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) 

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

Someone has finally put the screws to Long Island wine—screwcap closures that is.

As I reported over the summer, Paumanok Vineyards has invested in the Stelvin closure equipment and bottled its 2007 whites without corks during January and February of 2008. I tasted the lot recently and will be writing about all of them over the next couple of weeks.

Today, we'll focus on the Paumanok Vineyards 2007 Sauvignon Blanc, a varietally correct rendition of a wine that is gaining momentum on the North Fork. I normally don't mention varietal correctness, but it was the first thing I thought of when I tasted this wine, even if it isn't exactly what I expect from Long Island sauvignon.

It has all of the aromas and flavors you’d expect from an American sauvignon though—grapefruit, kiwi and tropical fruit—along with nice acid structure and a faintly minerally finish that lingers just a bit.

I was amazed when I saw on the back label that this wine weighs in at a hefty 13.9% ABV. For lovers of California wines, that may seem typical, or low even, but it's the highest alcohol level ever for a Paumanok white. Don't worry though, it's all in balance and there isn't even a bit of alcohol heat on the finish.

While maybe not a great value at $28, it's still tasty.

Grape(s): 100% sauvignon blanc
Producer: Paumanok Vineyards
AVA: North Fork of Long Island
Price: $28
Rating:  (3 out of 5 | Recommended)

 

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: Shinn Estate Vineyards 2007 Rose (North Fork of Long Island)

I've mentioned it before, but I always find the diverse styles of local rose interesting. Last week, I reviewed Wolffer's latest effort, and in many ways, it's a pink-colored white wine (it's 40% chardonnay after all).

If that's one of end of the spectrum -- a white wine with color -- then Shinn Estate Vineyards' 2007 Rose ($15) is the opposite end. It's truly a pale red wine. It's a unique both for how it's made and the way that it shows actual varietal character.

Many roses are either the result of blending or of bleeding juice off juice to intensify red wines, but Shinn grows a specific clone of merlot specifically for the production of this wine each year.

A medium pink, it’s medium bodied and offers briar, strawberry, watermelon and a faintly buttery note on both the nose and the palate. Dry, but fruity, and with a little noticeable skin tannin this is a rose to enjoy with a wide range of foods. Think barbeque chicken, think grilled salmon, think burgers.

Heck, I tasted it with a barely rare steak over the weekend and it worked surprisingly well. Make sure that you don't over-chill this one. It's better just barely chilled I think.

Grape(s): 100% merlot
Producer: Shinn Estate Vineyards
AVA: North Fork of Long Island
Price: $15
Rating:  (3 out of 5 | Recommended)

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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WBW #44: French Cabernet Franc: Domaine Gasnier 2006 Chinon Cuvee Les Graves

This month's edition of Wine Blogging Wednesday, hosted by none other than Gary Vaynerchuk of Wine Library TV, is one I've been looking forward to for sometime for a few reasons.

First, as the founder of this here virtual wine tasting club, it's great to have Gary on board this month. Like him or hate him, he's big time in the online wine world. He's been on Ellen, Conan, Nightline and now he's hosting WBW. You'll notice that we wouldn't let him host WBW until after the other gigs. We had to make sure he was for real and not just a flash in the pan.

Second, I love cabernet franc, as you all know.

Third, this theme gave me an excuse to put down the New York wines for a moment and uncork a bottle of Chinon, one of my favorite French wine regions.

But, I broke one rule that I always have for myself when it comes to WBW -- this is a wine I've had before. In fact, this is a wine that I had once a while back, and I liked it so much that I bought a lot more of it. It's our house red when we want a break from local reds.

I'm drinking this bottle right now as I type this...and it's just as good as I remember. There's plenty of black and red plum up front and a little blackberry too, but there's all of the other things I love about cab franc as well. There's earthy notes, some asparagus (a good thing!), black pepper and a stony, mineral quality on a medium-long finish that is really nice.

It's medium bodied with medium tannins, it's versatile with food too. I've had it with Thai food. I've had it on it's own. And I've had it with pizza.

If you like your cab franc without (or with barely any) oak, you should definitely check this one out.

I bought this wine from Greene Grape Wine in Brooklyn.

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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