Sparkling Pointe August 25, 2013

Posted by nofowineaux in Tasting and tagged with Blanc de Blancs, Brut, caviar, Champagne, chardonnay, chocolate, Cuvee Carnaval, gewurztraminer, merlot, North Fork wine, Pinot Meunier, pinot noir, Seduction, Sparkling Pointe, sparkling wine August 27, 2013

http://www.sparklingpointe.com/

It seemed appropriate on a sparkling August day, after several hours watching the sun sparkling on the water, to check out Sparkling Pointe winery, where they specialize in sparkling wine. And a good choice it was. Using the Méthode Champenoise to make authentic champagne-style wines (which can’t actually be called champagne because only wines from the Champagne region of France can legally bear that title), they have taken Long Island grapes into the realm of luxury wines.

The bright and airy tasting room leads out to a spacious patio area, which they need, since they often get van and busloads of visitors, as we have noted as we have driven by. Just as Croteaux evokes France and Diliberto evokes Italy, Sparkling Pointe evokes Brazil, featuring Bossa Nova nights and paintings of Rio in its tasting room. According to a server on a previous visit, the owners happen to “love the culture” of Brazil. The winery also tries to promote an air of elegance, with crystal chandeliers on the ceiling and caviar on the fairly extensive snack menu. Once, when we came on Halloween, all the servers were in fancy dress, either tuxedos or ball gowns. The snack menu, which needs to be somewhat extensive since they have a note on the door politely informing guests that they no longer allow outside food, also includes charcuterie, various cheeses, olives, and more, as well as iced tea, Pellegrino, and something called Vita Coco Coconut Water from Brazil. We have goodies waiting at home, so we decide to just do two tastings, one for our son and another we will share, at $17 for four tastes in pretty champagne flutes. Although they have more than four wines, they decide on the menu of tastings each day. Oh, and you can add a chocolate pairing for an additional $10.

Our server knows his stuff, and seems quite enthusiastic, but he is also taking care of a couple of larger parties out on the patio and seems somewhat distracted, rushing back and forth. Fortunately, we are not in a hurry.

2009 Brut $29

This is their “signature” wine, a blend of 59% Chardonnay, 31% Pinot Noir, 5% Pinot Meunier, and 5% reserve wine. I want to ask the server what “reserve wine” means, though I assume it is wine left over from other years, but he has disappeared and I forget when he returns. We like the Brut better than on a past visit. It has a somewhat doughy smell, with some notes of not-ripe melon, or maybe pear. It is a light, dry champagne, with some residual sugar and a hint of grapefruit. While I wouldn’t want to drink it by itself, as in a toast, it would be a lovely aperitif wine with nuts or soft cheese.

2. 2008 Blanc de Blancs $42 (Magnum $93)

On the other hand, I would happily drink a toast with this wine. After a year on the lees, this 100% Chardonnay wine has a somewhat funky mineral aroma but is creamy to taste, and reminds me of a Granny Smith apple pie. Nicely dry, but with good fruit, I could also see this paired with some Crescent Farms duck breast. and my son agrees. It is better than most $20 champagnes one buys.

3. 2003 Brut Seduction $60

Another blend, this one is 51% Chardonnay and 49% Pinot Noir, and spent eight years on the lees, according to our server. One nicety—each taste is poured into a fresh glass. Here we smell dirt and mushrooms, but taste raspberry and lemon curd. One could definitely sip this on its own and be very happy. The tasting notes refer to its “organoleptic profile,” which occasions some hilarity in our little party. Look it up.

4. NV Cuvée Carnaval $27

Our server has poured our final taste before we finished the one before, and left, noting that he won’t be back, a fistful of glasses in one hand and a bottle in the other, so I miss whatever he said about this wine, as I was concentrating on the previous one and comparing notes with my son. This wine combines Merlot and Chardonnay, plus 4% Gewürztraminer, which probably accounts for some of its sweetness. We smell strawberry jam and taste mango and cherry. It wouldn’t be bad with a dessert like a flourless chocolate cake, and, for a sweet wine, has some nice minerality, so I like it better than I thought I would. If you didn’t have Chateau d’Yquem, my husband notes, you could substitute this. Well, maybe…

After we finish our last wine, we stand at the bar waiting to pay for our tastings, our server, as promised, having disappeared. A gentleman comes over and asks us if we are waiting to buy a bottle. No, we say, just waiting to pay for our tastings. He thanks us for our patience, and tells us the tastings are free! Nice gesture, which somewhat makes up for our harried server’s divided attentions.

Reasons to visit: you like champagne—um, I mean, sparkling wine; you want to see what a North Fork winery can do with sparkling wines; you want caviar with your champ…sparkling wine; the Blanc de Blancs (my favorite); Bossa Nova nights.

Lieb Cellars/Oregon Road August 9, 2013

Posted by nofowineaux in Tasting and tagged with Bridge Lane Chardonnay, Bridge Lane Merlot, Bridge Lane Merlot Blanc, cabernet franc, cabernet sauvignon, cox neck, Lieb Cellars, Malbec, Meritage, North Fork, north fork wineries, Oregon Road, Petit Syrah, petit verdot, Reserve Pinot Blanc, Right Coast Red, seashell wreath, Sound Influence Riesling, tomato bruschetta, wine club members August 13, 2013

http://liebcellars.com/

Tuscany? No, Oregon Road!

