Browsing CategoryWhat We Drank

Evan Dawson: Pichon Lalande 1975 Pauillac We wanted to open something special with a friend on a recent visit, and we're fortunate to have a local source for excellently stored aged Bordeaux.  The most fascinating aspect came in wondering whether a wine of this profile will ever be made again. That's because 1975 was, as I understand it, a vintage that produced hard and severe tannins, and the top wines were oppressive in their youth. These days, even the top wines around the world are carefully managed to offer an opportunity to drink young. Yes, tannins can be burly in…

Evan Dawson: Cab Franc showdown (Domaine des Ouches 2005 Bourguiel and Red Newt Cellars 2005 Cabernet Franc) It's always enlightening to compare, and this was a nice little linear comparison: Cabernet Franc from its sweet spot in France and Cabernet Franc from one of the strongest Finger Lakes producers in a very good vintage.  Unfortunately, the Bourguiel suffered from some storage issues (we assume) and was prematurely tired. But the Red Newt showed beautifully, with our guests showing genuine surprise when it was finally revealed as a Finger Lakes red. I wouldn't say it's highly indicative of place, but not…

 This is what the NYCR editors and contributors are drinking… Evan Dawson:  Domaine des Baumard 2007 Savennieres Trie Speciale Screwcap! This wine had the dual interest of being a nicely regarded Savennieres along with being closed by a screwcap. I'm told this estate made the difficult decision to change to screwcap several years ago. I say it was difficult because in the Loire Valley — in many places not named Australia or New Zealand — screwcaps are viewed with some suspicion.  This wine is too young to detect any problems or witness great success regarding the screwcap. I confess that…

Short list of beverages/contributions this week — and not a single wine in the lot. But, this is what our editors and contributors are drinking: Tom Mansell: Bandwagon Brew Pub Pirate Eye-PA Bandwagon Brew Pub in Ithaca has only been open for a little over 8 months, but in that time they've been making some quality beers. I'd call them a microbrewery, but at 15 gallons maximum per batch, I'd say they're more on the order of nano-brew. Anyway, until now, most the beers I've had from there have been very good. This one, however, was the first one I've…

This is what our editors and contributors have been drinking. Only one local this time, but that's part of the fun of WWD — the diversity: Lenn Thompson: The Alchemist Pub and Brewery "Holy Cow" IPA I spent this past weekend in upstate New York and in Shelburne, Vermont for the 2010 Vermont Cheesemakers' Festival — mostly as cheese editor Aaron Estes's photographer. We tasted some stunningly delicious cheeses that served as a reminder of how far New York still has to go in terms of overall cheese quality. We also sipped some good-not-great beers from Lawson's Finest Liquids, including…

We only have three contirbutions this week, but — as always — some interesting libations have filled the glasses of the New York Cork Report editors and contributors. Evan Dawson: Multi-year semi-dry riesling flight at Red Newt Bistro Red Newt Bistro offers a nice range of wine flights, with three wines per flight and generous pours of each. On a recent visit I chose a flight that included the Sheldrake Point 2006 Riesling, the Red Newt 2007 Semi-Dry Riesling, and the 2008 Red Newt Circle Riesling. The Sheldrake was simply explosive. Rich, long, and hugely aromatic, my one concern was…

It's been a few weeks since our editors and contributors submitted anything for WWD, but we're back this week with a vengeance. This is what we've been drinking: Tom Mansell: Movia 2006 "Lunar" Ribolla Gialla "Wine is sunlight held together by water," said Galileo, famously. This wine, however, is marketed as being made by the moon.  Movia Lunar is made with minimal human intervention (aside from the manual harvesting and destemming). Ribolla Gialla grapes from vineyards straddling the Italian-Slovenian border are put into specially-designed Slovenian oak casks and allowed to undergo whole-berry fermentation. After several months of fermentation with native…

A light turnout this week, but here are some of the wines and beers that our editors drank last week… Bryan Calandrelli: Tabor Adama 2007 Clay Soil Rosé (Israel) Even with all the great wine stores in western New York within striking distance I still stop into smaller package liquor stores every now and then to see if the wine shelves hold any surprises. This time I found an interesting rosé made from 100% cabernet franc grapes.The package caught my attention right away with a 500ml bottle, but the origin of Galilee was the clincher. I’ve had a few wines from…

By Lenn Thompson, Executive Editor Here is just a glimpse of what the NYCR editors and contributors drank last week, and what happens when we did: Evan Dawson: Inglenook 1976 Cabernet Sauvignon Cask 48 and La Rioja Alta 1985 Gran Reserva 904 I feel that it's my responsibility to keep up the quality of the What We Drank section, so I plundered two of my best bottles.  Okay, that's not exactly true — we all enjoy a range of wine and beer. But this past week brought a very special dinner and two fascinating mature bottles. The Inglenook could have…

By Lenn Thompson, Editor-in-Chief I'm taking this week off from What We Drank (mostly because everything I tasted over the weekend will be reviewed elsewhere on the site). Luckily, some other team members are picking up the slack this week. Julia Burke: Lagunitas Brewing Company Wilco Tango Foxtrot Petaluma hophead brewing superstar Lagunitas must've gotten really friendly with the band Wilco lately. The acronym "WTF" on this "Jobless Recovery Ale" seemed appropriate for my life: I returned from South Africa completely broke and am attempting to recover by working nonstop. Drinking on the job being a key aspect of the…