Posts Tagged“roman roth”

Wolffer Estate Vineyard 2013 Chardonnay

Roman Roth has a way with chardonnay. Always has and probably always will. I don’t drink a lot of chardonnay, mind you, but I can recognize and appreciate well-made chardonnay of any style. For Wolffer Estate Vineyard 2013 Chardonnay ($19) Roth started with seven separate lots — all hand-harvested and fermented separately in 70% stainless steel and 30% French oak (his portion also completed malolactic fermentation). After six months of sur lie aging, those seven lots became one 1,117-case production. As I look back over my notes, I see that I wrote “fruity” three times, but it’s not just fruity.…

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New York #Tastemaker: Roman Roth | Wolffer Estate

“Tastemaker” is a term typically used to describe a person — either a sommelier or writer in the wine world — who decides what is good, cool or otherwise interesting. With our new #NYTastemaker profiles, I’ve decided to usurp the term to mean someone who actually makes the wines, ciders, spirits, etc. that we love. A “tastemaker” should make something, after all. This week’s tastemaker is none other than Roman Roth, winemaker and partner at Wolffer Estate. Roman has been making wine on Long Island for a long time, was instrumental in the creation of the Long Island Merlot Alliance and is…

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Wolffer Estate 2012 “Christian’s Cuvee” Merlot

Sometimes, I just don’t want to talk about how much a wine costs. With Long Island wines already seen as over-priced by many and the ever-rising prices of Finger Lakes wines, it’s a topic that I cover enough already. I can’t tell you if Wolffer Estate 2012 Christian’s Cuvee Merlot ($100) is worth that $100 price tag or not. That’s really between you and your bank account. What I can tell you that I’ve bought it before — though admittedly not often — and that I’ve had the pleasure of drinking these wines back to the 2000 vintage and these…

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News Brief: Merliance Elects Roth, Nappa and Ginsburg as New Officers

Merliance (formerly known as the Long Island Merlot Alliance) has named offers for a new two-year term — ending in June 2015 — based on a vote of members. Roman Roth, partner, winemaker and technical director at Wolffer Estate is the group’s new president. Roth is also one of the founders of the organization. He said in a press release “The Merliance has come a long way since we started in 2005. With collective reviews of our merlots and merlot-based blends in national publications, annual consultations with international oenologists and elegant wine-focused events like HARVEST EAST END to our credit,…

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Roman Roth Named Partner at Wolffer Estate Vineyard. Grapes of Roth Brought In-House There.

Congratulations to veteran Long Island winemaker Roman Roth who today was named a partner at Wolffer Estate Vineyard by new owners Joey and Marc Wolffer. In addition, Roth will move his private label “Grapes of Roth” under the Wolffer Estate umbrella. Sagaponack, NY (February 11, 2013) – Roman Roth, the Winemaker at Wölffer Estate Vineyard for 21 years, has been named a partner by new co-owners Joey Wölffer and Marc Wölffer. “It is great timing to name Roman a partner just after his 20th anniversary and during the 25th anniversary of the estate. Roman’s dedication and incredible passion has helped build the…

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Wolffer Estate 2005 Caya Cabernet Franc

Wolffer Estate's winemaker, Roman Roth, made some delicious and unique wines to commemorate the winery's 20th anniversary, and this wine the Wolffer Estate 2005 "Caya" Cabernet Franc ($40) is one of them (even if I liked the 04 a bit better). The commemorative wines are all named for horses in the Wolffer Stables and this one bears the name of Caya, a 16- year old Hanoverian Warmblood and a Grand Prix winner. This blend of 86% cabernet franc and 14% merlot shows ripe, intense blackberry and cassis fruit aromas on the nose, which are accented by vanilla, toasty oak and…

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Roanoke Vineyards: The North Fork’s Boutique Winery

Of late, it seems as if "boutique" has overtaken "award-winning" as the most overused way to describe a winery. There are other annoying, overused wine words too, but let’s focus on "boutique" today. Dictionary.com defines "boutique" as an adjective meaning "of, designating, or characteristic of a small, exclusive producer or business." Of course, even in the wine world, this definition means little without proper context. There are some California wineries that consider themselves boutique that dwarf even Long Island’s biggest producers. While exclusivity is a crux of the official definition, it doesn’t really mean much either. If a winery only…

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WTN: Roanoke Vineyards 2004 Blend One (North Fork of Long Island)

Since its debut a few years ago, Roanoke Vineyards has firmly entrenched itself as one of the North Fork’s true (and top) boutique wineries. Owners Richie and Soraya Pisacano, along with director of operations Chris Watkins, have created a must-stop destination for any lover of fine wines. A portfolio that started with a single merlot bottling has expanded to include two blended reds, a cabernet sauvignon, a chardonnay and a rose. Each shows Richie’s experience and acumen in the vineyard as well as winemaker Roman Roth’s many talents in the winery. Roanoke Vineyards 2004 Blend One ($30), named as such…

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The 12 LI Wines of Christmas: #6 Grapes of Roth 2001 Merlot

This post is a part of my 12 Long Island Wines for Christmas series that will run from now until Christmas 2007. See the entire series here. Roman Roth isn’t a name that long-time readers of LENNDEVOURS are unfamiliar with. His primary gig is as winemaker at Wolffer Estate, but he also serves (or has served) as winemaker or consultant for wineries like Roanoke Vineyards, Shinn Estate Vineyards, Vineyard 48, Martha Clara Vineyards and Scarola Vineyards. His Grapes of Roth 2001 Merlot ($50) was the first release from his own label. He has recently released the 2002 vintage, but I…

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The 2007 Vintage and Howard Goldberg, the Wine Curmudgeon

Over the weekend, you may have seen Howard Goldberg’s "Long Island Vines" column in the New York Times, which focuses on Long Island’s 2007 vintage and it’s potential quality. He starts the column with quotes from Charles Massoud of Paumanok Vineyards and Roman Roth of Wolffer Estate, two of Long Island’s most respected vintners. The quotes mirrored what I’ve heard from local grape growers and winemakers. John Levenberg, winemaker at Bedell Cellars told me that 2007 was a "a great growing season with plenty of heat and good sunshine, punctuated by bouts of rain that happened upon us when our…

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