Pindar: Sunshine on a Cloudy Day February 20, 2016

Posted by nofowineaux in Tasting, Uncategorized and tagged with Autumn Gold, cabernet franc, cabernet sauvignon, Cayuga, chardonnay, Croteaux, Feisty Acres, Long Island, merlot, North Fork, Peacock Chardonnay, Pindar, proprietary blends, Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, Reserve Merlot, Riverhead Farmers Market, sauvignon blanc, seyval, Sunflower Chardonnay, wine tasting, Winter White February 22, 2016

http://www.pindar.net/

It was a cloudy day as we headed to Pindar.

A beautifully deep rich voice singing “sunshine on a cloudy day” greeted us as we entered Pindar’s large tasting room, and that seemed like an appropriate message. It was a cloudy day, and, as the French say, “A day without wine is like a day without sunshine.” Pindar often offers musical entertainment, and is often crowded. Today, however, there were only a few couples at the bar and the tables in a room that, according to their web site, can accommodate 3,000 (!). Because of the crowds, we hadn’t been there in a few years, but this visit reminded us that we like many of their wines, though not all. Their prices also are quite reasonable, which may have something to do with the economies of scale, as they say they are the largest vineyard on Long Island.

We quite enjoyed her singing.

The menu offers 5 tastes for $10, out of 14 choices, including four characterized as “sweeter” and two dessert wines, plus another list of three “limited” wines at $3 per taste, and a sparkling wine. The list is further divided into reds, whites, and “proprietary blends,” so it took us a while and some discussion to decide what to do. We finally decided to share two tastings, first the whites, including two of the proprietary blends (marked with an * in my review), and then five of the reds. We chose to skip the rosés, as we tend to find no one’s measure up to Croteaux’s. Since the pour is rather generous, we were glad we chose to share. They also offer a selection of cheeses and crackers, and do not allow outside foods.

One view of the bar–one of the bars!

2014 Sauvignon Blanc $14.99

In general, we feel Long Island sauvignon blancs tend to go better with food, as they tend to be too lemony to just sip, and that’s true of this one as well. The aroma is of mineral and peach. Very refreshing, I could see having this with lobster, as its tartness would offset the crustacean’s richness. My husband notes that the end is too lemony for too long for his liking, especially sans food.

*Autumn Gold $10.99

This is a blend of Cayuga, Seyval, and chardonnay grapes, our server informs us, as will be our next choice, though in different proportions and different residual sugar amounts. We ask if the Cayuga is from upstate, since it is an upstate grape, and are informed that they grow all their grapes in their own vineyards. We like this better than the first wine. It has a touch of sweetness and a bit of funkiness which are well balanced with green apple and citrus tastes. I also smell some minerality. This is a very buyable wine, and we get a bottle of it to take home.

*Winter White $10.99 for 750 ml., $17.99 for 150 ml.

“Our most popular white,” notes our server as he pours this blend. We smell tropical fruits, and are ready to like this one but find it much too sweet for our tastes. The menu describes it as “semi-dry,” which makes us wonder about the wines they categorize as “sweeter.” You could serve it to someone who actually would prefer soda—or maybe with Thai food. We dump it.

The mysterious peacock, which may be a reference to Hera’s favorite bird.

2013 Peacock Chardonnay $9.99

There’s a pretty peacock on the label, so we ask (as we did two years ago) about the name of the wine. Still no answer! This spends eight months in French oak, and we do smell a bit of that woody smell. We don’t really care for this one, either. The taste reminds me of over-ripe bananas plus a really tart grapefruit—they say “citrus rind”—and then too much sweetness. We don’t dump, but we also are not fans.

2013 Sunflower Chardonnay Special Reserve $18.99

Why sunflower? This time we get an answer—a sunflower appeared spontaneously in the midst of the vineyard. The menu describes this as “100% new barrel” fermented, from a “special 3.9 acre vineyard block.” Sniff—vanilla and grape juice. This has more body than any white so far. I say nice. My tasting buddy says it is “not offensive at the end.” One could sip this, and it would also be good with a seafood diavolo, since it has some sweetness to it, but not too much.