Suppose you like Lieb wines (as we do) and you decide to stop by their small tasting room on the corner of Cox Neck Road and Sound Avenue, only to find it…overrun sounds so judgmental, so let’s just say crowded…by the presence of a couple of limo groups. Never fear, you have a lovely alternative. Just go back onto Sound Avenue and continue a few blocks to Mill Road, turn left, then turn right onto Oregon Road and you will find yourself surrounded by farm houses and fields of sunflowers. You’ll pass Shinn Vineyards—also worth a stop, by the way—and eventually you’ll find Lieb’s second tasting room, carved out of a warehouse (sort of similar to the way their first tasting room shares quarters with the Premium Wine Group, which does the wine-making for quite a few of the North Fork wineries).

This tasting room does not accept limo or bus groups, so it is unlikely to be crowded. When we ask our server why the new room was opened, she gives just this reason, and notes that it is a nice place for their wine club members to come for a quiet tasting or glass of wine. They also have an efficient-looking little kitchen just off the room, where on the weekends they make snacks such as hummus, tomato bruschetta, oysters, and other non-cooked items (since they don’t have an oven on site). On this cloudy Friday, there is just one other group in the room, sitting around a table on the comfortable-looking modern wicker sofas. The room has a sophisticated, semi-industrial look, softened by a swag of cloth and a seashell wreath over the kitchen and a sea-view mural on one wall.

They offer six tasting options: five whites for $10, five reds for $10, a “summer fling” of six mixed types for $14, two sparkling wines for $7, a Reserve tasting of five for $12, and another summer tasting of four wines for $8. They also have a couple of Greenport Harbor beers on tap, in case your party includes a non-wine drinker. We decide to do a white flight and then a red flight, sharing as we go. The pour is fairly generous.

2011 Bridge Lane Merlot Blanc $12

But wait, you say, isn’t merlot a red grape? Yes, but if you don’t give it any time on the skins you get a white wine with some merlot characteristics. In this case, that involves some funkiness in the taste. We smell pine and mineral aromas, and the taste is sour, like grapefruit juice with some pineapple at the end. We wouldn’t want to sip this one, but it might go well with food that needs a strong white.

2. 2010 Reserve Pinot Blanc $18

Our well-informed server tells us that they are the only winery on the North Fork to make a Pinot Blanc, and so it is their signature wine. Again, this one is not for sipping, though it would have gone well with the lobster bisque I made from our leftover shells the other night. The aroma has a bit of the cat pee smell, and the wine itself is light and tart and citrusy, with a hint of sweetness at the end.

3. 2010 Bridge Lane Chardonnay $10

We like this steel-fermented chard very much, and the price is certainly right. Scents of cinnamon and mineral, with a bit of sweetness, lead to a classic steel chard with nice fruit, and not too much sweet.

4. 2009 Reserve Chardonnay $24

After eight months in oak, this is a lightly oaked chard, with some baked goods aroma. Very tasty, not too oaky, and again some sweetness at the end.

5. 2010 Sound Influence Riesling $24

Although this is an off-dry Riesling, we find the sweetness overwhelms the tastes of pineapple and tropical fruit and wildflower honey.

6. 2011 Bridge Lane Merlot $15

Now we switch to the reds, and we get a new glass, always a nice touch. Although we smell forest floor, the wine itself does not have any of that earthy dirt taste one sometimes gets. This would make a fine vin ordinaire, to have with pasta and such, as it has nice cherry flavors and just a little tannin. Buyable.

7, 2005 Reserve Merlot $22

18 months in French oak gives this wine an aroma of smoke and tomato. Hmmm…barbecue sauce? This is also a good pasta wine, and would stand up to a rich Bolognese sauce, as it has more tannins than the Bridge Lane Merlot. We taste cherry at the front of this relatively simple wine.

8. 2010 Right Coast Red $30

Here we have their classic Bordeaux blend: 58% Merlot, 22% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Cabernet Franc, 8% Petit Verdot, and 4% Malbec. I’m assuming the name is a play on Right Bank Bordeaux! The aroma is almost meaty, it is so complex, and the wine itself is lovely, with lots of fruit. It would complement a rack of lamb very nicely, though the end taste is a bit sour.

9. 2008 Reserve Cabernet Franc $26

Our server describes this one as “nice and smooth,” as she also tells us it spent 15 months in French oak. We smell wet rock, and my husband says it smells like a typical Cabernet Franc, but “not to distraction.” Though not complex, this is a good red, with lots of fruit flavors.

10. 2005 Meritage $45

Another blend, this one has 75% Merlot, 13% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Malbec and Petit Syrah, and 3% Cabernet Franc. This is only the third time Lieb has made this wine, we are told, and they only made 300 cases of it. We are underwhelmed by its aroma of sticky candy and just okay taste.

They don’t offer any wine tchotchkes for sale. We do buy both the Bridge Lane Chardonnay and the Bridge Lane Merlot. No reduction of tasting price with purchase.

Reasons to visit: you like a quiet tasting room in a bucolic setting; many of their wines, including the reasonably priced Bridge Lane Chardonnay and the Bridge Lane Merlot, are quite good; you want to come on a weekend and check out their snacks (I guess we’ll have to return!).

