The Winemaker Studio May 11, 2013

Posted by nofowineaux in Tasting and tagged with Anomaly, asparagus, Bay View farm stand, Bordo, Briermere, cabernet franc, Dieci, Glorious Gin, Greenhook, Leo Family Cellars, Luminous Riesling, McKenzie Gin, Nappa, North Fork, pie, Pine Barrens Whiskey, pinot grigio, Sciardonne Chardonnay, Shiraz, SuHru, Winemaker Studio May 13, 2013

http://anthonynappawines.com/tws_home.html

I love spring on the North Fork. We stopped at the Bay View farm stand and bought fresh local spinach and asparagus and leeks and rhubarb and duck breast and bacon, and at Briermere for a blueberry crumb pie. And now a short pause for a disquisition on Briermere pies…Yum. Later that evening we had sautéed duck breast with a local red wine, garlic, and maple syrup reduction, accompanied by spinach salad with bacon and hard-boiled egg, with a dressing made from Vines and Branches olive oil and Cara Cara Orange White Balsamic vinegar, and steamed asparagus. All seasoned with artisanal North Fork salt! Pie for dessert, of course. With it we had Bordo wine from Anthony Nappa, about which more later.

After all that shopping we felt thirsty, so we decided to stop into the Winemaker Studio on Peconic Lane. This attractive store front used to be called The Tasting Room, and though the name and cast of characters have changed, the idea is the same: to showcase smaller wine producers who lack a place of their own. Run by Anthony Nappa, it features his wines as well as wines by others whose “day job” is as winemaker for other vineyards. They buy their grapes, some from upstate, and make their wines at Premium Wine Group, a facility housed at Leib Cellars but used by many. Nappa used to make wines for Shinn; Russell Hearn, originally from Australia, was the winemaker for Pellegrini until he and his wife Sue decided to make their own label, SuHru (Sue and Russell, with an H for Hearn); John Leo works for Clovis Point and also makes his Leo Family wines; and Erik Bilka works at Premium and also makes his own Influence brand.

The Studio has several features which causes it to stand apart from most tasting rooms, aside from the variety of different labels it offers, because in addition to wine it also offers a beer taste from Southampton Publick House, some coffee drinks, and local gins and whiskies, plus cheese or cheese and salumi platters for $15. The gin brands include McKenzie and Glorious, and the whiskies and ryes include Pine Barrens and Greenhook. If you go there for Happy Hour—from 5-7 p.m.—you might want to try them. The airy room includes a nice bar plus little tables and chairs, with art on the walls by local artists. Sometimes there is a dog or two in residence, though not today. Oh, and the room is attached to a pleasant little food shop which includes both local brands and some hard to find labels.

The wine menu offers nine tastes, at $2-$4 per taste, and we opt to share four whites and four reds, skipping the lone rosé. Chris, our server and we believe the manager of the shop, is impressively knowledgeable. We overheard him giving very good advice to some neophytes to the region on which tasting rooms to visit based on which wines they had liked of his selections. He also knows all about the wines he serves, and yet was tactful enough to let us sip in silence when he saw that was what we preferred.

2011 Nappa Anomaly $19

This wine is an anomaly because it is a white wine made from pinot noir grapes, and since it spends no time on the skins it is white, not the rosé one would expect. Yet the aroma reminds us of strawberry candy, a smell one would associate with a rose. However, the taste is very much its own thing: some earthiness, some citrus—perhaps key lime—some minerality, dry but fruity and quite delicious. It is all steel fermented, so it is quite a refreshing, clean drink.

2. 2012 SuHru Pinot Grigio $16

I often drink pinot grigio, but this does not taste like any I have had. The aroma is sweet, like white grape juice, with a bit of that cat pee smell. The taste is also sweeter than a typical pinot grigio, maybe because the grapes come from upstate. The tasting notes say pear, and I don’t disagree. Though many would like it, it’s not for me.

3. 2012 Nappa Luminous Riesling $18

This is another wine made from upstate grapes, and though Chris categorizes it as “on the dry/off dry cusp,” we find it a bit sweet. As is typical of the wines in this room, it is not typical! An aroma of honeysuckle heralds a goldenrod honey and pineapple taste, with a hint of citrus.

4. 2012 Nappa Sciardonné Chardonnay $18

Pronounce the name of this wine in the Italian manner, in which “sci” is pronounced like a soft “sh,” and you’ll get the joke of this Italian-style wine’s name. Although this is a steel-fermented wine it does undergo malolactic fermentation, and so has some of the buttery taste associated with chardonnays. However, it does not have that overly buttery flavor of an oaked chard, and the aroma of “pine forest after a rain”—my husband’s idea—is quite lovely. Very buyable.

5. 2012 Nappa Bordo $20

We sniff and discuss—tomato leaves? Maybe. Definitely vegetabley, with a hint of minerals. Good fruit, with some typical cabernet franc tastes of berries, but not too heavy. The color is a light and pretty red. This would go perfectly with the duck we just bought, we think, and are later proven correct. Buyable.

6. 2011 SuHru Shiraz $22

The syrah grape is called shiraz in Australia, and Hearn is from Australia, so…I tend to like syrahs or shirazes, whatever they are called, and this is no exception. A slight cardamom aroma leads to dry but good berry tastes with some nice depth. Unlike some shirazes, this is not overpowering. They say a taste of Earl Gray, but I don’t get it. However, this is definitely a buyable wine.

7. 2010 Nappa Dieci $35

To get the reason for this name, look no further than the date. A blend of 37% cabernet sauvignon, 44% merlot, and 19% cabernet franc, this is a Bordeaux style wine, though not as interesting as a French Bordeaux at this price point. However, it is a pleasant wine and would be good with food.

