Posts Tagged“long island wine”

Bedell Cellars Set to Release New Red Blend, Musee

Remember Bedell Cellars’ Cupola, their flagship red blend? Well, they haven’t made it recently, apparently deciding to discontinue the product line. Instead, they’ve released a new high-end blend with their 2005 Musée, price at $65, making iti their most expensive wine (and $15 more than the last Cupola if I remember right). Joining wines like their Gallery, TASTE Red and TASTE White, Musée’s front label features artwork by a renowned artist. This time, Chuck Close a well-known painter and recipient of the 2000 National Medal of Arts, has contributed the beautiful label, a photo daguerreotype of grapes. Musée is a…

Continue Reading

WTN: Lieb Family Cellars 2004 Cabernet Franc Reserve

Every time I taste a wine like this one, I wonder if Long Island wineries aren’t crazy to push merlot as the be-all-end-all red in the region. Crazy might be overstating it a bit, but I wonder if cabernet franc would get more publicity in these parts if it were a better known variety amongst the wine-drinking population. You all know of my undying devotion to the grape probably best known as the key red France’s Loire Valley. But I’m not alone. Not by a long shot. General Manager Gary Madden, the sometimes-reluctant face of Lieb Family Cellars, loves the…

Continue Reading

All is NOT Quiet in Long Island Wine Country

Long Island wine country might seem quiet right now. But it’s not. Visit the North Fork this time of year and (even without any snow) the landscape seems barren compared to any other time of the year. Most of the farm stands are closed, with the few that do stay open relying on greenhouse vegetables and crops like potatoes, carrots and apples. The vineyards, alive with lush canopies, ripe clusters and harvest teams only a few short months ago, have fallen silent. It’s a quiet that you can feel when you visit the tasting rooms this time of year. To…

Continue Reading

Brooklyn Oenology Debuts

By New York City Correspondent Sasha Smith This fall I went to the launch party for BOE, a winery housed in a converted warehouse in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. (BOE is short for Brooklyn Oenology.) Founded by engineer-turned-winemaker Alie Shaper, BOE released its first wines this fall, a 2005 Chardonnay and a 2005 Merlot. While the fruit comes from the North Fork and the wines are made in Mattituck at Premium Wine Group, the rest of this endeavor is thoroughly Brooklyn-based. Alie says that the winery was created “in the spirit of Brooklyn’s artisanal resurgence,” and points to the many artists and…

Continue Reading

What do you look for in a tasting room experience?

I was thinking recently about winery tasting room experiences. You read all the time about a wineries wine, its wines and maybe the architecture/decor, but you don’t often read about the overall tasting experience. Of course, the wines themselves and the surroundings are all a part of the overall experience, but the people pouring is one of the most important parts of the equation. To me, I can have a great tasting experience in an ugly space if the wines and the people pouring them for me are good. What do you look for when you visit a tasting room?…

Continue Reading

The 12 LI Wines of Christmas: #12 Roanoke Vineyards 2004 Blend Two

his post is a part of my 12 Long Island Wines for Christmas series that will run from now until Christmas 2007. See the entire series here. It’s Christmas day, we’ve opened all of our gifts, we enjoyed a delicious breakfast and I’m finally getting around to posting the final wine in my series of 12 Long Island Wines for Christmas. We’re rounding out this mixed case of Long Island wines with a blend that I’ve enjoyed on many occasions since its release, but has never tasted better than it did last night on Christmas Eve. Made from 71% cabernet…

Continue Reading

The 12 LI Wines of Christmas: #10 Shinn Estate 2006 First Fruit

This post is a part of my 12 Long Island Wines for Christmas series that will run from now until Christmas 2007. See the entire series here. As we enter the home stretch of my 12 Long Island Wines for Christmas, it’s time for another one of my favorite whites. In fact, it’s the last white in the mixed case. Shinn Estate Vineyards 2006 First Fruit ($23) was so tasty this year that it sold out before I could stock my cellar for the summer. But, the 2007 will be released this spring and I won’t make the same mistake…

Continue Reading

The 12 LI Wines of Christmas: #9 Paumanok Vineyards 2004 Assemblage

This post is a part of my 12 Long Island Wines for Christmas series that will run from now until Christmas 2007. See the entire series here. When I woke up this morning, I realized that I only had a few more days to announce the final four selections for my 12 Long Island Wines of Christmas series. Like every year, and in every way, it seems that the holiday has sneaked up on me. The #9 wine in this mixed case of Long Island wines is one that is tasting well now, but should be even better in years…

Continue Reading

The 12 LI Wines of Christmas: #8 Corey Creek 2006 Domaines CC Rose

This post is a part of my 12 Long Island Wines for Christmas series that will run from now until Christmas 2007. See the entire series here. As long-time reader reminded me this morning (thanks for the note Chris), there were a ton of great roses released this year. Regardless of varietal composition or style, it just seemsedlike Long Island winemakers just did a great job with rose from the 2006 vintage. In fact, much like choosing a Channing Daughters white the other day, choosing a rose from the plethora of great ones was difficult. So this time around, I’m…

Continue Reading

The 12 LI Wines of Christmas: #3 Raphael 2005 Cabernet Franc

This post is a part of my 12 Long Island Wines for Christmas series that will run from now until Christmas 2007. See the entire series here. The first red wine of my 2007 12 Long Island Wines for Christmas is Raphael’s 2005 Cabernet Franc ($18). It won’t come as a surprise to many of you that there’s a cab franc on the list, of course. You know how much I dig the grape. In fact, it would probably be more surprising if this were the only one chosen. (Yes, that’s a hint) Cab franc is a grape that comes…

Continue Reading