Posts Tagged“winery”

The Spirits of Volunteerism

Early last month a story broke in California about a small winery that had been subject to hefty fines levied by state labor authorities for the use of willing volunteers, and then fined again during their process to try and mitigate the unintended wrong. This has prompted conversations across the industry and across the country as wineries and their advocates look to their own state laws to see what kind of risks they might be exposed to. Hans Walter-Peterson in the Finger Lakes has mentioned the situation in recent issues of the Finger Lakes Vineyard Update newsletter, and we are recently…

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Q&A: Ian Barry, Winemaker, Swedish Hill Winery

By Lenn Thompson, Founder and Editor-in-Chief Ian Barry, winemaker at Swedish Hill Winery (as well as sister wineries Penguin Bay and Goose Watch) was studying English literature at SUNY New Paltz in 1997, when he answered a job posting placed by Adair Vineyards in the Hudson Valley. What started as a summer job soon took him to Oregon to make pinot noir, Washington to make full-bodied reds, back to New York as assistant winemaker Heron Hill Winery, and finally to Swedish Hill in 2006, wherehe  joined as assistant winemaker. After successfully running the 2006 harvest, Ian was promoted to head…

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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…

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Napa Winemakers + Long Island Fruit = I’m Not Sure Yet.

The view from inside Mark Snyder's new winery in Red Hook, Brooklyn By Sasha Smith, New York City Correspondent Technically, Brooklyn is part of Long Island, so it’s fair to call Red Hook home to one of Long Island’s newest wineries. The as-yet-unnamed winery is a joint project between distributor Mark Snyder, Napa winemakers Robert Foley and Abe Schoener, Michael Cinque from Amagansett Wines and Max Loubiere, a long-time friend of Snyder’s and Billy Joel’s tour director. (Snyder is a veteran of the music industry.) The project sources fruit from a number of Long Island growers/vineyards, including Macari Vineyards, Jamesport…

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Pompous Ass Winery Revisited

By Jason Feulner, Finger Lakes Correspondent At a recent wine event in the Finger Lakes, a few individuals approached me to express disapproval over my previous post about the upcoming opening of Pompous Ass Winery on Seneca Lake. Their chief complaint? Some felt that I came down too hard on Pompouss Ass before it had a chance to prove itself. I was told that the owners seemed like nice people. I'm sure they are nice people, but that's not really the point. Now that the winery has a liquor license and is open for business, I re-visited the website to see…

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C. Donatiello Winery: When New Yorkers Invade Healdsburg

What do you get when you take an experienced wine executive from New York City and drop him into the Russian River Valley with two winemakers who also hail from New York? Apparently you get some delicious and surprisingly elegant chardonnays and pinot noirs that are undoubtedly California, but not what you might expect. Chris Donatiello was that marketing and sales executive for the Charmer Sunbelt group before teaming up with venture capitalist Bill Hambrecht. Together they purchased Belvedere Winery in Healdsburg, CA — a winery that had been making 125,000 cases a year and converted it into C. Donatiello…

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Rivendell Winery Location for Sale in the Hudson Valley

I just heard this morning that the vineyards and buildings once associated with Rivendell Winery are for sale and on the market. The winery itself is moving to a new location. For $1.6 million, you can get 45 acres, a 3,000 square foot pavilion (currently the tasting room) and three single-family residences and several outbuildings on the property. The property, located in Gardiner, NY on the Shawangunk Wine Trail in the Hudson Valley region, is a little off the beaten path, but the tasting room/building is absolutely beautiful. Nena and I were there a few years ago and really saw…

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Father’s Day Happenings at Long Island Wineries

Sunday is Father’s Day–and thanks to the four-month old who currently runs our household, this is my first Father’s Day as a father. Father’s Day gifts aren’t as easy to choose as those for Mother’s Day. The lack of a go-to gift like jewelry (like I bought for Nena) makes it even more of a challenge. So what do I want for Father’s Day? I already told Dr. Vino. But, I already have three grills–gas, charcoal, and a smoker�–so that’s out. And while I can hold my own around the house, power tools don’t hold any special place in my…

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Visting the Finger Lakes: Part 1

By Finger Lakes Correspondent Jason Feulner The Finger Lakes are worth visiting for many reasons, but it is not always an easy vacation to plan if one is not familiar with the region.  In a two-part series, I will attempt to provide some general answers to basic questions about planning a trip to the Finger Lakes.  I encourage readers to ask me more questions if these topics do not provide all of the answers! When is the best time to visit?I’ll run the answer down by seasons to flesh out the possibilities: Winter–Darn cold, but can be downright beautiful after…

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Heard Through the Grape Vine: D’Latte Vineyards?

I’ve heard an unconfirmed rumor from a couple different unnamed sources that the owner of D’Latte Uncorked, an upscale deli/wine bar in Greenport, is planning to plant a vineyard on the North Fork with tight row spacing, build a winery on the premises and use a local winemaker as a consultant. Does anyone know anything about this? I’m going to call the deli when I get home tonight, but I’m wondering if any of my "insider" readers have heard anything about this endeavor. Either way, check back soon for more information–I hope.

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