Changing tastes

Oklahoma wines are generally sweet as a result of Oklahomans’ young, developing palates and harsh weather, Clifton said. Ripe grapes often deplete their sugar storage to survive Oklahoma’s heat, he said, unlike grapes from Napa Valley that can hang on the vines longer because of cool nights. This leads Oklahoma grapes to be more acidic, forcing winemakers to add sugar to the wine, which is why local wine is often sweet, he said.

But Cynthia Duncan, cochair of the Oklahoma Grape Industry Council, said the tide is beginning to shift.

As the state’s wine industry

ages, Duncan said dryer wines are gaining popularity. Chambourcin, a French-American hybrid grape, is growing well in Oklahoma and allowing winemakers to add fewer sugars to their bottles, she said. Tres Suenos winery in Luther, Waddell Vineyards in Ada and Pecan Creek Winery in Muskogee are among the wineries producing bottles using chambourcin grapes.

“Like the norton grape is Missouri’s grape, I think the chambourcin might become the Oklahoma grape,” Duncan said.

Education initiatives like Clifton’s blind tastings coupled with changes to the state’s alcohol laws coming later this year have Duncan optimistic about Oklahoma’s maturing wine industry.

“We want to introduce people to something new,” Clifton said. “That’s really the goal.”

Tickets for the Wines of the World tasting are $25 each. Those who purchase tickets to all four tastings will pay $80.