like sipping warm water through a straw. A low haze had crowned the vineyard, but several large trees cast a cool shadow over the winery’s main building. From underneath one of these merciful trees, you can survey the quiet vineyard. The rolling, southwesterly slope, stitched with long rows of grape vines, seemed like a well-ordered piece of paradise. Several workers joked in the mid-morning heat and their easy banter reverberated across the fields. It’s summertime in New Hampshire and the living’s easy.

Farming evokes a number of romantic images: the colorful harvest, long rows of weather-beaten fences, hearty independence. These days, most people rely on an army of industrial farmers, commodity brokers, national distributors, local buyers and grocery stores for their evening meal. But an awakening is underway. The local food movement is gaining momentum on the Seacoast, and it appears that residents are beginning to realize the economic and environmental benefits of consuming locally grown products.

But what about beverages? Pairing Dover greens with an Argentinean wine defeats the purpose of eating local. Although Portsmouth has two breweries with local beers, finding New Hampshire-made wine poses a bigger challenge.

When most people think of wine, their minds travel to places like the Napa Valley, France, Italy or South Africa. Grapes require very specific land and climate conditions in order to grow. Traditional wine growing regions were first cultivated because the natural elements were conducive to growing grapes. New Hampshire is unlike most of these regions, but several small pockets, especially on the Seacoast, have been able to support healthy vines. Flag Hill Winery and Distillery in Lee and Jewell Towne Vineyard in South Hampton are two such places. 

The land around Flag Hill has been a working farm since the 1700s. In 1950, Frank Reinhold Sr. bought 180 acres of land, with frontage on both the Lamprey and North rivers, for $6,200. Frank’s son Robert managed the property as a dairy farm for several years. But in 1985, Frank Reinhold Jr. took up ownership of the property with an eye for growing grapes. The first acre of grapes took root in 1990, and the vineyard reaped its first harvest four years later. The wine was ready to drink in 1996. Flag Hill started distilling spirits in 2004, adding General John Stark Vodka to its inventory.  
The wines at Flag Hill are not your typical reds and whites. There are no Chardonnays, Cabernets or Merlots. Grapes for these wines cannot survive temperatures below eight degrees, making them hardly fit for the cold New Hampshire winters. Instead, Flag Hill produces varieties like Seyval Blanc, Vignoles, Cayuga White and Marechal Foch. In all, they grow six different kinds of grapes, all resilient enough to withstand temperatures of 16 to 18 degrees below zero.

During a recent tour of the vineyard and winery, marketing director Heather Houle pointed out several rows of Marechal Foch grapes, which produce a semi-dry red wine, similar to Pinot Noir. Up close, the young fruit looks like small clusters of bright green peas. At this stage in their development, the tiny clusters are known as set fruit, indicating that they have already been fertilized. Like all grapes, the Marechal Foch is asexual, meaning it has both male and female parts and can reproduce without a partner. By late July, the grapes will have matured dramatically and the vines will be heavy with plump red fruits.

Jewell Towne Vineyard is a smaller operation, and in some ways more quaint. But what the vineyard and winery lacks in size, it makes up for in award-winning wines and picturesque landscape. Located on a small road past several other farms with roadside stands, the property straddles the New Hampshire-Massachusetts border.

The land was once filled with corn used as a forage crop for feeding cattle. In 1977, Dr. Peter Oldak, an emergency physician, and his wife, Brenda, purchased the 12-acre farm. Oldak started planting grapes in 1982 as a hobby, and, by 1994, Jewell Towne had its first batch of commercial wine. Oldak added a tasting room and production facility in 1997. On a shelf above the main counter by the room’s entrance, several bottles of wine sit like Olympic athletes with metals dangling from their necks. Classical music floats down from an unseen stereo on the second-floor loft.

Before Oldak sat down for an interview in the wood-paneled tasting room, he removed his tall rubber boots and slipped into a pair of Birkenstock sandals. “Part of our success has been with the development of varieties that are cold hardy,” Oldak said. Most of the winery’s grape vines came from nurseries in the Finger Lakes region of New York, which has a climate similar to New Hampshire’s. Jewell Towne now grows 25 varieties of grapes on five acres of land. Its shallow fields, located six miles from the Atlantic coast, are nestled among hills and enjoy what Oldak called a “valley effect.” The valley is protected from cold gusts during the winter, and surrounding hills capture warm air during the summer. The grapevines run east to west, mimicking the sun’s trajectory, and the slope mainly faces south.

“Our location is ideally suited,” Oldak said. “There is good air and water drainage and a nice lay of the land. Contrary to what most people think, the soil doesn’t need to be really fertile, it needs to have good drainage. Grapes don’t ripen with wet feet.”

Crafting a bottle of wine requires a balance of natural elements and human skill. The final product is as much a result of care and creativity as it is of sunshine and soil. The slightest misstep can spell disaster for a batch of wine. The first challenge is figuring out the best way to plant the vines. Four years ago, Flag Hill implemented a growing method known as high-density farming. The vines are planted closer together and there is less space between each row of grapes.

