CHRIS CORLEY WINES | Heritage & Tradition

✍️ In my last post, I referred to a connection between a wines ageability and baseball pitchers spin rate. This was a result of a fascinating conversation I had a couple of years ago, while hosting a family friend at the winery.

⚾️ Nick Belmonte hs been in baseball his whole life. His SEC record of single season stolen bases in 1976 still stands nearly 50 years later. He’s been a player, broadcaster, scout and coach. In 2016, he won a World Series ring with the Chicago Cubs, a pinnacle accomplishment of a great life spent in baseball!

🧢 The 2016 World Series was very meaningful in our family as well. Our dad, Jay Corley, born in Chicago in 1931, cheered faithfully for his beloved Chicago Cubs from his early childhood until he passed in January 2016. The Cubs won the World Series ten months later, in November 2016, their first championship in 108 years! We like to think that Dear Ol’ Dad had the best seat in the house!

⚾️ Nick came by the winery a few years after the World Series, and showed us the stunning ring and told us some great stories of a life spent in baseball. One was related to pitchers’ spin rates. Basically, how the ball spins after the pitcher releases it dramatically affects how the batter perceives the ball when it arrives at the mound … high spin rate having a greater impact at the plate than a low spin rate.

🍷Of course, my mind translates everything into wine, so while I’m listening about pitches being released at 95 mph, and arriving at the plate differently based on their spin rate, I was thinking about how my wines release and age, which is of critical importance to me.

🍷 I aim to make wines that improve with aging after release. Wines that are released with precision and velocity, that accelerate and adjust over time, and that arrive at the consumer with even greater precision and velocity over time. Basically making wines with high spin rates that stand the test of time.

⏳ The CORLEY 2015 ‘State Lane Vineyard’ Cabernet Sauvignon is a shining example of a wine aging with high spin rate. Released at 95, it’s now crossing the plate at 96-97. A home run by all accounts!