One Woman Winery August 5, 2013

Posted by nofowineaux in Tasting and tagged with chardonnay, D'latte, Dessert Wine, gewurztraminer, Greenport, gruner veltliner, merlot, North Fork, One Woman Tribute, One Woman Winery, rose, sauvignon blanc August 8, 2013

http://www.onewomanwines.com/

Apparently, one woman is all it takes to make some terrific wines; at least, if that one woman is Claudia Purita, the woman behind One Woman Wines. As her daughter proudly told us on a previous visit, Ms. Purita tends the vines by hand, picks the grapes, and makes the wine. The results are a pleasure to drink. Oh, and she even picks and arranges the gorgeous bouquets of wildflowers that grace the tasting room.

Flowers in the tasting room

We came to the winery this time on a breezy sunny Monday afternoon, when, until two other parties arrived, we were the only people in the tiny tasting room and on the only slightly larger deck area, where we drank our wines. If you are in a party larger than six or in a limo, you’d better have a reservation! The pleasant young women behind the bar were cheery and helpful, and guided us as we decided on what to pick from the menu of nine wines. Tastings are $6 for two tastes, $8 for three, or $10 for four, plus there are three reserve wines one can try for $4 for one or $12 for all three. Since there were four adults, we decided to share two tastings of four choices each, plus some reserves, while the two-year-old distraction ran races on the lawn. Because we were going back and forth between two tastings, the wines might not be in the absolute perfect tasting order.

2011 One Woman Tribute $23

Created to mark Ms. Purita’s five-year anniversary as a winemaker, this is a blend of all their whites. As a result, it has an unsurprisingly complicated aroma with peach and minerality dominating followed by a delicious taste that combines apricots (my favorite fruit) with a long citrusy finish. Dry yet fruity, this is a wine one could happily sip by itself or pair with almost any food.

2. 2012 Sauvignon Blanc $25

Another goodie! This one has a spicy aroma and flavor, with lots of lemon. It would be great with oysters. Very buyable.

3. 2011 Grüner Veltliner $20

Hmmm…what’s that smell? Eucalyptus! This wine also has plenty of fruit, with a nice tartness that makes us think of gooseberries. This is good, but…

4. 2012 Grüner Veltliner $20

…the 2012 is even better. Despite a slightly musty aroma under the eucalyptus, this is delicious, with a surprisingly sweet ending and a bit of a bubbly feeling on the tongue. As this is the only Grüner on the North Fork, it is worth coming here just to taste it.

5. 2011 Gewürztraminer $23

We smell pineapple and mango, then find the taste surprisingly dry, though with lots of tropical fruit. This one is rather delicate, so you’d want to pair it with a dish that wouldn’t be overwhelmed by it. Maybe scallops?

6. 2012 Gewürztraminer $23

As the servers noted, the 2012s are more flavorful than the 2011s, and that holds true for both the Gewürztraminer and the Grüner. Aromas and tastes of pineapple, and also spice and honey make this our favorite of the day, and we buy some to take home, thinking of Peconic Bay scallops on the barbecue.

7. 2012 Chardonnay $20

This is our least favorite of the day, a half oaked, half steel fermented chard with some vanilla and pine sap aromas and some oak and tropical fruit flavors.

The deck

8. 2012 Rosé $19

We get the usual notes of strawberry, with perhaps, as they say, some pomegranate. This is a dry, merlot-based rosé, with some earthiness and funkiness, though ultimately it is refreshing.

9. 2008 Estate Reserve Merlot $48

Lots of aromas to this wine, including wet forest and cinnamon. We taste spice and dark fruit, and all agree that it is an excellent merlot with all sorts of interesting flavors. This is part of the Reserve tasting, as are the next two.

10. 2010 Estate Reserve Chardonnay $38

Again, not a favorite. It has that cat pee smell some wines seem to get, and is too oaky for our taste, with lots of butterscotch.

11. 2010 Dessert Wine $39

Smells like the Gewürztraminer. It is sweet, but not just sweet, with some nice structure.

If you are counting, you will realize we skipped one wine—the sparkling wine. Perhaps next time we’ll try that. Meanwhile we buy the Gewürztraminer and the Sauvignon Blanc, and as a result the tastings of the standard wines, but not the reserves, are free. We also almost bought some gelato on sale in the tasting room, before we remembered that we had a Briermere pie for dessert. Gelato? Not surprising when you know that her husband owns D’Latte in Greenport. Later that night we have Peconic Bay scallops, barbecued on skewers with plum tomatoes and zucchini, along with roasted new potatoes and corn and sautéed zucchini, and the Gewürztraminer goes perfectly with it all.

Reasons to visit: you would like to drink some excellent white wines; you like peace and quiet among the vines (though they do have some evening events which might be livelier); you want to try Grüner Veltliner on Long Island; you like a nice dry Gewürztraminer; the Sauvignon Blanc.

Harbes Family Farm August 5, 2013

Posted by nofowineaux in Tasting and tagged with Harbes; Merlot; Chardonnay; Cabernet Franc; corn; hay ride; North Fork August 7, 2013

http://www.harbesfamilyfarm.com/family-vineyard/

Harbes tasting barn

What a pleasant surprise! Though we’d seen the sign for several years, we didn’t expect much from the Harbes tasting room. After all, we mostly go to Harbes for their excellent sweet corn (best on the North Fork!), and other vegetables, not for wine. However, we had walked around to the back of the farm stand on this breezy sunny day to give our small two-year-old distraction a chance to play on the wooden tractor/slide and in the sandbox filled with dump trucks. Then the tasting barn caught our eye, so when play was done we headed there, with the little one’s assurance that she would just pretend to drink.