2013 Cabernet Franc $21.99

Now we switch to reds, and get a new glass. Our server tells us this was just released. Hmmm…smells good. Berries, forest floor, maybe wet leaves. Tastes light, more of a roast chicken or game bird red than a steak red. It would have gone well with the quail from Feisty Acres we bought at the Riverhead Farmer’s Market and had for Valentine’s Day dinner. But it is soft, pleasant, and quite drinkable.

2013 Cabernet Sauvignon $18.99

Another pretty label, this one with Pegasus, the flying horse, on it, reminds us that Pindar is named for the Greek poet and owned by the Damianos family, who are Greek. The wine spends two years in American oak barrels, and has just been out for six months. I like the aroma, which has a bit of a black olive smell. This is another fairly light red, dry, with some tannins and tastes of stewed prune and spice, maybe allspice. My husband thinks it could use more time.

Pegasus, the flying horse

2013 Merlot $18.99

Merlot is the most popular red wine grape around here, and this is a fairly typical example of a merlot, though with more of a café au lait aroma than most. My tasting buddy says it reminds him of Hopjes candy. I’m thinking mocha. Again, nice and soft, dry at the end, with some nice fruit flavor, but not particularly interesting.

Another Greek reference--the Argo, Jason's chip.

Another Greek reference–the Argo, Jason’s ship.

2010 Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon $34.99

“This,” says our server enthusiastically, “is my favorite!” Yes, I can see why. It is quite good. Oak (two years in French oak), cherry, and tobacco aromas, with lots of berry tastes, this would have gone well with the lamb chops we had last night. Very drinkable.

2010 Reserve Merlot $34.99

The menu informs us that these grapes were hand-picked and the wine spent two years in French oak. We smell black cherry and dark plum and taste lots of dark fruit tastes. Yes, it is better than their other merlot. Then again, everyone says 2010 was a very good year, especially for reds.

Lots of snacks

Reasons to visit: big room that accommodates a crowd (which might also be a reason not to go!); frequent music performances; good prices for Long Island; the Autumn Gold, Sunflower Chardonnay, 2010 Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, and 2010 Reserve Merlot; they sell cheese and crackers and other snacks; lots of choices; wines that non-wine drinkers may prefer.

Plenty of room at the bars

Pretty stained glass window

Clearly they’ve won lots of awards.

Macari: Still a Good One January 2, 2016

Posted by nofowineaux in Tasting, Uncategorized and tagged with Bergen Road, Block "E", cabernet franc, cabernet sauvignon, chardonnay, Cuvee, Dos Aguas, Dos Aguas Red Blend, estate, Long Island, Macari, Malbec, Merlot Estate, Merlot Reserve, Michelangelo's, North Fork, petit verdot, riesling, sauvignon blanc, Sette NV, vintage, viognier January 4, 2016

http://www.macariwines.com/

The entrance

For our first winery of the new year, we headed to Macari, which we had last visited when it boasted the award of “Best Winery of 2014.” We would have been back sooner, but cancelled our visits when the attractive tasting room proved too crowded and noisy for us. This time, in the doldrums of January, there were still plenty of people, including a large group in the room off to one side, but we found a place at the bar and a smart and attentive server.

Plenty of space for large groups in the side room.

The menu offers three options—Estate, of four of their lower priced wines for $10; Cuvee, of five for $15; and Vintage, of five of their best wines for $20. Since none of the lists overlapped, we decided to share two tastings, one of the Cuvee and one of the Vintage. Because both menus included whites and reds of varying types, we wanted to alternate so as not to try to follow a riesling with a sauvignon blanc. Why? As we’ve learned, if you try to taste a light dry wine like a steel-fermented sauvignon blanc after a sweeter, more substantial wine like a riesling, you won’t be as able to appreciate the lighter wine.

Our server first wanted to pour our two tastings simultaneously, but after we explained the philosophy behind our preference she quickly caught on, and made sure to pour the wines in an order that made sense. We were particularly impressed with her ability to keep track of what we were doing since she also was serving other customers and running off to the side room as well. She also was enthusiastic about the wines, sharing her preferences and knowledge about the wine, only once having to resort to a “cheat sheet” to give us information we requested.

As we sipped, we admired the nicely done holiday decorations and the attractive labels on the wines, and afterwards we browsed the small but good collection of wine-related gifts. Note they don’t allow outside foods, and sell a variety of snack and cheese items. I’m listing the wines in the order in which we had them, marking the Vintage wines with an *.

