Weekly New York Wine News — January 11, 2016

This week’s featured photo is from Hosmer Winery’s Facebook page. NEWS WineBusiness.com – 1/1/2015 Long Island Wine announces it’s new approach to branding and regional identity. Rochester Democrat & Chronicle – 1/4/2013 Winter’s late arrival finally allowed the Finger Lakes ice wine harvest to begin at Casa Larga. Finger Lakes Wine Info – 1/5/2016 A view from Kemmeter Wines – 10 Questions for Johannes Reinhardt WXXI News – 1/10/2016 Since the inception of the New York Wine and Grape Foundation over 30 years ago, Jim Trezise has been its Executive Director…he’s retiring from that position and a change of leadership is expected by…

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From the Archives: Roanoke Vineyards Debuts on the North Fork

Editor’s Note: Every Thursday — call it Throwback Thursday if you’d like — we’ll pull a story from the more than a decade of NYCR stories and republish it. As you may or may not know, Roanoke Vineyards’ primary tasting room — the one on Sound Avenue — closed to the public at the end of December. It will re-open February 1 after some renovations only for wine club members. That got me thinking back to when Roanoke first opened and the first time I wrote about them back in November of 2004, when this story first appeared on the site. This summer,…

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Corks of the Forks: 5 Resolutions for a Local Wine Drinker

I’ll be the first to admit that I think New Year’s resolutions are a bit silly, which is why I rarely proclaim them privately — let alone publicly, in print. Would I like to lose some weight? Sure, and I will. Should I be a nicer person and help others? Absolutely. I’ll try to do that, too. Without measurement and being held accountable, these types of resolutions often fall by the wayside around Feb. 1 every year. But when it comes to the wine portion of my life — what’s left over after a full-time day job in a high-tech…

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New York Cork Club: January 2016 Selections

Happy New Year! Our friends at the Cellar d’Or are packing up my January 2016 picks for the New York Cork Club this week, so it’s that time again — to tell you about the wines I picked. To kick off 2016, we’re thrilled to include wines from two of the Finger Lakes’ premier producers. Red Tail Ridge Winery 2014 Pétillant Naturel — A few of my friends have started calling me “Mr. Pet Nat” because I keep writing about them and putting them into the club — but I can’t help it. They are so fun and refreshing and a pleasure to…

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Pellegrini Vineyards 2014 Sauvignon Blanc

Pellegrini Vineyards 2014 Sauvignon Blanc ($25), one of Zander Hargrave’s first releases as winemaker at Pellegrini Vineyards — a job he took over just before the 2014 harvest — offer a bit of Long Island wine’s past, its present and it’s future. The Hargrave name goes back as far as Long Island wine history can go. Zander’s parents, Louisa and Alex Hargrave, founded Hargrave Vineyard, Long Island’s first commercial winery, in 1973, and Zander’s uncle, Charlie Hargrave, has been a vineyard manager on the North Fork for more than a decade. In 2011 Zander was hired as assistant winemaker at the now-closed…

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#NYTastemaker: Steve Casscles | Hudson-Chatham Winery

“Tastemaker” is a term typically used to describe a person — typically either a sommelier or writer in the wine world — who decides what is good, cool or otherwise interesting. With our new “NYTastemaker profiles, I’ve decided to usurp the term to mean someone who is making the wines, ciders, spirits, etc. that we taste. The traditional “tastemaker” doesn’t really make anything, after all. Not really, anyway. I’ve known Steve Casscles and have written about him and his wines — particularly his baco noir-based wines — for many years now. What has always struck me as most interesting about Steve, though,…

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Weekly New York Wine News — January 4, 2016

This week’s featured photo is from co-owner and winemaker of Red Tail Ridge Winery, Nancy Irelan’s Facebook page. NEWS Syracuse.com – 12/23/2016 Locals look back at their favorite Finger Lakes wines of 2015. Syracuse New Times – 12/23/2015 The Cayuga Lake Wine Trail encourages consumers to try bubbly from the region at the holidays, but their are plenty to enjoy them year round. Finger Lakes Times – 12/29/2015 Dr. Frank prepares to release a new line of wines honoring the important women of the family, who have been crucial to the winery’s success. TODAY Show – 12/30/2015 New York gets some love…

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The Road Forward: What You Can Expect from the New York Cork Report in 2016

Happy New Year! After a great week-plus largely away from my laptop, it’s time to dive back into things for the new year and that includes a slight change of focus and direction here on the New York Cork Report. In March, this site will turn 12. That’s far longer than I expected it to last, but as I look back on 2015, I think I’ve lost my way a bit. For a variety of reasons, the site has become largely a wine review site — something I never expected or wanted. Wine reviews, while valuable, are nothing more than a snapshot of…

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Weekly New York Wine News — December 21, 2015

Before we get to the regular news roundup, the NYCR team would like to extend its deepest condolences to the Pisacano family on the passing of Gasper “Gabby” Pisacano (pictured above). Anyone who has ever visited Roanoke Vineyards knew Gabby and loved him. He will be sorely missed by not only his family and the Roanoke Vineyards family, but also the Long Island wine community. Rest in peace, Gabby. NEWS Bloomberg – 12/9/2015 Channing Daughter’s Rosato Pet Nat makes the grade in this selection of best wines for 2015. Paste Magazine – 12/15/2015 The Finger Lakes of New York top this…

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Corks of the Forks: A holiday gift guide for the wine lover

The following are some of the wine-related gifts I’d love to receive this year, but this list isn’t going to do me much good. My wife is done with her shopping. She has been for weeks, maybe months. She’s done buying for my family, her family, our kids and me. I, on the other hand, have barely started shopping for her, but that’s not relevant for a wine column. Besides, that’s what Amazon Prime is for. Wine. Every year I’m surprised at just how few people buy me wine. I’m a wine lover! Wine lovers, by definition, love wine. And…

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