Posts Tagged“villa bellangelo”

Bellangelo 2014 Cabernet Franc Dry Rose

It doesn’t always happen this way. Not every cabernet franc rose tastes like cabernet franc, but Bellangelo 2014 Cabernet Franc Dry Rose ($16) really does. It starts off with the types of bright red fruits that you’ll get from most roses — cranberry and red cherry in this case — but there are also underlying notes of Herbs de Provence and mossy earth that bring a bit of complexity without getting in the way of the fresh fruit aromas and flavors. Brisk and refreshing, it’s lighter bodied and begging to be enjoyed with food. Producer: Villa Bellangelo AVA: Finger Lakes Vineyard: Tuller Vineyard…

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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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5 Questions with… Ian Barry, Barry Family Cellars

For most New York Cork Report readers the name Ian Barry probably isn’t a new one. Barry, most recently winemaker at Villa Bellangelo has also held winemaking positions in the Finger Lakes at Keuka Lake Vineyards, Swedish Hill Winery and Heron Hill Winery and thus has made a number of appearances across these pages. Many may not know however that Barry started out at a small vineyard in the Hudson Valley near SUNY New Paltz where he was pursuing a teaching degree and where he also worked on the retail side of the wine industry as a wine shop manager…

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Villa Bellangelo and Winemaker Ian Barry Part Ways

Villa Bellangelo has decided to end its employment of winemaker Ian Barry, and the winery is launching a search for a new winemaker immediately. Barry was hired by Bellangelo in 2011 when the Missick family arrived from California to set in motion a dramatic change at the Seneca Lake facility. Known for a quirky Italian theme and a lineup of sweeter wines, the Missicks purchased Bellangelo with the intention of joining the regional elite. Barry, an award-winning winemaker with experience at several Finger Lakes producers, was hired to improve the wines. “Ian Barry assisted Bellangelo during an important transition,” said Chris Missick in a statement. “Most…

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Experiencing Riesling at Villa Bellangelo

Although there is no known method for preventing the “Polar Vortex Blues”, a wine dinner is an effective remedy. A group of nearly forty food and wine lovers discovered this at “The Riesling Experience” wine dinner that was recently held at Villa Bellangelo. The evening featured a seven-course dinner of wonderfully prepared dishes that had been created by Chef Mike Colvin (Beef and Brew in Geneva) along with rieslings from Villa Bellangelo’s 2011, 2012 and 2013 vintages. Featured among the wines was the limited release 2012 Villa Bellangelo 1866 Reserve Riesling. The 2012 vintage is a blend of two rieslings that were produced from grapes grown…

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A Sense of History: Bellangelo’s Book is a Unique Marketing Effort

Villa Bellangelo’s Christopher Missick has put together a kind of book that’s uncommon: a marketing document designed to boost his company’s brand, but also a historical document grounded in valuable research. This is a new age of marketing; 30-second television ads and newspaper spots are not bringing the return on investment like they once did. Companies are not just creating ads; they’re creating content, and it starts with explaining the company’s values. For example, today on Hulu, Chipotle launches its own four-episode miniseries called Farmed and Dangerous. Chipotle hired Ray Wise, a veteran character actor, to lead the show, and…

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Villa Bellangelo 2012 Dry Riesling

Tangy and driven by wet slate — rather than fresh fruit — character, Villa Bellangelo 2012 Dry Riesling ($19) is a reminder of just how difficult it is to make great dry riesling. It’s very minerally on the nose — think wet river rock and slate — with background notes of Granny Smith apple, just-ripe pear and apple blossom. Lighter bodied, the palate is so slate-y as to be almost salty, with faint lime and grapefruit zest flavors as well. The acidity is bitter-pithy rather than juicy. The mid-palate is a bit hollow, but the finish is long and appetite…

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Searching for — and Finding — Distinctiveness in Finger Lakes Pinot Noir

Producing pinot noir is the wine industry’s equivalent to a high-wire act. When done right, it can be spectacular and breathtaking. But it requires courage and commitment, and leaves little margin for error. Pinot noir is a thin-skinned grape that requires a cool climate with moderate temperatures to be successfully cultivated. Excessive heat can rob the fruit of flavor and acidity. While it is fairly adaptable to different soil types (provided that the soil drains well), it also requires a certain amount of precipitation and long hang time for the variety’s characteristic aromas and complex flavors to develop. Despite conventional…

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No Shortcuts: Villa Bellangelo Steams Forward with Ambitious Plan to Establish a New Sense of Place

Editor’s Note: This is a guest post by Lindsay Prichard, an avid NYCR reader who wanted to share his passion for Finger Lakes wines with other readers. The long, cold weeks of winter provide a well-deserved rest between the frenzy of the previous autumn’s harvest and the bustle of the upcoming spring and summer. In the vineyards, snow blankets the ground and the vines hang silent and bare. In the wineries, the long hours of the previous harvest are over. Winter is a time for the region to catch its collective breath before the vineyards burst back to life and the migrating multitudes of…

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Watch “The Secrets of the Finger Lakes” in its Entirety

“Secrets of the Finger Lakes” aired original on September 12 at 8:30 p.m. on WHAM-TV and on 13wham.com For those of you who missed it — or want to watch it again — here it is broken into four clips. My television news superiors approached me about putting together a special report after the success of my book. At first I hesitated, because I didn’t want to simply air a rehashed set of stories that already appear in print. But then I saw an opportunity to tell new stories; these are some of the stories that do not appear in the…

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