LENNDEVOURS

Medolla Vineyards 2003 Merlot (North Fork of Long Island)

Year-to-year weather differences affect every winery. But when you only make a single wine, like say merlot, each year, it has an even larger impact on your business.

Take Medolla Vineyards for example. Owned by John and Denise Medolla, this new procucer snuck up on me last spring their first release — a 2002 merlot.  2002 is considered by many to be an above average years for Long Island merlot and that wine is a classic North Fork merlot that, at $22, is one of the best deals in local vino. It straddles the line between Old and New World with a nose that offers tobacco aromas along with raspberry and cherry fruit. Medium bodied, the flavors are similar to the nose with some minty, eucalyptus nuances and well-incorporated, ripe tannins. Well balanced with a nicely long finish, it's still available and worth seeking out either online or at the co-op The Tasting Room in Peconic. 

Over the weekend, I got to taste a pre-release sample of Medolla Vineyards' 2003 Merlot ($15). If 2002 was a good year, 2003 was, generally, a bad one. There was a rainy period in October (after a good growing season) and two rounds of frost around harvest time. I've tasted a lot of downright bad 2003 wines, particularly reds, and while I wouldn't put this wine in that category, it definitely pales in comparison to the superb 2002.

A lighter, everyday-style red, this wine's nose shows lots of oak, which comes through as toasty vanilla aromas, with sweet red cherry fruit and tobacco as well. Medium-light on the palate, cherry is the primary fruit flavor here with tobacco, vanilla and some green pepper. It's no where near as rich or intense as the 2002. The fruit clearly just wasn't as good on its way into the winery. Overall, it's a bit of a let down, but with the lower price, the Medollas seem to have de-classified this wine in a way.

With relatively low tannins and nice acidity, it's best enjoyed with food.

Grape(s): 100% merlot
Producer: Medolla Vineyards
AVA: North Fork of Long Island
Price: $15
Rating:  (2 out of 5 | Average)  

 

Paumanok Vineyards 2007 Chenin Blanc (North Fork of Long Island)

As we continue our look at Paumanok Vineyards' 2007 whites — all closed under screwcaps -- we get to a truly one-of-a-kind wine, Paumanok Vineyards 2007 Chenin Blanc ($28).

Chenin blanc is rare on the North Fork — no one else grows it actually — and this is a wine that can be difficult to get your hands on. They don't make much and it has a rabid following.   

The nose is complex and expressive, showing a fruit salad mélange of grapefruit, mango, pear, melon and orange blossom.

A medium-bodied palate starts off fresh and clean with melon, grapefruit and mineral flavors, but as the wine crosses over into the mid-palate, the flavors change a bit, becoming richer with pineapple and honey overtones. That honeyed fruit character carries through to the finish, which is long and delicious.

The texture of this wine is faintly oily but it remains lively and clean because there’s plenty of balancing acidity. In France, Chenin Blanc has shown the ability to age beautifully, and I think this one might be long-lived too. It will be interesting to see how the Stelvin closure will affect that over time.

Grape(s): 100% Chenin Blanc
Producer: Paumanok Vineyards
AVA: North Fork of Long Island
Price: $28
Rating:    (3.5 out of 5 | Very good-to-Delicious) 

Ravines Wine Cellars and My Riesling of the Moment

As you probably know, this week we spent four beautifully relaxing days at a lakefront cottage just south of Penn Yan, New York -- smack dab in the middle of the Finger Lakes wine region. It's the off season up here, so Keuka Lake is quiet, almost eerily so when compared with the chaos that is often Long Island, but the riesling is providing plenty of excitement for us

Much like merlot dominates Long Island, Riesling rules the wine landscape up here. And, during our first afternoon tasting along the east side of the lake, I found what is my Riesling of the moment: Ravines Wine Cellars 2006 Riesling ($17).

No, it probably isn't be the best Riesling in the world, but it might just be the best in the region. And, in this moment (when I wrote this) -- sitting out on the dock, my toes near numb as they dangle in the frigid water, sipping a lightly chilled glass as I type away on my laptop -- there isn't another Riesling I'd rather have in my glass.

Deliciously minerally, with lime, orange blossom and crisp apple notes it's the dryness (many Finger Lakes Rieslings are made in an off-dry style) and a focused electric jolt of acidity that bring structure and lift this wine to new heights. Medium bodied and lingers on the finish, inviting another sip or bite of your meal. This is Finger Lakes Riesling at its most elegant and food friendly. Best of all, it's a great value.

Winemaker Morten Hallgren is doing exciting things with other grapes as well.

