New York Cork Report

Wine Dinners: Showcases or Money-Makers?

By Lenn Thompson, Editor and Publisher

A couple of weeks ago, Nena and I had the pleasure of attending a wine dinner at Mirabelle Tavern, featuring the wines of Lenz Winery. It's always a pleasure to see Lenz's winemaker, Eric Fry and he was hustling his way around the dining room, talking with attendees about each of the wines as they were poured.

And, it's always great to sit down to a meal prepared by chef Guy Reuge, one of my favorite Long Island chefs.

For me, the pairing of the night (and this was a night filled with well-considered pairings) was Lenz Winery's 2005 Old Vines Chardonnay with Guy's cream of roasted free-range chicken and almond soup with honey (pictured at right). It was a masterful pairing that brought two things that are rarely my first choice -- cream soup and barrel-fermented chardonnay -- together beautifully.

The other star of the night was the 2001 Estate Merlot, which is tasting great right now. Eric is lucky to be able to get some bottle age on his wines before release. He told me that he doesn't have much of this left, but he's very happy with the 2002 bottling as well.

I get invited to a lot of wine dinners -- a lot of them. Without family nearby and only a couple reliable babysitters, actually being able to attend the dinners is rare. But, that doesn't keep me from reading over the menus and seeing what wines the wineries will be pouring.

A couple of the menus I've seen lately got me to wondering -- how do the wineries see these events? Are they money makers or are they about showcasing your best for the public? I won't pretend to know the mechanics behind the dinners (how much money the winery gets, if any, for them etc.) but it seems that wineries are all over the place when it comes to what wines they choose. Some seem to really want to put their best foot forward, while others almost seem to be pouring off lesser wines that aren't selling elsewhere.

Take the Lenz dinner. No, Eric didn't pour his 2001 Old Vines Merlot ($55), but he was pouring his sparkling wine ($30) and was not pouring his 2004 cabernet sauvignon (which is underwhelming).

On the other hand, I recently saw a menu for a wine dinner that included a non-vintage red blend, an over-oaked chardonnay and totally ignored the winery's best wines.

Perhaps it's just the local wine lover in me, but I want wineries to pour their best (or at least their near-best if finances dictate) at these dinners. Sending out second-rate and second-label wines seems like a waste of time, unless your only goal is to make a little money and clean out some inventory.

I know that several winemakers and winery owners read this blog, so tell me, how do you approach wine dinners? What are your goals? How do you measure the success (or failure) of these events?

Plastic Wrap vs. TCA: Does it Work?

Tom Mansell, the science-loving wine geek behind one of my new favorite blogs, Ithacork, posted a video the other day that I thought you might find interesting.

I've heard before that by pouring a corked wine over plastic wrap, the TCA binds to the plastic and leaves the wine tasting cork taint-free.

Watch his video above and see what he found.

Lamoreaux Landing Wine Cellars 2007 T23 Cabernet Franc

By Lenn Thompson, Editor and Publisher

Cabernet franc is a wine that comes in many styles across New York state. One one end of the spectrum, you have winemakers who eschew oak completely. On the other end, you have the winemakers who treat cabernet franc like it's cabernet sauvignon blanc, extending maceration and bludgeoning it with new oak.

I guess what I'm saying is that there isn't a clearly defined New York style cabernet franc yet. Nor is there a distinct style for Long Island, the Finger Lakes, etc. either.

This unoaked rendition, Lamoreaux Landing Wine Cellars' 2007 T23 Cabernet Franc ($15) makes a strong case for the no-oak style.

The nose is bright with tart cherries blackberries up front and layers of violets, lavender, thyme and subtle earthy spice.

On the palate, it's fresh and light-to-medium bodied with black cherry and blackberry fruit that is slightly juicy. The herb notes carry over, with light tannins and food-friendly acidity giving the wine just enough structure. the finish is medium-short, but features a nice spice note.

For $15, this is the kind of cabernet franc that I'd make my house wine. It should be versatile at the dinner table, and it's a good example of how a wine doesn't need to be big and hulking (or oaked) to be delicious.

Producer: Lamoreaux Landing Wine Cellars
AVA: Finger Lakes
ABV: 12.4%
Price: $15
Rating: (3 out of 5 | Recommended) 
(Ratings Guide)

Wine Importer Neal Rosenthal on Filtration

By Evan Dawson, Finger Lakes Correspondent

After the recent discussion regarding the effects of filtration on wine, I contacted wine importer Neal Rosenthal for his thoughts.

Over the past three decades Rosenthal has been a leading voice calling for unfiltered wines. In his book Reflections of a Wine Merchant, Rosenthal writes often about how he routinely asked winemakers to stop filtering wines. He also wrote a brief defense of Brettanomyces, but he did not connect Brett and filtration in his book. I appreciate his response, and I learned a bit about the evolution of filtration. I'd love to hear from winemakers and industry professionals regarding the filtration techniques that Mr. Rosenthal discusses.

His comments are:

First, let me say that I am neither vigneron nor winemaker. And, I have never had the desire to delve in microscopic depth into the chemistry of wine. So, if I am an expert on this question, a label that I would reject by the way, it is only as a result of my 30+ years of experience buying and selling and drinking wine.

