Posts Written OnMay 2010

What We Drank (May 17, 2010)

Something unique happened with this week's WWD…the whole team got in on the "riesling and rose" theme this month. It's almost as though I asked them to do so. Okay — I did. Tom Mansell: Sheldrake Point Vineyards 2007 Dry Rosé For a month of rieslings and rosés, I decided to chill down a Finger Lakes pink with a little bit of age on it. If I remember correctly, this is a rosé of mostly cabernet franc. The color on this is a nice salmon-heading-towards-copper. Wild strawberry comes to mind after some thought but the fruit is very well-integrated with…

Heart & Hands Wine Company TasteCamp Finale: Finger Lakes Pinot Noir In Its Purest Form

Owner Tom Higgins addressing TasteCamp attendees before the tasting. by Bryan Calandrelli, Niagara Region Editor Last Sunday TasteCamp 2010 came to a close with a memorable visit to Heart &Hands Wine Company on the east side of Seneca Lake. We’d all heard about this boutique winery that specializes in pinot noir but most of us had never had the opportunity to experience unfinished wines in the barrel room with owners Tom and Susan Higgins leading the way. As a home winemaker, I was once again using this opportunity to ask some of the questions that build up over a season…

No NY Wine, No Vintages, No Kidding: Two Lackluster Wine Experiences

By Evan Dawson, Finger Lakes Editor The location for this story almost doesn't matter, because there are new wine bars popping up in cities across the country (you probably have one in your town), and there are rough wine service experiences in myriad restaurants (you certainly have endured one).  After a productive Saturday, my wife and I decided to eschew a home-cooked meal in favor of trying something new in Rochester. We ended up at Corn Hill Landing, a trendy mini-district that is perched snug alongside the river.  Our first stop was a restaurant called Virtu. The decor would make…

Red Newt Cellars 2008 “Circle” Riesling

By Lenn Thompson, Editor-in-Chief You an get a lot of great Finger Lakes riesling in the $15 range. No one can argue that. But some still complain that $15 is too much and that there are wines that are just as good or even better from Washington state or Germany — for less money. I'd argue the QPR of many of those $10-12 rieslings, but instead of getting caught up in a quality arguement, Dave Whiting, co-owner and winemaker at Red Newt Cellars is jumping into the same pool, taking those $12 rieslings on directly with Red Newt Cellars 2008…

Paumanok Vineyards 2009 Dry Rose

By Lenn Thompson, Editor-in-Chief I've said it before (and I'm sure I'll say it again before the end of the May rose-fest here on the site) but the diversity of local rose never ceases to amaze. Saignee or rose for rose sake? Blend of red and white wines, or just red? How much skin contact, if any? I don't think we'll ever see the evolution or development of a "Long Island-style rose" and that's okay. I don't like to think about my rose all that much. I like to drink it and quench my thirst on a hot day or…

Hermann J. Wiemer 2008 Semi-Dry Riesling

By Lenn Thompson, Editor-in-Chief Okay, so between TasteCamp and an insane day job schedule the last week-plus, I just haven't had the time to write a riesling review (and a rose review) every day. The perils of a hobbyist blogger I suppose. But, we're going to do a lot of roses and rieslings the rest of the month. We'll catch up. As you may have noticed earlier today, Hermann J. Wiemer was one of the favorite visits of TasteCamp and with good reason — Fred Merwarth makes some of the best wines in the region. His Hermann J. Wiemer 2008…

TasteCamp 2010: A Very Wiemer Saturday

By Julia Burke, Niagara Correspondent When a winemaker asks if you need to be anywhere, the answer should probably be “no.” When that winemaker is Fred Merwarth (pictured above left) of Hermann J. Wiemer Vineyard, the answer is always “no.” Of the many surprises I encountered at my very first TasteCamp, this was perhaps the best – the fact that the head winemaking staff at one of the most famous and respected wineries in the Finger Lakes took time out of his day to personally take us through a flight of young and aged Wiemer wines was exciting enough for…

TasteCamp EAST 2010 Interview: Rick Van Sickle | WinesofNiagara.com

By Lenn Thompson, Editor-in-Chief Just like last year, we're going to publish short Q&As with TasteCamp attendees to find out about their individual experiences at the event, starting with Rick Van Sickle. Rick, who will be launching WinesofNiagara.com this week, was one of of the people I was most looking forward to meeting last weekend at TasteCamp.  Prior to last Friday, my only interaction with Rick had been via Twitter (he's @rickwine) where he enthusiastically Tweets about the wines of Ontario. Local wine geek? Absolutely. He's one of us. He brought some local wine to our BYOB dinner on Saturday…

TasteCamp East 2010 Visuals: Vertical Tastings at Fox Run Vineyards

Fox Run Vineyards' winemaker Peter Bell leads TasteCamp 2010 attendees through three verticals By Lenn Thompson, Editor-in-Chief As the NYCR staff sorts out all of the stories we want to write about TasteCamp (and we're going to have some guest columnists as well) we'll continue to share brief snapshots of different events during the weekend. Fox Run Vineyards hosted the group not only for a grand tasting of Seneca Lake wineries (16 all told) but also for lunch, which included three vertical tastings — two riesling and one (get this) Tawny Port. I found it to be one of the…

Wolffer Estate Vineyards 2006 Noblesse Oblige

By Lenn Thompson, Editor-in-Chief Our Run for the Roses continues today with a reminder that — not all roses are still wines. Roman Roth, winemaker at Wolffer Estate Vineyards in Sagaponack has a well-deserved reputation his table and dessert wines, but I don't hear a lot of talk about his sparkling program, which now includes Wolffer Estate 2006 Nobleese Oblige ($40), the second release of sparkling rose. Made with 54% pinot noir and 46% chardonnay — all estate grown — this classy, classic bubbly shows toasty brioche aromas layered with peach, cherry-cranberry and subtle citrus. The red fruit character is…