Of Course Californians Are Making Wine Charged with Crystals
Light some sage, pump the binaural beats, and buckle up for a full sensorial experience with this wild Western wine.
Courtesy of Tank Garage Winery
Crystal Visions wine fermented with white and rose quartz that was washed in Bodega bay and charged in the Eastern Sierras
Just when we thought we’d seen every wacky trend the wine world had to offer—Bagums! Cans! (So. Many. Cans.) Bottles aged on the ocean floor!—in comes Crystal Visions, a Cabernet Sauvignon made using a process the winemakers at Tank Garage call “cosmic fermentation.”
The fruit for Crystal Visions comes from San Benito County’s Tres Pinos vineyard, and is made utilizing a process where grapes are placed in a fermentation tank with white and rose quartz crystals for 28 days.
Courtesy of Tank Garage Winery
The crystals that this particular vintage used were washed in the healing waters of Bodega Bay, then charged by the waxing moon in the Sierra Foothills. Because quartz naturally vibrates at an exact frequency and, when pressurized, can produce small volts of electricity, the winemakers believe they add to the vibrancy of the wine.
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“The Egyptians put amethyst, rubies, and lapis in their goblets of wine. There’s something there,” says Jason Ruppert, the winemaker at Ardure who inspired the project at Tank. “I think we need more energetic value in life right now. And any added vibrancy when you’re making natural wine is good.”
Courtesy of Tank Garage Winery
Continuing in the vein of wild ideas, the team whole cluster foot-stomped their Cabernet Sauvignon, something that’s not exactly common in Napa Valley, a region now known for its massive, juicy cult Cabs that are often machine harvested, leaving them with a certain sameness that the natural wine movement aims to rebel against.
The result is some pretty groovy juice. Crystal Visions is a wild wine that sings with tart and lively red fruit, the fresh herbaceousness of a bouquet garni or a bundle of sage, and yes, plenty of good vibes. Which let’s be honest, we could use these days.
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