I have a preference for unfiltered wines. That being said, whether a wine is filtered or not is not the factor that determines its quality.  The most important elements in producing wine of quality is to have vines planted in the best places and to do fastidious work in the vineyards. The rest, I contend, is the easy part, although I am sure that those who consider themselves “winemakers” might object to that conclusion.

When I grew up in the wine trade in the mid-to-late 1970s, filtering was de rigueur and was done in a very aggressive manner. In my opinion, many wines had their growth stunted and their character shorn by the filtration process, then done via the filter plaque with tight fibers that truly stripped away important parts of the wine in exchange for clarity of color and security. Because of this, I strenuously objected to the filtering of the wines I was buying. This was particularly true in the case of wines that were aging for a considerable period of time prior to bottling because, in those circumstances, most of the deposit that might have accumulated was easily eliminated with a careful racking of the wine prior to the bottling. This, to me, was the safer and more sane way to treat wine rather than pumping a wine through a filter which, to my way of thinking, produced nothing of value. I never viewed filtration, in other words, as something done to improve the quality of wine. 

There have been dramatic changes in the way wines are handled now. The “kisselguhr” method appears to be less aggressive and, therefore, less harmful than the old filter plaque. Also, those who use the filter plaque now frequently resist using the most compact membrane. On the other hand, the process of filtering, no matter which method is used, forces the wine to undergo a process that I would argue is unnecessary. Why manipulate a wine to gain nothing. So, yes, I remain a devoted fan of unfiltered wines. 

That being said, I have participated in tastings of wines that I have purchased from my growers alongside the same wine that my grower had filtered and have come away on occasion preferring the filtered version. I think this occurred not because the filtering improved the wine but as a result of the fact that the wine bottled for us was drawn from a single barrel and the other cuvée was a blend of multiple barrels. As anyone knows who has been around wine cellars frequently enough, each barrel has its own special characteristics and each plays a role in developing the personality of the wine within. 

The bottom line is that good vineyard work and the harvesting of healthy, ripe grapes are the essential elements in producing top-flight wines and my goal is to protect those wines from anything that might change or diminish them. Filtering seems to me to be, in most instances, unnecessary and, perhaps worse, deleterious.

Regards,

Neal
Neal I. Rosenthal
Rosenthal Wine Merchant Ltd.

Quick Q&A with Chris Stamp, Winemaker, Lakewood Vineyards

On my recent trip to Seneca Lake, one of the wineries that surprised me the most was Lakewood Vineyards. Winemaker Chris Stamp is making some classic, well-priced riesling, doing some interesting things with New York oak in his chardonnay and cabernet franc programs and even impressed with some of the hybrid blends. This week, we pose our Q&A questions to Chris:

What (and where) was the first bottle of wine you remember drinking?
First, you should know that although I grew up on a grape farm, my parents rarely had wine, or any alcoholic beverages around the house. Not because they were against it, but because back in those days, being grape growers for Taylor Wine Company didn't necessarily translate into knowledge about wine other than it came from the bins of fruit that you delivered to the wine factory.

There really wasn't much of a wine culture in this area back then. Today you could walk into any restaurant in Watkins Glen and find 12 people who are well read in matters of wine. Back then you'd be hard pressed to find a dozen in the whole town.

This fact makes it easier for me to remember my first taste of wine. It wasn't a stunning Bordeaux from a storied vintage, but a small glass of "Sparkling Burgundy," which was, I believe a charmat process, Concord-based bubbly. But at the ripe old age of somewhere around 10, I recall it tasted really good.

What event/bottle/etc made you decide that you wanted to be in the wine industry?
My fascination with wine making began in my early teens while visiting a neighbor. This neighbor was an off-the-boat Yugoslavian who loved to make wine. Lots of wine. In fact his basement probably had 1000 gals of new wine at any one time. I remember being intrigued by all the barrels, the bubblers, the carboys and probably most of all, the aromas. I would help him on occasion. At the time I thought "what a neat hobby". It was years later that it occurred to me that I could make a profession out of it.

Which of your current wines is your favorite and why?
This is a question I often get if I spend any time in the tasting room. My answer is always in the form of a question: Which of your kids is your favorite?

Fact is, it has more to do with the occasion, what I'm having for dinner, and the weather. I confess, I drink more of the drier wines, but if the company wants a sweeter wine, then that's my favorite that night.

What has surprised you most about being a member of the Finger Lakes wine community?
The growth of the industry. I remember when making 12,000 gallons qualified you as a large winery. We now make over 80,000 gallon/yr. And instead of being one of a couple dozen wineries, we're one of well over 100. Your perspectives sure change.

I'm also impressed at how well everyone still works together. If your neighbor needs something, you help if you can. Despite the growth it still feels like a small community. I like that.

Other than your own wines, what wine/beer/liquor most often fills your glass?
I rarely drink liquor, but I have a serious weakness for German-style Hefe Weizen. It might even be an addiction.

In the winter I drink more reds from all over the world, but when it warms up outside, it's impossible to beat a Finger Lakes Riesling. Every winery here makes a riesling and almost all of them are excellent. But the real sleepers of the Finger Lakes are the Gewurztraminers. This is a variety that we can produce as well as anyone. Your chances of finding Gewurztraminer in my glass at any particular moment are pretty good.

