LENNDEVOURS

Fresh-Pressed: John Levenberg Out as Winemaker at Bedell Cellars

I have emails in to my contacts at Bedell Cellars/Corey Creek Vineyards, but the latest rumor on the North Fork is that John Levenberg has been fired from his winemaking duties there.

His name (thought not his picture) have been removed from the website, so I'm inclined to think that this one is true.

This is a surprising development given his resume and the recent success he's had at Bedell, but it takes more than good wine to keep your job, right?

For the short term, it would seem that Bedell will move forward with assistant winemaker, Kelly Urbanik,  consultant Pascal Marty and founding winemaker Kip Bedell at the helm.

I'll share more information as I can dig it up.

 

I have emails in to my contacts at Bedell Cellars/Corey Creek Vineyards, but the latest rumor on the North Fork is that John Levenberg has been fired from his winemaking duties there.

His name (thought not his picture) have been removed from the website, so I'm inclined to think that this one is true.

This is a surprising development given his resume and the recent success he's had at Bedell, but it takes more than good wine to keep your job, right?

For the short term, it would seem that Bedell will move forward with assistant winemaker, Kelly Urbanik,  consultant Pascal Marty and founding winemaker Kip Bedell at the helm.

I'll share more information as I can dig it up.

 

Exciting News: Screwcaps Coming to Long Island Wine

A little birdy has informed me that a well-known and well-regarded Long Island winery is preparing to make the leap into screwcap closures for some of it's 2007 white wines.

Care to guess which winery?

Okay, I'll just come out and tell you. It's Paumanok Vineyards and I think it's great that they are pioneering the use of screwcap closures here on Long Island. Kareem Massoud, who makes the wines with his father Charles, told me in an email today that:

"...we are currently planning to start bottling wine under screw cap with our 2007 whites, that does not necessarily mean that all the 2007 whites will be bottled under screw cap.  Given that it is a new piece of machinery, there is always a learning curve, not to mention sourcing the correct bottles and screw caps.  Obviously, before we do it we want to make sure that quality control has been perfected.

It's about time that someone made this leap. And the best part is that it's one of the best wineries, not one of the makers of cheap, sweet plonk.

Juan Micieli-Martinez Heading to Martha Clara Vineyards?

Thanks to a reader tip (thanks John) and an email sent to David Page at Shinn Estate Vineyards, I've learned that Juan Micieli-Martinez, formerly of Pellegrini Vineyards, is now formerly of Shinn Estate Vineyards as well. Or he will be by mid-August.

"He has done a great job for us at Shinn during his time with us. Barbara and I wish him the best," Page told me in an email.

He's been offered the winemaker position at Martha Clara Vineyards. I haven't heard from Juan yet and I have no idea at this point what is going on with Gilles Martin, who at least had been the winemaker at MCV.

Stay tuned for more information. And, congratulations to Juan on the new position. He has experience at Premium Wine Group, the custom-crush facility where MCV's wines are made, so perhaps this is a bit of a homecoming.

Heard Through the Grape Vine: D'Latte Vineyards?

I've heard an unconfirmed rumor from a couple different unnamed sources that the owner of D'Latte Uncorked, an upscale deli/wine bar in Greenport, is planning to plant a vineyard on the North Fork with tight row spacing, build a winery on the premises and use a local winemaker as a consultant.

Does anyone know anything about this?

I'm going to call the deli when I get home tonight, but I'm wondering if any of my "insider" readers have heard anything about this endeavor.

Either way, check back soon for more information--I hope.