The tasting barn is indeed barn-like, a large bare room with wooden rafters and wire furniture, with some tables outside on the grass as well. The tasting menu offers three options: three wines for $10, four wines for $12, or five wines for $14, chosen from a menu of nine wines. We decide to go for the five sample option, skipping their sparkling wine, their rosé, the ice wine, and a Chardonnay/Riesling blend that sounds as though it would be somewhat sweet. They grow their own Chardonnay and Merlot grapes on a five acre plot, buy the rest of the grapes from Onabay and Clovis Point, and do their winemaking at Premium Group, as do many other wineries. Though we don’t dislike any of the wines, we end up not wanting to buy any of them.

An array of bottles with medals

1. Steel-fermented Chardonnay 2012 $17

I’m not crazy about the aroma, which reminds me of mushy grapes, but this is a nice crisp clean steel chard, with flavors of green apple and lime.

2. Barrel-fermented Chardonnay 2012 $25

After a year of aging in French oak, this chard has the typical butterscotch aroma and flavor of an oaked chard, but is not too oaky. More structure, observes one of our party, than the steel chard, and not too much vanilla. Also nice.

3. Cabernet Franc 2011 $29

The grapes for this wine come from Onabay and Clovis Point Vineyards. Nice legs, we observe, which confuses the two year old distraction, but we explain that it means how the wine runs down the side of the glass, and she clinks her sippy cup of water with us. Not a bad cab franc at all, with a spicy aroma and a light, clear, dry taste, with some cherry notes.

4. Hallock Lane Merlot 2010 $55

Though pricy, this is a very good wine with tastes of dark plum, black cherry, and leather. Our server informs us that it is newly released. Good tannins and plenty of fruit mean, we think, that this would probably get better with age. At that price, one would expect a memorable wine experience, which this is not.

5. Old Barn Merlot 2007 $26

Another good wine, which, despite an ashy aroma, has dark berry tastes on the tongue with some interesting flavors and good tannins.

As we are getting ready to leave, the hay ride comes around the bend, with a singer on board belting out “Thank God I’m a Country Girl.” Looks like fun.

Reasons to visit: You have stopped to buy some corn and note the tasting room is just around the corner; you have children with you who would like to go on a barnyard adventure; you’ve had their roasted corn and a hot dog and you’re now thirsty; the merlots and the chardonnays.

Croteaux Vineyards July 27, 2013

Posted by nofowineaux in Tasting, Uncategorized and tagged with 181 clone, 3, 314, boutique, croteaux vineyard, Herbes de Provence, Jolie, merlot, North Fork, Pomerol, Provence, rose, Sauvage, St. Emilion, Violet July 29, 2013

This gallery contains 5 photos.

http://www.croteaux.com/ It pays to join the club, even if you didn’t intend to! Croteaux has their own charming take on the wine club concept. In most, you sign up for regular deliveries or pick-ups of two or more bottles, and in return you get free tastings and reduced prices. At Croteaux, you automatically become a … Continue reading →

Jamesport Vineyards July 13, 2013

Posted by nofowineaux in Tasting and tagged with cabernet franc, chardonnay, East End Cinq Blanc, East End Merlot, Jamesport Vineyards, Jubilant, Melange de Trois, North Fork, oysters, riesling, sauvignon blanc, Sidor, SPAT, Wayside Market July 15, 2013

http://www.jamesportwines.com/

The last time we went to Jamesport Vineyards it had been to simply have a glass of wine and a plate of oysters, not a bad reason to visit as they are very well set up for that (more on the oysters later), but we felt it was time to do a complete tasting. The tasting room is in a 150-year-old barn, and is half bar and half a view through large windows into the wine-making operation. Though the room itself is small they have lots of space outside, and we see large groups immediately ushered to the outdoor space. They have a few t-shirts and other items for sale. Our server presents us with a list, but gives very little additional guidance, so we are left to decide for ourselves what to taste. A tasting is 5 wines for $13, and they have 13 wines in all, so we decide to share two tastings so we can sample 10 of their wines, which are served in attractive round-bottomed glasses. We skip the Rosé, the Pinot Noir, and the East End Cabernet Franc. We also notice that the list of bottles for sale is not exactly the same as the tasting list.

2011 Reserve Chardonnay $21.95

Our server informs us that this spends “a little bit” of time in oak and the rest in steel, so it is not too buttery, and she is right, though perhaps it could have used more time in oak, as it is very lemony and tart. The aroma is of wood and spice, and while not unpleasant we find it too citrusy.

2.East End Cinq Blanc $16.95

My high school French reminds me that cinq=five, and indeed, this wine is made from 5 grapes: Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling, Gewürztraminer, and Pinot Blanc (in unknown proportions). The bottle has an attractive picture of a scallop shell, so we turn it around to read that this wine is made, as they say, “…in partnership with the SPAT (Southold Project in Aquaculture Training) program. This Cornell Cooperative/Community-based partnership encompasses an initiative to teach residents how to raise their own shellfish in the bays of the East End. The large scallop shell on the label pays homage to the bounty of the North Fork’s bays and creeks.” Fittingly, we feel this wine would go very well with local oysters! I detect an aroma of piney woods and a lovely crisp taste of gooseberries with some citrus at the finish. Very buyable!

3. 2012 Sauvignon Blanc $24.95

“This is my favorite white,” enthuses our server, and if she likes pineapple that would explain why. We like it too, but not as much as the Cinq, though it would also be good with oysters. An aroma again of pine forest precedes a taste with lots of pineapple, and maybe some pine, too.