Sauvignon Blanc ’14 $24

This is a steel –fermented sauvignon blanc, with an aroma that reminds me of the water in a vase after the flowers have begun to decay—which doesn’t sound all that appealing, but is fine when combined with citrus. Good, we decide, nicely crisp, but delicate, with a touch of sweetness—perhaps more Meyer lemon than lemon. Of course it would pair well with local oysters or clams, but if you had it with shrimp I would leave out the cocktail sauce, which would overwhelm this wine.

Sauvignon Blanc ’14 (concrete egg) $27

Ooh, this is just the sort of exercise I love: Trying two wines side by side, made from the same grapes, but treated differently. In this case, “concrete egg” refers to the egg-shaped concrete cask they use to ferment the wine, our server explains, and adds that since concrete is more porous than steel but less porous than wood, and without the flavor added by a wood cask, the results are quite different and, she thinks, better. We agree. The aroma is complex, with perhaps a hint of nutmeg or other spices and a taste that is a touch sweeter without being too sweet, with some acidity and a taste of greengage plums. No finish. Mysteriously, the label bears the word “Lifeforce.”

*Dos Aguas ’13 $27

“Dos Aguas” refers to the two waters between which the vineyards are located: Peconic Bay and Long Island Sound. Many people feel that these “two waters” contribute to the North Fork’s excellence as a grape-growing region, since they have the effect of moderating the climate. This is a blend of chardonnay, viognier, riesling, and sauvignon blanc, and is another good wine. The aroma makes me think of sticky fruits and the taste includes minerality, figs, and tangerines. Though the riesling does contribute some sweetness, it is well balanced with some acidity. It would go well with one of my favorite dishes, pasta tossed with a variety of seafood.

*Riesling ’13 $23

Ah yes, we are definitely glad that we tasted this one last of the whites, as its sweetness would have interfered with appreciating the others. This is the only wine, our server informs us, that uses grapes not grown on the estate, since the riesling grapes in this come from the Finger Lakes region (not unusual for Long Island wineries, as upstate is known for its good riesling). The aroma is honey, the taste like a green apple on the sweeter side, like a Mutsu, not a Granny Smith. “Toot suite,” jokes my husband, as he complains that this wine is sweeter than he likes. It is sweeter than a dry riesling, but I don’t find it unpleasantly so. With spicy food you’d welcome that flavor.

Merlot Estate $15

Burnt sugar? Cinnamon toast? We discuss the smell, which in any event is not typical for a Long Island merlot. Our server lets us in on the secret that although this wine is more than 80% merlot it also has some syrah, cabernet franc, and cabernet sauvignon, which may help explain the aroma. It may also explain the taste, which is quite good for an inexpensive merlot, and makes this a good choice for a table wine. It is fairly soft, with no tannins and some acid, and would go well with veal or pork, rather than steak.

Full disclosure: We already knew we like Sette.

Sette NV $19

We are quite familiar with Sette, since we often order it in local restaurants. In fact, we just shared a bottle of it at Michelangelo’s last week, when it went well with eggplant parmesan and pasta with sausage and broccoli rabe. This is a blend of 50/50 merlot and cabernet franc (not of seven wines, as you might assume from the name, which instead refers to the town Settefratti, which was the home town of the Macari family). The smell is warm, with some spice and wood, the taste cherry with again some acid but not much tannin.

Cute drawing on the Dos Aguas.

*Dos Aguas Red Blend ’10 $30

Blend? Yes, of cabernet franc, cabernet sauvignon, and merlot. We smell wet hay and wood, taste pleasant dark fruits. This is a soft, easy to drink red, and would be good, I opine, to sip while cooking—and ruining the food? theorizes my husband. Ha.

*Merlot Reserve ’10 $36

After aging 26 months in French oak, this wine has more tannins than the previous reds, with a typical merlot aroma of cherry plus oak. Not powerful, but pleasant, this is a good wine if you want to introduce someone to Long Island merlots.

Apparently the Bergen Road is also available in a huge bottle.