Is there a 'classic' wine or wine and food pairing that you just can't make yourself enjoy? Yes. Independently I love dry red wine and chocolate. Together, they are an abomination. What really worries me is that some poor soul is going to taste these two together and really believe that this is synergy. What a travesty. Nothing in the pairing works. Whoever proffered this notion show be condemned!

Wine enjoyment is about more than just the wine itself. Describe the combination of wine, locations, food, company, etc. that would make (or has made) for the ultimate wine-drinking experience.
Probably 8 of my top ten wine experiences has taken place right in my own dining room. My wife and I both like to cook, and we have an embarrassingly large wine cellar.

In the winter it might be porterhouse steak with avocado sauce paired with cabernet franc (this one is awesome!) served in the dining room with the fireplace roaring in the background. Or in the summer, garden-fresh grilled vegetables with a crisp dry riesling on my front deck over looking the lake as the sun fades away.

The key is nobody has to be anywhere else that night. There is the feeling that this is what we work for, these moments at the end of the day, when we can all put away our type A side and relax and enjoy the fruits of our labors.

Happy Easter from the LENNDEVOURS Team

 

Today we celebrate not only Easter but also the 2,000th post on LENNDEVOURS. And what better way to celebrate both than to post a couple pictures from those that inspire this blog the most -- Jackson, head sous chef in the LENNDEVOURS kitchen (and quite an Easter egg hunter as you can see) and, Nena the executive pastry chef in the LENNDEVOURS kitchen. A bit of her rice cereal work at right.

Our Easter egg hunt complete, I'm working on my first-ever batch of pancakes (usually the pastry chef makes 'em), shirred eggs and (of course) bacon.
Then, Nena takes over the kitchen for Easter dinner, with my only contribution the ham, smoked over apple wood.

To drink? Finger Lakes riesling and Long Island pinot noir of course. Pictures of the Easter spread to come.

Happy Easter everyone.

Martha Clara Vineyards 2007 Himmel

By Lenn Thompson, Editor and Publisher

They don't always get a lot of attention, but there are quite a few late harvest and ice-style wines being made on Long Island. I say "ice-style" because the local versions of those wines are typically harvested long before they freeze on the vine, frozen in commercial freezers and pressed from there.

This wine, Martha Clara Vineyards 2007 Himmel ($31) is one of those commercially frozen wines, made with 60% riesling and 40% Gewurztraminer from the producer's own vines.

What works about the best local dessert wines is acidity to balance out all of that sugar. We can thank cool evenings, even in the height of summer, for the kind of slow ripening that leads to balanced wines.

Except 2007 was warmer than most -- great for reds and some whites -- but that ripeness (and lack of acidity) is apparent in this wine.

Medium-gold in the glass, the enticing nose blends honey with dried apricot, peaches and subtle citrus blossoms. Perhaps a little botrytis?

The palate shows great flavor -- honey-roasted apples, faint brown spice -- but low acidity leaves it feeling flat, actually flabby, in the mouth. The finish is very long with that brown spice really stepping forward, but the near-cloying sugar-to-acid ratio here keep this from being a truly special wine.

Producer: Martha Clara Vineyards
AVA: North Fork of Long ISland
ABV: 12.5%
Price: $31
Rating:    (2 out of 5 | Average)

(Ratings Guide)

I Met My Farmer Last Week. Have You Met Yours?

By Evan Dawson, Finger Lakes Correspondent

Let me start by saying that I love animals, but I also love to eat them.

I appreciate the dichotomy of finding cows lovable and delicious. I am nauseated by the horrific treatment of cows, pigs and chickens, among other animals, but it's always been easiest to simply not think about such treatment.

This week that abrogation of duty ended for me.

On a crisp but sunny afternoon I drove down to Romulus (located between Seneca and Cayuga lakes) to meet Tim Haws, the farmer and owner of Autumn's Harvest Farm. It was not a convenient time for Tim, as he was juggling myriad duties on the farm (cows getting ready to give birth and food needing to be delivered to local restaurants, for example) and myriad duties in the small house connected to some of his 77 acres (taking care of his 18-month old son and 3-month old daughter, for example). And yet Tim had encouraged me to come down and see the animals, so I did.

I had discovered Autumn's Harvest Farm on EatWild.com, a wonderful resource devoted to linking consumers to grass-fed beef, pastured eggs, etc. And yet I confess that I still harbored doubts. A stunning majority of food sold in grocery stores (even stores like Whole Foods) does not boast an origin that matches the flowery stories printed on the labels. American farmers struggle to survive if they do not adopt an industrialized model -- the government, and the USDA in particular, favors larger producers and subsidize the operations that submit to this model. I have not met many farmers who have refused to submit to this scheme.

And then I met Tim Haws. A teddy bear of a man, Tim greeted me and welcomed me into his kitchen while his father, a retired former employee of the city of Geneva, watched over Tim's son Ty. We talked a bit about Tim's farming practices, and here are some of the things he said:

"Our animals are happy. Believe me, that matters."

"We rotate our cows at least once a day, and sometimes twice. They're so smart. They not only know they're going to be moved, they get excited about the new grasses."

"Cows are not supposed to eat corn. And don't believe they're only eating corn on those huge farms. They get fed dried bubble gum and all kinds of trash. That's disgusting, and then you think about eating that cow that was eating that stuff."

This was not a sell job. He did not have a set shtick designed to placate consumers who want to eat some Elysian version of "organic." He was just plain-spoken and he was, no doubt, speaking my language.