4. 2010 Riesling $25.95

Off dry? Not really. An aroma of petrol, they say? We say cardamom, and we also say too sweet, and we also say time to dump the rest of the glass.

5. 2008 East End Merlot $16.95

Moving on to the reds, we start with their merlot, which we quite like, also. Aromas of blueberry and cinnamon, tastes of cherry and berry, and no earth means we’re happy. Some tannins, and the end is a bit sour. This is also buyable.

6. 2005 Estate Merlot Block E $??? (not on bottle list)

We smell minerals and wood, taste some cherry, but it is very dry and has no finish to speak of. Just eh.

7. 2007 Cabernet Franc $29.95

This is a relatively simple Cab, though with a nice long finish. Some cherry aromas, but not much smell at all, and nicely dry with good fruit.

8. 2007 Mèlange de Trois $29.95

Their Bordeaux blend, this is an amalgam of 49%Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, and 26% Cabernet Franc. Although there’s not much aroma, the taste is delicious, like ripe purple plums and what I believe are called “chewy tannins.” Whatever. It’s good!

9. 2007 Jubilant Reserve $44.95

Another blend, and this is a wow: 68%Cabernet Franc, 18% Merlot, 14% Cabernet Sauvignon, 2.5% Syrah, and 2.5% Petit Verdot. Yum. Aroma of dried figs, lots of complex ripe fruit tastes, and a lovely finish. Happy tongue. This would go great with a Porterhouse steak from Wayside Market.

10. 2007 Sidor Reserve $44.95

62% Syrah, 18% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Cabernet Franc, 9%Merlot, 2% Petit Verdot—They do like their blends here. And justifiably so! This is not as good as the Jubilant, but still really good, with nice tannins , dry, but lots of fruit, with an aroma of cedar and ripe figs.

I note one wine on the bottle list which goes for $100, pretty unusual for the North Fork.

We pay for our tastings and then move outside to the attractive stone bar, behind which are two people, a drink server and an oyster opener. We get a glass of the Cinq to share for $8 with a plate of a dozen oysters for $22. If you get them, get the cocktail sauce and grated horseradish, not because the oysters need any embellishment, but because both sauces are very good, especially the horseradish. They also offer some beers on tap and Margarita pizzas. A singer provides entertainment to the various groups scattered around the grounds at picnic tables. We sit on a cushioned bench at a small wooden table across from the bar and enjoy our treat. The oysters a bit small, but very fresh, with lots of liquid, and the wine goes perfectly with them.

Reasons to visit: you want to have a glass of wine and a plate of oysters; the East End Cinq Blanc, the East End Merlot, the Mélange de Trois, the Jubilant, and the Sidor; you want to sit outside and listen to music; you want to support SPAT.

Kontokosta Winery June 23, 2013

Posted by nofowineaux in Tasting, Uncategorized and tagged with Anemometer Red, Anemometer White, cabernet franc, cabernet sauvignon, Greenport, Hellenic, Kontokosta Winery, merlot, North Fork, olive oil, Orient Chardonnay, sauvignon blanc, viognier, windmill June 25, 2013

http://www.kontokostawines.com/

One great aspect of choosing to write about North Fork wineries for a blog is that there is not much risk of running out of material. Not only do wineries change their offerings with each new harvest—necessitating return visits—but new wineries are constantly springing up. Case in point, as Rod Serling liked to say, Kontokosta Winery in Greenport, which opened its very attractive doors on June 12^th. As you head east towards Orient Point on Sound Avenue you pass a flashing light, where you could turn to head into Greenport. Instead, stay straight and you’ll come to a gate on your left, which leads to a long gravel drive and then to a parking lot next to a large imposing building, bracketed by vines, a view of Long Island Sound, and a tall windmill, about which more later.

Inside, the spacious tasting room is sleekly modern in style, with a serene black and white color scheme. We note several tables where a happy party is taking photos of themselves and a long tasting bar. We find a space at the bar, where a lovely young woman explains the choices to us. All the servers are clad in black shirts with the Kontokostas logo on the chest, a discreet three red bars. One of the servers is a gentleman we recognize from several other venues, including the Tasting Room and Empire Cellars, and he assures us we are about to experience some terrific wines. A tasting consists of four one ounce pours for $10, chosen from a menu of ten wines, five white and five red. There’s also a three-pour tasting and wines by the glass. We opt for two four-wine flights, one of white and then one of red, both of which we share, skipping the rosé and the Blum Merlot.

NV Anemometer White $16

Why Anemometer, we ask, noticing the representation of a spinning anemometer on the bottle? The winery is very proud of its use of wind power, our server notes, and in fact everything on the property is powered by wind. Our friend from other venues notes that on a very windy day you can see the electric meter spin backward, so that LIPA ends up owing them money. On to the wine, which is a blend, though primarily sauvignon blanc. Refreshing, we agree, with an aroma of Meyer lemon and mineral, with tastes of citrus and honeysuckle at the end. This would be good for summer sipping, and also would go well with turkey dishes. Very buyable!

2. 2009 Orient Chardonnay $17

The grapes for this wine come from a vineyard in Orient, hence the name. A lightly oaked chard, this is just okay, and a bit sour. There’s plenty of orangey-lemon tastes, and some oak at the end, but we don’t find it particularly pleasant.

3. 2012 Sauvignon Blanc $25

Not surprisingly, we find this wine reminds us of the Anemometer White, though with some different tastes. Overall it is a bit sweet for us, with aromas of honeysuckle and green plum and tastes of wildflower honey with a vegetal note at the end. My husband says green beans…not sure I agree. This is the first wine they made here.

