Posts Written OnMay 15, 2006

A couple months ago, I wrote about the "chardonnay shift" towards steel-raised wines — which I tend to prefer as opposed to the heavy, sometimes-flabby barrel fermented wines. I tasted three different chardonnays from Paumanok Vineyards yesterday for a story I was working on. One was 100% steel fermented — fresh, crisp and refereshing. It was what I expected. The other two were barrel fermented, and while both had nice acidity and avoided overuse of oak, one wine truly stood out. Fermented in new French oak barrels, Paumanok 2004 Grand Vintage Chardonnay ($30) actually has me questioning my own chardonnay…

It’s not quite beach season yet here on Long Island, but it’s probably on a lot of peoples’ minds. And, Wolffer Estate in Sagaponack has released three wines that belong on the beach — and at your next BBQ. As you have probably noticed, Long Island wine’s “sweet spot” in terms of price-for-quality tends to be in the $20+ realm. Unfortunately, that turns a lot of wine drinkers off (silly, silly people), but one of my favorite wines for less than $15 has long been Wolffer’s simple-but-tasty La Ferme Martin Chardonnay ($14). My first bottle from the newly released 2004…