The New York Cork Club

It's been some time since I've written anything about the New York Cork Club here on LENNDEVOURS. I used to mention it once a month as we were sending out the wines, but I stopped because I wasn't sure if non-members cared. Actually, I doubt they did.

But you know what? I love this club and it's something I'm really enjoying working on. And, it's something that I'd like to see succeed, because there really isn't another club like it.

There are some other lesser New York wine clubs out there, but they seem to sell their members end-of-vintage wines and wines that are available at least somewhat widely. The NYCC is different. I'm scouring the state for the best, most interesting and most unique wines available. Many of these wines aren't available anywhere but at the wineries themselves...or through the New York Cork Club.

I know that several of you have thought about joining but weren't sure about it. If you're not sure, give it a shot for a month or two and see what you think. If you don't like it, you can cancel at any time. If you do like it, I hope you stick around for a long while. And, we're offering these wines at lower prices than buying them direct from the winery now, so that's a bonus.

I can't tell you what wines we're sending in April yet (though I can tell you that one is from a new Finger Lakes winery and one is from a tiny little Long Island producer), but I highlight some of the most interesting ones from recent shipments:

• Osprey's Dominion 2005 Pinot Noir: Quite Possibly the best NY pinot I've ever tasted...and only available in the tasting room until now.
• Raphael 2002 First Label Merlot: I don't think I've tasted a better Long Island merlot at the price.
• Paumanok 2004 Grand Vintage Assemblage: Though still young, a great blend that will age well
• Medolla 2002 Merlot: They only make 500 cases of this (their only wine) and it's a steal. Classic Long Island merlot.
• Rooster Hill 2006 Semi-Dry Riesling: This was a new winery for me and even though I usually prefer dry rieslings from the Finger Lakes, this one was awesome with Thai.

Now, I'm working with some of New York's best known producers to dig deep into their libraries and pull out some older vintage wines that aren't even available at the wineries anymore. Stay tuned for those.

Sign up today. I think you'll dig it.

Comments

[Val]

You're right about that Osprey's Pinot Noir. It's a Winner! Val

[Jeff]

I'm in the NYCC, and I can say that I haven't received a wine yet over the past year or so that i've said "wow, what were they thinking?". Unlike most non-winery clubs, the selections are top notch. Every bottle might not hit your personal tastes, but they're all great.

[BrooklynQ]

So what's it cost?

[Lenn]

It varies from month to month depending on the wines I choose, but we are almost always able to sell the wine for less than suggested retail (and if not, we charge retail).

We max out at $60/month plus shipping (you can pick it up!)...and I don't think we've gotten up that high more than once.

[Ian]

I know this post is a bit old for commenting, but I really want to know: has the NYCC changed it's shipping policies to ship out-of-state now that it's legal? If not,why not? There's plenty of us Ex-NY folks in Jersey who would buy a membership, I bet.