LENNDEVOURS

The 12 LI Wines of Christmas: #12 Roanoke Vineyards 2004 Blend Two

his post is a part of my 12 Long Island Wines for Christmas series that will run from now until Christmas 2007. See the entire series here.

It's Christmas day, we've opened all of our gifts, we enjoyed a delicious breakfast and I'm finally getting around to posting the final wine in my series of 12 Long Island Wines for Christmas.

We're rounding out this mixed case of Long Island wines with a blend that I've enjoyed on many occasions since its release, but has never tasted better than it did last night on Christmas Eve.

Made from 71% cabernet franc, 17% merlot and 12% cabernet sauvignon, Roanoke Vineyards' 2004 Blend Two ($38) is yet another young wine with great days ahead. But it sure it tasting great right now too.

The nose is effusive, offering cherry and other red fruit aromas layered with brown spices, salt-cured black olive and faintly floral notes. The medium-bodied palate opens with clean, pure red cherry flavors, but soon reveals cinnamon, anise and nutmeg spice, a little vanilla and earthy flavors that remind me of dried fall leaves. It deftly balances power with elegance with rich flavors and smooth, integrated tannins.

The 12 LI Wines of Christmas: #11 Bedell Cellars 2005 Reserve Merlot

This post is a part of my 12 Long Island Wines for Christmas series that will run from now until Christmas 2007. See the entire series here.

Two more wines to go I've chosen them for two different reasons.

Today's wine, Bedell Cellars' 2005 Reserve Merlot ($40) was one of the first 2005 merlots to hit the market and it offers a peek at what that vintage might eventually mean for Long Island. This wine's intensity tells the story of the hot, dry growing season quite well I think.

Loads of dense blackberry preserves, fresh figs and cocoa-coffee aromas reach right up out of the glass and pull you in. Big, lush blackberry flavors fill the mouth, with rich chocolate and a little vanilla in the background. The extracted, broad flavors carry through from beginning to end. This wine wine is very full-bodied for the region and the finish is lengthy, and while just slightly astringent when I first tasted it in April, the tannins are already beginning to soften.

This wine was just a little one-dimensional back then too. It was almost a fruit-bomb of a wine back then, mostly fruit and tannins on the palate without showing much of what makes Long Island wines unique and delicious. Since my first tasting however, some of the coffee and chocolate flavors have unfurled along with a little baking spice.

Its best days are certainly still ahead. I expect the tannins to mellow even more revealing added layers of complexity and secondary aromas and flavors. In three to five years, when other wineries are just releasing their 05s, this wine could be a classic.

The 12 LI Wines of Christmas: #10 Shinn Estate 2006 First Fruit

This post is a part of my 12 Long Island Wines for Christmas series that will run from now until Christmas 2007. See the entire series here.

As we enter the home stretch of my 12 Long Island Wines for Christmas, it's time for another one of my favorite whites. In fact, it's the last white in the mixed case.

Shinn Estate Vineyards 2006 First Fruit ($23) was so tasty this year that it sold out before I could stock my cellar for the summer. But, the 2007 will be released this spring and I won't make the same mistake again.

Made with 96% sauvignon blanc and 4% semillon, right, the nose is filled with the fresh aromas of juicy pear, grapefruit, lemon and sweet spring herbs.

Medium bodied and flavorful, the pear flavors are lip-smackingly delicious, with subtle ruby red grapefruit and terrific acidity. The herbal character of the grape is here, particularly on a surprisingly long minty-lime finish, but it’s not aggressive or overbearing. Impeccable balance is on display here.

If oysters are a part of your holiday tradition, try to find some of this. You'll be glad you did.

 

The 12 LI Wines of Christmas: #9 Paumanok Vineyards 2004 Assemblage

This post is a part of my 12 Long Island Wines for Christmas series that will run from now until Christmas 2007. See the entire series here.

When I woke up this morning, I realized that I only had a few more days to announce the final four selections for my 12 Long Island Wines of Christmas series. Like every year, and in every way, it seems that the holiday has sneaked up on me.