4. 2010 Viognier $25

Bedell is the only other North Fork winery to use this grape, so we are interested to see how it compares. At Bedell we had their 2011 Viognier, which we found very pleasing, with complex spicy fruit and citrus flavors. This one has aromas of blood orange and peach, with peachy tastes and some tannins, but not so complex.

5. Anemometer Red 2006 $19

I would expect this to be a blend, but it is 100% syrah, we are told. The aroma has some of that East End barnyard smell, plus red berry, and the taste reminds us of red sucking candy. While not for sipping, this would be okay with food, such as pork chops.

6. 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon $22

We smell ripe berries and plums, and not much earth, and taste lots of fruit, with a nice dry finish. I’d love this with a nice medium-rare duck breast, and it could stand up to steak as well.

7. 2007 Merlot $29

Again we smell that earthy barnyard aroma, plus some mineral. This is just okay—dry, with decent fruit, but a bit of a chemical acetone taste at the end. You could have this with a rich pork dish and it would be fine, but it is overpriced for what it is.

8. 2007 Cabernet Franc $29

“This is one of my favorites,” enthuses our server, and we can see why, as it is definitely the best of the reds, with lots of fruit and a lovely aroma of ripe berries, not too sweet but not too dry, either. Oh, she adds, all the reds are aged in new French oak.

After we finish the wines, we are offered tastes of three olive oils they are selling—all for $28—an extra virgin, a Minneola tangelo and a jalapeῆo lime. They’re nice, but we’ll stick with Vines and Branches. We also learn that the winery is proud of its use of recycled materials in its construction, which is partly reflected in their slogan, “Sound Life, Sound Wine,” or as they say on their FaceBook page, “Registered with the USGBC under the LEED New Construction 2009 rating system, our winery has been designed to meet the gold certification level. To meet these high standards, the building is constructed of 100% recycled steel and reclaimed wood siding, and will be powered by wind energy.”

The windmill!

We enjoy the view out the large window to the Long Island Sound on this lovely June day as we wrap up our visit with the purchase of a bottle of the Anemometer White.

Reasons to visit: You’re in Greenport without a car and you’d like to go to a winery; you’ve tried all the others and are looking for a new winery; Anemometer White and 07 Cabernet Franc; the chance to appreciate a lovely view while doing a tasting; you’re on your way to the Hellenic and have some time to kill before dinner.

Nofowineaux Goes to Virginia

Posted by nofowineaux in Tasting and tagged with Bull Run, chardonnay, Melange, Nana's Rose, Norton, Paradise Springs, Petit Manseng, Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, Sommet Blanc, Virginia June 19, 2013

http://www.paradisespringswinery.com/

Who knew? Virginia has over 230 wineries, and, according to the Virginia Winery Guide 2013 map, is divided into “9 winemaking regions” and features “25 wine trails.” I just went to one winery, but I was duly impressed. A New York area wine lover could do worse than schedule a wine tasting trip to Virginia (and you can visit the house of Thomas Jefferson—founding father AND wine lover—as long as you’re there).

My brother took me to Paradise Springs Winery in the über-cute town of Clifton, Virginia. The winery itself is down a winding country road bordered by beautiful estates and woods, and features a large tasting barn, an old log cabin, and ample outdoor areas where we saw many people picnicking, tossing Frisbees, and just relaxing. Lots of people. Happily, there was room at the long bar in the tasting room, and an attractive and knowledgeable young woman named Kat took care of us. A tasting of seven of their wines cost only $10, and since it was Father’s Day they added a complimentary tasting of Swagger, their Port style wine. Small dishes of round crackers on the bar are there as palate cleansers. They also offer a fairly extensive menu of snacks, including cheeses from $8-$12, but many of the people we saw seemed to have brought their own picnics.

2011 Chardonnay $29

For a barrel-fermented chard, this was not overly oaky, with slight aromas of vanilla and apple, and a taste of Granny Smith apple. Very good, either as a sipping wine or with food.

2. 2011 Petit Manseng $27

Kat explains that this is a grape that is often used for dessert wines, but they harvest it early and make a dry style wine with it. My brother and I agree that it is delicious, with some tastes of pineapple and pear, with some citrus zing and a slight strawberry aroma. Kat notes that it would be good with spicy food, a good call. Buyable!

3. 2012 Sommet Blanc $24

This is a blend, 65% Vidal Blanc, 16% Traminette, 14% Riesling, and 5% Chardonnay. Now I’m wishing for a nice bowl of lobster bisque, because this wine would go well with any creamy seafood dish, as it is nicely dry but with plenty of fruit and some aromas of spice and flowers.

4. 2012 Nana’s Rosé $22

Here’s a rosé that could challenge Croteaux, and indeed, Kat tells us that it is a French style rosé, so it is dry and full of flavor from the Merlot grapes from which it is made. Great summer sipper, as I soon prove.

5. 2011 Mélange $27

Another blend, this is their Bordeaux-style wine: 53% Cabernet Franc, 24% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 8% Petit Verdot. We like this one very much, as it has plenty of red berry or cherry fruit, yet enough tannins to be interesting. We learn that the Cabernet Franc grapes are the only ones grown on the winery’s property, with the rest bought from others, such as Chrysalis vineyard. Also buyable.