I was already sold on Tim's practices, and I was deeply enjoying having the chance to meet his family. I offered to write the check for the food I was buying (a 14-pound ham and a pair of steaks -- Tim threw in some extras as a gift), and I wanted to get out if his hair. His father, who takes care of a lot of the delivery, was getting ready to head out to Red Newt Bistro and several places -- Autumn's Harvest provides beef and pork to Red Newt, Simply Red at Sheldrake Point, and a handful of other restaurants. But Tim didn't want me to leave before I met some of the animals.

We took a nice walk around the property and said hello to some of the heritage pigs and cows who were lazily chomping away at the grass. Tim showed me one of the portable pens that allows chickens to move around on the grass -- real, actual free range! -- and he continued to cheerfully talk about the benefits of animals eating grass. "Chickens don't only eat grass," he said, smiling. "They love to follow the cows and dig through the cow droppings to find the bugs. We don't ever have to spray -- the chickens do so much work!"

It was, to be sure, a mirror image of the philosophy espoused by the now-famous Joel Salatin in Michael Pollan's brilliant book, The Omnivore's Dilemma. And yet I had never mentioned Salatin or Pollan or the book. Tim was leading me around, sharing his own ideas, and it only reinforced the importance of grass-fed animals.

At the risk of sounding condescending, I can't urge you strongly enough to go meet your farmer. I will make a strong effort to never buy corn-fed beef again unless there are no other options. If we could see the way most of the animals that we eat are treated, we'd find those farmers and ask them how in the world our food system ever devolved into this madness. And then if we could meet people like Tim Haws, we'd be inspired that it can change.

There are other grass-fed farms in the Finger Lakes and Long Island -- and across the state and country. Check out EatWild.com to find them. And share your stories in the comments. 

Before I left I asked Tim and his father if I could come back later this year and volunteer for a day. Tim laughed, and his father said, "You better be ready to get dirty!" I am ready indeed, though I know that "dirty" at Autumn's Harvest Farm carries an entirely different meaning than dirty at an industrialized facility. 

Damiani Wine Cellars 2007 Cabernet Franc

I'm not sure when I first stumbled upon my now-friend Dave Honig's blog, 2 Days per Bottle, but I do know that it changed the way that I taste and review wines.

I've always frowned upon the "power tasting" that some publications employ -- tasting wines in rapid succession, in a near-clinical environment, spending no more than a few minutes with each wine. Instead, I have always preferred to taste wines over the course of an evening, with and without dinner or other food, to evaluate them in a way more similar to how people actually drink wine.

But Dave's blog has helped me take it even further. On his blog, he answers the question "Why two days per bottle?" this way:

Have you ever noticed how a really mediocre bottle can be much better the second night? Sometimes a wine that is "closed" opens up from exposure to air. This is a great hint that the wine is really not as bad as you thought. It just needs more time in the cellar. Alternatively, something great falls completely flat in just a day - drink all you've got, because there's not much time left. Wine starts changing rapidly the moment you open it.

So, for several months now, I've been tasting wines for at least two days before disposing of the leftovers and writing my final notes. Nena's not happy with this shift, only because our kitchen counter often has 6-10 bottles of wine on it for a couple days after my weekly tastings.

Damiani Wine Cellars 2007 Cabernet Franc ($23) is the kind of wine that needs two days (or more) to really taste and get a sense for.

Right out of the bottle, on day one, I didn't like this wine very much. It had some nice dark fruit, but with a weird chlorine-like aroma that was more than a little off putting. If I hadn't tasted this wine again the second (and third, actually) day, this isn't the review I'd be writing.

Ripe, just-crushed black cherries and blackberries dominate the nose, with dusty cocoa powder and hints of cola, root beer and jalapeno pepper.

The palate is medium bodied, with flavors that closely match the nose -- especially those dark fruits. The smooth tannins are a bit bigger than you might expect and this wine also shows good acidity -- both leading me to believe that it will age well for five years or more.

This wine also serves as a reminder that many of New York's smallest wineries need to release wines long before they really should (or would probably want to), but that's a post for another time. Just know that this wine is not showing its best yet -- far from it.

Producer: Damiani Wine Cellars
AVA: Finger Lakes
Price: $23
ABV: 12.8%
Rating: (3 out of 5 | Recommended) 
(Ratings Guide)

New York Wine News and Notes (4/8/09)

There's a lot going on in New York wine country these days, so I thought I'd put together a post with some of the highlights:

• First, I'd like to offer congratulations to Greene Grape Wine Company, my partners in the New York Cork Club, for being named “Wine and Spirits Retailer of the Year” by the New York State Wine and Grape Foundation. I'd like to think that the NYCC had a lot to with them winning.
• In case you missed it, Appellation America posted an interview that I did with Thomas Laszlo of Heron Hill Winery on Keuka Lake: The Mysteries of Finger Lakes Terroir. Thomas is known for speaking his mind and I think he did that in our interview.
• I also think that if you enjoy LENNDEVOURS, you should check out a still-new wine blog out if Ithaca, NY called (cleverly) Ithacork. I check it every day for updates.
• Applewood Winery in Warwick, NY is hosting the New York Riesling Experience May 2 and 3. It will include food and Wine pairings, chef demonstrations, winemaker talks, comparative riesling tastings and live entertainment. Tickets are $12 in advance and $15 at the door.
• For the month of April, members of Long Island Wine Council will be taking part in Barrel Tasting Month, a great opportunity for tasting room visitors to sample reds from the much ballyhooed 2007 vintage.