Morten, raised in Provence on his family's vineyard, has a diverse winemaking background that took him from France to Texas, to North Carolina, and finally to the Finger Lakes, where he is best known for his six years as head winemaker at Dr. Konstantin Frank Vinifera Wine Cellars.

In 2000, Morten and his wife Lisa bought 17 acres of land on a glacier-carved hillside on the eastern slopes of Keuka Lake. This land is located at the widest part of the lake, which allows grapevines to receive maximum benefit from its temperature-moderating effects. It has well-drained soils and is situated between two deep ravines, which drain cold air from the land during the winter. These ravines are the namesake of the winery. When I visited, they had just plowed 6 acres behind the tasting room for planting later this spring with Riesling, chardonnay, pinot noir, cabernet sauvignon and petit manseng.

When I was there, I got to taste some of Morten's first vintages at Ravines-a Riesling, a chardonnay, a pinot noir and a cabernet franc. All impressed, particularly the pinot noir, which is really just coming into its own.

Of the current releases, the 2007 Sauvignon Blanc ($18) stood out-even if it was only bottled two days ago. And, for anyone who thinks that great wine can only be made with the classic grapes of Europe, think again. Ravines Wine Cellars 2006 Keuka Village White ($12), a blend of 80% Cayuga White and 20% Vignoles, was an affordable surprise that reminds me of the everyday blended wines from Alsace. The nose is fruity and fresh with loads of melon and peach with just a little floral character and minerality. Medium-to-light bodied, those same fruits dominate the palate with slightly tropical hints as well. There is a light sweetness to the wine, but more than enough acidity to bring balance.

I've said many less-than-nice things about Finger Lakes reds in the past, but Morten's 2005 Meritage ($25) deserves mention as well. I liked it enough to make it the only Bordeaux-style red that I bought the whole trip.

There are Finger Lakes wineries that are bigger and better known, but Ravines Wine Cellars is clearly one of the most exciting, with a great future ahead.

WTN: Shinn Estate Vineyards 2007 First Fruit (North Fork of Long Island)

Sometimes I really (seriously) get sick of all the local chardonnay I drink in covering the region so closely. It's the second most planted variety on Long Island and, by far, the most planted white variety, so it only makes sense that there's a lot of it made, but man, with a lot of these wines, any Long Island terroir is beaten out of these wines by new oak.

That is why I'm still so excited about the local sauvignon blanc that some wineries have put out in recent year, including Shinn Estate Vineyard's First Fruit, which is 96% sauvignon blanc and 4% semillon, their nod to the white wines of Bordeaux.

The nose is expressive with fresh pear, lemon, grapefruit and herbal-grassy notes mingling.

The palate brings similar flavors-with the addition of a squirt of lime and a sprinkling of salty minerality. Medium bodied and impeccably balanced with snappy acidity, this is a wine born beside the sea and one that goes with anything from the sea.

Grape(s): 96% sauvignon blanc, 4% semillon
Producer: Shinn Estate Vineyards
AVA: North Fork of Long Island
Price: $22
Rating:  (4 out of 5 | Delicious, Distinctive ) 

WTN: Wolffer Estate Vineyards 2007 Rose (The Hamptons, Long Island)

It must be spring. The weather is getting just a little warmer. The East End sod farms are blanketed in that golf course green. And Wolffer Estate has released it's new rose vintage.

Both locally and around the world, rose comes in as many styles as there are ways to make it. Some winemakers use the saignee method, where they bleed off juice to concentrate their reds — with rose being the byproduct. Some, like Shinn Estate Vineyards, make rose for rose sake, even growing particular clones of merlot in a particular portion of their vineyard specifically for rose.

Others prefer to blend juice from red grapes with that from white grapes. Wolffer Estate's Roman Roth falls into this category, making his 2007 with 40% chardonnay, 35% merlot, 17% cabernet sauvignon and 8% cabernet franc.

Roth, like most everyone in the Long Island wine world, considers 2007 "an ideal growing season" because there were many warm, sunny days and only moderate rain. The fruit for this wine was harvested between September 26 and October 13. After crush, the juice gently pressed off and settled at 50° Fahrenheit followed by a cool fermentation temperature of 66° Fahrenheit to total dryness. Aged in stainless steel after blending, Malolactic fermentation was strictly avoided. Wolffer made a lot of it this year — over 4000 cases — but with another Hamptons summer ahead, they'll need it.