“Wine is made in the vineyard,” Oldak said. He uses a growing method called “vertical shoot positioning” to maximize the output of his vines. Several “catch wires” line the rows and help direct growth upward. This helps the grapes ripen faster and adds a higher level of sugar, which means the grapes are less acidic and have a better flavor. Vertical shoot positioning also helps protect the vines from disease and makes harvesting easier. But since a perfect grape harvest is almost impossible, Oldak has come to rely on advances in winemaking technology to ensure the quality of his product. Better strains of yeast, better agents for encouraging fermentation, better filters and improved methods for bottling can negate the odious effects of hail, excessive rain, drought, insects and wildlife.

In late September and early October, Flag Hill and Jewell Towne are flooded with volunteers eager to help harvest the grapes. It has become so popular with local families that both wineries have implemented a waiting list. Flag Hill uses a lottery to pick volunteers and then charges $8 per person. After three and a half hours of work, volunteers are given lunch and can sample some of the wines.

The main building at Flag Hill, a restored 18th century post and beam barn, sits on top of a wide hill in the shade of several large trees. Outside, to the right of the recently added gift shop and tasting room, two young women set up tables and chairs beneath a large white tent in preparation for a wedding. “We’ve got weddings every single weekend, sometimes two,” Houle said, noting that such events make up a large percentage of Flag Hill’s business. “We’re almost booked to 2008,” she said. Both Flag Hill and Jewell Towne supplement their wine sales with vineyard tours, tastings, gift shop sales and by hosting events.

Graham Hamblett, winemaker and distiller at Flag Hill, stood outside the basement entrance to the production area of the winery on a recent morning. He held a long cylindrical beaker above his head, measuring a clear liquid. His assistant, Jager, a big German Shepard, loafed around nearby. Hamblett is a young guy with prominent sideburns and an easy smile. He first came to Flag Hill in the spring of 1998, after graduating from UNH with a degree in horticulture. Initially hired as a seasonal helper, Hamblett has performed just about every job at Flag Hill, eventually working his way up to head winemaker and distiller. “It was never in the scope of what I thought I would be doing,” Hamblett said. “I started pruning as seasonal help and fell in love with the whole process.” A winery is different from a brewery, which can crank out several batches of beer every season. “Here we get one shot each year,” he said. 

In Flag Hill’s basement, which once housed throngs of dairy cows, the temperature is cool. Unlike liquor, which thrives under varying temperatures, wine needs a constant climate for proper fermentation. The basement’s main room is filled with barrels, bottles and tanks. “Space is our biggest limitation right now,” Houle said. The winery uses American oak barrels to store wine as it ferments. The type of wood used and the length of time it is toasted under fire affects the wine’s flavor. For Flag Hill’s Seyval Blanc, the oak barrels come from Canton, Ohio. These barrels have a medium toast, which means the wine will be less oaky.

“Our wines tend to be more fruit forward, rather than oak forward,” Houle said. Through a heavy wooden door in the back of the basement, there were several shiny copper tanks with small circular openings that looked like portholes on a submarine: the distillery. Flag Hill produces three kinds of spirits: General John Stark Vodka, Cranberry Liqueur and Sugar Maple Liqueur. They use apples from Concord to make the vodka, cranberries from Massachusetts and maple syrup from Littleton. The Cranberry Liqueur is a sweet, fruity cordial finished with a small bite. The Sugar Maple Liqueur tastes like the pure sweetness of New Hampshire. The vodka tastes like—well, vodka.

The distillery allows Flag Hill to operate throughout the winter. As grape season comes to a close in September or October, apples start to drop and the distillery kicks up. In September, Flag Hill plans to introduce a barrel-aged Josiah Bartlett Apple Brandy.

The $300,000, 135-gallon still is heated and cooled by a network of metal tubing that lines the distillery’s peaked roof. Heat is captured through a “solar thermal roof” and redistributed throughout the seasons. Reinhold successfully lobbied state officials to pass legislation that would allow him to sell spirits independently of the state liquor stores. The winery’s success could spawn more small-scale operations. Houle believes micro-distilleries will soon proliferate like microbreweries did 10 years ago.

At both the Flag Hill Winery and the Jewell Towne Vineyard, growth seems to be an underlying goal. Construction is underway to expand Jewell Towne’s winery and add office, production and storage space. “It’s like a root canal. It’s painful and costly, but eventually you get something out of it,” Oldak said. Although there is no construction at Flag Hill, the business is set to introduce new products and seems to have continued expanding since it first planted grapes 17 years ago. The wineries’ growth may reflect and expanding market for New Hampshire made wines.

Sales figures for both vineyards seem to support this theory. Although Flag Hill’s wines are not as easily recognizable as a Pinot Noir or Shiraz, making them more difficult to sell in state liquor stores, the winery sells out every year. Most sales occur on-site at the winery, where the staff tries to match visitors’ tastes with local flavors.