The Grapes of Roth 2003 Merlot

Roman Roth, the German-born winemaker at Wolffer Estate and Roanoke Vineyards, released the first wine under his own The Grapes of Roth label in the summer of 2006. That 2001 merlot, was a beautiful wine from one of Long Island's best vintages. It also received a 91-point score from Wine Advocate. His 2002, which garnered a 92-point score, will probably prove to be the longer lived of the two.

Last weekend, I tasted the newly released The Grapes of Roth 2003 Merlot ($50) for the first time. While not without its own merits, it just doesn't stand up to the previous vintages.

The grapes that went into this wine come from Sam McCullough's vineyard on the North Fork. McCullough is the vineyard manager at Lenz Winery and is one of the region's best growers, which is no doubt why Roman sources his merlot for GoR from Sam's vineyard.

But, 2003 wasn’t a great vintage for Long Island wines — especially reds. It's not that it was a cold growing season. Or even a rainy one for most of the season. The spring and summer months were fairly typical (in a good way). But, rain and then two October frosts caused problems for many growers.

Once the frost kills the vines’ canopy, photosynthesis stops and the grapes won't ripen further. You can talk about “hang time” (on the vine) all you want, but without the sugar factory, the grapes won’t develop any further.

Deeply colored a rich garnet-purple, this wine's nose is intense and shows great nuance and depth. The fruit aromas move from dark cherry to black raspberry to blueberry and back. There is also a distinct dried cherry note and toasty oak character here.

The toasty edge of the nose is very different on the palate, taking center stage. The 21 months this wine spent in barrel is much more apparent, almost overwhelming at this stage in the wine's development. Dried cherry, fig and dusty cocoa flavors emerge when the wine is allowed to breath over night and the tannins are
well integrated, but overall, I'm left wanting a bit more fruit and perhaps a bit less oak.

Producer: The Grapes of Roth
AVA: Long Island
ABV: 13.5%
Price: $50
Rating: (3 out of 5 | Recommended) 
(Ratings Guide)

Debating Wine Store Sales: Selling by Geography vs. Selling by Variety

By Evan Dawson, Finger Lakes Correspondent

In an innocuous Facebook status update, Finger Lakes Wine Country's Morgen McLaughlin asked this question:

"Would New York wines sell better if stores merchandised by varietals instead of regions?"

The question engendered a quick burst of responses. My initial thought was that the answer is yes, but I admit I haven't thought much about it. 

What do you think?

I answered in the affirmative because I see so many wine stores that have turned New York wines into the quiet pariah of the retail world, shoved unceremoniously into the corner. Many wine store owners know very little about the New York wine industry. This is not to say that all wine store owners neglect New York state wines -- hardly. But too many, in my opinion, do.

The problem with mixing New York state wines into the general varietals is that some stores don't simply offer wine by varietal. Many stores have sections for California, France, Italy, etc. And if the store has separated wines by geographical origin, eliminating a New York section could be a mistake.

But I concede that I'd love to see such an experiment. How long would the experment need to be to have a large enough sample size to measure results accurately? I really don't know. Two months? Six? Less?

Regardless, it'd be a curious endeavor, no doubt.

Consumers, would you rather see stores separate wines by varietal?

Liquor store owners, what impact would this have?

Wine industry folks, any preference?

Wine Jobs: Seasonal Positions at Heron Hill Winery

Heron Hill Winery is hiring. They are looking for energetic, enthusiastic people to fill seasonal openings in our tasting hall, gift shop and café.

Wine knowledge is preferable but we are willing to train those who are ready to learn. Flexible schedules are available May through October. Contact Paul Wilson at 800-441-4241, ext# 25, or email [email protected].

Red Newt Cellars 2007 Curry Creek Vineyards Pinot Gris

Most of the pinot gris coming out of the Finger Lakes (or Long Island for that matter) is mediocre at best, barely a step up from the lemon-water pinot grigio that you'll find at most every bar and restaurant.

As with every wine generalization, there are exceptions of course. For instance, I almost always like Channing Daughters Winery's Pinot Grigio and now I can add a second wine to the "good New York pinot gris/grigio" list: Red Newt Cellars 2007 Curry Creek Vineyards 2007 Pinot Gris ($24)

Right out of the fridge (when the wine was over-chilled) this wine wasn't giving up much on the nose or palate. But, as it warmed just a bit, the nose opened up, showing ripe, juicy pear and apple flavors with nutty-almond and citrus blossom accents.

On the palate, this is medium-to-full bodied and broad, filling the mouth with bright apple and almond flavors, with hints of succulent sweet melon and flowers. Bright acidity cuts that broadness, bringing near-perfect balance. The The finish is medium-long and ends on a clean minerally note that definitely invites another sip.

After my tasting, I enjoyed a glass of this with an assortment of artisan cheeses and it worked wonderfully. Dry riesling is still my go-to for cheese, but this was delicious as well.

Producer: Red Newt Cellars
Price: $24
ABV: 14.1%
Rating: (3.5 out of 5 | Very good-to-Delicious).