A beautiful pale (extremely pale) copper-salmon color, the nose is very reminiscent of sauvignon blanc with fresh squeezed citrus aromas –- grapefuit, lemon and lime –- with subtle hints of herbs and briary strawberry. On the palate, it continues its impersonation of a dry white wine with grapefruit and lemon staying in the forefront. Only as it warms do some strawberry and raspberry notes emerge. Medium-light bodied, it has great acidity and is no doubt extremely versatile.

Drink it with shellfish, non-shellfish, salads, or on its own on a hot summer day at the beach. Looking for the quintessential Hamptons wine? This might be it. I like just a little more heft and red wine character in my rose, but this one is plenty delicious.

Grape(s): 40% chardonnay, 35% merlot, 17% cabernet sauvignon and 8% cabernet franc.
Producer: Wolffer Estate Vineyards
AVA: The Hamptons, Long Island
Price: $15
Rating:  (3 out of 5 | Recommended)

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WTN: Bedell Cellars 2005 Musee (North Fork of Long Island)

Bedell Cellars' 2005 Musee ($65) is a wine that I've gotten more emails about than any other in my three-plus years covering New York wines in earnest. I've had readers, friends, winemakers and wine salespeople all reach out to me wanting to know my opinion of Bedell's new flagship red wine, which has replaced (I think and assume) the Cupola blend in the portfolio.

Made with 78% merlot, 17% cabernet sauvignon and 5% petit verdot, it is a fine effort that does a nice job balancing the power and intensity of the dry, hot 2005 growing season with a bit of elegance and emerging nuance.

Right out of the bottle, the wine’s youth is strongly evident, making it a bit "California" in character with primary aromas and flavors of blackberry, oak and vanilla dominating.

But with some time in the glass, secondary and tertiary flavors emerge, morphing what could have been just another over-oaked red into a wine with complexity and nuance.

Dark berry and plum fruit character are joined by subtle cocoa bean, espresso, spice and herb notes. The tannins are well integrated and softer than you might expect. The finish is long and invites another sip.

At $65, it's not a cheap wine by any means. I'd recommend tasting it first to see if it's to your liking. I like it, but I think there are better local values. Still, it's a well-made wine that is seamless and delicious.

Producer: Bedell Cellars
AVA: North Fork of Long Island
Price: $65
Rating:    (3.5 out of 5 | Very good-to-Delicious) 

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WTN: Bedell Cellars 2006 Gallery (North Fork of Long Island)

Last year, Bedell Cellars added a new premium white wine to it's portfolio, named Gallery. I really enjoyed it and I actually just polished off my last bottle a few months ago. They didn't make much of it, so once my last bottle was no more, I wasn't able to get my hands on another bottle or two.

Luckily, Bedell has recently released the second edition of its flagship white with Bedell Cellars’ 2006 Gallery ($48). And even if I like this one a little less, it is far more successful that the two chardonnays I reviewed earlier this week, if still pricey and with a touch more oak than the 2005.

It is a blend of chardonnay, viognier and sauvignon blanc and the nose is expressive with super-ripe peach and apricots up front with vanilla, faint toasted oak, baking spice and fresh flowers layered behind.

Extremely flavorful and well textured, it fills the mouth with spiced apricot and peach pie flavors, lemon zest, hints of mango, vanilla and sweet oak. There is terrific balancing acidity here that should give this some longevity and a lingering, slightly minerally finish stands out.

At $48, it's not a cheap wine to be sure, but these sorts of blends can be very successful with Long Island fruit. The success of Channing Daughters Winery is further evidence of that.

Producer: Bedell Cellars
AVA: North Fork of Long Island
Price: $48
Rating:    (3.5 out of 5 | Very good-to-Delicious) 

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WTN: Corey Creek Vineyards 2006 Reserve Chardonnay (North Fork of Long Island)

Yesterday, I wrote about Corey Creek's regular chardonnay from the 2006 vintage, a wine that I thought was this wine when tasted blind because of all the vanilla and oak aromas and flavors. Today, it's time to take a look at the reserve bottling.

Darker in the glass, this one is a medium gold, but the aromas show plenty of oak influence -- though in a slightly different way. Here, the oak comes through as a butterscotch and caramel character with toast, spice-roasted apples and a faint doughy, yeasty note.

The palate is medium-full bodied and much like the regular bottling, the texture is terrific -- from start to finish. It's balanced with acidity, but again, the oak is overwhelming the fruit. There's a little apple-lemon here and some of the yeasty and spice flavors are nice, but not enough to counteract the oak.

It's hard to say if it truly lacks fruit or if the fruit was just bludgeoned into submission here.

