The New York Cork Report 2009 Readers' Choice Awards: It's Time to Hear From YOU!

By Evan Dawson, Finger Lakes Editor    

The editors have chosen our finalists for the wines of the year, but we all have different palates and preferences -- and now we want to hear from you. It's time for our first-ever "New York Cork Report Readers' Choice Awards."

In the comments of this post, nominate at least one New York wine as your choice for Wine of the Year. The rules are simple: The wine has to have been released in 2009. That's it. And if you aren't sure, nominate it anyway and we'll double-check the release date.

We're looking for nominations for wines from across the state, in each region, and we're leaving it up to you to decide which wines should be considered. You can even nominate a Leon Millot, a Vignoles, a riesling or a Frontenac -- there are no restrictions!

We'll leave the nominating open until December 15 at midnight. Then we'll tally the nominations and choose finalists.

From the 16th through the end of this month, we'll have polls set up for each reason to pick winners.

We'll announce the Reader's Choice winners around the same time that we announce the New York Cork Report 2009 Wines of the Year as determined by the editors. 

So think back on this year... Which New York wines inspired you? Which New York wines were memorable? Which should be nominated for Reader's Choice Wine of the Year?

Comments

[twitter.com/MattVanOoyen]

2008 Fox Run Reserve Riesling

[Sonadora]

Well, I haven't had too many NY wines this year, but I'll give a nod to the 2008 Macari Rosé I tried.

[Debbie Gioquindo]

2007 Palaia Vineyard Traminette

[Dsolon]

Bully Hill Baco Noir, (or the Foch)

[David Jackson]

Easy, Heart & Hands 07 Barrel Select Pinot Noir

[steve g]

Best Red- (wonder if released this year)- 2004 Macari Bergen Rd Meritage

Best White (Very hard)- 2008 Anthony Road Semi dry Reisling
2008 Macari Katherine Field Sauv Blanc (Hon. mention)
Best Rose-I really liked the 2008 Roanoke DeRosa Rose

If Bergen isn't this year, then go with Roanoke 2005 Merlot since David already mention Hearts and Hands.

Speaking of Roanoke and Hearts and Hands, since you are handing out awards, how about awards in marketing and packaging? Those glass bottle corks that Hearts and Hands come to mind. I love Roanoke's substantial bottles. Peconic Bay's Nautique line as well, although my wife thinks they look like shampoo bottles. (BTW, although I love their wines, thumbs down to Lenz' lack of creativity. I can barely tell their wines apart from one another in my dark cellar!)

[Susan B]

Treleaven King Ferry Winery 2008 Rose

[Jake Ward]

Lamoreaux Landing T23 or Lakewood Vineyards Dry Riesling

[Michael Gorton, Jr.]

I am glad I can mention a few...will do so over the weekend.

[RichardA]

Finger Lakes:
--White: 2008 Lamoreaux Landing Red Oak Vineyard Riesling
--Red: 2006 Heron Hill Ingle Vineyard Cabernet Franc

Long Island:
--White: 2008 Paumanok Chenin Blanc
--Red: 2007 Shinn Estates Cabernet Franc
--Rose: 2008 Macari Vineyards Rose

[TomD]

Shinn Estate by far!

[Brett Hall]

Bully Hill - Sweet Walter

[Matt Walters]

Fox Run 2008 Reserve Reisling

[Wences R.]

Red- Shalestone cab franc 2007 just ordered more
white-Ravines Argetsinger dry Riesling 07 not sure it qualifies for 09 release have not tried the 08.... nice story by Molesworth in wine spectator on Argetsinger,Damiani and Shalestone

[Tambi schweizer]

I totally love two wines..#1 Heron Hill's 2007 Reserve Pinot Noir and Dr. Frank Cuvee d'Amour!

[jim]

Anthony Road Semi Dry Riesling 2008

[KittyOliver]

I've been digging the Keuka Lake Vineyards Leon Millot from our neighbor winery. Hard for me not to stop on my way down to Hammondsport... Also, my brother-in-law turned me onto Ravine's Pinot Rose a few years ago, that definitely takes up some space in my cellar!