8. 2007 Leo Family Cellars Red Blend $40

Aromas of mineral, earth, and blackberry are not surprising for this merlot/petit verdot blend. This wine is really interesting, and we comment that it is a humble name for an ambitious wine with lovely depth of flavor. We also admire the label!

Intrigued by the liquors on offer, we try the McKenzie and Glorious Gins, and end up buying a bottle of Glorious Gin, which has a really interesting herbal flavor and makes a very good Gibson later that night. We also get two each of the Sciardonné, Bordo, and Shiraz.

Reasons to visit: A chance to taste some experimental and interesting wines in a pleasant setting; availability of local liquors and beer as well; Happy Hour ; with the little shop next store you could buy dinner (except for produce) and something to drink with it as well; an ever-changing roster of wines.

Diliberto Winery April 13, 2013

Posted by nofowineaux in Tasting, Uncategorized and tagged with cabernet franc, cabernet sauvignon, Cantina, chardonnay, Diliberto Winery, merlot, syrah, Tre April 15, 2013

The trompe l’oeil murals make you feel like you’re in Italy.

http://www.dilibertowinery.com/

“April is the cruelest month,” according to T.S. Eliot, and the weather has certainly borne that out, with a couple of warm days followed by cold and rain. Today is at least sunny, though a bit on the cool side, as we head over to Diliberto’s Winery, one of the places we’ve been to fairly frequently, though not recently. We look forward to sitting in his cozy tasting room with its trompe l’oeil mural of an Italian street scene, listening to Italian opera, and pretending we’ve gone to warm sunny Italy for a day.

The room is presided over by Sal Diliberto himself and his wife Maryann, though Sal is in and out of the room as he ducks into his big kitchen to prepare his homemade pizza and other treats. A table of wine club members is getting wines by the glass and two pizzas for a late lunch or early cocktail hour treat, and we know from past tastes that the pizza is good, with a crisp thin crust and fresh ingredients ($15, and there’s also a cheese platter available). Sometimes, especially in the winter, Sal (also a lawyer, with a practice in Queens) has held cooking classes, showing a room full of tasters how to make pizza, pasta, or gnocchi. He calls this “Sunday with Grandma,” though HE is “grandma”!

In the past we’ve also liked his wines, especially his reds, which tend to complement Italian food very well (no surprise). However, this time our response is rather mixed. Perhaps he’s had an off year or two, since we were last here in 2011—though he does recognize us. The drill here is to order at the small bar, then sit at one of the ten or so tables—more in the summer, when the patio is open—and wait while the server brings each glass. The menu lists four wines for $12, and/or two premium wines for $9, and we opt for one of each, and I’ve marked the premium wines with *. As we sip, we listen to Sal visit with the customers, many of whom are clearly regulars, and to recorded opera (sometimes Sal himself sings, or has a performer in) and watch “Visions of Italy,” a public television show that features aerial views of the cities and countryside of Italy. One could be in a sidewalk café in an Italian village, especially when he emerges from the kitchen with freshly made pizzelles, a little free treat.

2008 Chardonnay $19

An aroma of wet cardboard and acetone greets our nostrils, but we hope the wine tastes better than it smells. This is a very tart, lemony chardonnay, with some notes of unripe pineapple, making it a tough chardonnay to like, though it would probably be okay with oysters or with seafood in a rich white sauce.

Wines are served in good glasses.

2. *2007 Tre $39

A blend of three wines—hence the name—including 65% merlot, 20% cabernet sauvignon and 15% cabernet franc, this should be similar to a Bordeaux. We had really enjoyed the 03 Tre, so we had high hopes for this one. Eh. Brambly aroma, some earthiness, a taste of prunes, some tannin.

3. 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon $25

Hmmm…is wet laundry a wine word? Because that’s what this wine smells like! It is dry, with some blackberry, but would not enter the pantheon of great cabernets, especially as the finish is somewhat sour.

4. 2009 Cantina $18

We’ve liked Cantina in the past, as it is a good Italian table wine, a blend of half merlot and half cabernet franc. A few years ago we signed up for a barrel tasting with Sal and found ourselves and our guests—my brother and sister-in-law—as the only customers. We got into such intense and interesting conversations about wine that my notes stop after the first barrel, the 07 cabernet franc, but we really liked that. However, we find this Cantina somewhat on the thin side, with some earthiness, some tartness, and some fruit. It would be better with pasta than as a sipping wine.

5. *2002 Merlot $31

The tasting menu proudly proclaims that this is a New York State Gold Medal winner, and indeed it is our favorite of the wines we’ve tasted so far, despite a definite aroma of acetone again. We note a good berry taste, nice legs, and not much tannin. It also seems to get better as it sits in the glass, and we like the second taste better than the first.

6. 2009 Syrah $20

This wine would also, we decide, be better with food than as a sipping wine, as it lacks some of the richness and depth one expects from a syrah. The aroma is metallic, and I taste pomegranate. However, we opt to buy a bottle of this and one of the Cantina, as buying two bottles means the tasting is free, and we often need reds to go with Italian food.

Reasons to visit: Sal’s cooking and the chance to chat with him about his wines or food or any other subject; a pretty tasting room; opera instead of the usual folk/rock/jazz music; the 2002 Merlot. An apple orchard is right down the street, and we highly recommend both their apples and their warm cider. One note: prominent signs indicate No Children and No One Under 21 Allowed, so be forewarned.

The piano is not just for show, but gets used by performers.

