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Announcing TasteCamp 2016: Vermont

The organizers of TasteCamp are proud to announce that the event will make it’s return this spring in Vermont on June 3-5, 2016. After visiting Long Island and the Finger Lakes, the Niagara Region, Virginia, Quebec and most recently the Hudson Valley, this weekend of regional discovery will focus on Vermont in search of great wine, but also of cider, beer and various food specialties. More than 35 bloggers and writers are expected for TasteCamp 2016: Vermont, which will provide participants with the usual mix of great meetings with producers, grand tastings, vineyard (and orchard) visits and, of course, one of the great traditions…

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EVENT ADVERTISEMENT: Merlot Rewind — The Long Island Wine Remix

Please join the Long Island Merlot Alliance (LIMA) on Friday, November 6, 2015 at Back Label Wine Merchants for the first annual MERLOT REWIND! Why rewind? Because it’s come to our attention that maybe some of you don’t know Long Island merlot the way you should. Which is just crazy. Sure, we grow more merlot here (to the tune of nearly 700 acres) than any other grape in the region, but there’s good reason for that: Our maritime climate produces consistently lovely versions of this noble red grape — concentrated yet bright, mouth filling and layered yet versatile at the table. And that’s…

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New York Cork Club: June 2015 Selections

We’re getting ready to ship the June 2015 wines for the New York Cork Club, so I wanted to tell you a bit about them. (If you missed our announcement about the rebirth of New York Cork Club, check it out here.)In the next week or so, members will get:Element Winery 2011 Syrah ($36) — Wow. This wine pushes the boundaries of what we want to include price-wise, but it’s so limited (90 cases) and so delicious (think Northern Rhone meets Finger Lakes) that we just had to include it. Bellwether Wine Cellars 2014 Dry Rose ($16) — A blend of cabernet franc, gamay…

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New York Cork Report Goes “Off The Page” With Random House on July 11, 2015

  Hello, newest New York Cork Report correspondent, Peter Conway, here. I’ve learned, as no doubt you have, here at New York Cork Report we are all about New York wine, and the beer and spirits, and of course we’re all about — the New York lifestyle. So, we were delighted to say yes when offered the opportunity to partner with Random House to participate in and sponsor a fabulous New York event occurring this July called “Off the Page” at Basilica in Hudson, NY. Let me tell you a bit about it. “Off The Page” billed as a Saturday…

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It’s Back: The New York Cork Club — New York’s Best and Most Interesting Wines Delivered to Your Door

This is a happier Friday than usual at NYCR headquarters. Why? Because the New York Cork Club — our New York wine club — is back. We’re thrilled to be partnering with The Cellar d’Or in Ithaca, NY to bring the club back. For those of you who were members of the club when we were working with the now-closed New York wine superstore Empire State Cellars, we’ve simplified and scaled back the club significantly. Every month, I’ll pick two wines that will never exceed $60 plus shipping and we’ll send them to you. It’s really that simple. In the…

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Peter Conway to Join the NYCR’s Hudson Valley Desk

Please join me in welcoming Peter Conway as the newest member of the New York Cork Report’s correspondent team.  Since 2005 he has written the wine and food pairing blog, Mano a Vino. I met Peter at the North American Wine Bloggers Conference in Charlottesville, VA several years ago. Peter recently moved to the Hudson Valley, in Garrison, NY with his wife Diana Polack, after raising their two children in Montclair, NJ over 27 the last years. Peter tells me that his passion for wine was ignited in 1979 when he happened upon a spectacular wine in a tiny Florida Gulf Coast wine store.…

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Long Island Merlot Alliance Names Amy Zavatto as Executive Director

Press releases are not something we usually get too exited about at the NYCR desk, but in this case we are very pleased to to share the news that our own contributor, the very talented Amy Zavatto, will be taking the helm of the Long Island Merlot Alliance. As an eastern Long Island native, Amy is returning to her roots both literally and figuratively. We look forward to seeing her great energy and fine word-smithy directed at promoting wines that are a signatures for Long Island wine country.   LONG ISLAND MERLOT ALLIANCE KICKS OFF 10th ANNIVERSARY  AND WELCOMES ITS NEW EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR,…

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Corin Hirsch to Cover the Hudson River Valley for NYCR

Today I’m happy to announce that Corin Hirsch, a writer and beverage lover I met a few years ago at TasteCamp, has joined the NYCR team. Corin is an enthusiastic drinker, a history geek, and a freshly minted resident of the Hudson Valley, though she grew up in a cul-de-sac on Long Island. Before she joined the white-collar ranks, she worked as a used book buyer, hot-dog-hawker, sandwich maker, and barmaid, the last at a 16th-century pub in rural England. She’s spent almost her entire professional life in publishing — as a reporter, editor, designer, and art director. For the…

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2015 Wine Bloggers Conference to be Hosted by the Finger Lakes Region

The Wine Bloggers Conference, a yearly event that helped inspire my own annual TasteCamp event — is coming to the Finger Lakes wine region August 13-16, 2015. A great ‘get’ for the region — any group that can get this event off of the west coast deserves kudos — it should bring much-deserved attention to one of the most exciting wine regions in America. A press release from Finger Lakes Wine Country said that organizers are expecting 300 attendees. There will be more information available soon, but in the meantime, here’s that press release: 2015 WINE BLOGGERS CONFERENCE COMING TO FINGER…

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Gonzo Gastronomy’s Katie Pizzuto Joins NYCR Team

Over the last year or so, there has been an explosion in the creation of wine-related infographics.  Unfortunately, most of them are simplistic to the point of not being useful (or to the point of no longer being accurate) and there certainly aren’t any focused on New York’s wine community. But how can NYCR dive into that when our artistic abilities are limited — at best? Get a professional to join the team! I’ve known Katie Pizzuto for many years, though we’ve only tasted wine together once or twice. Her blog Gonzo Gastronomy is one of the best written ones out there…

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