[Jeff]

Lakewood Niagra is our fruity favorite!

[Richard Leahy]

Hunt Country Vineyards' Valvin Muscat 2008. From a fairly new hybrid engineered by Cornell U., this wine combines the vibrant fruitiness of vinifera muscat with cold hardiness and disease resistance. It is a party in a glass, with loads of tropical fruit deftly balanced by classic Finger Lakes acidity, and won Double Gold in the 2009 International Eastern Wine Competition. Top-notch hybrid winess are better than mediocre vinifera!

[Chey]

Second Hunt's Valvin Muscat for a white.

For a red? Really difficult! McGregor's Black Russian Red - or - Dr. Frank's Cuvée d'Amour! Each so distinctive, so delectable! Guess I'll go with McGregor's BRR!

[Robin]

Hazlitt Red Cat and 3 Brothers Skirt lifter!

[Remy]

My nominations (so Lenn can stop pressuring me on Twitter) are:

White:

- 2007 Meditazione, Channing Daughters

- 2008 Chenin Blanc, Paumanok Vineyards

Red:

- 2005 Petit Verdot Appolo Drive Vineyard, Paumanok Vineyards

- 2005 Christian's Cuvée Merlot, Wölffer Estate

- 2007 cabernet franc, Shinn Estate

- Over and Over, Variation 2, Channing Daughters

Dessert

- 2007 Late-harvest chardonnay, Wölffer Estate

[Kate]

Standing Stone Riesling, Standing Stone Gewurztraminer, Sheldrake Dry Riesling, Treleaven Dry Riesling

[Dan]

2005 Christian's Cuvee Wolffer

[Raphael Shea]

2007 Heart & Hands Reserve Pinot

[Daryl]

Unfortunatley I haven't made it to NY this year...yet. I will be visiting family over the holidays and will be on a mission to stock up on NY wines. The only current releases I have had are the Dr. Franks '08 semi-dry riesling and '08 Cold Brook White. Both were great but I nominate the the CBW for "value white" of the year because I can't find anything as good in IN for $8.99.

[Jane Starwood]

Paumanok Vineyards 2008 Chenin Blanc is my choice for New York State Wine of the Year, 2009. It's over-the-moon fabulous!

[Carlo DeVito]

Heart & Hands 2007 Barrel Reserve Pinot Noir
Raphael 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon
Oak Summit 2007 Pinot Noir

Paumanok Vineyards 2008 Chenin Blanc
Red Newt Cellars 2007 Curry Creek Vineyard Gewurztraminer
Benmarl 2008 Riesling

[Donnell Brown]

Lamoreaux Landing 2008 Dry Riesling

[Mr. Devours]

Tom Mansell's 2008 Strawberry Wine

[Mattsito]

Herman Wiemer Dry Riesling 2007
(loved the Gewurz and Cab Franc too but way smaller production)

[Katie]

(I'm with Remy...Lenn, stop Tweeting and get some work done!)

200? Osprey's Dominion Flight Meritage
2007 Shinn Estates Cabernet Franc
2007 Herman Wiemer Dry Riesling
2007 Dr. Frank Dry Riesling

[David Stires]

Red:
LIMA's 2006 Merliance
White:
Shinn's Anomaly

[Michael Gorton, Jr.]

Ok Here Goes:

White:
Pindar 2008 Viognier
Shinn 2008 Haven
Shinn 2008 First Fruit
Peconic Bay 2008 Riesling
Raphael Naturale
Raphael 2008 Rose
Waterscres 2008 Reserve Chardonnay
Waterscres 2008 Chardonnay

Red:
Shinn 2007 Cabernet Franc
Bedell Main Road Red
Raphael 2007 Cabernet Franc
Raphael 2005 La Fontana (not sure of release)

Desert:
Waterscrest 2007 Night Watch
Pindar 2008 Late Harvest Riesling

[Bill Cyrus]

Heron Hill Classic Unoaked Chardonnay and White Springs Riesling have a permanent place in our wine rack above all other whites by a considerable margin.