Osprey’s Dominion April 6, 2013

Posted by nofowineaux in Tasting and tagged with cabernet franc, cabernet sauvignon, chardonnay, Flight Edelzwicker, gewurztraminer, Meritage, merlot, North Fork, Osprey's Dominion, Richmond Creek Merlot, sauvignon blanc, Unwooded April 8, 2013

http://www.ospreysdominion.com/

http://ospreysdominion.olhblogspace.com

Having a bachelorette party? Then this may just be the perfect spot for you. We saw at least five during our tasting at Osprey’s Dominion, and our server noted, “I need a drink. I just served three bachelorette parties in a row.” The first part of the long curving bar in the large, airy tasting room is reserved for limo parties, and they get a “special” menu with four tastes, with choices winnowed to two in each category. One group we noted had a rather extensive cheese and cracker platter, but we weren’t sure if they were served it or brought it. A guitar player in one corner varied his somewhat folksy play list to accommodate one group of women who danced in front of him.

On the other hand, we liked many of the wines, and our server had his spiel on each wine well memorized, with useful notes on each, and was happy to make suggestions as to choices and the order in which to drink them. However, another server who took over for him when yet another group of gigglers demanded his attention just poured, with hardly any commentary. We felt somewhat abandoned at that point.

A quick look at the gift items revealed a small assortment of not very creative choices, except for one neat idea: they will let you order a personalized label for some of their wines, though you have to order at least a case.

The menu for those not from a limo offers two options (aside, of course, from buying a whole glass): $8.00 for any five from the menu, or $5 for three choices. A blackboard outside also offered a special of $20 for two tastings and a serving of sausage, cheese and crackers. The “serving” consisted of a small sleeve of Ritz-type crackers, and a pre-packaged box with slices of mild pepperoni and fairly flavorless processed cheese. Not worth it, but we were hungry after a shopping trip to Greenport and a quick stop at our marina to look at our slip for the coming summer (where we spotted two ospreys on their nest, which may have subconsciously influenced our choice of winery). As we frequently do, we ordered different wines so we could taste ten of their offerings, and so tried many of their wines (their website says they have 23, but not all are on the tasting menu). We did not try their sparkling wine, their port, or their spiced wine (served warm).

2011 Sauvignon Blanc $15

Our server notes that this is a good place to start, as it is a fairly neutral wine. The aroma is somewhat flowery, and we note tastes of green apple and lemon. Good, and would be nice with oysters or lobster.

2. 2010 Unwooded Chardonnay $15

“This one is more like a pinot gris than a typical chardonnay,” says our server, and we can see his point. Like other steel-fermented chards it has a mineral aroma and tastes of citrus, especially lime. The first taste on your tongue is a bit sweet, but it quickly turns tart.

3. 2010 Gewürztraminer $20

“This one just jumps out of the glass at you,” said our server, who will soon be moving to North Carolina to take a teaching job. This is certainly a Gewürztraminer that does its own thing, and does not taste like a standard wine from this grape. The aroma combines fermented pear juice and some cat pee (or like the smell of water that flowers have stood in for too long), but is not unpleasant. The flavor is both sweet and somewhat nutty, with a tart finish.

4. 2010 “Flight” Edelzwicker $24

It was interesting to taste this German-style wine next to the Gewürztraminer, since it has some of that grape, as well as Pinot Gris and Riesling in it. We really liked it, and it is an unusual wine for Long Island, which is always fun. The aroma is somewhat mineral, with a slight trace of cat pee, and it tastes like ripe green plums with some sweetness and complexity. It is certainly buyable, though we don’t opt to do so.

5. 2007 Merlot $20

Now we switch to reds, and our server rinses our glasses once again. A lovely aroma of berry and ripe plum, with none of the dirt that one often finds in Long Island merlots meets our noses, followed by good fruit flavors of ripe cherry with hints of chocolate. This is a prize winner, and we agree, and are especially interested to see that it is on sale, for $39 for three bottles, so we plan to buy it. (The last time we were here, a couple of years ago, there was no charge for the tasting when we bought several bottles of wine. Not so this time.)

6. Richmond Creek Merlot $14

It’s so fascinating to find that two wines from the same grape and the same vineyard can be so different. As much as we like the 07 Merlot, that’s how much we dislike this thin, sour, very dry wine. It has no finish, which is fortunate, and I’d hate to have that taste linger on my palate.

7. 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon $20

This one’s just okay, with mineral aroma and a whiff of earth, not much fruit and few tannins.

8. 2008 Cabernet Franc $20

2008 was a very rainy year, and the cab franc suffers accordingly. Though we smell leather and plums, the wine itself is thin, with only a little fruit and not much finish.

9. 2007 Meritage $24

Somewhat of a Bordeaux blend, the Meritage has 67% Merlot, 17% Carmenere, 10% Petit Verdot, and 6% Cabernet Sauvignon. We like its aromas of dark cocoa and fruit, and it tastes good, too, with all the ripe fruit flavors lacking in the previous two wines. Our substitute server has to consult a notebook to give us the varietal breakdown.

10. 2007 Reserve Merlot $35

Really good! Lots of ripe berry aroma and plenty of fruit with no dirt make this a better than average Merlot—and they’ve priced it accordingly.

Reasons to visit: Good for a large group, and very accommodating to bachelorette parties; they encourage picnickers in the summer to buy a bottle of wine and use the outside terrace while listening to music; the Flight Edelzwicker (called flight because the owner is also a pilot) and the 07 Merlot; good prices for most of their wines. But this is not the place if you like individual attention and a quiet atmosphere!

