Corte Riva makes Pinoys proud in Napa Valley

SILVERADO, Napa Valley-- In the eyes of most Filipinos working and living in the world-famous wine country in Napa Valley, Lawrence Cortez of Buguey, Cagayan Valley and Romel Rivera of Agoo, La Union, are their heroes, friends and world-celebrity “kababayans." Norbert Sacro, a photographer from St. Helena, Sonoma doing a documentary video movie on Napa Valley’s majestic mountain scenery and historical spots as well as the intricacies of wine-making, looks up to them as their idols. Widely read wine magazine Wine Spectator, with circulation world-wide, has paid glowing tributes to these two Napa Valley winemakers and their most recent creations, calling them “the two young rising stars in the world of wine-making." The monthly magazine, which runs an annual review and rating of good wines worldwide, cited Corte Riva’s “great reds" which include a Napa Valley Merlot (priced at $45 a bottle!) and Cabernet Sauvignon ($60 a bottle!). Most of these “Great Reds" are available only at many upscale restaurants and major retailers in California, as well as in Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Montana and Nevada. Talks in the grapevine tell of a story that wine collectors and connoisseurs in Europe and in the US are quietly beaming in broad smile, indicating that they are enjoying their cache of Corte Riva’s limited edition. The company’s name Corte Riva was actually taken from their last names, Corte, from Lawrence’s last name of Cortez, and Riva, from Romel’s last name of Rivera. People who don’t know much about this “amazing duo" in the Napa Valley wine country and this young wine-making company would think Corte Riva is of French or Italian origin, or of some kind of Spanish or Chilean character. Many were surprised to learn that the people behind Corte Riva are blue-blooded Filipinos from the Ilocos region of the Philippines. Genuine Ilocanos Lawrence hails from Buguey, Cagayan Valley while Romel was a native of Agoo, La Union, a town at the foot of a mountain where the world-famous summer capital city of Baguio City sits atop beautifully. “Great Reds" which Wine Spectator was referring to is not an empty citation. It actually speaks of the numerous awards Corte Riva red wines have received since Cortez and Rivera started turning up premium wines of very limited quantity. For instance, in 2003, Corte Riva’s first batch of red wines consisted of only 350 cases of Merlot circa 2001, which was cited as “Top Red of the Year" by Hi-Time Wine Cellars. The following year, 2004, Corte Riva came up with another award-winning red wine, 600 cases of Merlot of 2002. Wine Spectator rated this wine with a score of 91, alongside with Corte Riva’s 2002 Cabernet Sauvignon (400 cases). This year, Corte Riva came out with 600 cases of 2003 Merlot which romped away with a score of 92 from Wine Advocate. Also this year, Corte Riva’s Cabernets’s 400 cases of 2003 was rated a 91 by Wine Spectator (Wine Advocate had it at 89+). There were a few awards long before this world recognition for Corte Riva. Romel has been cited for his award-winning wines such as Hourglass, Paloma and Switchback Ridge. Lawrence is proud to be labeled a great grape picker. Every morning when he walks through rows of grapes in the Pride Mountain Vineyards where he and Romel cut their teeth in wine-making, he can easily spot which bunch would be big winner. Already a master cellar himself, Lawrence also feels at home in the vineyards where his expertise is put to good use. Working in the farms, he could easily sense which bunch or batch of grapes would make an excellent wine, given the opportunity to grow in good health till harvest time and already cellar-bound. Numerous studies and experimentation have shown that the “human factor" still makes the big difference in producing great wines. Most wine producers interviewed by this writer all have agreed that great wine begins in the vineyards. New Zealand, an upcoming big player in the wine market, for instance, has conducted an experiment recently, trying to fully mechanize grape farming in order to cut production costs in order to boost profits. In the process, however, wine quality has suffered. Thus, producers of high-end wines and fragile grapes such as Pinot Noir go to the extra expense of “hand-harvesting" the fruit. Similar studies in New Zealand also noted that prior to harvest, workers pull leaves off the vines to expose the developing grape clusters to more sunlight; some clusters are removed so that the vines concentrate their energies into ripening the remaining bunches. Lawrence and Romel don’t have to go through the New Zealand studies and experimentation. Working in the vineyards of the Solari Farm, a 1,000-acre grape farm, for over 25 years, they know this fact at heart. They know grapes respond positively to their touch. Thus, a good combination of local knowledge and superb skills developed over the years has made them both a world-class winemaker. The eventual fusion of their last names into Corte Riva was the inevitable result of a long and deep friendship that started more than 25 years ago when both came to the U.S. with an obsession to pursue their American Dream. At this stage of their lives, Lawrence and Romel could heave a sigh of relief that finally they have realized their American Dream in full living color. Lawrence said: “The journey is long and requires hard work, but the reward of the hard work has paid off," when asked about the main key to their success. Magnificent obsession Both started literally from the ground up. Working in the grapes farms in the rugged hillsides of Napa Valley is no mean feat. They must have really loved what they are doing that they feel they could have lasted for another 25 years doing the same thing. Now the patience and hard work have rewarded them generously and graciously. And yet they feel like they have just started in the game. The magnificent obsession is to be able to come up with new and more world-class creations of super premium red wines that would become the envy of world famous Rhone Valley of France. - Philippine News