*Bergen Road ’10 $46

Since I ask, our server looks up the proportions of this red blend: 56% merlot, 26% cabernet sauvignon, 13% cabernet franc, 3% malbec, and 2% petit verdot. A Right Bank Bordeaux. The color is quite dark, and so is the taste, with plenty of tannin and acid and delicious dark fruits. Yum.

Block “E” looks and tastes very like a sherry.

Block “E” ’12 $32 (for a small bottle)

Ice wine is supposed to be made with grapes picked after the first frost, but since that frost tends to come pretty late on the North Fork (as in it just happened), instead the grapes are picked fairly late, when they have developed quite a bit of sugar, and then frozen before being made into a dessert wine. In both color and taste this reminds us of a semi-sweet sherry, with a bit of a honey aroma. When I ask, we are informed it is made from merlot, cabernet sauvignon, cabernet franc, and malbec grapes. Good dessert wine, it would be nice with some almonds.

Reasons to visit: good all-around winery, with plenty of tasty options and a big room with tables for groups; nice selection of gifts; reasonable prices (if we didn’t have all the wine we need at the moment we would have bought several of the wines); the “concrete egg” Sauvignon Blanc, the Dos Aguas white and red, the Merlot Estate, the Sette, the Bergen Road.

Raphael: Better for an Event than a Tasting? December 26, 2015

Posted by nofowineaux in Tasting and tagged with cabernet franc, cabernet sauvignon, chardeaux, chardonnay, First Label Merlot, First Label Riesling, First Label Sauvignon Blanc, La Fontana, Long Island, Malbec, North Fork, petit verdot, Raphael, sauvignon blanc, wine tasting December 28, 2015

http://www.raphaelwine.com/

With their beautiful building, modeled after an Italian monastery, and spacious tasting room, Raphael is often in use as a venue for private events. This time of year the room sparkles with Christmas lights, so it is no surprise to note that it will be closed New Year’s Eve for such an event. In fact, if you plan to go for a tasting make sure to check their web page first to make sure they are open. You may also choose to go or not depending on whether they have musical entertainment planned. The performers we heard were all quite talented and we liked their music, but not the sound level, which made conversation difficult. The other difficulty we encountered was that the servers were clearly understaffed, having to cater to a crowd around the circular bar plus many people sitting at the tables, drinking glasses of wine and listening to the music.

The menu lists 18 choices, all priced by the taste, glass, or bottle. We happened to have a coupon for two free tastings, which entitled us to three tastes each, which would have cost us $17 for the six tastes. Since we knew we already liked the Portico—which proved to be a popular after-Thanksgiving-dinner drink—we decided to focus on the standard whites and reds, skipping the reserves, the rosés, and the dessert wines. The menu mentions ratings by both Wine Enthusiast and Wine Advocate in the high 80s and low 90s for a number of the wines.

The pour is fairly generous.

2014 Sauvignon Blanc $22

We decided to start by trying their two sauvignon blancs side by side, and our request for information about the wines was referred by our server to another one who was more knowledgeable. This is the less expensive of the two, steel fermented for a shorter time, and not the preference of our server. We agree, though it is a fine example of Long Island sauvignon blanc, with lots of minerality and soft lemon taste at the end, and a refreshing acidity. It would go well in the summer, or well-iced with oysters.

2014 First Label Sauvignon Blanc $28

The tasting menu informs us that this one is “made from our oldest sauvignon blanc vines,” and it is fascinating to see that it is quite different from the previous wine, with more interesting aromas and flavors. We smell a touch of funk in the aroma, plus various fruits. The taste is complex, with a touch of sweetness at the end but plenty of mouth-watering acidity. It would complement pasta with cream sauce, we decide.

2014 Chardeaux $22

A mixture of 80% chardonnay and 20% sauvignon blanc, this wine is more interesting than a straight chardonnay, with lots of citrus and minerality, and some tastes of unripe peach. It’s a good chard for people who think they don’t like chard, and would go well with chicken kabobs.

Not sure if you can tell from this picture, but the two rieslings looked quite different.

