Posts Written OnJanuary 2007

More on the Lisa Granik Op-Ed

I swear that I’m not piling on Lisa Granik, what with my post from Monday and all. But, yesterday I found myself reading some back issues of Edible Brooklyn, and I came across this story that Lisa wrote. Looking at the op-ed and the Edible story side by side, it’s hard to believe that the same person wrote them both. In fact, on many (many) points, they seem to be on polar opposite sides of the same issue. Read the op-ed (if you haven’t already) Read the Edible Brooklyn piece. What do you think?

Remembering Ray Blum — A North Fork Wine Pioneer

I was saddened last night to hear that Ray Blum, one of Long Island’s true wine forefathers, passed away yesterday after a long bout with illness. Ray played an integral part in Long Island wine’s beginnings, founding Peconic Bay Vineyards (now Peconic Bay Winery), planting several vineyards all over the North Fork (including some that are now a part of Bedell Cellars and Paumanok Vineyards), and most recently running and owning Ackerly Pond Vineyards. In such a small, localized wine industry, everybody knows everybody else and I know Ray will be missed. Charles Massoud of Paumanok Vineyards emailed me today…

Blog Find: Virginia Vine Spot

As I was clicking through some of my favorite wine blogs today, I realized that I’ve never highlighted Virginia Vine Spot in a post. Never visited Dezel’s blog and have no idea what it’s about? Well, think of it as a LENNDEVOURS for Virginia wines rather than New York. The writing is engaging and approachable, as are the tasting notes and other posts. Check it out and see what you think. I’ve only had a few VA wines, but most really impressed me. Clearly VA and NY are leading the way in East Coast winemaking. I wish I could get…

It’s the Style, Stupid.

By Contributing Columnist Richard Olsen-Harbich Much has been written and debated lately about the style and direction of Long Island wines — most notoriously, a recent Op-Ed piece in the Long Island section of the NY Times implied that L.I. wine producers needed to spend more energy on experimentation and crafting out our own identity. I would argue that this is exactly what L.I. winemakers have been doing for the past 30-plus years. Most people take it for granted now, but back in the early 70s, the general consensus from Cornell University and many other “experts” on the East Coast…

Long Island Wine Appreciation Month at Asta Wine Cafe (Huntington, NY)

Asta Wine Cafe and Art Gallery is a cafe in Huntington Village, with a wine list that is almost exclusively Long Island Wines — which is cool in my book. Unfortunately, their customers in their silly snobbishness, aren’t buying into the concept. I can only call it snobbishness, because there are plenty of delicious wines made on Long Island (but I’m preaching to the choir here, right?) Would their customers rather have Beringer White Zin and Yellowtail Shiraz? Apparently that is the case because Asta is considering scrapping their LI-only concept and moving to an international list. But it’s not…

New York Cork Club: January Selections

Have you signed up for the New York Cork Club yet? If not, you should think about it — either for yourself or for a friend or family member. It’s a unique opportunity to taste the best wines of New York State (not just Long Island folks!) as selected by your favorite NY wine guru. That’s right…me! I don’t know about you, but I’ve been a member of a couple wine clubs in my day and there are two things that you just don’t see in wine clubs very often — sparkling wine and dessert wine. Well this month’s New…

The Jets Didn’t Get to the Super Bowl, But You Can Buy Gary’s Cup

His special, fancy, better-then-Riedel crystal wine-tasting cup that is. I’ve long been a fan of Gary Vaynerchuk’s Wine Library TV. He clearly knows his wine, but he’s not the stuffy, snobby kind of wine lover that I hate. Those types of people ruin wine for the rest of us. Gary wants to bring wine to the masses by making it approachable, fun and not so damn serious. His latest edition illustrates this nicely, as he tosses aside his usual wine glasses and instead uses a vintage (1990) Simpson’s plastic cup from Burger King. This episode is also your last chance…

A Letter to Lisa Granik (New York Times Op-Ed Contributor)

This letter is in response to Lisa Granik’s op-ed in the New York Times’ Sunday edition. Dear Ms. Granik, After reading your op-ed over the  weekend, I have two words for you: Thank you. That’s right, I’m thanking you even though I’m sure that by now you’ve received plenty of emails and calls from those in the Long Island wine industry, telling you that you’re wrong, misguided and misinformed — and you are in much of what you say — but I still think it’s great that your words were printed in the New York Times. The best way for…

American Wine Blog Awards: Nominate LENNDEVOURS

I’ve been remiss in not mentioning Tom Wark’s (of Fermentation) American Wine Blog Awards before now. Every other blogging community has a set of awards and I can think of no better creator than Tom. It’s going to be great to see some of my favorite bloggers winning awards for all of their hard work. I’m even more excited about it because there is one category that I think I have a chance in: Best Single-Subject Wine Blog. I don’t pay attention to many awards because this blog is so focused on New York wines. But, in this category, I…

WTN: Martha Clara Vineyards NV Blanc de Blanc

Martha Clara Vineyards, best known in these parts for having a bevy of large- and small-scale wine events, is really coming on. And by that I mean that their wines are improving with each released vintage. When I first starting covering the region several years ago, their portfolio was firmly entrenched as one aimed at the white zinfandel set — not fine wine lovers. Standby wines like the sweet, Beagle-labeled rose are still the top sellers, but further down the tasting sheet you’ll find some much better, refined, and delicious wines. Yes, the tasting room still overflows with new wine…