6. 2011 Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon $32

Perhaps with more time this wine would be better, but we find it a bit thin, not the rich flavor that is promised by the tasting notes.

7. 2011 Norton $28

My brother is quite eager to have me taste this wine, as the Norton grape is a native Virginia grape, once cultivated by Thomas Jefferson himself. Thinking of Concord grapes, I’m expecting this to be too sweet and, though it is somewhat “jammy,” it is also good. Kat says it is great to make mulled wine with this in the winter. A mineral aroma precedes some sour cherry flavors, with a bit of a not unpleasant vegetable after taste.

8. Swagger, Edition I $39

Get out the cigars and the small glasses, send the ladies to the parlor, it’s time for that after dinner sip of port! J.K. But this is a very nice Port-style wine, again not too sweet but, after being aged 17 months in Virginia bourbon barrels, full of all sorts of deep flavors.

My brother and I each opt to buy a bottle of the Petit Manseng and the Mélange. Must be something genetic. Then we each get a glass so we can sit outside and sip and chat. I opt for the rosé ($7 for a glass), and find that it does indeed hold up well over the course of a full glass. Unfortunately, the young man playing guitar is not nearly as talented as the wine. Afterwards, we walk up the road and hike down to Bull Run—yes, the actual stream that was the site of a Civil War battle!

Later that evening, my brother opens a bottle of Horton Vineyards Norton wine, and I like that even better than Paradise Springs’ version.

Reasons to visit: You’re in Virginia and you want to try a winery; you’ve hiked the trail to Bull Run and you need some refreshment after your hike; you live in Washington, D.C. and this is the closest winery to the city; plenty of nice wines to try; picnic areas and a family atmosphere; Petit Manseng and Mélange and the chance to try the Norton (nothing to do with Jackie Gleason) grape.

Coffee Pot Cellars June 2, 2013

Posted by nofowineaux in Tasting, Uncategorized and tagged with bees, chardonnay, Coffee Pot Cellars, honey, Meritage, merlot, North Fork, Osprey's Dominion, sauvignon blanc June 3, 2013

http://www.coffeepotcellars.com/

“I have to put out the wine tasting flag,” said Adam Suprenant, the owner and winemaker for Coffee Pot Cellars, “because people keep coming in wanting a cup of coffee!” He grinned affably and looked around his spare but pleasant tasting room, which just opened a week ago on Main Road in a building formerly occupied by a real estate office. Mr. Suprenant is the winemaker for Osprey’s Dominion, but he also decided to express himself with his own label, named, not for a pot of coffee, but for the lighthouse in Orient which supposedly looks like a coffee pot. He makes just four wines, so, he noted, “They’d better be good!” That they are; not a clunker in the bunch.

The tasting room features a very attractive bar made from reclaimed poplar wood, a small selection of wine-related items, and honey and beeswax products made by Blossom Meadow, a venture of his fiancée, who manages about 100 bee hives around the North Fork. Over on a shelf sits a demonstration hive, with a glass front so you can watch the busy bees at work.

We each had our own tasting, $7.00 for all four wines, or $2.00 per taste, and also enjoyed Mr. Suprenant’s comments on how he made each wine.

1. 2011 Sauvignon Blanc $17.99

Because not many vineyards grow sauvignon blanc grapes, Coffee Pot Cellars buys these grapes from Osprey’s Dominion, but Mr. S. makes the wine his own way. A slightly mineral aroma precedes tastes of citrus and honeydew, with a nicely long and interesting finish. Definitely a good raw seafood wine!

2. 2011 Chardonnay $15.99

“This is my Hurricane Irene wine,” Mr. S. notes, remembering how the intense rain and wind of the hurricane was followed two days later by heavy rain, forcing the early harvesting of the grapes. “The wine was very lean,” he adds, so he allowed some malolactic fermentation, but aged the wine in older oak barrels, avoiding the over-oakiness and butteriness of some chardonnays. We like this wine quite a bit, with its honey-vanilla aroma and just a hint of butterscotch amid the citrus flavors. Buyable!

3. 2008 Merlot $17.99

This is the wine Coffee Pot started with, and merlot is of course Long Island’s most-grown red wine grape. The fruit for this and the chardonnay all came from one vineyard in Aquebogue, from a vineyard where the grower only grows grapes for others, rather than making his own wine. That allows the wine to express its terroir, but not, we are pleased to note, with the earthy or dirt barnyard smells of some local reds. “People ask me if Long Island wines will age well,” our new friend says, “and I say depends on the wine. This one is doing quite well, and many will age for 6-8 years and just get better.” We smell a pleasantly brambly aroma and taste pleasant berry and good tannins, though not a lot of depth. Pretty color, too.

4. 2008 Meritage $21.99

After making just merlot, Mr. S. decided to try a blend, so he went to some winemakers at Premium Wine Group (at Lieb Cellars) to see if they had any wine they were not interested in using. After some mixing and tasting, he came up with this very lovely wine, mostly merlot, 19% cabernet sauvignon and 6% each petit verdot and cabernet franc. Smells like a Briermere berry pie to me! The petit verdot adds a bit of black pepper to the delicious fruit flavor, so it is sweet but not too sweet. “I’ll only make this in the best years,” he explains, and also describes how he puts the wine through an oxidative process to eliminate that earth flavor, and also filters out the yeasts so they will stay the way he wants them to be. Buyable.

We buy a bottle each of the Chardonnay and the Meritage, plus some honey and a box of cat-shaped beeswax candles.

