DAN'S PAPERS, July 2, 2010 Page 165 www.danshamptons.com
Rich Olsen-Harbich Joins Bedell Cellars neous fermentations he’s become so fond of in recent year? “That’s why they hired me!� he said before adding that the overall wine program will remain the same — the focus on blends, the expression of the fruit coming in from the vineyard. Olsen-Harbich’s departure left a sizable hole at Raphael, one of the North Fork’s most beautiful estates and one known for quality wines. It didn’t
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Compared to many industries, there isn’t a ton of turnover in the winemaking business — not head winemakers anyway, and certainly not on Long Island. Here, winemakers can sometimes be treated like luggage — kept a long time and shared among friends. In the last month, two big — and related — changes have happened in the North Fork wine scene. The names are familiar and there is reason for excitement around both as well. Rich Olsen-Harbich, long-time winemaker at Raphael in Peconic resigned that post several weeks ago and has taken over the head winemaking duties at Bedell Cellars. He joins a winemaking team that includes Bedell’s founder and now founding winemaker Kip Bedell and consultant Pascal Marty. Olsen-Harbich succeeded Kelly Urbanik, whose contract ran out. So far, there hasn’t been any word on where Urbanik will go from here. Bedell’s owner Michael Lynne described his new winemaking team as “a dream situation for us� when I spoke with him, pointing to OlsenHarbich’s “experience, accomplishment and knowledge� as three key reasons for the hiring. “Our founding winemaker, Kip Bedell founded this winery 30 years ago. Rich has been working out here for 25,� Lynne said in describing and discussing Olsen-Harbich’s understanding of local viticulture and winemaking. Olsen-Harbich describes his departure from Raphael, where he served as head winemaker for more than a decade, as amicable, adding that he “Still has some wines to finish there; to get bottled. I’ll help with the transition there.� “I was winemaker at Raphael for 14 years and did a lot,� he told me, “I was ready to pursue new challenges. I look forward to working with people at Bedell that I’ve known and respected for a long time — Dave Thompson (vineyard manager) and Donna Rudolph (assistant vineyard manager), Trent (Preszler, CEO) and of course Kip, who I’ve known and been friends with for many years.� “I’m excited. I haven’t been excited like this in a few years. This is a great opportunity for me.� This is an dramatic — and potentially important — winemaking change on North Fork — one that brings two seemingly divergent styles together — Olsen-Harbich’s natural winemaking philosophy, spontaneous fermentations and terroir-expressing style and Bedell Cellars’ polished, perhaps moreinternational style, one that focuses largely on blending. Lynne said that they just don’t know how OlsenHarbich will change Bedell’s wines but said that it’s always “very exciting when there is a new creative force� behind a project. Will Olsen-Harbich get to employ the sponta-
take long — and they didn’t look far — to find his replacement, hiring North Fork native Les Howard away from Pindar Vineyards. Only 35, Howard has been working in the local wine industry for more than 15 years, having started his wine career at Pindar Vineyards as a cellar hand. It was there that Mark Friszolowski, then Pindar’s winemaker, told him that he’d make
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