André Viktorovich Tchelistcheff (Russian: Андрей Викторович Челищев; December 7, 1901 – April 5, 1994) was America's most influential post-

Prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic b ...

winemaker. Tchelistcheff is most notable for his contributions toward defining the style of

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

's best wines, especially

Cabernet Sauvignon Cabernet Sauvignon () is one of the world's most widely recognized red wine grape varieties. It is grown in nearly every major wine producing country among a diverse spectrum of climates from Australia and British Columbia, Canada to Lebano ...

. Called the "dean of American winemakers", industry pioneers, such as Rev. John Staten of Field Stone Winery,

Robert Mondavi Robert Gerald Mondavi (June 18, 1913 – May 16, 2008) was an American winemaker. His technical and marketing strategies brought worldwide recognition for the wines of the Napa Valley in California. From an early period, Mondavi promoted label ...

, Louis Martini, Rob Davis of Jordan Vineyard & Winery, Joel Aiken, Michael Silacci of Opus One, Greg La Follette, of Ancient Oak, and Rick Sayre of Rodney Strong Wine Estates, considered him their mentor. Andre advised Warren Winiarski in launching Stag's Leap Wine Cellars which famously made the 1973 SLV Cabernet Sauvignon that was awarded the most points in the ”Judgement of Paris” wine tasting in 1976. Andre also assisted Ste. Michelle Wine Estates in launching the Anthology program at Conn Creek Winery in 1991.Счастье из бокала
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History

Childhood and education

Born to an aristocratic family in

Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire that spanned most of northern Eurasia from its establishment in November 1721 until the proclamation of the Russian Republic in September 1917. At its height in the late 19th century, it covered about , roughl ...

on December 7, 1901, Tchelistcheff's father was Chief Justice of the Russian Imperial Court. Tchelistcheff studied at the military academy at

Kiev Kyiv, also Kiev, is the capital and most populous List of cities in Ukraine, city of Ukraine. Located in the north-central part of the country, it straddles both sides of the Dnieper, Dnieper River. As of 1 January 2022, its population was 2, ...

, but returned to his family when they were forced to flee Moscow due to the

Russian Revolution of 1917 The Russian Revolution was a period of Political revolution (Trotskyism), political and social revolution, social change in Russian Empire, Russia, starting in 1917. This period saw Russia Dissolution of the Russian Empire, abolish its mona ...

. From 1918 to 1921, Tchelistcheff fought with the

White Army The White Army, also known as the White Guard, the White Guardsmen, or simply the Whites, was a common collective name for the armed formations of the White movement and Anti-Sovietism, anti-Bolshevik governments during the Russian Civil War. T ...

in the

Russian Civil War The Russian Civil War () was a multi-party civil war in the former Russian Empire sparked by the 1917 overthrowing of the Russian Provisional Government in the October Revolution, as many factions vied to determine Russia's political future. I ...

. In 1921, he was left for dead on a Crimean battlefield after his unit was machine-gunned during a snowstorm. He eventually recovered and was reunited with his family, who fled Russia to

Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...

. After leaving Russia, Tchelistcheff studied agricultural technology in

Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...

and then continued his education in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

at both the Institut Pasteur and the Institut National Agronomique, where he studied

oenology Oenology (also enology; ) is the science and study of wine and winemaking. Oenology is distinct from viticulture, which is the science of the growing, cultivation, and harvesting of grapes. The English word oenology derives from the Greek word ' ...

fermentation Fermentation is a type of anaerobic metabolism which harnesses the redox potential of the reactants to make adenosine triphosphate (ATP) and organic end products. Organic molecules, such as glucose or other sugars, are catabolized and reduce ...

and

microbiology Microbiology () is the branches of science, scientific study of microorganisms, those being of unicellular organism, unicellular (single-celled), multicellular organism, multicellular (consisting of complex cells), or non-cellular life, acellula ...

Winemaker

In 1938, Beaulieu Vineyards (BV) founder and owner Georges de Latour visited France in search of a new winemaker who had a cosmopolitan and scientific background. He was introduced to Tchelistcheff at the French National Agronomy Institute where Andre was working, along with research he was doing at the

Pasteur Institute The Pasteur Institute (, ) is a French non-profit private foundation dedicated to the study of biology, micro-organisms, diseases, and vaccines. It is named after Louis Pasteur, who invented pasteurization and vaccines for anthrax and rabies. Th ...

