Browsing CategoryFinger Lakes

Chateau Lafayette Reneau Wins 2014 Governor’s Cup

The most prestigious award in New York wine went to Chateau Lafayette Reneau, a wine producer that can boast some of the finest vineyard land in the Finger Lakes. CLR won the coveted Governor’s Cup for their 2013 Semi-Dry Riesling. The wine edged out several other best-in-category winners, including two wines developing a strong pedigree: Macari’s Cabernet Franc (this one the 2010 vintage) and Anthony Road Dry Rose (the 2013). It will be interesting to see if this award affects CLR in any significant fashion. In many ways, CLR feels like it has been frozen in time, from the antiquated…

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Treleaven Wines 2012 Dry Riesling

Treleaven Wines 2012 Dry Riesling ($16) didn’t jump out at a recent tasting, but it’s a well-made, dry riesling that is both refreshing and deftly avoids the “lemon water” quality that some Finger Lakes dry rieslings suffer from. Aromas range from white flowers to Granny Smith apple to sweet herbs and lime. Pretty classic Finger Lakes for this style. On the palate, it’s more of the same — green apple and lime — with a bit of dried pineapple and pear. Refreshing and somewhat tart, there is ample acid here — enough that it pinches the finish a bit. ABV: 10.9% RS: .5% pH: 2.87…

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Dr. Konstantin Frank 2012 Reserve Riesling

Dr. Konstantin Frank 2012 Reserve Riesling ($25) aligns nicely with the recent trend of richer, decidedly off-dry rieslings in the Finger Lakes. The nose is a stunner, showing aromas of Golden Delicious apple, Bartlett pear, peach, honey, fennel frond, green melon and delicate floral notes. Round and weighty, the palate shows intensely ripe fruit and similar flavors — peach, pomme fruit and melon — with a slight bruised-apple note. Though sweet, it’s balanced by delicate acidity that keeps it from being cloying. The light herbal and floral notes are a bit hidden, but emerge as the wine warms a bit. Don’t…

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Fracking is Not Coming to the Finger Lakes. Here’s Why.

Hydraulic fracturing, known as fracking, is not coming to the Finger Lakes. The process to extract natural gas from shale formations deep below the surface of the earth is almost certainly a dead idea in a large part of New York State. The reason is a concept known as “home rule.” A few weeks ago, the state’s highest court upheld the rights of towns and municipalities to pass their own localized fracking ban or moratorium. The decision is a bit more complicated than that, but it essentially is an endorsement of home rule as a legal concept. Towns that pass…

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5 Questions with… David Breeden, Sheldrake Point Vineyards

The New York Cork Report is back in the Finger Lakes for the latest edition of our “5 Questions With…” series. Our latest victim, David Breeden, Winemaker at Sheldrake Point Vineyards on Cayuga Lake. David is a Michigan native who grew up in suburban Detroit before moving to California for his high school years. His route to the Finger Lakes was an indirect one; Iowa, back to California and Illinois all in the pursuit of higher education wherein he has obtained multiple degrees in both chemistry and philosophy. It wasn’t until Breeden moved to Ithaca that he realized that a career as…

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Finger Lakes Wine by the Numbers: Balance, Value and Single-Vineyard Wines

The Finger Lakes can make a statistics-based case for being the most balanced wine region in the country. Its sparkling wines offer far better value than sparkling wines from other regions. And how much more would you pay for scarcer, single-vineyard wines? Those three themes fill out our newest edition of “Finger Lakes Wine By the Numbers.” The purpose of this series is to provide a quantitative view of the Finger Lakes wine industry based on a survey of wines offered by Finger Lakes wineries on their websites. The introductory post presented information on three aspects of the industry: The…

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2015 Wine Bloggers Conference to be Hosted by the Finger Lakes Region

The Wine Bloggers Conference, a yearly event that helped inspire my own annual TasteCamp event — is coming to the Finger Lakes wine region August 13-16, 2015. A great ‘get’ for the region — any group that can get this event off of the west coast deserves kudos — it should bring much-deserved attention to one of the most exciting wine regions in America. A press release from Finger Lakes Wine Country said that organizers are expecting 300 attendees. There will be more information available soon, but in the meantime, here’s that press release: 2015 WINE BLOGGERS CONFERENCE COMING TO FINGER…

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News Brief: Nathan Kendall Becomes Head Winemaker at Villa Bellangelo

Chris Missick, owner of Villa Bellangelo, announced late last week that Nathan Kendall has accepted the position of head winemaker for his Dundee-based winery. Kendall is a native of upstate New York and has worked in the wine industry both in the U.S. and abroad. Most recently, he was an assistant to winemaker Morten Hallgren of Ravines Wine Cellars in Hammondsport, NY. Kendall fills Villa Bellangelo’s head winemaker role which had been vacant since Ian Barry left earlier this year to focus on Barry Family Cellars in Hector, NY.

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Hector Wine Company 2012 Syrah

It’s easy to get caught up in all of the delicious white wines — not just riesling, mind you — coming out of the Finger Lakes and assume that the red wines just aren’t very good. Several folks charged with selling Finger Lakes wines of all styles lament this fact quite openly when you speak with them or interact with them on the interwebs. It’s a common misconception, but like many is based at least in part on facts. You can throw “cool-climate” around all you want — and many do — but if you’re working with the wrong varieties…

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Inside the Olney Place: The Beating Heart of the Finger Lakes Recalls Great Stores

Gualala, California is a small ocean-side town in California, northwest of Napa. It’s home to the Surf Market, the coolest community grocery store in the country. And while the locals love it, it convinces tourists to make the drive from Napa Valley. “Perhaps the closest thing to the perfect small town store,” is how Seth Olney describes it. Olney is the owner of the Olney Place on Keuka Lake, and he knows something about what makes a store special. At the age of 34, Olney has developed his community store into the beating heart of the Finger Lakes. He’s traveled…

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