Eveningside Vineyards owner Randy Biehl stands in front of his new production facility in Cambria, NY by Bryan Calandrelli, Niagara Region Editor Randy Biehl doesn’t tend to wax romantic when he talks about his new production building – the construction of which is close to completion – at Eveningside Vineyards, the winery he owns on the Niagara Escarpment with his wife Karen. “I’m very aware we are in a critical time for our business,” he says. “Expansion is when many businesses end up failing.” Knowing Biehl, you don’t chalk this up as simple boilerplate pessimism, but rather to his meticulous…
Posts Written OnMarch 2010
What We Drank (March 22, 2010)
It's been a while, but for the first time in I don't know how long, we've all chosen wine for What We Drank. And each really is special for one reason or another. Here's what we're drinking here at the NYCR: Evan Dawson: Hosmer Vineyards 2003 Vintner's Reserve Riesling, Finger Lakes Five to eight years. There's your current window for how long you ought to lay down your favorite Finger Lakes Riesling. If you don't occasionally lay a bottle down, you're missing out on a fascinating array of flavors and developments. This outstanding bottle from Hosmer is just another piece…
Dundee Honey Brown Lager
By Kevin Burns, Beer Columnist Genesee Brewing Company is a regional favorite in Rochester. In addition to the traditional Genesee line of beers, the brewery produces the Dundee Ales & Lagers line which, includes an IPA, porter, brand new seasonal Irish Red Ale, and the Honey Brown Lager. Dundee Honey Brown was first introduced in 1994 and quickly became a regional favorite. In the late 1990s the brewery started to tinker with the beer. The recipe remained the same, but the packaging, was changed, the price went up and it was pushed as more of a "craft beer". When sales…
Wine In Grocery Stores? The Problem Is the Bureaucratic Mess of a Process
By Jason Feulner, Finger Lakes Correspondent New York's agricultural commissioner can learn something from Danny Wegman when it comes to being direct about an issue. At a news conference on Tuesday, Wegman was willing to be honest about what will happen if New York grocery stores are permitted to sell wine: He'll make more money and some liquor stores will close. "Some liquor store operators say they will lose their jobs. I'm sure that's true, if they don't do a good job,” Wegman said as reported by 13 WHAM-TV in Rochester. He said that hundreds of the state’s liquor stores…
Happy St. Patricks’ Day from the NYCR
Anthony Road Wine Company's associate winemaker, Peter Becraft, sent us this picture this morning. Green riesling…it must be St. Patrick's Day. Enjoy!
Atwater Estate Vineyards 2007 Syrah
By Lenn Thompson, Editor-in-Chief If the growing conditions are borderline for syrah on Long Island, it seems that they'd be even more challenging in the Finger Lakes, a cooler region with a shorter growing season. Still, people are growing it and while most of it probably ends up as rose, some are making interesting wines. And, in the best years, in the best locations, the wines can clearly be better than interesting — including this Atwater Estate Vineyards 2007 Syrah ($32). You may remember when Atwater's winemaker, Vinny Aliperti, called this out as his favorite from the winery's portfolio at…
What We Drank (March 15, 2010)
Just a bit of what we're drinking this week… Lenn Thompson: Coors Light (Colorado) Yes, Coors Light. There are very few occasions during which I drink this (barely) beer-flavored water but the Annual Rocky Point St. Patrick's Day parade is one of them. This year's was actually the 60th annual, making it one of the oldest and largest St. Patrick's Day parades on Long Island. After brunch with friends who live in RP, we loaded up the wagons with the kids, battled the rain and cutting cold winds and had a great time anyway. How did the Coors Light taste?…
Happy Birthday LENNDEVOURS — Now the New York Cork Report
By Lenn Thompson, Editor-in-Chief Six years ago today, I launched this website without any idea that it'd grow and evolve into what it is today. What started as a way for me to share — with friends and family — what Nena and I were cooking at home and tasting in Long Island wine country has become a bit of an obsession for me and my merry band of fellow New York wine enthusiasts. Six years. I think that puts me amongst the "old timers" of wine blogging but as I pause today to look back, I also want to…
Red Newt Cellars 2007 Sawmill Creek Vineyards Cabernet Franc
By Lenn Thompson, Editor-in-Chief David Whiting's single-vineyard program at Red Newt Cellars, where he is winemaker and co-owner, bears watching. Sure, the wines are priced too high for daily drinking — the cab francs, merlot and Gewurztraminers are all around $40. But, these are small-production wines that display nicely the difference that vineyard site can make in finished wines. Maybe they are a bit geeky in that way, but the wine inside is sure to appeal to any wine lover. Still, it's fun to taste the two cab francs or the two Gewurztraminers side-by-side. Really interesting. Busting with black cherries,…
Finger Lakes Rieslings on WineIsSeriousBusiness.com
By Lenn Thompson, Editor-in-Chief Late last week, I stumbled upon the above video from WineIsSeriousBusiness.com, an online wine show that I found very interesting, charming even. Sure, I was mostly interested because I saw three Finger Lakes rieslings on the table in front of them — Dan and Chas that is. But what I liked most was that they seemed like two people very much like myself. Sure, they are clearly wine enthusiasts, geeks maybe. But at the same time, they are real people with real, honest passion for fermented grape juice. They aren't hawking wine for a wine shop.…