By Lenn Thompson, Editor-in-Chief Every Monday (more or less) our editors and contributors tell you what we're drinking. Sometimes the wines are local — sometimes not. Sometimes the wines are actually beer. But this blog isn't just about us. It's about you too. We want to know what you're drinking too. If the traffic metrics that TypePad provides are to be believed, there are a lot more of you reading this blog than commenting, so here is my challenge to all of you lurkers out there: In honor of Regional Wine Week, tell us what local wines you're drinking or…
Posts Written OnOctober 14, 2009
Heron Hill Winery 2007 Blaufrankisch Reserve
By Lenn Thompson, Editor-in-Chief I think that I'm like most wine geeks in that I like wines that make me think. I don't mean all the time. Not every wine. Sometimes we just want wines that we can drink, have with our meal, and enjoy throughout the course of an evening. But on other occasions, I want a wine to stop me in my tracks and demand further consideration and pondering. Even rumination. This Heron Hill Winery 2007 Blaufrankisch ($35) is a wine that had me thinking. And wondering. We'll get to that in a minute though. First, a little…
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,…
2009 Harvest Update: Heart & Hands Wine Company Pinot Noir
Photo courtesy of Heart & Hands Wine Company By Evan Dawson, Finger Lakes Editor Listen carefully, and you can hear the din of late-night celebrations at Heart & Hands Wine Company on Cayuga Lake. They are toasting the warm, nearly arid September for resurrecting the pinot noir that is now coming in. "September not only saved the vintage, but we're looking at some of the ripest fruit I've seen so far," says owner and winemaker Tom Higgins, now in his third vintage. Heart & Hands makes 90% pinot noir and 10% riesling, so there was a lot riding on September.…
2009 Harvest Update: Peconic Bay Winery Chardonnay from the Oregon Hills Vineyard
Chardonnay juice being presssed at Peconic Bay Winery — 20 minutes ago. By Lenn Thompson, Editor-in-Chief Photo courtesy of Peconic Bay Winery Peconic Bay Winery is picking (yes picking, right now) around 21 tons of clone 124 chardonnay from its 10-acre Oregon Hills Vineyard. Brix was right at 22. TA and pH data isn't available yet, but I'm sure we can get that information later. According to Jim Silver, general manager: "A smidgeon more than 2 tons per acre harvested. Nice low yields. Very clean fruit. Hand harvested and machine harvested both. It’s so tasty, it’s dreamy. I can’t stop…