By Evan Dawson, Finger Lakes Correspondent I had the opportunity to visit with the new winemaker of Hunt Country Vineyards near Keuka Lake: Jonathan Hunt, son of owners Art and Joyce Hunt. The Hunts declined to say much about the departure of winemaker Chris Wirth, who left the operation last week. "We appreciate Chris' efforts," Art said. "But we've been looking for a way to bring new energy to the winery. Jon has dreamed about this job, and we think it's time." In the interview, Jonathan – along with his wife, Caroline, and his father, Art - explain the following, which…
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Video: Riesling Month Winds Down. Interview With Dave Breeden, Winemaker, Sheldrake Point Vineyard
My Flip cam makes its video debut, but there are still some kinks; I have yet to figure out how to lay in b-roll. Bummer. We shot some extra video during the tasting and intended to lay some in. Next time. With the growing focus on aged Finger Lakes rieslings, and with so many wineries hosting riesling verticals this year, I thought it would be instructive to hear from Sheldrake Point Vineyard's winemaker about several topics, including: His thoughts on this tasting, and how the oldest riesling showed His thoughts on trying to find the perfect time to open a…
Coming Soon: Video Blog From the Sheldrake Point Vineyard Riesling Vertical
By Evan Dawson, Finger Lakes Correspondent Photo Courtesy of Sheldrake Point Vineyard While attending Sheldrake Point Vineyard's riesling vertical this past weekend, I used my new Flip video camera for the first time. I sat down with winemaker Dave Breeden, and the video will be posted shortly. Among the topics we discussed: Sheldrake's vertical featured semi-dry riesling, not dry riesling. Why? Which style does Dave prefer to lay down? Are we, as a wine community, too concerned that a bottle will pass its mythical "peak?" How can you tell when peak is approaching? How did the Sheldrake wines show?…
When a Song Tastes Like a Riesling. Finger Lakes Riesling.
By Evan Dawson, Finger Lakes CorrespondentPhotos by Jason Feulner, Finger Lakes Correspondent Something special happened Friday night at the New York Wine Wine & Culinary Center, and the effects are likely to echo for a long time. Every wine lover has a special bottle or two that stir vivid memories. Simply gazing at the label is enough to transport the owner to the time and place when the bottle was consumed. For me, there is one bottle of wine so special that I can picture the room in which I drank it when I see the label. When I hear…
Wineries Open Their Libraries With Older Finger Lakes Rieslings
By Evan Dawson, Finger Lakes Correspondent Photos by Morgan Dawson It's about time. See what I did there? Clever, right? I've been waiting for quite a while to see Finger Lakes wineries celebrate the aging potential of their rieslings, and many are finally doing it. It's about time. I've also been encouraging my friends to lay a few bottles down or seek out older bottles — it's about, well, time. More than anything else, tasting older wines is pure fun. The wine is not only a snapshot of a given year; it's a story that has changed over the years.…
Sneaking NY Wines Into the Lineup
By Evan Dawson, Finger Lakes Correspondent Few things put a hop in my step like a tasting of cabernet franc from around the world. Before heading out to Wine Sense, an excellent wine shop on Rochester's Park Avenue, I noticed that the tentative tasting list did not include any New York cab franc. The shop's owner, Kristin Vanden Brul, is a strong supporter of New York wines, and I called to ask if I could bring a bottle to taste blind. She happily agreed; it's rather common at Kristin's tastings for enthuastic guests to bring a bagged bottle from their…
The Circle of (New) Life: Red Newt Is Evolving
By Evan Dawson, Finger Lakes Wine CorrespondentPhoto Courtesy of Dave Whiting Dave Whiting does not simply want Red Newt to survive. He wants it to thrive, and he admits that it's tougher now than ever. "Ten, twenty years ago you could open a winery in the Finger Lakes, open the doors, and be viable as long as the wine was decent," Whiting said after bottling a wine that he thinks will make a serious impact in markets outside New York state. "Now, with more wineries opening and production rising, you have to find ways to differentiate yourself. I don't just want…
Fred Frank: We’re Open For Business Despite Fire
By Evan Dawson, Finger Lakes Correspondent Frederick Frank, the president of Dr. Konstantin Frank Wine Cellars, said this morning that the loss of a spill-over tasting room to fire does not change day-to-day business. "We're open today for tastings. We're bottling wine today. Nothing has changed. We'll be taking part as planned in the wine trail event this weekend," Frank explained. He does not know the cause of the massive fire that destroyed the new tasting room building, but he praised the firefighters from Hammondsport and other departments who responded quickly last night. "They did outstanding work, and we can't…
Wine Importer Neal Rosenthal on Filtration
By Evan Dawson, Finger Lakes Correspondent After the recent discussion regarding the effects of filtration on wine, I contacted wine importer Neal Rosenthal for his thoughts. Over the past three decades Rosenthal has been a leading voice calling for unfiltered wines. In his book Reflections of a Wine Merchant, Rosenthal writes often about how he routinely asked winemakers to stop filtering wines. He also wrote a brief defense of Brettanomyces, but he did not connect Brett and filtration in his book. I appreciate his response, and I learned a bit about the evolution of filtration. I'd love to hear from…
I Met My Farmer Last Week. Have You Met Yours?
By Evan Dawson, Finger Lakes Correspondent Let me start by saying that I love animals, but I also love to eat them. I appreciate the dichotomy of finding cows lovable and delicious. I am nauseated by the horrific treatment of cows, pigs and chickens, among other animals, but it's always been easiest to simply not think about such treatment. This week that abrogation of duty ended for me. On a crisp but sunny afternoon I drove down to Romulus (located between Seneca and Cayuga lakes) to meet Tim Haws, the farmer and owner of Autumn's Harvest Farm. It was not…