Posts Written OnMay 2011

By Lenn Thompson, Executive Editor I just read on the Suffolk Times website that Ralph Pugliese, founder of Puglisese Vineyards, has died. He was 73. Here's the full story: "Ralph Pugliese, who co-founded Pugliese Vineyards with his wife, Patricia, died Monday morning, May 16, at his home in Cutchogue. He was 73. Mr. Pugliese was one of the pioneers of the East End wine industry, buying land in Cutchogue in 1980 where he planted his first two acres of grapes, according to his son Peter, who continues as winemaker. Winemaking was always in his father

By Lenn Thompson, Executive Editor With TasteCamp North 2011 attendees, including most of the NYCR team,  back home and pondering the stories that we'd all like to write — and they are numerous — I wanted to share some of the pictures I took over the course of the weekend. We tasted some outstanding local wines, enjoyed meals prepared by farm-to-table chefs and met some incredibly passionate and talented people in the wine industries on both sides of the border. Over the next few weeks, you can expect some great stories from the event right here on the site. In…

By Lenn Thompson, Executive Editor I know we haven't had a lot of new content here this week — but we have a reason. TasteCamp North kicks off today and there have been last-minute preparations, travel and other assorted things to deal with. But, we'll get back to regular programming on Monday after we spend the next three days touring Niagara and Ontario wine country on both sides of the border. You're probably wondering what this is a picture of… those are 2010 tank samples brought to Evan's house last night by Fox Run Vineyards' assistant winemaker Tricia Renshaw. Here's…

By Lenn Thompson, Executive Editor I received a press release from the Long Island Wine Council today about this year's Run for the Roses Festival and wanted to pass it along the list of participating wineries and the specials they are running for the month. I was disappointed, however to learn that there is no longer a charity component to this program, which raised money for CancerCare last year. According to Steve Bate, executive director of the Council, "Participating wineries are being asked to contribute to the Wine Council

By Lenn Thompson, Executive Editor For several years now, I've allowed an idea for a series of local beer, wine and spirit dinner macerate in my mind. I wanted them to be somehow different from the dinners already happening — because where's the value or fun in doing something that is already being done? First and foremost, I wanted these dinners to celebrate a person rather than a winery, brewery or distillery. The artisan behind the local beverages needed to be the star. Front and center. Next, I wanted the dinners to be as affordable possible — to make them…

By Lenn Thompson, Executive Editor When you're the winemaker at Lucas Vineyards, making nearly 30,000 cases of wine every year — with nearly 30 different bottlings — it's not easy to give each lot the attention it deserves, as Jeff Houck told my colleague Evan Dawson back in late 2009. Many of the Lucas Vineyards wines are geared towards casual drinkers and those new to wine, but there are some real gems in the portfolio — including Houck's cabernet franc, sparkling Cayuga and always-tasty riesling lineup. Lucas Vineyards 2009 Semi-Dry Riesling ($14) will appeal to a wide range of palates…

By Lenn Thompson, Executive Editor Valvin Muscat is a hybrid — known genetically as 62-122.01 — developed in the early 1960s at the Cornell Experimental Station in Geneva and was released commercially in 2006. It is a cross of muscat ottonel and muscat du moulin. There are a handful of wineries in the Finger Lakes experimenting with Valvin Muscat, but no producer has embraced it as much as Hunt Country Vineyards. (read about their first release back in 2008). In fact, it's one of the grapes the Hunt family is most excited about. They expect great things from it in…

By Lenn Thompson, Executive Editor The Long Island wine community often overflows with more of the same — vineyard walks, mediocre music acts, tenuous food/chocolate pairing events, and the like. These activities clearly attract customers — wineries wouldn't spend the time and money on them if they didn't — and it's easy to simply stick with what works. But two of the North Fork's top producers — Roanoke Vineyards and Shinn Estate Vineyards — are about to up the ante significantly by offering their customers new and unique tasting experiences that are anything but the wine country norm. It's great…