Posts Written OnApril 2013

The 10 Best Things I Put In My Mouth at Drink Local Wine 2013

Last weekend, I attended the Drink Local Wine 2013 conference in Baltimore, MD to explore Maryland wine — something that I knew next-to-nothing about going into the conference. I’m still not sure that I have a firm grasp on what “Maryland wine” is or could be, but we tasted upwards of 100 Maryland-grown wines, listened to  professionals in and around the Maryland wine industry talk about the region’s history, present and future, and welcomed more than 300 locals to a public grand tasting featuring more than 20 wineries. The event was a lot of fun — but more than that, it was informative and clearly…

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Cape Winery Sprouts in the Thousand Islands

The official opening of the Cape Winery in Cape Vincent, NY is not until Memorial Day, but a recent springtime Saturday “soft opening” saw over a hundred people in the tasting room, more than a dozen cases of wine leave the premises in the hands of happy consumers, and folks joining the infant “case club.” The current version of the New York State Wine Regions map shows expanded areas all around the state, and this latest opening already asks for those boundaries to be expanded even more. Situated on a spit of limestone-based land that has Lake Superior on one…

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April 20: The Great Food Truck Derby Comes to Tanger (Riverhead, NY)

On Saturday, April 20, Riverhead’s Tanger Outlets will host A Taste of the East End, featuring the edible Food Truck Derby. Edible East End invites you check out the food trucks from New York City and Long Island as well as local beverage producers, who will be there to tempt your palate with a variety of local libations. Morris Grilled Cheese, the only Slow Food-certified food truck in New York, will have a wide array of the obvious — including gluten-free options — with all the fixings. Korilla BBQ will be serving up Korean BBQ with organic veggies (yes, they have…

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Drinking Regional: Drink Local Wine 2013 in Baltimore, Maryland

This evening I’m flying to Baltimore for Drink Local Wine 2013 where I will explore and celebrate Maryland wines alongside other writers as well as local winemakers, wine industry professionals, chefs and Maryland wine enthusiasts. (Full disclosure: I’m a member of the Drink Local Wine board of directors). Similar in mission to my own TasteCamp programming, DLW seeks to draw attention to wine regions outside of California, Washington and Oregon and celebrate regional and local wines overall. Previous editions of the annual conference have been held in Virginia, Missouri and Colorado. I’m hoping to bring the event to New York at…

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R&G Cheesemakers Blackbert (Goat’s Milk Camembert)

A couple of weekends ago, I had the privilege of conducting a beer and cheese pairing workshop at Empire State Cellars.  This occasion marked a fresh start back in the cheese world as my past year was a chaotic whirlwind of buying a house and becoming a father.  Although I had certainly consumed plenty of cheese during my time off from NYCR and other cheese-related activities, this was my first opportunity in a while to lead a group of people through a guided cheese and beer tasting with New York cheeses and Port Jeff Brewing Company. After tasting the beers and making my pairing selections, the supplier…

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The Quarterly Carousal Tonight at Love Lane Kitchen with Brooklyn Brewery

If you are around the East End of Long Island tonight, be sure to stop by Love Lane Kitchen for “The Quarterly Carousal” from 5:30-7:30 p.m. Presented by Edible East End, and Brooklyn Brewery, the event is described as “A Celebration of beer, food, and stories.”  Brooklyn Brewery is showcasing their Silver Anniversary Lager, a Doppelbock version of its’ well known “Brooklyn Lager,” crafted to celebrate 25 years of brewing.  The bottle-conditioned 750ml bottle, complete with Brooklyn artist-rendered labels, will be served alongside creations by several local food vendors. For a complete list of who’s participating check out Love Lane…

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Morgen McLaughin Leaving Finger Lakes Wine Country to Lead Santa Barbara County Vintners’ Association

Morgen McLaughlin, President and CEO of Finger Lakes Wine Country since 2007, is leaving to take the position of Executive Director of the Santa Barbara County Vintners’ Assocation in California. McLaughlin has spent the past six years with two simple, if challenging, goals: bring more people to the Finger Lakes, and bring more Finger Lakes wines to the people. She has aggressively pushed wineries in the region to submit wines for critical review. She has urged Finger Lakes wine professionals to engage with customers on a wide range of platforms, including social media. And she has piloted a number of tourism initiatives. This is…

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Anna DelGenio Joins NYCR Team as News Correspondent

Anna DelGenio — either by name or face — will be familiar to many a Long Island wine country visitor. For years she could be found behind the tasting bar at Paumanok Vineyards. That’s where I met and befriended her. She has since moved on, but her passion for local wine remains. So, when she emailed me a while back expressing an interest in joining the team, how could I say no? She’ll be taking on the much-needed role managing our statewide news desk. A lot of press releases cross the virtual desks of our regional editors — too many…

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Heron Hill Winery 2010 Reserve Blaufrankisch

With aromas of red cherries, cherry cough medicine and toasty, somewhat raw oak, the nose on the Heron Hill Winery 2010 Reserve Blaufrankisch ($40) only shows subtle hints of the peppery spice one typically expects with this variety. Medium bodied with drying wood tannins and a bit too much oak character (which covers up some of the fruit and complexity) the palate does show more of that varietal black pepper spice. The finish is medium-length with red cherry, raspberries and vanilla oak. On day two, it showed a bit more fruit on the palate, but not enough to balance overall. One of the…

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Help Wanted: Finger Lakes, Hudson Valley, Niagara, Lake Erie Regions

Later this week, we’ll announce the addition of two new contributors — someone to help cover all of the latest news in New York wine and someone to help me cover Long Island wine country. But, we’re always looking for passionate people who are interested in sharing their affection for local libations. Specifically, we are looking for people in the Finger Lakes, Hudson Valley, Niagara and Lake Erie regions who are interested in learning and writing about the local wines in those areas. So, if you love local wine and want to get some writing experience, join the team behind…

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