Again, if you like this style, this wine has some redeeming value, but at $40, I expect much more.

Tomorrow, we'll start talking about the recent releases from Bedell/Corey Creek that did impress.

Grape(s): 100% chardonnay
Producer: Corey Creek Vineyards
AVA: North Fork of Long Island
Price: $40
Rating:    (2 out of 5 | Average) 

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Wine Spectator Likes Finger Lakes Riesling -- But is There a Glass Ceiling?

By Lenn Thompson, Founder and Publisher

If the Napa Valley is cabernet sauvignon country and Long Island is the land of merlot (and cabernet franc), the Finger Lakes region is definitely the U.S. region where riesling shines brightest. The deep, narrow lakes that give the region its name gather and hold a significant amount of heat in the warm summer season, extending the grape-growing season just long enough to ripen grapes as well as protect vineyards against potentially catastrophic early frosts.      

Recently, James Molesworth, on WineSpectator.com rated several Finger Lakes Rieslings well — in the high 80s — with Anthony Road Winery’s 2006 Semi-Dry Riesling receiving the highest rasting, an 89. Several wines were awarded 88-point scores, including Atwater Estate Vineyards 2006 Riesling, Chateau Lafayette Reneau 2006 Johannisberg Riesling, Fox Run Vineyard’s 2006 Riesling Reserve, Red Newt Cellars 2006 Reserve Riesling, Anthony Road Winery’s 2006 Dry Riesling and Atwater Estate Vineyards 2006 Dry Riesling. Several wines also received scores between 85 and 87. I've tasted most of these wines, and they certainly deserve high scores in my book.

It’s interesting to me, however, that with so many wines so close to that magical 90-point score that none of them pushed through that barrier. Interesting probably isn't a strong enough word for how I feel about it. Suspect and ridiculous seem more appropriate.

I'm not sure if Mr. Molesworth did these scores himself or how he conducted the tasting, but I know how Wine Spectator has conducted  "blind" tasting session in the past. You see, blind belongs in quotes because they aren't truly blind. Members of the tasting panel don't know the individual producers before them, but they do know the vintage and grape(s) they’re tasting as well the region the wines come from. Is it possible that a preconceived notion about a region come into play? I think it's more than possible. It's likely.

The last time Wine Spectator did an extensive piece on Long Island wines, there weren't any wines scoring 90 or above either.

I can't help but wonder what would happen if you put some of that 89-point Anthony Road riesling into a bottle featuring a German label. Or, if you put one of Long Island's best merlots in a Bordeaux-labeled bottle. Maybe the scores wouldn't be any different, but I'm not convinced that many (if any) people can tell the difference between an 89 and a 90 anyway.

It really makes me wonder why Spectator does their tastings this way. Why not do truly blind tastings? Is it just we've-always-done-it-this-way stubbornness, or is it to protect their tasters from giving a high score to a wine from an 'unworthy' region?

Editors note: Jason Feulner, LENNDEVOURS' Finger Lakes Correspondent wrote about this topic as well. Instead of publishing both, I've asked him to either comment on this post, or write a follow-up post later this week.
 

WTN: Corey Creek 2006 Chardonnay (North Fork of Long Island)

I have a lot of blogging to do to catch up on everything that we ate and drank last week. But first, we'll start with one of the recent Bedell Cellars/Corey Creek wines I tasted.

We all know that the 'reserve' designation doesn't have any official meaning, but most of the time, on Long Island anyway, it means barrel fermentation and aging. The 'regular' bottlings usually mean more steel fermentation and more use of neutral oak.

Tasted blindly, I thought that Corey Creek Vineyards' 2006 Chardonnay ($25) was Corey Creek's 'reserve'-style wine (which I'll be writing about later this week). And the price hints at that too I guess. There is a lot more oak here than I'd expect and than I'd prefer.

Pale yellow-gold in the glass, the nose is dominated by vanilla, oak, sweet corn with butter and lemon. The medium-bodied palate offers great texture and acid balance from start to finish, but there is just too much oaky-vanilla character here for me. It overwhelms the apple and lemon flavors on the fore and mid-palate. The lingering, faintly minerally crisp finish is nice though. If you like barrel fermented chard, this is a pretty well made one, but I think there is just too much oak here for a somewhat cooler 2006 year. It's not a particularly good value either, within the Long Island market and beyond.

Grape(s): 100% chardonnay
Producer: Corey Creek Vineyards
AVA: North Fork of Long Island
Price: $25
Rating:    (2 out of 5 | Average) 

(About LENNDEVOURS Ratings)