(Ratings Guide)

Quick Q&A with Peter Bell, Winemaker, Fox Run Vineyards

 Peter Bell, winemaker at Fox Run Vineyards, probably needs little (if any) introduction to LENNDEVOURS readers. He perhaps more than any other Finger Lakes winemaker, joins discussions on this blog regularly.

And yet, I still learned something when I asked him our standard set of questions, including his disdain for unfiltered wines.

What (and where) was the first bottle of wine you remember drinking?
It must have been Mateus Rosé, in the early 1970s, in Toronto. I don’t recall enjoying it that much, but that’s what everyone drank. I think the tiny bubbles irritated me on an existential level.

For my 16th – whoops, I mean 21st - birthday, some friends splurged on a very expensive at the time ($5) Liebfraumilch, which I remember drinking with great pleasure, partly because I felt wildly sophisticated. The Nun on the label was actually quite sexy, in a playful, cloistered kind of way.

After I got out of high school, I went and lived in Spain for awhile, and we used to drink the local Catalonian red with dinner every night at a seafood joint, cut with large quantities of fizzy water. No actual memories of what it actually tasted like.

What event/bottle/etc made you decide that you wanted to be in the wine industry?
My assistant winemaker, Tricia, recounts visiting Fox Run one day about four years ago, and having a sudden realization, while standing in the vineyard, that she absolutely had to be involved in the wine industry.

Alas, for me there wasn’t a single epiphanic moment, and so I will never get any offers from Hollywood to make a biopic. But if that were to happen, I want to be played by George Clooney.

I had taken a couple of courses through the Wine and Spirit Education Trust, and everything kind of built from there. As we all know, once you get entranced by wine, there’s no going back. I became a monomaniac there for a while, in service of my need to become a winemaker. May have lost a few friends over that one.

Which of your current wines is your favorite and why?
I get on kicks that last a few weeks at a time. Right now it’s red Bordeaux varietals from 2007. I can just walk up to a tank and ask it for a little something for dinner that night…how fantastic is that?

Pinot is always a fallback, and of course, riesling. Gewurztraminer with a few years’ bottle age.

What has surprised you most about being a member of the Finger Lakes wine community?
To steal a line from (previous profilee) Amy Cheatle, “how amazingly cool everyone is, seriously.” The grammarian in me might rephrase it as “…like, TOTALLY seriously.”

Other than your own wines, what wine/beer/liquor most often fills your glass?
I drink a lot less beer now than I did as a young individual. Way back when, my beer of choice was Molson Stock Ale, which I don’t think they even make anymore.

Almost all Finger Lakes Rieslings are welcome in my alimentary canal. I also have an almost dangerous fondness for Fino Sherry. In my world, good Pinot noir, and Champagne and its New World derivatives, always get smiley face stickers.

There are some wines that I lust after but almost never get to drink: white Bordeaux, unoaked Hunter Valley Semillon, 20-year-old German Rieslings. Be still my heart.

This sounds like I have an aversion to tannins, which I don’t. The three things I am most proud of are 1) my very high HDL readings, being a reflection of my tannin consumption, 2) my collection of NASCAR memorabilia, and 3) my ability to lie about a fondness for NASCAR.

Is there a 'classic' wine or wine and food pairing that you just can't make yourself enjoy?
Well, the little epidemiologist dude on my shoulder can’t let me enjoy raw shellfish, so oysters and Chablis ain’t gonna happen.

I have no patience at all for overripe, high-alcohol California reds. They actually make me grouchy, just by virtue of the fact that they exist at all.

My friends know not to waste old, necrotic reds on me, even if they are of admirable provenance. Maybe I’m a fruit to say I like fruit, but so be it.

There are a few varietals out there that make me puke, and they shall remain nameless; but let me say that if they knew the depth of my revulsion they would actually want to hire a security detail. And I don’t do wines whose labels say “unfiltered”. Brettanomyces metabolites really make me puke.

Wine enjoyment is about more than just the wine itself. Describe the combination of wine, locations, food, company, etc. that would make for the ultimate wine-drinking experience.
Imagine, if you will, a world in which there are no hypothetical situations.

The Best Policies Money Can Buy

By Jason Feulner, Finger Lakes Correspondent

Despite Syracuse's proximity to the Finger Lakes region, I have always found wine coverage in the local newspaper, the Syracuse Post-Standard, lacking (abysmal, actually). With this in mind, I was surprised to find an article recently in that same paper about the wine and grocery story controversy that went above and beyond in many respects. This piece, by Bob Niedt, investigates the money that went into the lobbying effort on both sides, at the same time juxtaposing the local perspective and efforts of wine shop owners in the Syracuse area.

Only a small portion of the details have come out so far, but it seems safe to say that hundreds of thousands of dollars on both sides were spent on lobbying in the last few months. Well-known grocery chains as well as independent liquor stores not only joined coalitions that paid for lobbying collectively, but also paid for lobbying directly.

What stinks about this situation, no matter which side you may happen to support, is that Albany's vote is for sale. The state is empowered by these controversies because we all feel the need to join the rat race and pump money into the corrupt system lest we miss out on a chance to peddle influence.

Albany save us! Albany please don't hurt us! Albany you are all powerful!

Is this really all about the wine industry, or consumers, or is it about which advocates will have the long-term ability to invest more and more into this lobbying effort? Independent liquor stores cannot remain so firmly united forever, and the larger grocery entities will continue to pour money into the system in order to justify their original investment.

