Posts Tagged“arrowhead spring vineyards”

Blending at Arrowhead Spring Vineyards

Covering the Niagara and Lake Erie Regions the past few months has allowed me to meet many of the local winemakers. While I’ve been a wine lover, as well as a novice winemaker, for many years I’m just now learning many of the fundamental phases of a vintage in a commercial setting. At the end of September, I was invited to assemblage at Arrowhead Spring Vineyards in Lockport, New York. Assemblage is the French term for blending wines and the term used by Duncan and Robin Ross to describe their process at ASV. Joining me at the session were Ryan Little, winemaking assistant of Arrowhead…

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Arrowhead Spring Vineyards 2011 Pinot Noir

A lot of cheap pinot — let’s use sub-$20 as our loose definition — has little pinot character. They can be gulplable, but they are typically strawberry-cherry juice with some alcohol. That fact is one reason that I appreciate Arrowhead Spring Vineyards 2011 Pinot Noir ($18) so much. It has real pinot character for a great price. Is this the best pinot in the world or even Niagara? Of course, not. But it never lasts long when I open it. The nose starts with red cherries — ripe, tender ones — but some swirling teases earthy forest floor and raw…

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5 Questions with… Robin Ross, Arrowhead Spring Vineyards

For those that know Robin Ross, co-owner of Arrowhead Spring Vineyards, it may be difficult to believe that when she met her husband Duncan she wasn’t even a wine drinker. Ross has come a long way since then. She now dedicates herself day and night to the 7-acre vineyard in New York’s Niagara Escarpment, with much of that time in between the vines. If asked 10 years ago if she thought she would be a winery owner working full-time in the wine business, my guess is that she probably would not have said yes. Winemaking was her husband Duncan’s passion,…

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Arrowhead Spring Vineyards 2010 Arrowhead Red

Some New York restaurant owners, when confronted about a lack of local wines on their lists, point to price point as the main reason. “There just aren’t any good $15 reds!” they might say. Now, one could argue that the cheap reds they are pouring aren’t very good either, but that’s another discussion for another day. Today, let me introduce you to the latest vintage of one of New York’s great red wine values — Arrowhead Spring Vineyard 2010 Arrowhead Red ($15) — an incredibly well-priced wine that should be served by the glass in every western New York restaurant that…

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“Drink New York” Dinner with Arrowhead Spring Vineyards This Thursday. Now With a Special Treat.

Just a reminder that our next “Drink New York” dinner is only a few days away! Thursday at 7 p.m. we’ll gather at the Riverhead Project to enjoy a wonderful menu prepared by chef Lia Fallon alongside some of my favorite wines from the Niagara region of New York, those from Arrowhead Spring Vineyards. You can read the full menu here. Over the weekend, I recieved an email from ASV winemaker and co-owner Duncan Ross, and he’s bringing something special for the end of the meal — 4 of his last 12 bottles of 2007 Vidal Icewine. I can tell you…

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Save the Date! July 11, 2013: Drink New York Dinner with Arrowhead Spring Vineyards and Jedediah Hawkins Inn

  I should have the full details by the weekend, but I’m happy to announce the return of our wine dinner series — renamed simply “Drink New York” — on Thursday, July 11 at 7 p.m. at Jedediah Hawkins Inn, featuring the wines from one of New York’s top wineries, Arrowhead Spring Vineyards in Lockport, NY. As always, we like to do things to make our wine dinners a bit different that those already taking place, so we’re thrilled that co-owners Duncan and Robin Ross (who make the wine and manage the vineyard, respectively) will be making the trek down…

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Arrowhead Spring Vineyards 2010 Cabernet Franc

I’ve enjoyed many of co-owner/winemaker Duncan Ross’ wines from Arrowhead Spring Vineyards in the past, but his cabernet franc remained elusive — mainly because it’s typically only available in the winery’s tasting room. So on my recent visit to Empire State Cellars, not long after Duncan had been there to pour several of his recently released reds, I was thrilled to find this bottle of Arrowhead Spring Vineyards 2010 Cabernet Franc ($25). The ripeness of the 2010 Niagara vintage is on full display from the moment the wine settles in the glass — and so are the 22 months this…

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Arrowhead Spring Vineyards 2010 Pinot Noir

Think that pinot noir that retails for under $20 isn’t very good? Get yourself a bottle of Arrowhead Spring Vineyard 2010 Piont Noir ($18) and unlearn that widely held belief. Just-crushed raspberries and pomegranate fruit dominate the nose and tell you what’s coming on the ripe, concentrated palate — more raspberry and pomegranate with chalky, gently grippy tannins and fresh acidity. With some time open, a faint spicy, Dr. Pepper-esque note steps forward a half step. It’s not complex or a wine to age for 10-15 years, but it’s satisfying and delicious. Producer: Arrowhead Spring Vineyards AVA: Niagara Escarpment ABV: 13.6% Price: $18* (3…

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Previewing Arrowhead Spring Vineyards’ 2010 Reds

If Arrowhead Spring Vineyards has its way, “Black Friday” will be renamed “Red Friday” on account of its annual day-after-Thanksgiving wine release event where the winery will once again change the landscape of locally grown reds by releasing several from the 2010 vintage, including the Estate Arrowhead Red, Estate Meritage Reserve, Estate Cabernet Sauvignon, Estate Cabernet Franc, Estate Merlot and their 2011 Pinot Noir. The 2010 vintage was as close to perfect as any for red grapes in Niagara thanks to a long season combined with warm temperatures and dry conditions. I recently had the opportunity to taste these wines…

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Arrowhead Spring Vineyards 2008 Vidal Ice Wine

Late harvest and ‘iced’ wines — those made with grapes frozen in commercial freezers before processing — are common in New York. Real deal ice wine is not. This is the real deal and you can certainly taste the difference. Arrowhead Spring Vineyards 2008 Vidal Blanc Ice Wine ($38) smells like juicy ripe peaches and apricots drizzled with floral lavendar honey. The nose is intense and ever-moving as the wine warms to room temperature. The palate is explosive in its concentration and complexity, bursting with stone fruit flavors along with those of hay, honey, cooked sugar, golden raisin, dried apricots and lavender…

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