Castello di Borghese March 16, 2013

Posted by nofowineaux in Tasting, Uncategorized and tagged with cabaret songs, cabernet franc, cabernet sauvignon, Castello di Borghese, chardonnay, estate, Meritage, merlot, North Fork, pinot noir, reserve, sauvignon blanc March 18, 2013

http://www.castellodiborghese.com/

“March winds do blow/And we shall have snow…” Yes, indeed we shall. As flurries swirled around us, we drove along Route 48, trying to decide on a winery to visit. First we went past Vineyard 48, but the presence of no less than eight buses in the parking lot dissuaded us (but if you want a party, that might be the place for you) and so we headed on down the road to Castello di Borghese, Long Island’s oldest vineyard. It was originally started by the Hargraves, who then sold it to Prince Marco and Princess Ann Marie Borghese (hence the name castello=castle) in 1999.

The pleasant tasting room has two main areas, a nicely set up bar and gift shop area and a larger room with tables and chairs, where Marguerite Volonts was singing beautifully and playing guitar. When she segued from songs like “Autumn in New York” to some French cabaret songs we could imagine we were in Paris. The tasting menu offers two basic options, as well as separate tastings of their more pricey offerings, such as Meritage. You can taste four of their Estate wines for $9.00 or five of their Reserve wines for $12.00, so we opt for one of each. However, as Nancy our server notes our careful swirling and sipping and note-taking, she begins to suspect something, and when Ann Marie Borghese comes out from the back room she asks point blank if I am a blogger. They’re onto me! So we get some additional tastes, but I note that two other groups who also evince seriousness about wine are also given some extras. Borghese also offers an $18 cheese plate.

The following notes are in the order in which we tasted the wines, with the Estate wines marked with a *. Oh, and they were sold out of the Riesling which we wanted to taste.

*2011 Estate Chardonnay $18

This is a fairly typical steel-fermented chardonnay, with aromas of vegetable, mineral, and pine sap. Though not for sipping, it is nicely tart, with notes of green apple and lemon, and would be a good summer wine, maybe with a rich seafood dish.

2. 2011 Barrel Fermented Chardonnay $26

Typical aromas of vanilla and oak greet our noses, but the wine itself is much less buttery than most oaked chards, is a bit too lemony for our taste, and the finish is weak.

3. *2011 Sauvignon Blanc $24

They are quite proud of their Sauvignon Blanc, which has won some competitions, and (having already ascertained that I am a blogger) they give us both tastes of this. I have to admit that it does not knock my socks off (and, as my husband notes, it is hard to knock my socks off), which seems to disappoint them, though it is a pleasant wine. There’s not much aroma, primarily of some minerality, but it tastes better than it smells, though it is very light. I could see having this with oysters (which would probably improve how much I like it), which would highlight the flavors of lemon and herb (thyme?).

The Borgheses are justifiable proud of their reds, and they give two reasons for why they are so good. One is that the vines are older than most others on the North Fork, and the other is that Cutchogue has a very favorable micro-climate, with more sunny days than anywhere else in New York State, giving the grapes more time and warmth in which to ripen. They are expecting great things of the 2012 vintage, since it was the warmest year yet, with a very warm spring followed by a hot summer and a harvest that came just before Hurricane Sandy.

4. *2008 Pinot Noir Estate $30

As we hold the glass up to the light, we comment on the pretty light ruby color of the wine. The aroma has some earthiness as well as sticky berry scents. Though there is not much tannin, the taste is very good, with a balance of sweet and dry and not-quite-ripe Bing cherry tastes. Nice long finish, too.

5. 2008 Pinot Noir Barrel Fermented $48

“The oldest Pinot Noir grapes on Long Island,” we are informed. Aroma? Cedar? Terroir? Pencil shavings! Fortunately, it tastes of berries, not pencil shavings, with nicely balanced tannins and a tart finish. Very good indeed.

6. *2007 Merlot Estate $25

The color of this is slightly darker than the Pinot, but also very attractive. A strong aroma of berries precedes tastes of sweet berry, cedar, and just a touch of tobacco, with a long fruity finish. Excellent, and very buyable, which we do.

7. 2007 Merlot Reserve $30

We love doing side by side tastings of two wines made from the same grape in the same year, but given different treatments. Interestingly, we like the Estate better than the more expensive Reserve, though this is also a very good wine. We again scent cedar and taste lots of fruit, and less sweetness than the Estate Merlot, so perhaps more balanced. The difference in treatment is that the Estate is aged for 13 months and the Reserve for 18, both in oak barrels.

8. *2010 Cabernet Franc Estate $27

Nice legs! No, we’re not being sexist, we’re just commenting on the way the wine forms “legs”—drips, essentially, along the sides of the glass when we swirl it. Aromas of plums and spice herald tastes of dark ripe cherry and spice, and the tannins promise room to grow. Nancy also points out that this has won awards, and would be a good wine to cellar. We agree, and buy two bottles of this as well.

9. 2007 Cabernet Franc Reserve $44

Again, it’s interesting to taste two similar wines side by side. This Cab Franc has more fruit aroma than the other, with some notes of toast and earth but lots of delicious fruit. We taste blackberry, and they say mulberry (which we might agree with if we remembered what mulberry tasted like), and nicely balanced tannins. I’d love to have this with venison or some other lean game, maybe bison from North Quarter Buffalo Farm!

10. *2008 Cabernet Sauvignon Estate $29

Okay, so if you’re counting you realize that our tasting should be done, but we never turn down extras (and we almost never spit, either). We smell pine tar and fruit, and then taste a dry red with a surprising hint of citrus at the end. We’re not liking this until Nancy offers us drinks of water to refresh our palates, at which point we find it tastes much better. This would be great with pizza or Italian pasta dishes.

