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 makes 100
cases of a misguided, imbalanced wine, does that really make it a
boutique winery or one that we care about?

Quality, or at least
implied quality, is what wine marketers are pushing most of the time
when they invoke the phrase boutique winery. They want you to think that their wines are
hand-crafted, made by people who are hands-on and truly
passionate about what they are doing. I’d include artisanal my modified definition of boutiuqe, but that too is a term way overused.

By the formal definition, Long Island is overrun by
boutique wineries — small producers making small lots of a few
different wines. But many of these wineries come up short on the quality part of the equation. Many make seviceable-to-good wine, but few really hit the mark of what is intended by the boutique moniker.

One North Fork producer in particular does meet the criteria — Roanoke Vineyards.

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. Are they small? Yes, they make
fewer than 2000 cases of wine a year. Are they exclusive? Yes, you can
only buy the wine at the winery and their wine club is closed to new
members.

And with a portfolio that started with a single
merlot bottling but expanded to include two blended reds, a cabernet
sauvignon, a chardonnay and a rose — each delicious — the quality
standard is met and exceeded here. Each wine displays Mr. Pisacano’s
experience and acumen in the vineyard as well as winemaker Roman Roth’s
excellence in the winery. Roanoke’s currently released reds, in
particular, stand out.

Roanoke Vineyards 2004 Blend One ($30), named as
such simply because it was the first blend, is made with 43% cabernet
franc, 33% merlot and 24% cabernet sauvignon. It is showing an
expressive, complex nose with blackberry and blueberry as the primary
fruit aromas with apparent earthiness, subtle smoked and cured meat and
caramel. Slightly rustic it is medium bodied with slightly grippy
tannins that will continue to incorporate in coming years.
Blackberries, blueberries and black pepper greet the palate, joined by
more of that salted meat character. The finish lingers nicely. It’s a
wine that evolves over the course of the evening, so take your time
with this one. 319 cases were made. Rating:
 (3 out of 5 | Recommended)

Made from 71% cabernet franc, 17% merlot and 12%
cabernet sauvignon, Roanoke Vineyards’ 2004 Blend Two ($38) is yet
another young wine with great days ahead that is tasting terrific now
as well. More elegant and refined than its sibling blend, the nose is
effusive, offering cherry and other red fruit aromas layered with brown
spices, salt-cured black olive and faintly floral notes.

The medium-bodied palate opens with clean, pure red
cherry flavors, but soon reveals cinnamon, anise and nutmeg spice, a
little vanilla and earthy flavors that remind me of dried fall leaves.
It deftly balances power and elegance with rich flavors and smooth,
integrated tannins. This might have been my favorite wine of 2007. Only
90 cases were produced. Rating:
(4 out of 5 | Delicious, Distinctive
)

Roanoke Vineyards 2004 Merlot ($45), their first
varietal merlot release since the stunning 2000, isn’t nearly as
evolved as the two blends, but with time it well may surpass them.
Right now, the nose is a bit underwhelming right out of the bottle.
Vigorous swirling releases plum, sweet cherry, cinnamon and faint cocoa
powder aromas. Medium bodied with youthful cherry and spice flavors,
the tannins are apparent here — ripe but not completely integrated yet
- and the finish is lengthy with an earthy-chocolate tinge. 121 cases
were produced.
 (3 out of 5 | Recommended)

Ask Richie what red variety excites him most,
and he’ll say cabernet sauvignon. He considers it the king of reds and
his Roanoke Vineyards 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon ($40) is certainly a
standout in a region where cabernet is rarely successful. This wine is
richly, deeply scented with black cherry, vanilla, sweet plum and
slightly smoky aromas. The flavors are dark, with blackberries, black
cherries and black pepper accented by smoky-sweet cedar, fresh herbs -
particularly thyme — and faint licorice nuances. Medium-to-full bodied,
this is a somewhat hefty wine, but still one of refinement because of
the well-integrated tannins. 148 cases were made. Rating:
(3.5 out of 5 | Very good-to-Delicious).

(This is the un-edited an un-censored version of my column this week in Dan’s Papers)