The #9 wine in this mixed case of Long Island wines is one that is tasting well now, but should be even better in years to come Paumanok Vineyards 2004 Assemblage ($36). Made with 38% merlot, 38% cabernet sauvignon, 12% cabernet franc and 12% petit verdot, this blend is a highly aromatic wine with aromas of black cherry, blackberry, blueberry jam, star anise and cinnamon.

The palate is medium-to-full bodied with intense flavors that closely match the nose -- dark fruits and spice. The tannins are slightly grippy, but ripe and well integrated. There is also juicy blueberry-blackberry note on the mid-palate and a subtle earthiness on the finish, which is nicely lengthy.

This is a wine that I wish I had a few cases of in the cellar. Instead, I think I have a single bottle.

The 12 LI Wines of Christmas: #8 Corey Creek 2006 Domaines CC Rose

This post is a part of my 12 Long Island Wines for Christmas series that will run from now until Christmas 2007. See the entire series here.

As long-time reader reminded me this morning (thanks for the note Chris), there were a ton of great roses released this year. Regardless of varietal composition or style, it just seemsedlike Long Island winemakers just did a great job with rose from the 2006 vintage.

In fact, much like choosing a Channing Daughters white the other day, choosing a rose from the plethora of great ones was difficult. So this time around, I'm trusting Nena's palate. My wife is lover of dry rose and this was far and away her favorite pink drink this year. And, it's just what I like in rose as well.

Long sold out, Corey Creek's 2006 Domaine CC Rose ($16) was a relative in a region where some wineries  bargain almost $20 for rose. Perfect for spring and summer sipping, this blend of cabernet sauvignon, cabernet franc and merlot was a pretty pale pink and offered plenty of cherry, peach and cherry blossom flavors with fresh, tongue-tingling acidity.

We plowed through nearly case of it this spring and when we discovered it on a wine list at a local restaurant, Nena had more of it there.

The 12 LI Wines of Christmas: #7 Channing Daughters Winery 2006 Vino Bianco

This post is a part of my 12 Long Island Wines for Christmas series that will run from now until Christmas 2007. See the entire series here.

It's impossible to put together a mixed case of Long Island wine without including something from Channing Daughters Winery. Rather than focus on Bordeaux varieties like merlot, cabernet franc and cabernet sauavignon, winemaker Chris Tracy focuses on white varieties, some bottled no where else on the Island.

Unlike most wineries, the white wines are definitely the stars at CDW, but which to pick? With so many interesting, unique wines, it wasn't easy to pick one.

Eventually, I decided to go with Channing Daughters Winery 2006 VIno Bianco ($30), because it captures Long Island well, as well as Tracy's deft touch with whites.

A unique-to-Long Island blend of 27% Tocai Friulano, 26% sauvignon blanc, 22% pinot grigio, 19% Dijon clone of chardonnay and 6% Musque clone of chardonnay, this is a wine inspired by the "Super Friulian" whites of Northeast Italy. By combining a variety of grapes from both the North and South Forks of Long Island, Tracy has crafted a full-flavored, impeccably balanced white.

The nose is ripe with peaches, apricots, pineapples and citrus fruits accented by subtle baking spice and a little minerality. Medium bodied but somehow delicate, lively and flavorful all at the same time, pear, peach and tropical fruit flavor blend here with nice spice notes and just the slightest tingle of acidity.

Tracy has a clear signature and style, and this wine is easily recognizable as one of his creations.

The 12 LI Wines of Christmas: #6 Grapes of Roth 2001 Merlot

This post is a part of my 12 Long Island Wines for Christmas series that will run from now until Christmas 2007. See the entire series here.

Roman Roth isn't a name that long-time readers of LENNDEVOURS are unfamiliar with. His primary gig is as winemaker at Wolffer Estate, but he also serves (or has served) as winemaker or consultant for wineries like Roanoke Vineyards, Shinn Estate Vineyards, Vineyard 48, Martha Clara Vineyards and Scarola Vineyards.

His Grapes of Roth 2001 Merlot ($50) was the first release from his own label. He has recently released the 2002 vintage, but I haven't tasted it yet. Look for that soon.

In the meantime, I had to include this wine in the 12 Long Island Wines of Christmas. It was the best merlot I tasted this year.

