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SONOMA COUNTY | WINE COUNTRY THIS WEEKWinemaker Profile: Fritz WineryBRAD LONGTONby Sue Straight, the Wine WenchFritz winery is a special place – the architectureis unusual (kind of like a Hobbithousedug into the side of a hill), the staff isfriendly and knowledgeable and the wines aregreat! The greatness of the wines is due to thewinemaking skills of Fritz’s winemaker, BradLongton.When I stopped by to interview Brad, hewas in the middle of bottling, which can be aharrowing time for any winemaker, but hewas gracious, funny and very nice – he tooksome valuable time out to chat with me andpour some of his wines.Brad Longton is an Aussie – the accent andg’day attitude come through from the firstword that comes out of his mouth. Tall andathletic, with twinkling blue eyes, an impishsmile and easy-going demeanor, he’s the kindof guy that anyone would want to be friendswith. And he makes excellent wine.When asked what he does for fun, Bradreplied “I spend time with my family (twoboys, ages 4½ and 6 months), I hike andplay basketball and I love to cook, in fact,one of my goals is to have a local chef pairmy wines with vegetarian cuisine (he’s avegetarian).”His favorite thing about his job is thediversity that winemaking provides. “Thereare four distinct seasons in winemaking –harvest, tending the wines, bottling preparationand finally bottling” he tells me with asmile. He also loves the fact that he’sconstantly learning, so his daily duties neverget “stale.”Originally from Perth, West Australia, Bradlearned his craft from ten years of hands-oncellar experience. He started at Fritz Wineryin 2005 as Assistant Winemaker and tookover the reins as Winemaker in 2007. Hispersonality is reflected in the finished wines –all of the wines that I tasted were complexand intense, yet fun and approachable.There are three different brands at Fritz(two of them are new): Vino Valpredo, namedafter Fritz Winery’s owner’s wife’s maidenname; Lost Canyon; which focuses on singlevineyard Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Syrahand, of course, the original Fritz brand wine.I tasted a delicious handful of winesduring my visit at Fritz Winery. My favoriteswere:2008 Fritz Estate Sauvignon Blanc:Aromas of tropical fruit (pineapple andmango), melon and Myer lemon meld withcut hay and mineral notes. These aromascontinue as flavors with good intensity in thebright, juicy mouth.2008 Lost Canyon Ruxton VineyardChardonnay (fall release): Mouthwateringscents of baked apple, buttered toast, lemoncream and baking spices lure the taster into avoluptuous mouthful of classic Chardonnaygoodness.Brad is a hands-on winemaker – unless he’son the road promoting the wines, Brad ishappy to meet visitors, give tours of the winemakingfacility and answer any questions thatmay arise. Take my word for it – don’t missout! Go to Fritz Winery, taste their deliciouswines and if you can catch him, say “g’day” toBrad.Tasting room hours at Fritz Winery are10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. every day, so pack apicnic and head for the beauties of FritzWinery and its wines, at 24691 DutcherCreek Road, Cloverdale. For answers to questionsabout Fritz Winery, call (707) 894-3389or check: www.fritzwinery.com.48 www.WineCountryThisWeek.com