Reasons to visit: A chance to talk to the winemaker and learn all about how he makes his wines; four quite tasty wines; honey and beeswax products; a nice quiet tasting room.

Macari Vineyards May 18, 2013

Posted by nofowineaux in Tasting, Uncategorized and tagged with chardonnay, Collina, Cutchogue, Dos Aguas, Early Wine, Macari, merlot, North Fork, riesling, sauvignon blanc, Sette May 20, 2013

http://w ww.macariwines.com/

This weekend we went to what we call the “Irish” winery—not because it is Irish, but because a friend, hearing the name but not seeing it, thought it was McCary! In fact, so Italian (not Irish) are they that the Macari family has given several of their wines Italian names, including Collina, for the hills on which their vineyard is located, and Sette, for Settefrati, the town in Italy from which their family emigrated.

Macari has two tasting rooms, a commodious building just off Sound Avenue and another, formerly the Gallucio Family Winery, on Main Road in Cutchogue. We’ve been to both, but this time we went to the one on Main Road. As you enter, you see the road forks both up the hill and down. Both ways lead to parking lots, so you can pick either way, but the uphill one enables you to drop off passengers at the door. Both rooms have outdoor areas far enough from the road to feel pleasantly rustic.

We had an irrational prejudice against Macari because early in our winery-visiting days we walked in right behind a group of bachelorettes who stumbled out of their limo, beer cans in hand, plastic flowers in their hair, and proceeded to be quite raucous. Not Macari’s fault!

The Main Road tasting room is a pleasant space, with a curving copper-topped bar and a nice selection of gift items, including hand painted wine glasses and tea towels with the word Wineaux on them. A white flight of four tastes is $8 and a red flight is $12. They also offer artisanal cheeses and salumi for $7-10.00, including crackers. The servers are pleasant and well-informed, though it is a bit disconcerting to hear the same spiel delivered word for word to your neighbors at the bar. By the way, if you want to go you should go soon, as they are celebrating their 15^th anniversary with a very nice sale on many of their wines.

We opted to do one tasting of whites and one of reds, sharing as we went.

2012 Sauvignon Blanc $23

This bears the subtitle “Katherine’s Field,” and our server noted it is their “signature wine.” This steel-fermented white has aromas of herbs and baked pear (they say), and we think thyme and unripe cantaloupe. We also taste unripe cantaloupe, along with a tart acidity and not much fruit. Not really for sipping, but it would be a good oyster wine.

2. 2010 Riesling $27

Though this uses grapes from upstate, it escapes the sometimes over-sweetness one finds with that fruit. A flowery aroma precedes tastes of grapefruit and dried apricot which unfolds quite pleasantly on the palate. Good finish and, we conclude, a really lovely well-made Riesling.

3. Collina Chardonnay $13

The server describes this as their “house white,” and notes that it is a combination of oak and steel-fermented wine, which should make it quite pleasant but does not. I think of the taste and smell as reminding me of a vacation house that has been closed up too long, with a sensation of damp and slightly moldy wood. We dump the remainder in the spit bucket, something we rarely do. Even on sale for $10, I can’t see buying this!

4. 2012 Early Wine $17

This is a special production of their Austrian winemaker, and is called early wine because…it is picked early. In late August, they harvest these mostly chardonnay grapes, and age the wine not at all, yielding an almost clear liquid. We think it will be tart, but instead it is rather sweet, with aromas of grass or hay and tastes of pear with a slight edge of lemon. Not bad, but not for us.

5. Collina 48 Merlot $13

New glass for the reds, always a nice touch. Mostly Merlot, with 5% each of cabernet franc and cabernet sauvignon, this is a simple table-type wine that would be better with food than just sipping. We smell tobacco and bay leaf and taste some berry, but the taste leaves the tongue quickly and is quite dry and tart.

6. Sette Red Blend $19

Named for Settefrati (seven brothers), the village from which the Macaris emigrated, this is our favorite of the wines so far. A 50/50 blend of merlot and cabernet franc, this wine smells to us like a combination of cocoa mulch (try it on your garden some time, but I warn you, every time you weed you’ll crave a chocolate bar) and green olives, with nice plum flavors. Very buyable.

7. 2007 Merlot Reserve $36

After 16 months in French oak, this merlot is then aged for four years, so it was just recently released. We detect a bit of menthol in the aroma, and also berry pie (a smell you’ll recognize if you’ve ever been to Briermere while they are baking). The taste starts sweet, then becomes quite nice, with black cherry and enough tannins that our tongues tingle. Interesting, and quite good.

8. 2008 Dos Aguas $27

Two waters, we ask? For the Peconic Bay and Long Island Sound, the two bodies of water that frame the North Fork, she replies. A Bordeaux blend, Dos Aguas combines 70% merlot with 17% cabernet sauvignon, 8% malbec, 4% cabernet franc and 1% petit verdot. Strongly spicy aromas of nutmeg and berries, maybe some plum, make us anticipate a delicious wine, but it is not to be. Really not much to this one at all.

They also have, available by the glass but not included in the tasting, a couple of rosés and some dessert wines as well as a few additional wines. We buy two bottles of Sette and two Wineaux tea towels (how could we not?).

Reasons to visit: pleasant tasting room and outside seating area in a rustic setting; 2010 Riesling and Sette Red Blend; some nice gift items; choice of two tasting rooms so if you want to go there you can be flexible as to your route.

NoFo Wineaux

Wine notes from Long Island's North Fork

Category Archives: Tasting