Unfiltered and unfined, it is a deep, opaque brick red in the glass. Highly aromatic, the nose is rich and youthful with intense black cherries, grilled steak and Moroccan spice. As is true with most Roth creations, this wine is fruit forward, but balanced — with cherries, spearmint, sweet basil and faint smoked meat flavors. Full bodied but still remarkably elegant, this is a wine of nearly ideal balance that should improve with cellar time — probably up to ten years.

Roth has dedicated this wine to his father, Remigius Roth, who is pictured on the front label.

I'm hoping to do a side-by-side tasting of the 2001 and the 2002. The Wine Advocate preferred the 2002, giving it the highest score of any New York wine in it's last review. It received 92 points, if you care about such things. The 2001 got a 91.

Can I taste the difference? Doubtful.

The 12 LI Wines of Christmas: #5 Lenz 2001 Cuvee

This post is a part of my 12 Long Island Wines for Christmas series that will run from now until Christmas 2007. See the entire series here.

I can't have a mixed case of Long Island wine for Christmas without including some bubbly can I? I knew that I had to include some sparkle to the 12 Long Island Wines of Christmas, but I wasn't sure which to include.

You rarely hear about Long Island's sparklers, but there are several terrific ones, many of them made by Eric Fry. At first I was going to choose his Lenz 1994 RD (recenty disgorged) bottling, but I'm looking at this list as a buying guide too, and I'm afraid that there is just too much yeasty funk for many drinkers out there.

Instead, I've decided to include his Lenz 2001 Cuvee ($30), a new release that made with 70% pinot noir and 30% chardonnay, the classic grapes of Champagne.

It features a fairly persistent mousse and fine bead. The aromas are clean and fresh with fresh pear, apple and cherry aromas and a faint, doughy yeast note. Dry and lively, there is a lot of apple flavor here with white cherry, dried cranberry and yeasty, toasty complexity. The delicious, lengthy finish features with a crisp citrus note that definitely invites another sip.

I don't eat oysters, but with the winter oyster season approaching, this seems perfect for them. Open it on Christmas to toast the holiday. Have it on New Year's Eve. Drink it tomorrow just for the heck of it.

The 12 LI Wines of Christmas: #4 Waters Crest Winery 2004 Private Reserve Cabernet Franc

This post is a part of my 12 Long Island Wines for Christmas series that will run from now until Christmas 2007. See the entire series here.

We're only four wines into my 12 Long Island Wines of Christmas, and we're already including a second cabernet franc? Yes. We are. And, it's one that comes from a smaller, lesser-known producer. One that you might not even know about.

I've long been a fan of Jim Waters' riesling and gewurztraminer, but this 2004 Cabernet Franc Private Reserve blew me away when I first tasted it. Ripe and spicy, it's a wine that should develop even further in coming months (and years). 

Made with 100% free-run juice and aged for 14 months in new French oak, the blackberry nose is complex with layers of black pepper, violets, smoked meat and dusty dark cocoa. Medium bodied, concentrated and a little meaty, the palate offers loads of black fruit and spice as well. Lightly gripping tannins provide just the right structure.

The 12 LI Wines of Christmas: #3 Raphael 2005 Cabernet Franc

This post is a part of my 12 Long Island Wines for Christmas series that will run from now until Christmas 2007. See the entire series here.

The first red wine of my 2007 12 Long Island Wines for Christmas is Raphael's 2005 Cabernet Franc ($18). It won't come as a surprise to many of you that there's a cab franc on the list, of course. You know how much I dig the grape. In fact, it would probably be more surprising if this were the only one chosen. (Yes, that's a hint)

Cab franc is a grape that comes in many guises. Winemakers all seem to have their own style in these parts. Some eschew oak completely. Others age in neutral oak. Still others use significant amounts of new oak. This particular one is made somewhat in the style of those from the Loire valley, meaning it is made without oak.

The resulting wine very well may be my favorite local red under $20. The nose is loaded with red cherries and raspberries that are accented by floral spice and earthy notes. The palate is richly flavorful with cherry, spice and earth and pleasant structure – the result of acidity and skin tannin rather than overbearing oak. A pleasure to drink and highly versatile at the table.

This was actually the wine that inspired my decision to work with Raphael's winemaker on a 2006 cab franc of my very own. The 2006 isn't as intense as this 05, but the style is still there.