[Kathy K]

Whitecliff Traminette

[David]

2008 Thirsty Owl Riesling!

[Adam Ehmer]

Steve G, thanks for solid votes on our packaging and our Rose! Go all the way with our Merlot!

I really enjoyed the bottle of Meditazione that I picked up from Channing Daughters early in 2009. I opened it during one of the late winter snowstorms and had it with alpine fare. One of the most intellectual wines I've tasted, a lot of detail to parse through. Kudos to Chris Tracy and his crew for making such a thought provoking wine.

[Marcia F.]

Anthony Road Semi-Dry Reisling - hands down. It is consistently wonderful!

[Jodi]

Shinn - wild boar doe

[steve g]

Adam- Actually, I don't limit my love of Roanoke vineyards to just your rose and your great bottles! I have never had a wine from your vineyard that I did not love. Problem for me is that I live in Albany NY, which if you think about it, is probably the one point in NY that is farthest from NY wine country. I can't get your products here so unfortunately, right now, your wine is a rare treat for me!

[Melissa Dobson]

Eeks, this is tough but here goes:

White:
*2007 Anthony Road Semi-Dry Riesling
*2008 Damiani Riesling
*2008 Keuka Springs Vineyard Riesling
*2008 Paumanok Chenin Blanc

Everyday White:
*2008 Rooster Hill Silver Pencil
*2008 Bloomer Creek Reserve White

Red:
*Fulkerson Vincent
*2008 Damiani Merlot
*2004 Shaw Vineyard Merlot

Bubbles:
*2007 Hearts and Hands Finger Lakes Brut Rose'
*2007 Damiani Sparkling wine

[Stephanie]

Catherine Valley- The Lost Irishman is my boyfriends favorite wine. It is what made him start drinking wine.
My favorite wine is Diamond by Thirsty Owl.

[Carlo DeVito]

Oooooo, I would like to add Thirsty Owl Lot 99

[steve g]

Hearts and Hands is getting a lot of love. Nice to see. They seem like nice people, and too my point about marketing, they sent me a nice handwritten note in the packaging of my wine thanking me for the business which made me like them.

[Donnell Brown]

2006 Merliance, the collaborative blend from the Long Island Merlot Alliance

[Charles Massoud]

Evan,

Interesting thread. However if it is to have credibility there has to be some guidelines such as persons voting should disclose whether they have an affiliation with the wine they are voting for.

What do you think?

[Evan Dawson]

Charles - My first instinct is that this is pretty unscientific, and that is probably hard to police (though I agree wholeheartedly with the idea). But perhaps Lenn, our tech wizard, can weigh in on this.

[Dana Estep]

Red - Heart and Hands 2007 barrel reserve pinot

White - Thirsty Owl 2008 riesling

Dessert - Chateau LaFayette Reneau late harvest riesling

[Steph]

I love the 2008 Pinot Gris from Hazlitt 1852 Vineyards

[Lenn Thompson]

Charles,

Not to worry...any nominations that clearly come from someone affiliated with a winery will not be counted or considered. In addition to names and email addresses, I also have IP addresses that I can check.

As such. Tambi's nomination of Heron Hill's wine and Donnell's Merliance nomination will not be counted.

We're doing the best we can with this, trust me. Once the polls are open, however, it will be in the hands of "the people" fully.

[Lisa Murray]

White: Finger Lakes -- Rooster Hill's 2007 Estate Semi-Dry Riesling

Red: Finger Lakes -- Rooster Hill's 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon

Thanks!

[Jason]

Svenska Red from Swedish Hill is my pick. It goes well with everything and always hits the spot!

[Kelly]

Svenska White from Swedish Hill. It is fantastic.

[Amanda]

Svenska Red from Swedish Hill and Niagara From Thousand Island Winery are my two picks.