In Flag Hill’s tasting room, Sarah Taylor guides visitors through the mysterious waters of wine tasting. The first thing you do is swirl the wine to “excite the aroma.” Then, stick your nose deep in the glass and take a strong whiff, trying to identify the different aromas. Finally, take a sip, but don’t swallow. Let the wine migrate to each different region of the tongue, where various taste buds will pick up the various flavors. Now swallow, rinse and repeat.   

Most people who visit Flag Hill come from the southern and western parts of New Hampshire, or from Massachusetts. Despite its proximity, Flag Hill doesn’t see many visitors from Portsmouth, Houle said. The same is true of Jewell Towne.

“We have a large market of repeat customers and tourists from other areas of the country,” Oldak said. Sixty percent of the wine he produces is sold from the tasting room. The other 40 percent goes to local shops, grocery stores and state liquor outlets.

Although Jewell Towne makes a variety of reds, whites and rosés, Oldak said the popularity of each depends on the year it was made and the unique tastes of individual patrons. “The most important concept is that it is an agricultural product. The nature of wine is that it can show variation from one year to the next. We have wines that meet the many varied tastes of our customers,” he said. 

At the Dover Wine Company, people often request local wines, owner Steve Smith said. “They’re interested in supporting local businesses and the novelty of having something from New Hampshire. They’re looking for wines that are locally grown, but are not tremendously concerned with what kind of grape it is,” Smith said. He agrees that the obscurity of some New Hampshire wines makes them a hard sell. “Cayuga is the kind of grape they should be growing here, but most people have never heard of Cayuga,” Smith said. He carries Jewell Towne wines in his shop, and the white varieties typically do the best. Will New Hampshire wines catch on? “Nationally it will be a hard sell, but it will always be a thing that will do well locally,” Smith said.

Every state in the United States, including Hawaii and Alaska, has wineries, according to Smith. In Massachusetts, Nashoba Valley is well known for its wines. Maine has a number of fruit wineries and a thriving blueberry wine industry. There are also several wineries in Connecticut.  

Oldak is a thin man with a thin mustache. As he walks through his vineyard, he moves slowly and deliberately, pausing now and then to pick dead leaves off the vines. He is the president of the New Hampshire Wine Association, a collective of producers, buyers and enthusiasts. In the past few years, the number of wineries in New Hampshire has doubled to four, and that number will likely increase in years to come. “In the last one to two years, several people have been getting licenses,” Oldak said. He believes there is a certain fraternity among wineries, which often share information and knowledge. “We want quality wines made in New Hampshire so people can be proud of New Hampshire wines,” he said.  

Frank Reinhold is of medium height with a good build. He was in a hurry as he walked into Flag Hill’s tasting room. Twenty years ago, when Reinhold and his wife decided to resuscitate the family farm, he first asked himself what kind of agricultural endeavor would be feasible in New Hampshire. The couple considered dairy farming, but finally decided to establish a vineyard and winery, largely because the land was in the right microclimate for growing grapes. “Could we open up in Concord? The answer is no, because Concord weather is completely different than here,” Reinhold said. He claims that everything west of Northwood falls under a completely different bioregion. “The colder effects of the New England weather is on the other side of that line. This side of the line, (growing grapes is) in the realm of possibility,” he said. Another factor that works in Reinhold’s favor is the dry, sandy soil that characterizes his vineyard. But growing wine grapes in New Hampshire is a difficult task, no matter how you slice it. “Even here, we’re pushing the envelope close to the point of failure,” he said. 

Flag Hill has fully embraced the local food movement and is using demand for local products to its advantage. Houle spends much of her time introducing Flag Hill wines and spirits to bars, restaurants and grocery stores in the area. The winery and distillery is also a member of the N.H. Made organization, an association of New Hampshire-based businesses and manufacturers. Ninety-five percent of the products that Flag Hill chef Ted McCormack uses in the winery’s restaurant come from local farms, Houle noted. The menu changes monthly depending on the season, and McCormack offers cooking classes to teach people how to prepare seasonal meals with local products.

Flag Hill’s emphasis on local products also benefits the environment—something that the owner is always mindful of, Houle said. “People in agriculture see the negative impacts on the environment more clearly than other people. Local foods and an environmentally conscientious philosophy are one and the same,” she said. In 2004, 114 acres of Flag Hill’s property was put under protection through a conservation easement supported by the Land and Community Heritage Program. The conservation land includes 72 acres slated for agricultural production, 1,500 feet of undeveloped frontage on the Lamprey River and 1,400 feet of undeveloped frontage on the North River.

There are a number of distinguishable flavors in a glass of Flag Hill or Jewell Towne wine. Some essences are more prominent than others, but all of them are a product of New Hampshire’s unique climate, the distinctive character of each grape and the love and labor of a few determined farmers.