2013 First Label Riesling $26

There are two rieslings on the menu, and since one is described as “semi-sweet” we order the other one, not being a fan of sweet wines (except when we’re talking dessert wines). As we take our first sniffs and tastes we note a chemical aroma and that it is quite sweet for a supposedly dry riesling. We get the attention of the more knowledgeable server and discover that, indeed, we have accidentally been served the sweet riesling. We put that glass aside and happily enjoy the correct pour. Really good, with kumquat orange tastes and some leather notes in the aroma. My husband—whose identification of the first pour as the wrong wine has deeply impressed our server—notes that he would not buy this for our usual use for a riesling (to go with spicy food), but that though he likes it he would prefer a riesling with more interest.

La Fontana and the fountain

2012 La Fontana $28

Now we switch to reds, and by the way we get a new glass with each taste, a practice I appreciate. La Fontana is their Bordeaux blend—merlot, cabernet sauvignon, malbec, petit verdot, and cabernet franc—but no one has information on the proportions, including the web page. A glance at the Raphael label will give you a cue as to the source of this wine’s name—a drawing of the fountain which graces the middle of the parking lot in front of the entrance. We like this one, too. The smell reminds me of cassis—the menu says blackberry and eucalyptus –and I taste some nice fruit, with oak at the end and some layers of flavor. However, compared with a French Bordeaux this is a bit on the thin side.

2010 First Label Merlot $40

Like the Fontana, this is aged 18 months in French oak, and you can smell the oak when you sniff, as well as cherries. As it sits in the glass we start to like it better. It is fairly dry and tannic but with nice fruit. By the way, I would have liked a cracker to cleanse my palate between the whites and reds but, although there are bowls of them around the bar, there are none anywhere near us and no one offers us any. As I said, they’re busy.

The fountain–and the Italian flag!

Reasons to visit: you like to admire a beautiful room; the well-stocked gift shop; the First Label Sauvignon Blanc, the Chardeaux, the First Label Merlot, the Portico.

Tis the season

Father Christmas was guarding the well-stocked gift shop, which included food items as well.

Another view of the bar

Shinn Estate Vineyards: Country Road December 20, 2015

Posted by nofowineaux in Tasting and tagged with cabernet franc, cabernet sauvignon, chardonnay, Coalescence, David Page, East End Mushroom Company, Estate Merlot, Julius Drover Alembic Brandy, Malbec, North Fork, petit verdot, Pinot Blanc, riesling, sauvignon blanc, Shinn Estate Vineyard, Sparkling Brut, Veil Sherry, Wild Boar Doe, wine tasting December 25, 2015

http://shinnestatevineyards.com/

The Farmhouse B & B

As we drove slowly along Oregon Road I began humming “Country roads, take me home…” We had just paid our first of what I hope will be many visits to the East End Mushroom Company, and two baskets of mushrooms sat in the back seat, awaiting culinary inspiration. Meanwhile, we were enjoying the bucolic scenery along Oregon Road, on our way back to Shinn’s tasting room after more than a year away.

I like the cozy rustic look of the tasting room, and today we had it to ourselves for a while, and then later a few other small groups arrived. No buses are allowed here, and limos or groups of more than six by appointment only, which makes sense, given the small room. Check out their web site for info on their B and B in the adjoining farmhouse.

But we are here to taste some wine. The menu offers four wines for $14 out of a menu of 16, plus a few other choices which cost $7 per taste, including their brandy, about which more later. We decided to do one tasting of whites and another of reds, not sharing tastes because I have a bit of a cold. I’ll tell you about the whites first, then the reds. We sit at a small table for two and are served each wine as we choose it.

Sparkling Brut 2012 $40

Given the festive season, I decided to start with their sparkling wine, made in the Méthode Champenoise and fermented in the bottle. The first pour is from a bottle that has been open and is clearly somewhat flat, so our server quickly opens a fresh bottle. Ah, nice frothy bubbles! Typical yeasty aroma, then a nice dry light taste, with good acidity. I recently learned that acidity is what makes your mouth water, and this one does. I like it better than Sparkling Pointe’s sparklers.

I liked the glasses.

Coalescence 2014 $16

I liked Coalescence, a blend of sauvignon blanc, chardonnay, and a touch of riesling, the first time I had it, then didn’t care for it the second time, and now I have to say third time is not the charm. Although it has a pleasant aroma of gooseberry and honey, the taste has a funky forest floor edge that does not appeal to me. Not that it’s bad, and I think it would be nice with a plate of salumi, but it’s just not for me.