11. 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve $44

Lovely aromas with lots of fruit, maybe currants, and not much earthy terroir, this is a good wine, but we’re not sure it is worth the price, since we’re not sure how well it would age. Again, we seem to prefer the Estate version.

12. Meritage $60

I have wandered off to peruse the few gift items, assuming our tasting is over, when I am called back for one last bonus tasting, the Bordeaux-style Meritage. This is a blend, 50% Cabernet Franc, 25% Merlot, and 25% Cabernet Sauvignon, and it would certainly give a French Bordeaux a run for its money (especially given its great legs). Beautiful color and nice legs, an aroma of mineral and spice, and a really delicious taste of berry and spice make this a wine I’d happily drink any time, though the price would limit when! If you go, definitely taste it, as it is worth the extra fee.

Reasons to go: pleasant room with well-informed and generous servers and the chance to chat with an owner; the red wines, many of which are better than the average Long Island reds (not so much the whites, though maybe the Riesling would have been an exception); avoidance of busloads; a pleasant room in which to sit and listen to music if they are offering that (check their web site).

Vines and Branches March 11, 2013

Posted by nofowineaux in Tasting and tagged with Vines and Branches; olive oil; vinegar; Favolosa; Cara Cara Orange March 13, 2013

http://www.vinesandbranches.net/

And now for something completely different, as Monty Python used to say. On Main Street in Greenport there is a terrific olive oil and vinegar store. If you want to take a break from tasting wines, stop in here and taste their wares. All the many, many different oils and vinegars are available for trying, with tiny cubes of bread for dunking if you’re not into drinking them straight.

When you walk in to the store an employee will come over and offer to explain how everything works. Take the time to listen, because there are so many choices you might become overwhelmed. The table closest to the door features pure olive oils from various places, arranged from mildest to strongest. The mildest one tastes slightly of freshly mown grass, and is only slightly peppery. A middle one has creamy flavors of artichoke and herbs–Favolosa, it is called, and it is our favorite–while the strongest one is a bit overwhelming. After you make your choice, the salesperson will fill your choice of bottle size from the metal urn, label it, and then seal the top on.

You can also try fused and infused oils and vinegars. “What’s the difference?” I ask. The fused ones have actually been crushed together, while the infused ones have had the flavorings added later. I discover Cara Cara Orange-Vanilla White Balsamic Vinegar, which has a refreshing tart-sweet orange flavor. I’m picturing it on a salad of oranges, olives, and red onion.

As we wander around the store, my son and I note other specialty foods, but decide we have what we need.

At the checkout, your purchases are carefully wrapped in tissue paper and decorated with a bit of ribbon, so if you need to bring someone a house gift, look no further. I now have a loyalty card, and look forward to my free bottle on my tenth visit.

Roanoke Vineyard March 10, 2013

Posted by nofowineaux in Tasting and tagged with cheese shop, Roanoke Vineyard; dry Riesling; Grapes of Roth; The Wild; chardonnay; muscat; Cabernet Franc; Prime Number; North Fork; wine; Love Lane; Mattituck; Cheese Store; Merlot March 13, 2013

http://www.roanokevineyards.com/

We slogged through the slushy remains of the March snow to do some errands on Love Lane in Mattituck, and found the new tasting room for Roanoke Vineyards open in a pretty little storefront, right across the street from the very popular Love Lane Kitchen and just down the block from the worth-a-detour Love Lane Cheese Shop. We had been to their other tasting room, a small barn-style building near the western edge of the “Wine Trail,” and had enjoyed our visits there, especially one day a couple of years ago when they had a paired wine and chocolate tasting. Roanoke also carries wines from Wölffer Estate, on the South Fork, and the wines made under his own label by Roman Roth, the winemaker for both. We were particularly interested to try Roth’s Riesling, which had recently been called the best Riesling on Long Island, so we were disappointed to find it was not on the tasting menu. Not to worry! Robin, the very knowledgeable and chatty server said, “Oh, I have a bottle open, so you can have a taste.” Great. The standard tasting is $10 for four wines, out of a list of eleven, and the pour is quite generous. You can also buy tastes at $3 each, or wine by the glass. The Riverhead room is open until 9 on weekends, but this one is open until 7 on Saturday and 6 on Sunday, at least for the moment. By the way, if you want their wines you’ll have to either go to the tasting room or order them by mail, as at last word they do not sell in restaurants or stores.

2010 Dry Riesling by Grapes of Roth $22

A light and pleasant aroma that combines lemon and wet hay met our noses, as we warmed the glasses in our hands to get the chill off, with a not unpleasant undertone that reminded our son of paint thinner. The taste starts a bit sweet, but then finishes quite tart, with notes of Meyer lemon and green apple. It would be great with turkey or duck, or even on its own, and we decide to buy a bottle, as does our son. I don’t know if it’s the “best” Riesling, but it is certainly very good.

2011 The Wild $20

I was interested to taste this, since I love Channing Daughter’s L’Enfant Sauvage, which also uses wild yeasts. Basically, this is a chardonnay plus a muscat field clone left to ferment with the wild yeasts in the air, and the results were, on the whole, quite successful. The aroma was a bit funky, which worried us, but it tasted delicious. After a somewhat sweet beginning, we began to taste a bit of pepper, some unripe pear, and pink grapefruit on the good long finish. The wine also has a bit of a tingle on the tongue. Very nice.

2009 Cabernet Franc $34

Robin informs us that Roanoke’s field on the far west of the North Fork provides a slightly warmer and longer growing season, which allows them to do a better job of ripening their Cab Franc than other locations. The aroma of sweet blackberry, with a hint of oak, certainly seems promising, but the taste is less so. Perhaps with time? It’s not bad, just a bit flat and lacking in complexity.

