Foodies are familiar with the term "farmstead," which implies grown and made by the same hand. Farmstead goat cheese, for example, is made by the same person or people who raise and milk the goats. Now importer Anthony Nicalo is bringing the farmstead concept to the wine world with his Farmstead Wines, working with European grape growers and winemakers to source the best handcrafted wines for distribution in Canada and soon the U.S.

In French wine terms, a rough equivalent for "farmstead" would be vigneron, which refers to the farmer and winemaker as one and the same. That's not always the case over there or over here: often farmers farm, and winemakers winemake, sourcing their grapes from elsewhere. Going back to the cheese example, that would be the same as a cheesemaker getting milk from another source and then using it to make his own cheese brand.

Not that there's anything wrong with that method. It also has been used for generations, and when you're a budding winemaker without the resources to score ever-more-expensive vineyard land, it's sometimes the only option to realize a dream. But Nicalo believes that the farmstead concept, whether in food or wine (he's a trained chef), creates a better end product because the one person, the creator and grower of the food or wine, has control over the process from the very beginning. He calls his winemakers artisans.

Continue reading "Farmstead Wine - Wine of the Week" after the jump.

Most farmstead wines are small production, just as inevitably is farmstead cheese. By sourcing wine from artisan producers, Farmstead Wines supports small business over industrialized grape farming. The wines themselves are made in small batches, "naturally," as Nicalo says, which to him means the farmers use sustainable practices in farming and winemaking.

I had a chance to try the Farmstead Wines' Martin Arndorfer Grüner Veltliner Die Leidenschaft 2005 from Austria recently, and the wine was everything Nicalo promises in his selections. Lively and bright, with wonderful mouth-watering acidity and a hint of vanilla oak, it practically sang a solo in the glass. Nicalo believes wines are meant to be enjoyed around the table, with food, and the Grüner Veltliner was certainly a candidate for pairing with a tangy salad or a selection of cheeses, but it was the kind of wine that was so vibrant, I hated to use it as a supporting player, so I savored it alone.

If you live in or travel often to Canada, look for Farmstead Wine selections there. Nicalo says he's working on U.S. distribution right now, so keep your eyes open for the wines in larger cities like New York and on the Farmstead Wines website. Even if you can't get the wines right now, it's another step in the right direction for hand-crafted food and wine.