Posts Written OnMay 2011

By Lenn Thompson, Executive Editor There are few Long Island wines with as much of a cult-ish following as Paumanok Vineyards 2010 Chenin Blanc ($25). The Massoud family has had unequivocal success with this "interesting accident" and yet, it remains a one-of-a-kind wine on Long Island. No one else has planted chenin yet. The first thing you might notice about the 2010 is the price — $25 — down a few dollars from the last couple of vintages. With a new chenin vineyard coming into its own, the Massouds have more fruit to work with, production has increased and the…

By Lenn Thompson, Executive Editor May's Times Union New York Wine Club selections are on their way to members and that means it's time to tell you a bit about them. For our Basic-Level Members this month, we have a great duo that you can take to or serve at your next bbq. Peconic Bay Winery 2009 Lot #2 is a blend of merlot, cabernet franc and cabernet sauvignon that delivers good value. Complex for the price point, the nose offers sweet red cherry and red raspberry fruit with layers of earthy spice and sweet herbs over top. The palate…

  By Lenn Thompson, Executive Editor 2010 Finger Lakes rieslings are starting to trickle into the market, but I'm still enjoying tasting through the 2009s, which are showing great balance and intensely — almost across the board. In general, 2009 wasn't a great year in New York for reds, but it was great for whites. Remember that the next time you hear that this vintage or that "wasn't a good year." It's rare that a season is bad for both reds and whites. 2009 was Jonathan Hunt's first vintage as head winemaker and based on his Hunt Country Vineyards 2009…

By Lenn Thompson, Executive Editor Long Island's only co-op tasting room will re-open soon, but it's going to look quite different from The Tasting Room, which was closed by then-owner Theresa Dilworth at the end of February. Anthony Nappa, winemaker at Shinn Estate Vineyards and proprietor of Anthony Nappa Wines, and his fiancee Sarah Evans — who is chef de cuisine at North Fork Table — will re-open the space as The Winemaker Studio. They hope to open sometime next month once all of the licensing is sorted out. Previously, the space served as a common tasting room for smaller…

By Lenn Thompson, Executive Editor Yesterday evening, 30 or so lovers of local food and beer convened in the dining room at Luce & Hawkins for the NYCR's first-ever New York Beverage Artisan dinner featuring Paul Dlugokencky (pictured right) and his unique Blind Bat Brewery beers. The five beers — and the menu created just for the event by Chef Keith Luce and his team — were a hit with the assembled crowd. For me, there were too many highlights to even mention. I could tell you about Paul's inaugural batch of honey-basil ale or his smoked wheat ale —…

By Bryan Calandrelli, Niagara Region Editor Niagara Ontario does not use the term

By Evan Dawson, Managing Editor In Niagara, winemakers use the word "terroir" often. We heard it just about everywhere we went. It's a word spoken far less often in New York state, where winemakers speak of sense of place or perhaps "somewhereness," while occasionally dropping "terroir" into conversation as well.  Why does this matter? It's not simply relevant because Canadians speak a lot of French. It's relevant because in Niagara, where I spent several days for TasteCamp North, "terroir" is not about marketing. It's about an honest exploration of the soil and what it can provide. This is no small…

For this week's WWD, our contributors and editors all picked a wine from TasteCamp 2011 — and not surprisingly we each focused on something different: Lenn Thompson: Ravine Vineyard 2007 Reserve Merlot The first day of TasteCamp 2011 was spent in and tasting wines from Niagara-on-the-Lake, an area with a distinct focus on Bordeaux varieties. Coming from another Bordeaux-heavy region, it was interesting to note the differences and the similarities. I found quite a bit of oak in the NOTL merlots, cab francs and cab sauvs, but also a lot of intense, ripe fruit and some heat on the finish…

By Lenn Thompson, Executive Editor This is a selection of New York wines that have crossed the NYCR tasting table recently but will not be reviewed as part of a standalone post. As always, these are transcribed almost directly from my notebook with little editing. Note that these were not tasted all in one sitting/flight but instead over the course of several weeks. And for this edition, some of these are from an old notebook that I misplaced and recently found Bedell Cellars 2007 Musee ($75): Dark-roast coffee, plum and black cherry on the nose with a little blueberry compote…

By Lenn Thompson, Executive Editor While some argue that it's vitally important for emerging regions to identify and focus on a 'signature variety' I think it's more important for any region to take its time, experiment and let the evolution toward specialization happen organically — if at all. Without the type of experimentation and open-mindedness we might not get to enjoy wines like the newly released Palmer Vineyards 2010 Albarino ($25 for 500ml). This is Long Island's first Albarino, from the first fruit harvested off of a single acre of vines, and it's no real surprise that it's made by…