. This introduction came through the auspices of Leon Bonnet, Emeritus Professor at

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after t ...

and a BV consultant. Although Tchelistcheff had already received offers from winemakers worldwide, he agreed to join Beaulieu Vineyard, and arrived in

Napa Valley Napa Valley is an American Viticultural Area (AVA) in Napa County, California. The area was established by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) on February 27, 1981, after a 1978 petition submitted by the Napa Valley Vin ...

, California in September 1938 as BV's vice president and chief winemaker. Tchelistcheff's impact at BV was immediate and profound: he concentrated his efforts on defining a style for high-quality California Cabernet Sauvignon, and created the "Georges de Latour Private Reserve" label. He introduced new techniques and procedures to the region, such as aging wine in small French Oak barrels. By the mid-1940s, "Private Reserve" was widely recognized as the benchmark for California Cabernet Sauvignon, and was served at all important

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...

functions. The shift to using small American oak barrels took place after the US entered WWII, and became an accepted tradition at BV under Tchelistcheff and his successors until 1989. Tchelistcheff provided significant contributions to the techniques of cold fermentation, vineyard frost protection,

malolactic fermentation Malolactic conversion (also known as malolactic fermentation or MLF) is a process in winemaking in which Tart (flavor), tart-tasting malic acid, naturally present in grape must, is converted to softer-tasting lactic acid. Malolactic fermentation ...

, and the development of winemaking regions in Carneros, California,

Oregon Oregon ( , ) is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is a part of the Western U.S., with the Columbia River delineating much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while t ...

and

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

. He remained vice president of Beaulieu Vineyards until his retirement in 1973. He later became consulting enologist at Jordan Vineyard & Winery beginning with its inaugural 1976 vintage. He also operated a private wine laboratory in

St. Helena Saint Helena (, ) is one of the three constituent parts of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha, a remote British overseas territory. Saint Helena is a volcanic and tropical island, located in the South Atlantic Ocean, some 1,874 km ...

and consulted to Joseph Heitz, Rev. John Staten of Field Stone Winery, Mike Grgich, Joel Aiken, Jordan, Neibaum/Coppola, Buena Vista Winery, George & Peter Rubissow, Erath Winery, Sequoia Grove, Chateau Ste. Michelle, and Columbia Crest Winery. While consulting for Chateau Ste. Michelle in Washington, Tchelistcheff advised Mike McGrath in 1991 from Conn Creek Winery with the Anthology "Bordeaux Blend" program. He also gave winemaking advice to his nephew, Alex Golitzin who went on to found Quilceda Creek Winery in

Snohomish, Washington Snohomish () is a city in Snohomish County, Washington, Snohomish County, Washington (state), Washington, United States. The population was 10,126 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. It is located on the Snohomish River, southeast of E ...

with a singular focus on Cabernet Sauvignon. Quilceda Creek continues to be an internationally recognized Cabernet Sauvignon producer and has been awarded over twenty 100-point scores from critics including

The Wine Advocate ''The Wine Advocate'', fully known as ''Robert Parker's Wine Advocate'' and informally abbreviated ''TWA'' or ''WA ''or more recently as ''RP'', is a bimonthly wine publication based in the United States featuring the consumer advice of wine cri ...

Decanter (magazine) ''Decanter'' is a wine and wine-lifestyle media brand owned by Future plc. It includes a print and digital magazine, fine wine tasting events, a news website, a subscription website – ''Decanter Premium'', and the ''Decanter World Wine Awards''. ...

, International Wine Report and acclaimed Washington wine blogger Owen Bargreen. A man of diminutive stature (4'11"), his quick wit, sharp intellect, and legendarily refined palate endeared him to three generations of California winemakers, who affectionately referred to him as the "Maestro." Tchelistcheff was inducted into the Culinary Institute of America's Vintner's Hall of Fame in 2007. A grand-nephew of André, Mark Tchelistcheff, is completing a feature-length film about André: ''André Tchelistcheff: The voice of wine''. "André Tchelistcheff: The voice of wine." Feature documentary
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Awards

*Wine Spectator Distinguished Service Award, 1986. *Wine Man of the Year, Wine Industry Technical Symposium, 1990 *Reader's Choice Award, The Person Who Has Done the Most to Advance Wine Quality, Wine Spectator 2000 *COPIA Lifetime Achievement Award, 2004. *Vintners Hall of Fame (Created by the Culinary Institute of America), March 2007

References

External links