Posts Written OnOctober 2009

Some Finger Lakes Food Thoughts

Photo courtesy of Dano's Heuriger By Jason Feulner, Finger Lakes Correspondent Lenn has always intended that this blog emphasize wine and food, although there is so much wine news to talk about that sometimes we forget to mention food as often as we should. Admittedly I am not a foodie, and I know that I nearly always forget to write up my dining experiences in relating information about the Finger Lakes. This article by Don Cazentre from the Syracuse Post-Standard does a wonderful job highlighting some new eateries as well as summarizing those culinary staples that already exist. I would recommend this article to readers who are thinking…

Custom Brewcrafters Double Dark Cream Porter

By Kevin Burns, Beer Columnist One of the more interesting breweries in New York is Custom Brewcrafters in Honeoye Falls, NY. In addition to brewing beers for their own label, Custom Brewcrafters partners with local restaurant and tavern owners in to brew signature beers for each establishment.  Double Dark Porter is one of the beers that CB brews under their own label.  The beer poured a pitch black color with a finger width, tan head. The nose had a lot of coffee, roasted malts, and a faint hint of chocolate.  The body was sweet up front with a lot of dark malt and really really strong notes of…

Bird Management at Harvest Time

  By Tom Mansell, Science Editor In my last post, I mentioned bird netting and how exposed grapes need to be protected from birds, especially once they are ripe. Birds, like people, love to eat wine grapes. They also seem to have an uncanny ability to determine when grapes are ripe and, if left uncontrolled, decimate a vineyard's grape supply.   It got me thinking about several different methods that growers use to keep their yeast food from becoming bird food.  A short sampling: Shiny Objects Occasionally in orchards, you will see pie plates and shiny mylar tape tied to a…

New York Cork Report Tasting Table (10/2/09)

By Lenn Thompson, Editor-in-Chief Because of various other projects I've been working on, I've gotten a bit behind on my review writing here on the site. This edition of Tasting Table cleans out the "left to write up" queue though, so I'll be able to start anew this weekend.  Brooklyn Oenology 2006 Motley Cru ($18): Peppery, earthy nose with tobacco. Light black plum and blueberry fruit. Syrah comes through on the palate up front with lots of black pepper and earth. Sweet blueberry peeks in on mid-palate. Slightly gamy/meaty as well. A little too much vanilla-oak on the finish. Long,…

Fulkerson Winery 2007 Dornfelder

By Lenn Thompson, Editor-in-Chief I'm not 100% certain but I'm pretty sure that this is the first varietal Dornfelder I've ever tasted. And I'm a little embarrassed to say that I knew little-to-nothing about the grape. In fact, all I really knew was that Channing Daughters Winery in the Hamptons grows some and uses it for blending. So what is this grape, Dornfelder? It's a dark-skinned grape that was created in the mid-1950s by August Herold in Germany. It's a cross (not a hybrid) of Helfensteiner and Heroldrebe. It is widely planted in Germany, in part because it grows well in areas that…