Who do you think is going to win this one? My money is on the folks with the money.

Over time, the final answer to this question about wine and grocery stores will not be settled by what Albany feels is right, wrong, or even the will of the people. Instead, money will dictate the answer, and money will always trump all other considerations. Right now, the status quo has been maintained because Albany is still trying to figure out who has the better long-term prospects.

Pindar Vineyards 2001 Mythology

One of the great things about fermented grape juice is that no matter how much you know or how much you think you know, you never know everything.

Wine can and will surprise you.

Take this Pindar Vineyards 2001 Mythology ($30), for instance. I don't think anyone would argue that Pindar is one of Long Island's top, quality-focused producers. They aren't, but they are great at introducing people to wine with their sweeter, simpler wines. Every wine region has their Pindar. And it could be said that every region needs their Pindar.

Regardless of Pindar's place in the local industry, I've enjoyed several of their wines in the past. But none as much as I enjoyed this wine.

Made with 33% cabernet franc, 21% cabernet sauvignon, 20% merlot, 20% petite verdot and 6% malbec, this is proof that, when Pindar wants to, it is capable of making excellent wine.

The extremely expressive nose is very Old World, with black raspberry, tobacco, fresh and dried cherries and pencil lead aromas. The palate is medium bodied dry, complex and extremely well balanced. Dark cherry flavors dominate at first, with hints of vanilla and tobacco, but as the wine opens up in the glass, plummy flavors emerge along with dried leaves, more pencil lead and a light sprinkling of black pepper. The finish is medium-long and earthy, with just a little spice. 

Lovers of big fruit may not like this as much, but those (like myself) who like the earthy secondary flavors should.

Producer: Pindar Vineyards
Price: $30
Rating: (3.5 out of 5 | Very good-to-Delicious).

(Ratings Guide)

Wine Blogging Wednesday #56 Announcement: Fine Kosher Wines

I honestly don't know that I've ever tasted a Kosher wine. I'm sure that I have, at some point along the way, but I've never had a reason to specifically seek them out. I've heard a lot about them, and very little of it has been good.

And that's why, when John over at The Corkdork got in touch with me about hosting WBW this month with a Kosher wine theme just in time for Passover, I thought "Hey, that sure would give me an excuse to try some Kosher wine. Let's do it!"

So there you have it. That's how Wine Blogging Wednesday #56 Fine Kosher Wines was born.

Join us on the last day of Passover, April 15 and post about at least one Kosher wine. Me? I've actually gathered a handful of appropriate wines so the LENNDEVOURS crew will have some fun with this theme.

Check out John's full post for all the details

Damiani Wine Cellars 2007 Sauvignon Blanc

By Lenn Thompson, Editor and Publisher

When one thinks of the Finger Lakes, riesling is the first grape that comes to mind. After that, I think usually think about Gewurztraminer, pinot noir, cabernet franc and probably Vidal blanc before sauvignon blanc. But, there are a few producers dabbling in this grape and Damiani Wine Cellars is one of them.

There isn't a lot of sauvignon blanc grown in the Finger Lakes -- and with good reason. It's not very cold hardy and with the below-zero temperatures that can blanket the region, cold hardy is a characteristic that local vines need. Still, through careful vineyard placement and techniques like mounding up soil, it can be grown in the region.

I've only tasted a handful of these Finger Lakes sauvignon blanc, with spotty results. Clearly growers and makers have invested in this grape, but I'm not sure about its long-term success in the region.

This Damiani Wine Cellars 2007 Sauvignon Blanc ($17) is surprisingly understated, even austere on the nose with light citrus, underripe honeydew and just the lightest minty-herb note.

Medium bodied and with great acidity, the flavors are similarly light -- mostly citrus with a bit of melon and subtle peach flavors. I don't know what the residual sugar is on this, but it's a bit perceptible on the mid-palate before finishing clean and dry with a pear skin note.

Overall, it's well balanced, but just a bit austere. I'd be curious to hear what the yields were in the vineyard. Maybe they were just a bit too high.

Producer: Damiani Wine Cellars
AVA: Finger Lakes
Price: $17
ABV: 13%
Rating:    (2 out of 5 | Average)

(Ratings Guide)

How to Impress Outsiders: Open Your Cellar, Wow Them at Lunch and Stay Open Late

Chris O'Gorman of Merryvale Vineyards judging the FLIWC last weekend.

By Evan Dawson, Finger Lakes Correspondent

When you host guests, I wonder if you do what my wife and I do. We take the opportunity to clean the house and put our most sparkling foot forward. If a guest happens to believe the house is always so pristine, all the better.

But shoving all the clutter in the closet is one thing; honoring your guests by using the finest dishware and opening your finest wines is quite another. And that, essentially, is what a handful of savvy Finger Lakes wineries did this past Monday.

You see, this past weekend saw the passing of another Finger Lakes International Wine Competition, held in downtown Rochester. A benefit to Camp Good Days on Keuka Lake, the competition attracts judges from around the world. On Monday, the judges who wished to stay spent the day touring five Finger Lakes wineries. I was fortunate enough to be asked to guest judge on Sunday, and I chatted with several judges before they embarked on their Finger Lakes excursion. Here is the recap of their day, which is an instructive model for doing things right.