2009 Prime Number $40

There’s a complicated story behind this name, and Robin laughs as she explains how they had One and Two and then decided to combine them and make one better wine, but didn’t want to call it Three. Also, prime indicates their ambition for this cabernet sauvignon and merlot blend, as does the pole vaulter on the label. They’ve raised the bar. Indeed they have. This Bordeaux style features aromas of plums and a hint of smoke (but not too much smoke, sometimes an issue), with plenty of cherry and berry flavors and enough tannins to make it a good match for elk or venison or other lean game.

Reasons to visit: Two locations, including a centrally located one on Love Lane in Mattituck, a street worth exploring; Prime Number; Roman Roth’s Riesling; a pleasantly intimate setting; closeness to the Cheese Shop, one of my favorite places on the North Fork, where you can pick up good bread and almost any cheese you would want to buy for a picnic lunch; also close to Bookhampton, one of the few independent book sellers around, well worth a visit,

Long Island Spirits February 17, 2013

Posted by nofowineaux in Tasting and tagged with Liv, Pine Barrens American, Rough Rider Bourbon, vodka, whiskey February 22, 2013

http://www.lispirits.com/home.html

Although in general we only visit one tasting room per excursion, we made an exception this time so we could try some local bourbon. We have been to the Long Island Spirits tasting room before, but only to taste the vodkas. Our freezer now contains their entire line of vodka and flavored vodkas, but that’s another story. The tasting room is up some shiny wood stairs, which, our son-in-law notes, could be a bit of a hazard after a tasting, into a large barn-like room with views over the fields.

Today we want to try the “brown” spirits. For $13 you can try any two of the three on offer, and you get to keep the glass, plus they give you a little bag of crackers to clear your palate and a small bottle of water. A tasting of three vodkas is $9. The distillery also has a nice collection of t-shirts and gift baskets for sale. Since we’ve just come from Comtesse Thérèse, we all share one tasting!

Pine Barrens American $45

This is a single malt whiskey (not Scotch), with some sweetness and aromas of grain and warm spices. They make it from a barley-wine-style ale, we are told.

Rough Rider Bourbon $40

I’m not sure, but I wonder whether the name commemorates Teddy Roosevelt’s use of the Montauk dunes to train his Rough Riders before they headed to Cuba. In any event, this bourbon is actually mostly crafted in the Midwest, but then aged here in Long Island chardonnay casks. The aroma is of caramel, and while it is okay, it is “not fascinating,” says the son-in-law, an excellent creator of cocktails, and we agree. It would make a good Old Fashioned or Manhattan, which indeed proves true that evening during our home cocktail hour.

Reasons to visit: you’re tired of wine (just kidding); you want to try spirits made locally; you want to buy some vodka or whiskey for cocktail time; interesting flavored vodkas; nice gift baskets.

Comtesse Thérèse February 17, 2013

Posted by nofowineaux in Tasting and tagged with Aquebogue, blanc de noir, cabernet sauvignon, Canadian Oak, chardonnay, Comtesse Therese, Hungarian oak, merlot, NoFo, rose, Russian oak, sauvignon blanc February 22, 2013

http://www.comtessetherese.com/index.html

It was what Winnie-the –Pooh calls a “blustery day” (This is what happens when you hang out with a 21-month-old.), and we thought we’d check out the Jazz on the Vine program at Jamesport Vineyard. When we couldn’t find a place to park, we left and headed a little way down the road to Comtesse Thérèse, a combination bistro and winery. We had only been there in the summer, when the tasting room is a charmingly disheveled back patio, with cast iron furniture and a view of the herb garden (and of the chef as he steps out of the kitchen to pick some herbs), so we weren’t sure what to expect. The wind blew us around the front and through the door of the restored old house, where we quickly found ourselves in a cozy bar with a friendly and accommodating bartender. Fortunately, since we had promised our granddaughter music, there was quiet jazz playing in the background. The four of us settled into a corner of the bar and looked over the menu. The option of 4 tastes for $8 sounded good, and the bartender intelligently figured out how to give us tastes of 8 wines—four and four—so we could sample a wider selection. Although we didn’t stay for a meal, we have eaten there in the past and been very pleased with its French bistro-style food and emphasis on local produce.

2011 Chardonnay $13

The bartender starts us all off with their steel-fermented chardonnay, which is on sale. An aroma of fresh-cut grass heralds a taste of steel and green apple, with some honey notes. It is surprisingly mellow for an all-steel chard, and a bit unctuous, according to our son-in-law. Very buyable, which we both accomplish.

Russian Oak Chardonnay 2009 $22

Ooh, nice legs, we say. This chard spends 4 months in oak, and we do detect an oaky aroma. The flavor is light, with some notes of Meyer lemon—or maybe lemon dots!

2011 Sauvignon Blanc $28

I think I smell a trace of something metallic as well as the more typical honeysuckle. Nicely dry and a bit grassy, all we need now is a dozen local oysters!

2011 Rosé $22

Well, Croteaux remains the standard of excellence for NoFo rosés. This one has a nice raspberry aroma, but has not much character and is somewhat monochromatic. Well chilled on a hot day it might be fine, and the finish is nice.

2011 Blanc de Noir $24

We like this rosé better, with its apricot aroma and edge of citrus flavor, though it is a bit sweet for our taste.

2008 Hungarian Oak Merlot $24

My notes for this wine are somewhat obscured by a 21-month-old’s “decoration,” but then I gave her a page from my notebook and another pen so she could take notes just like grandma. Although this wine doesn’t have much aroma, it has a pleasant cherry flavor with some earthiness at first and tannins at the end.

