By Lenn Thompson, Editor-in-Chief
Vintage variation is a fact of life in any cool-climate region, including the Finger Lakes. And now that I've tasted several vintages of Finger Lakes riesling, it never ceases to fascinate me how apparent those variations are in these wines.
Riesling is a direct window into the vintage.
I tasted this Heron Hill Winery 2007 Old Vines Riesling ($25) not long after tasting a set of 2008s from the region and the differences were almost jarring.
This wine's nose still had significant citrus character, but it was overlaid with ripe, almost overripe, peach aromas with lemon balm and subtle petrol notes.
Broad and dry but lacking a bit of focus, the palate filled the mouth with peach jam flavors with lemongrass and citrus zest on the mid-palate and a distinct slate note on the finish.
I wouldn't call this wine out of balance, but a bit more acidity certainly would have brought focus and enlivened it a bit.
Producer: Heron Hill Winery
AVA: Finger Lakes
ABV: 13%
RS: .8%
TA: 6.3 g/l
Brix: 22.2
Price: $25*
Rating: 
(2.5 out of 5 | Average-to-Very Good)