[CHRIS]

MCGREGOR RESERVE PINOT NOIR

[Rick]

Hosmer 2008 Reserve Riesling

[Queesh]

Definitely Swedish Hill Svenska Red

[Cathi]

Love almost all the Swedish Hill wines, but Svenska Red is my favorite...with Jack-Ass Red bringing up the rear at a close 2nd!! Haha. ;)

[Suzanne Denn]

Swedish Hill Svenska White their Riesling isn't bad either

[Shawn Steketee]

Thirsty Owl Lot 99, Montezuma Cranberry Bog, Yates Estate Riesling & Six Mile Creek Semi Sweet Riesling.

[Joe Cavino]

Torrey Ridge Diamond
Torrey Ridge Allusive
Lamoreaux Landing 2007 Pinot Noir

[Amy J]

I would have to say

Swedish Hill Blush - Goes with everything.

Hazlitt - Red Cat

Lakewood - Abby Rose

[Harvey Spears]

Harvest Moon from Warwick Winery gets my vote.It is a white wine with everything your taste-buds deserve. Goes with about any food and brings out the pleaseure of drinking a wine.

[Elise Roedenbeck]

Red Quartet - from Glorie Farm Winery

[Kate McIntire]

The H. Wiemer & Billsboro Reislings nominated are fantastic!

[Rowland]

wow, looks like there are only 2 other people for the Hudson Valley :(

Benmarl merlot 2007
whitecliff malbec 08?
Clinton Vineyards Seyval Blanc 2008
Clinton Vineyards Cassis

I can only report on 1/3 of the HV wineries, cause they are all spread out.

[Rowland]

and Stoutridge Quimby's Rose

[Danielle]

Carpe Diem from Brotherhood Winery

[Anthony]

Bashakill Vineyards Black Bear

[Shana]

White: Brotherhood's Sweet Riesling
Red: Glorie Farm's Red Quartet
Sparkling: Brotherhood's Carpe Diem Moscato Asti

[peter kelley]

Red Rooster hill estate 2007 Cab Franc
White Rooster Hill Estate semi dry riesling

[Robbin]

Remy and I have good taste:

White:

- 2007 Meditazione, Channing Daughters

- 2008 Chenin Blanc, Paumanok Vineyards

Red:

- 2005 Christian's Cuvée Merlot, Wölffer Estate

- Over and Over, Variation 2, Channing Daughters

[Michele]

My vote goes to warwick valley winery's black dirt red. I

[Yanira DePuy]

After living in the hudson valley for some time and finally developing a taste for wine my husband and I vote for Whitecliff Vineyard's Awosting White and Pinot Noir.

[Kate D]

My favorite is the Black Dirt Red from Warwick Valley Winery

[Jay]

Grapes of Roth 2003 Merlot
Grapes of Roth 2008 Riesling
Scarola 2005 Masseria Merlot
Mattebella Famiglia (Great Value)
Channing Daughters 2008 Scuttlehole Chardonnay (Tremendous Value)
Channing Daughters 2007 Vino Bianco
Paumanok 2008 Barrel Fermented Chardonnay

[Joeshico]

Tough, tough and tough to chose just one. Found too many this year, but here goes.

Best Red
Ravines 2007 Cab/Franc Reserve*
Damiani 2007 Meritage
Dr. Frank's Cuvee d'Amour
Atwater 2007 Syrah

Beat White
Lakewood 2007 Riesling*
Anthony Road 2008 semi-dry Riesling
Anthony Road 2008 semi-sweet Riesling
White Springs 2007 Gewurztraminer (release date???)

* first choice

[Tina]

Hazlitt Red Cat!

[Melissa Schwartz]

Finger Lakes
Ravines 2007 Argetsinger Vineyards Dry Riesling $24.95

Long Island
Pellegrini 2005 Reserve $70.00 (Merlot, Cab Sauv, Petit Verdot blend)

Niagara
Hillebrand Single Barrel Chardonnay $40.00

[Lisa Shaffer]

Hazlitt - Red Cat is our top pick

[Marc]

Shinn Coalescence

[Barbara McMullen]

Clinton Vineyards Seyval Naturel Champagne and Cassis.