2007 Aquebogue Estate Merlot $25 (for the 08)

Noticing our serious approach to the tasting, the bartender gives us the 07 Merlot rather than the 08 because, he says, it is better. We do like it. It has nice fruit with some acidity to add interest.

2006 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon $30

This one is a favorite with our daughter and son-in-law, who buy a bottle. It has aromas and tastes of black fruits, like plums. It would be good with lamb, because it has enough acidity to cut the fat.

2007 Canadian Oak Cabernet Sauvignon $32

And we prefer this one, and buy a bottle! This is somewhat heavier than the Estate Cab Sauv, with more complexity and cherry flavors as well. It would pair well with steak. The bartender informs us that they are the only winery in the area to use Canadian oak.

Before she opened her own tasting room, we met “Comtesse Thérèse”—actually Tree Dilworth, an attractive young woman—at The Tasting Room, now The Winemaker’s Studio. We had a delightful conversation with her, and were impressed with her passion for wine, but no, she is not actually a “Comtesse”!

Reasons to visit: Cozy attractive bar area in the winter, charming garden in the summer; 2011 Chardonnay,2011 Sauvignon Blanc, 06 Estate Cabernet Sauvignon, 07 Canadian Oak Cabernet Sauvignon; you can go on after the tasting to have a meal in the pretty, intimate bistro. Oh, and if you want to take notes, they have lots of feather pens.

Channing Daughters Winery February 2, 1213

Posted by nofowineaux in Tasting and tagged with Blaufrankisch, cabernet franc, channing daughters, dornfelder, Due Uve, merlot, Mudd, muscat, North Fork, Over and Over, Parrish Art Museum, pinot grigio, Ramato, Sag Harbor, Sculpture Garden, South Fork, Sylvanus, syrah, Tocai Friuliano February 4, 2013

http://www.channingdaughters.com/

We decided to celebrate Groundhog Day with a visit to the South Fork, especially since such a trip is easy in the winter, when we don’t have to contend with the traffic on Route 27. We started with a visit to the new Parrish Art Museum in Water Mill. Designed to be reminiscent of a typical Long Island potato barn, it is a long one-story building, with a soaring roof and multiple skylights, letting in plenty of sunlight on this cold but bright day.

We particularly enjoyed a gallery devoted to William Merritt Chase and his lovely paintings of Long Island scenes as well as his classic portraits. Another room full of Fairfield Porter paintings was also interesting. We then headed to our favorite winery, Channing Daughters. I did write about a visit there last summer, but then we only concentrated on their roses. This time we decided to do a standard tasting.

Channing Daughters is located on Scuttlehole Road, a charmingly rural road just outside of Sag Harbor (which we used to call the un-Hampton, though it is getting more and more Hamptonized). Down a pebbled driveway one comes to the small cozy tasting room, which looks out one side to the vineyard and the other into the cellar, where one can see the huge vats of future wine. The owner of the winery, Walter Channing, named it for his four daughters. He also has decorated the tasting room and the grounds with his wood sculptures, many of them made from whole trees, with the roots on top, carved into various shapes. Here’s one from the parking lot:

On this cold winter day, there were only a few small groups in the tasting room. The very well-informed servers noted that they do not allow bus-loads! The standard tasting that day included six wines for $10. As wine club members our tasting was free, and we could have chosen any wines from a list of about 20, but we decided not to.

1) 2010 Sylvanus $24

Sylvanus is named for the legendary Green Man, the Roman equivalent of Pan, the god of woods and fields, and also for the field where this wine’s grapes are grown. One of the aspects of Channing Daughters we like is their interest in experimentation, and for this wine they used all grapes grown in one field, for a blend of 60% muscot, 30% pinot grigio, and 10% pinot bianco. An aroma of oranges and perfume precedes a nicely dry wine with pleasant fruit and a hint of almond flavor. I would like this wine better with food, rather than as a sipping wine, and it would pair well with local oysters or other briny seafood.

2) 2010 Tocai Friuliano $24

Fermented almost completely in stainless steel, with only a hint of oak, this lovely wine has an almost honey-like texture with a hint of grapefruit at the end. I could see sipping this on a nice summer afternoon, perhaps with some tomato crostini. We also notice that, unlike some places, the wines here are not too cold, and the servers confirm that this is indeed the policy. We like this because when a wine is too cold you can miss the nuances of its taste.

3) 2010 Ramato $34

As a transition from white to red, we sample what is called an “orange” wine, a white pinot grigio fermented on its skins to give it a subtle orange color and interesting complexity. I detect a faint aroma of orange candy and, not surprising given its 6 months in oak, a taste of oak. We decide its somewhat unctuous texture does not make it our favorite, though it would pair interestingly with lemon curd or lemon meringue pie (which, my husband notes, he never eats!).

4) 2010 Due Uve $22

Due uve means two grapes, and that is what this wine contains–syrah and merlot. Because of Long Island’s climate, you’re never going to get “big hot wines,” says the server, and agrees that this wine exhibits the typical local earthiness which some people “go crazy for” and others dislike. We like some earthiness, but not when it overwhelms. This wine has nice fruit–berries–and some hints of black pepper, and just a hint of earth. It spends 16 months in oak. I’m thinking it would be good with pasta with a short ribs sauce.

5) 2008 Sculpture Garden $27

Given that there actually is a sculpture garden on the grounds (ask the server for directions), and that the oldest vineyard (planted in 1982) is named Sculpture Garden, it was perhaps inevitable that one wine would be named this. Plus the merlot grapes in it come from that vineyard. I could see wandering the sculpture garden on a nice warm day with a glass of this easy-drinking wine in hand, but it’s too cold today! A blend of 95% merlot and 5% blaufrankisch, this wine has a pleasant berry aroma and cherry tastes, with some earthiness, some pepper, and not a lot of depth.