First, the 24 judges headed to Thirsty Owl Wine Company on Cayuga Lake, because Thirsty Owl submitted the highest-scoring riesling to the competition. But instead of simply pouring their current releases, the judges were treated to older wines from the cellar. "The judges enjoyed the vertical tasting, and they found the 2003 to be showing the best," said Ron Dougherty, the Assistant Competition Chairman who joined the two dozen judges on the tour. (Chalk up another Finger Lakes Riesling improving with age).

The group then had lunch at Red Newt Bistro, but, according to Dougherty, the phrase "had lunch" is a sadly limiting euphemism, as it was much more than that. "Dave and Deb Whiting blew us away," Dougherty said. "Soups, sandwiches, local cheeses, amazing food that went on forever. We tasted Red Newt's two new single-vineyard gewurztraminers side-by-side, and the judges were seriously impressed. Bob Madill from Sheldrake Point Vineyards brought some of his winery's best, which only made the meal that much better. That might have been the longest lunch those judges have had in years!"

Behind schedule, the judges headed up to Hazlitt 1852 -- "Most judges didn't realize that Hazlitt makes very nice dry wines in addition to their sweet wines," Dougherty said -- and then on to Lamoreaux Landing, where the group was treated graciously to a wide selection of wines. By the time they made it to the final stop on the tour, Ventosa Vineyards on the northeast side of Seneca Lake, they were beyond late. "And yet they happily kept the door open for us," Dougherty told me. "The judges were interested in seeing a winery that is making Sangiovese in the Finger Lakes. Interesting stuff!"

The judging panel on which I sat included Chris O'Gorman, the director of marketing for California's very successful Merryvale Vineyards. He was part of the tour, and I asked for his impression of the Finger Lakes. "We have been treated so well," he said. "It's pure class. And most importantly, the wines are worth the time. Finger Lakes riesling and gewurztraminer now stands with the best in the world. There's no doubt about it."

High ABV, Vanilla and Oak: California is the New Focus at LENNDEVOURS

 
For much of this blog's five-year life, it has dominated the New York wine world, culminating with LENNDEVOURS winning the "Best Single-Subject Wine Blog" category in this years American Wine Blog Awards. I'm proud of that accomplishment and what I have built here, but I'm not one to rest on my laurels.

So, now that I've conquered New York, it's time to shift gears here at LENNDEVOURS and choose a new under-appreciated U.S. wine region to cover in-depth.

At first, I thought about exploring regions like Virginia, Texas or even Michigan wine country. Those places are all making wines worth investigating further. But in the end, I've decided to re-focus this blog's sights on perhaps the world's least talked about wines -- those from California, specifically wines made in the regions that get almost no press, Napa Valley and Sonoma.

It will take me several weeks to roll out all of the planned changes here on LENNDEVOURS, but as of today, you'll notice a revamped logo, one where oak barrels are further emphasized and where the idea of wine at the dinner table is ignored. I mean really, who drinks wine with food? That's what Sunkist Orange and Mountain Dew are for.

Going forward, you will also see me move away from the 5-star rating system championed by some bloggers in favor of a new 1,000-point system that will help me better relate to my readers. You guys all know the difference between 899-point plonk and 900-point deliciousness, right? The 5-star system is just so... unsophisticated.

I will also be changing how I construct wine reviews. Instead of offering useless information like vineyard sources, the growing conditions of a particular vintage and food pairings, I'll use five or six adjectives to describe a wine and then just give you my rating. The number is what matters anyway.

Also gone are the days when I taste every wine over the course of several days, with and without food, and at (in the case of whites) at different temperatures. No one drinks wine like that in their daily lives, so why should I?

Instead, I'll pour a couple ounces into my glass and sniff, taste and spit in rapid succession... spending more longer than 45 seconds per wine. That will enable me to fully capture the wines essence and share that with you. Extraction, tannins and residual sugar will reign over nuance, balance and food-friendliness. Again, does anyone really drink wine with food?

Unfortunately, this editorial change also means that effective April 15 (I'm giving them two weeks notice), the New York wine lovers who contribute to this blog will be without positions here at LENNDEVOURS. I consider them friends and feel badly about this situation, but at the end of the day, this is a business. They prefer wines under 13.5% abv and favor riesling and cabernet franc over boozy chardonnay and cabernet sauvignon. There simply isn't room for them on a California wine blog's staff.

Starting today, I will also be selling ad space to the same wineries that I'm writing about. I know and trust myself to never be biased or to give them better scores -- even if they threaten to pull their ads if I don't do so.

In the end, I'm making this move because I'm keenly interested in how wines aged for 3 years in 100% new, high-toast American oak taste both now and over the next decade. I want to learn to identify the type of new oak being used based on nothing more than differing vanilla flavors -- Madagascar vs. Tahiti vs. Mexico vanilla. I also want to hone my palate so that I can detect even the most subtle (2% or so) residual sugar in dry reds.

This is going to be a good shift for me and for the wines of California. Lord knows that they need someone writing about them. They are often ignored in both the mainstream media and in the marketplace. No one wants to drink them. They need a champion.

I think I can win "Best Single-Subject Wine Blog" again next year, just for a different single subject. That's my goal.

Repeat after me: I love high-alcohol wine. I love vanilla. I love oak. I love California!