Browsing CategoryWhat We Drank

What We Drank (July 24, 2013 Edition)

Todd Trzaskos: Alamos 2011 Malbec Yes, it’s a “big brand” wine. Yes, drinking Malbec is trendy. Yes, it’s inexpensive, and not a “special” wine. And Yes, it is good. I’m willing to bet that quite a few folks recognize this wine, and may have enjoyed it themselves on occasion. It was one of those evenings where we needed something tasty but not challenging, would be pleasant with leftovers, and would help pull down the average on the weekly wine budget. It met these needs admirably, with a quality that is above average. Ripe, lush, plum fruit, good freshness, and not…

What We Drank (July 16, 2013 Edition)

Lenn Thompson: Cornell Baker Farm 2012 La Crosse One of the pleasures of having Todd Trzaskos on the staff has been enjoying some of his homemade wines — often made with some interesting and new-to-me grapes grown in the North Country of New York.  Take this 2012 La Cross grown at Cornell’s Baker Farm test vineyard. I didn’t know anything about the grape until I was sharing my impressions with Todd. I noted a ‘slightly seyval blanc-y note’ as the wine warmed and he then informed me that seyval is one of its parents (it’s a hybrid developed in the…

What We Drank (July 9, 2013 Edition)

Lenn Thompson: Domaine Tempier 2012 Rose Over the past couple of weeks, I’ve been drinking as much rose from as many regions as possible — partly because I love the versatility of rose during the summer months, and partly because I want to have a bit more context leading up to the 2012 rose tasting and report I’ll be undertaking very soon. On Sunday, I got to enjoy this rose that frankly I’d probably not pay for at around $40. It was a surprise offered by friends from the Finger Lakes who are vacationing on the East End this week.…

What We Drank (July 2, 2013 Edition)

Here’s just a sampling of the libations that crossed the palates of our editors and contributors… Evan Dawson: Chateau la Canorgue 2012 Rose I am sad for those who don’t know the joys of Provencal rose on a summer evening. Wine doesn’t typically fit into seasonal categories — I drink plenty of red in the summer and plenty of white in the winter — but rose is a seasonal wine. It is summer. A clever writer might describe it as summer in a glass, even. New York roses are gaining in quality and quantity. I drink them happily. But Provence…

What We Drank (June 18, 2013)

Here is a sampling of what our editors and contributors were drinking last week: Len Dest: Anton Bauer 2012 Gmörk Vineyard Gruner Veltliner Grüner veltliner is the signature grape of Austria and the best wines are made from the fruit from the vineyards in hills of Wagram wine region in Northeastern Austria. Located North of Vienna along the banks of the Danube the Wagram wine region is a massive plateau with south-facing terrain, named after the Wogenrain, a bank of the Danube River. The area has a generally mild climate with significant diurnal temperature swings during the growing season which contributes…

What We Drank (June 10, 2013)

After a long hiatus, WWD is back. As always this is just a sampling of what our editors and contributors were drinking last week… Evan Dawson: Domaine du Vieux Lazaret 2005 Chateauneuf-du-Pape What a nice surprise it is when a wine that has previously sucked turns out to be good. And what a nice reminder that wine can change, and bottles can vary, and we ought to be very careful about final pronouncements based on one bottle of one wine. In this case, there is nothing special about the producer. Relatively modern approach. I first drank this wine two years ago,…

What We Drank (April 2, 2013)

Here is just a sampling of what our editors and contributors have been drinking… Gibson Campbell: The Red Hook Winery 2010 Die Welt Des Mondes Reserve “Macari Vineyards” Four months after being crippled by Hurricane Sandy, The Red Hook Winery reopened its tasting room to the public on March 1. I visited the newly reopened tasting bar this weekend and picked up the 2010 Macari “Die Welt Des Mondes” Reserve which translated means A Walk on the Moon. This wine was crafted by Abe Schoener using fruit from Macari Vineyards, on the North Fork of Long Island. It is a blend of…

What We Drank (March 12, 2013)

Here’s a sampling of what our editors and contributors are drinking… Lenn Thompson: Roanoke Vineyards 2000 Merlot I could have gone in any number of directions with this week’s WWD submission. A gathering of like-minded friends and their families brought many delicious libations to my lips over the weekend. I drank two of the best chardonnays of my life — Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey 2011 Saint-Aubin 1er Cru En Remilly and Dauvissat 2011 “La Forest” Chablis. I sipped some great beers from Boulevard Brewing in Kansas City. But, as the local wine guy, I just had to write about this bottle of…

What We Drank (March 5, 2013)

  Here’s just a sampling of what our editors and contributors were drinking last week… David Flaherty: Mikkeler, Beer Hop Breakfast Despite the fact I am writing this as the sun is coming up, I am decidedly not having this beer for breakfast today. Call me a wuss, but I tend to shy away from 7.5% abv beers before my morning Fruit Loops. For those of you not familiar with the Danish brewery, Mikkeler, it’s worth noting that it at the forefront of the new wave of “gypsy brewers.” Not possessing a brewery of his own, Mikkel Borg Bjergsø bounces around…

What We Drank (February 26, 2013)

  “What We Drank” makes its triumphant comeback this week with a typically diverse set of libations from many corners of the adult beverage world. Evan even found a chardonnay that he likes — quite a bit, in fact. Lenn Thompson: Keuka Spring Vineyards 2006 Lemberger, New York We’ve been in the new house for about a week now. I’m not going to lie and say that moving — particularly with two young kids — isn’t stressful and exhausting. It is. But it did result in at least one un-expected pleasure: uncovering a portion of my wine cellar that had…