Posts Written OnJuly 22, 2010

A Different Side of the Finger Lakes Wine Festival: The VIP Experience

By Tom Mansell, Science Editor Photos courtesy of Brian Reider Last year, I went to my first Finger Lakes Wine Festival with high expectations. It was going to be an opportunity for me to taste wines from Finger Lakes wineries I'd never or rarely visited. I'd also be able to taste wines from Niagara and the Hudson Valley, too. That Saturday, the festival was a teeming mass of people. Hot, sweaty and cramped under the tents in 90+ degree heat and tasting wines sitting in ice-cold water baths was not at all what I had in mind.  Sunday was perfectly…

Severe Thunderstorms Bring Tornados and Hail to Long Island Wine Country

By Lenn Thompson, Executive Editor Most of eastern Long Island was under a severe thunderstorm warning yesterday evening. The storms, which came in waves, brought high winds, heavy rains, hail and even tornados apparently. I know that we were under two different tornado warnings at my house. Not long after the storms starting pummeling the North Fork, reports starting coming in of hail damage to local vineyard — Jamesport Vineyards and Comtesse Therese Vineyard to be precise. According to long-time grower Ron Goerler, owner of Jamesport Vineyards, his vineyard sustained around 20% loss, telling me in an email "Jamesport was…