[Carol S]

The number one white is the Finger Lakes winery, Chateau Lafayette Reneau for their
Seyval-Chardonnay. There isn't another white that can compare in taste for the price. An excellent value and a terrific wine.

[Andrew Knoblauch]

As a NYS wine-loving organization, we are extremely excited about this initiative. In an effort to continue to promote the entire industry, the NYWCC places it vote for all NYS wines! Thanks Evan!

[misty finch]

my favorite nys wine is blue saphire torrey ridge

[Ellen M]

I would like to nominate Hazlitt 1852 vineyards 2008 Pinot Gris. Yum!

[Steve]

I must amend, although I do not want to kick out my previous choices for white. I just cracked open Channing Daughter's Ramato. It's fabulous!! The only problem is in a blind taste test everyone will know that they are drinking this wine because it taste's like nothing else. I mean that in a good way!!

[Tom Mansell]

Wow, lots of hybrids on this list. I counted at least 27 different nominations, and some with multiple votes! Is it possible that consumers like hybrids?

[Donna Besley]

All the way from Iraq -- Hazlitt Red Cat gets my vote!

[Evan Dawson]

Tom - You're attacking a straw man. Who has ever said people don't like to drink hybrid wines?

One of the top-grossing movies of this year was Transformers 2. I fully expect it will earn some MTV Viewer's Choice Awards. I'll let you make the case to the Academy that it deserves Best Picture - or that more of these movies should be made.

[Tom Higgins]

Evan -

You must not understand the depth of Transformers 2. The layers of part drama/comedy/action/romance can not be comprehended in just one viewing. It's okay, some people just don't get it. We forgive you.

Cheers,
Tom

[Evan Dawson]

Tom - My mistake. I'm told this is often the case with Megan Fox movies. I will re-visit the film to uncover its deeper layers.

/headslap

[Denny Moore]

I made the mistake of sharing my NY wines with friends here in Ohio. Now I have to bring back several orders every time I visit.

Overall Favorite: Hazlitt 1852 Red Cat

Best All-Occasion Red Wine.

[Tom Mansell]

At least Transformers 2 and some hybrids share "foxy" characteristics...

[Evan Dawson]

Tremendously well played, Tom. Nice.

To follow up on hybrid wines analogy: We're not always in the mood for Shawshank Redemption. Sometimes we want something that might not age well, or last forever, but is satisfying and enjoyable. Hybrid wines tend to have less structure and complexity, but they have a legion of fans who enjoy them. Count me among them from time-to-time. Just because they're not going to be "great" in whatever undefinable form that wine "greatness" takes doesn't mean that there's anything wrong with enjoying them.

Drink what you like! (But give vinifera a try.)

[Allison]

I love the Red Newt White and the Glenora Lake Series Riesling this year. Red Newt also has a yummy new Circle Riesling this year.

[Tracy Visconti]

Shinn Coalescence

[Paul Z]

Finger Lakes Red:
Keuka Spring Epic Reserve 2007

Long Island Red:
Shinn Estate Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon 2007
Macari Sette NV

Finger Lakes White:
King Ferry/Treleaven Dry Riesling 2008
Rooster Hill Gewurztraminer Estate 2008

Long Island White:
Shinn Estate Vineyards First Fruit 2008
Macari Early Wine 2008

Finger Lakes Rose:
Ravines Pinot Rose 2007

Long Island Rose:
Wolffer Rose (whatever year was released this year)

[Karen]

3 From LI's Waters Crest:
2006 Campania Rosso
2004 Private Reserve Merlot
2008 Chardonnay

All are wonderfully complex, beautifully crafted wines.

From Shinn Vineyards, they tend to be a bit pricey, but are also exciting. I'd say the '06 Cab Sauv is a real winner.