Posts Tagged“pinot noir”

Heart & Hands Wine Company 2009 Pinot Noir

Over a relatively short period of time, Heart & Hands Wine Company has almost become synonymous with New York pinot noir. There are other wineries making good versions of course, but on a consistent basis, there isn’t a producer I can recommend more for pinot. Co-owner and winemaker Tom Higgins carefully sources fruit from dependable growers and his passion for the grape manifests itself in meticulous cellar work. Heart & Hands Wine Company 2009 Pinot Noir ($20) — which is closed under Vino-Seal by the way — offers aromas of red cherries and cranberries sprinkled with brown spice, star anise…

Tousey Winery 2010 Pinot Noir

By Lenn Thompson, Executive Editor Why do I explore every corner of New York wine country? Wines like this one. Yes, I taste a lot of mediocre (or worse) wine, but discovering a hidden gem of a wine like this one is what energizes and inspires me. Tousey Winery, located in Clermont, NY in the Hudson River valley, is owned by Ben and Kimberly Peacock. Ben makes the wines but he's quick to point out that he is "merely a student."  "I find the term 'winemaker' hard to wear because that would put me in the same category l as…

Pinot Noir in New York: It Takes Location, Expression and Passion

3 Pinot Noirs and 1 Merlot: The New York Cork Report 2009 Red Wines of the Year By Lenn Thompson, Editor-in-Chief Photos by Morgan Dawson Photography Is pinot noir the next great red for upstate New York? Given how difficult pinot noir is to work with in the vineyard — especially in cool-climate regions like New York — as well as in the cellar, it may seem a silly, easy-to-answer question. But the New York Cork Report Wines of the Year tasting back in January resulted in pinot noir winning three out of four regional flights. Merlot taking the Long…

Billsboro Winery 2007 Pinot Noir

By Lenn Thompson, Editor-in-Chief Don't let Vinny Aliperti, co-owner and winemaker at Billsboro Winery, fool you with his humble, laid back personality. He makes serious wines, both at Billsboro and at his 'day job' as winemaker at Atwater Estate Vineyards. Maybe its that laid-back personality that somehow keeps him and his wines just under the radar, but his are wines worth drinking and keeping an eye on. Of the half dozen 2007 Finger Lakes pinot noirs that I tasted recently, none showed a balance of fruit, oak, tannin and acid the that his Billsboro Winery 2007 Pinot Noir ($22) did.…

Heron Hill Winery 2007 Pinot Noir Reserve

By Lenn Thompson, Editor-in-Chief There is little doubt that riesling rules the Finger Lakes roost, but what grape will be the one on which the region's red grape reputation will be built? The jury is still out I think. Some say cabernet franc. Other content that Blaufrankisch is the grape. Many blend the two in what might be a signature red blend. Maybe it'll even be a hybrid, though the potential is probably limited there. Then you have a small, dedicated group of growers and winemakers who think that pinot noir shows the most potential — but only in the…

2009 Harvest Update: Jamesport Vineyards

By Lenn Thompson, Editor-in-Chief Photos courtesy of Jamesport Vineyards  Getting in touch with winery owners and grape growers is always a challenge this time a year. They've got more pressing (pun intended) things to do than respond to the enthusiastic (okay, incessant) requests from me for harvest data. But, little by little, the the reports are coming in, including a few emails from Jake Perdie, tasting room manager at Jamesport Vineyards, owned by veteran grower Ron Goerler. They picked all of their chardonnay last week, at 22.5 brix, and 5 tons were sold to Red Hook Winery in Brooklyn. Before…

Out of Sorts… Comes a Wine More Special

Photos courtesy of Heart & Hands Wine Company By Evan Dawson, Finger Lakes Editor This whole hand sorting business seemed like a good idea — until I nearly threw up on the sorting table. And it wasn't the fact that this was a vibrating table that turned my stomach. Let me back up. Most wine producers in the Finger Lakes do not hand sort the fruit after it's picked. They rely on vineyard crews to make careful passes when the fruit is still hanging, cutting off the rotting, green or — worse — sour fruit. Once the fruit is picked,…

Day Dreaming About Pinot Noir in the Niagara Region

By Bryan Calandrelli, Niagara Regional Correspondent When I venture out to other wine regions in New York State and introduce myself as being from the Niagara region, the most common response is…”Oh pinot noir, huh…how’s Warm Lake doing?” I usually give a generic answer and then talk about the other wineries that have just opened and more importantly, the other grapes that have been planted. The reality is that Warm Lake Estate and the creation of the Niagara Escarpment AVA has intentionally branded the region for pinot noir. Given the climate, length of growing season and abundance of clay over…

Heart & Hands Wine Company: Unique Focus (Pinot!) and a Unique Tasting Experience

By Jason Feulner, Finger Lakes Correspondent Editor's Note: Jason and I both visited this wine company in recent days and we both left with the impression that, at $10, the cellar tasting at Heart & Hands is the most unique tasting experience in the Finger Lakes, just made for wine enthusiasts. Jason details it below. Higgins is the winemaker who organized last week's industry tasting of Finger Lakes Pinot, which was detailed here. -Evan I recently paid a visit to Heart & Hands Wine Company, a new winery on the northeastern shore of Cayuga Lake, to scoop a story for…

Blind Tasting of Finger Lakes Pinot Noir Reveals Progress, Challenges

By Evan Dawson, Finger Lakes Editor Photos by Morgan Dawson Photography On Wednesday night, on a rain-soaked evening on the southeast side of Seneca Lake, a group of grape growers and winemakers met to taste through a line of 2007 pinot noirs. Many of the wines were made in the Finger Lakes; a few came from the American West Coast, and some from Burgundy. Tom Higgins, winemaker and owner of Heart & Hands Wine Company, organized the event because he wanted to know: Where does pinot noir stand in the Finger Lakes? Is it truly a recalcitrant mystery, yielding near-constant…