6) 2007 Mudd $40

No, the name is not a misspelling of mud! This wine’s grapes come from the North Fork vineyard run by Steven Mudd, a well-known vineyard manager who works with a number of wineries. Terrific wine! This is a Bordeaux blend of 60% merlot, 21% syrah, 9% dornfelder, 5% cabernet franc and 5% blaufrankisch with an aroma reminiscent of a pine forest, and lots of black fruits and plum flavors. Definitely yummy, and would be good with roasted lamb shanks, as its dryness would cut the fat of the lamb while it has enough fruit not to be overwhelmed.

Extra! Because he has it out, the server asks if we would like to try the Over and Over. We would.

7) Over and Over–Variation 5 $37

It is hard to explain the method used to make this wine, so perhaps the best I can do is refer you to Channning Daughters own web site, where it is explained in detail, but basically this is made using the “solera” method, where some wine from various years is combined with wine from other years and then fermented together. We had tried one iteration (probably 3 or 4, muses the server) we did not care for, but this one is definitely a success, with blackberry flavors and aromas. Nice.

http://channingdaughters.com/wine_order/index.php

Reasons to visit: One of best wineries on Long Island, with lots of interesting experiments. In addition to the above listed wines, I also love their L’Enfant Sauvage, made with wild yeast, their Scuttlehole Chardonnay, which is basically our “house” white, and their Research Cab, a good red.

Laurel Lake Vineyards December 2, 2012

Posted by nofowineaux in Tasting and tagged with cabernet franc, cabernet sauvignon, gewurztraminer, Laurel Lake. Syrah, North Fork, pinot noir, riesling, sauvignon blanc, winter December 6, 2012

http://www.llwines.com/

In the winter, the North Fork is even more laid back than in the summer. (In fact, the only intense season is October, when the pumpkin-pickers and maze-wanderers coincide with the harvest-season wine-tasters to actually cause traffic on Main Road and Sound Avenue.) However, the wineries are still open, though for some only on the weekends; most of the restaurants are still open, though some close for the season; and a few farm stands are still open, featuring Brussels sprouts and winter squash. On an unseasonably warm December afternoon, with fog shrouding the vineyards, we decided to head to Laurel Lake Vineyards, on Main Road near Laurel Lake Park.

The tasting room is housed in a pretty building that looks like an old-fashioned Colonial farm house, with a wide veranda and stained glass windows. On one side of the veranda there is a large seating area, screened at this time of year by plastic sheeting from the elements. Inside, the tasting bar is attractively designed to look like a saloon bar, with a large mirror behind it. They have a small selection of wine-related gifts—t-shirts, stoppers, etc.—and some local art for sale.

The tasting menu is divided into whites and reds, and a standard tasting is any three for $7, with a fairly generous pour (plus the usual wines by the glass or bottle). Since there are eight reds and nine whites to choose from, we will have to return! Unfortunately, I was suffering from a sore throat (but not yet the stuffy nose that arrived the next morning, thank goodness) so we opted not to share, and I took three reds and my husband took three whites. The server was candid in his recommendations on which to choose, and I liked his choices for the reds.

Whites

2012 Sauvignon Blanc $19.99

A pleasant grassy aroma forecasts a clean grapefruit-y taste, with some sweet notes, almost as if it had been in oak, though it is a steel-fermented wine. This would be good with seafood or for sipping.

2012 Gewurztraminer $21.99

He finds this one too sweet, so much so that it is not a good capture of the varietal. Rather than fruit, it tastes more like honey, so I suppose this could function as a dessert wine. We also note that the whites are being held in a wine refrigerator set at 44 degrees, which seems a bit too cold to us. We mention this to the server, who laughs and notes that some people actually ask them for ice to put in the wine, which they do not have. “Room temperature” in the past meant chillier than room temperature now, but we find we prefer our wines warmer than they are often served.

2010 Riesling $19.99

This one is also sweet, but “not unbearably so,” and would be good with spicy food. Though it starts sweet with some buttery notes it ends with a bit of a tang.

Reds

2009 Pinot Noir Reserve $29.99

So there is a school of thought that sees the “reserve” moniker as a bit of a scam, but I’m willing to allow it! Though there’s not much aroma to this wine, it has a nice dry berry taste. It’s good, though a bit thin on the finish.

2008 Cabernet Franc $21.99

I really like this one! There’s some eucalyptus aroma, and red berry tastes, with what their tasting notes call a “smooth velvety finish.” They also say it’s good with steak, and I agree. Buyable!

2009 Syrah $19,99

This, as my grandma said with each new grandchild and then great-grandchild, “beats the bunch.” There’s lots of fruit on the nose, with yummy blackberry and some green pepper tastes. Since it is not as heavy as some Australian syrahs, I could see this as cutting the fattiness of a lamb dinner. They also suggest having it with pastas and smoked ham. This is a slightly unusual grape for Long Island, but I happen to like syrahs (and shirazes) in general. Very buyable, and we do, buying one of this and one of the cab franc.

We have heard that some of the owners and winemakers are Chilean, and wonder if this explains the sweetness of the whites. The tasting menu also includes a list of restaurants where you can find their wines, and I can see why a number of places would feature these pleasant, well-priced wines.

Reasons to visit: pretty tasting room, generous pour, lots of different wines to taste, very reasonable prices, 08 Syrah and 08 Cab Franc, sweet whites if you like them!

NoFo Wineaux

Wine notes from Long Island's North Fork

Category Archives: Tasting