Pinot Blanc 2014 $35

I’m happy that the server gives me a new glass, since I don’t want the taste of Coalescence to influence the next one, which turns out to be a happy choice, since I like it very much. This wine spends eleven months in new oak, we are informed, and it has a bit of that oaky vanilla scent. However, the taste is quite nice, with some interesting layers of flavor, a bit tingly on the tongue. It has just a touch of sweetness, especially at the end, and is sippable on its own, but would be even better with some Catapano goat cheese.

An explanation of the sherry and their label.

Veil “Sherry” 2009 $48 (for a small bottle)

Why is sherry in quotation marks, I wonder? Because it is not fortified, they can’t actually call it a sherry, we are told. However, it does taste very like a medium dry sherry and smells like sherry, too. Made from late harvest savoy, sauvignon blanc, and semillon grapes, it is fermented for so long that a “veil” forms on the top of the wine, hence the other part of the name. 19% alcohol, this would make a great aperitif. I would drink it! It has tastes of baked pear and a bit of oak, and would be perfect with some toasted almonds or manchego cheese.

Estate Merlot 2012 $26

My husband admires the beautiful dark color of the wine, which seems to be typical of all their reds. Not much aroma, he says, and a spicy tart taste, ending with black cherry. Somewhat mono dimensional, he adds, with not much tannin and over the top on acid. (Acid does not mean bad, remember!)

Estate Merlot 2009 $32

Always fun to compare different vintages of the same grape, we say, and our server agrees. This merlot has more aroma than the 2012, with some notes of forest and wood, plus sweet cherry, with more tannin and less acid. It would be good with a meat that was not too flavorful, like a filet mignon.

Wild Boar Doe 2012 $32

Say the second two words quickly and you’ll get the joke. Yes, this is a Bordeaux blend, of 40% Merlot, 23% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Malbec, 15% Petit Verdot, and 5% Cabernet Franc, aged in oak for 20 months. When my tasting buddy sniffs, he says he smells toast, which must come from the oak aging, plus some fruit. Again, it has a beautiful dark color, but, he adds, it lacks gravitas. If you compare it with a French Bordeaux, he says, you’ll say the French is better, but there’s nothing wrong with this. It would pair well with a veal chop, since it does not have too much acid or body.

Cabernet Sauvignon 2012 $40

This has just been released, we are told, and again, this is a pleasant if not complex wine. There’s “more at the end,” my husband notes, than the other reds. Overall, I think the whites fare better than the reds.

The brandy

Julius Drover Alembic Brandy $75

We have some discussion about this additional taste ($7), since there are several “hard” liquor options to try, and settle on this brandy. It is named for owner David Page’s maternal grandfather, who was a farmer/bootlegger in Wisconsin during Prohibition. Since it is 86 proof, we are perfectly happy with the very small taste, which I give my companion first. Mmm, mellow. Smells like brandy, with some vegetable and wood aromas. Dried fruit taste. Warms the cockles (whatever those are) I say. Doesn’t bite you back, says my pal.

Another view of the room

Reasons to visit: a chance to drive down a country road; the Sparkling Brut, Pinot Blanc, Wild Boar Doe, Veil “Sherry,” and Julius Drover Alembic Brandy; a winery that is quiet and relaxing; their use of wind and solar power and biodynamic farming (check out their web site for details); the chance to taste some types of drinks not made in other places, like the brandy, eau de vie, and “sherry.” And do stop and get some mushrooms from East End Mushroom Company on Cox Lane: http://www.theeastendmushroomcompany.com/ .

Stop in to East End Mushroom and they’ll tell you all about how they grow their shrooms.

Signs like these line the walls of the tasting room.

Sherwood House: Cozy by the Fire November 22, 2015

Posted by nofowineaux in Tasting, Uncategorized and tagged with Blanc de Blancs, cabernet franc, Cabernet Sauvingnon, chardonnay, merlot, North Fork, Oregon Road Chardonnay, Oregon Road Merlot, Sherwood House, white merlot, wine tasting December 2, 2015

http://www.sherwoodhousevineyards.com/About_Us.htm

A view of the fireplace plus musicians

It feels as though you are walking into someone’s living room, albeit one with a bar along one side and a couple of folk-ish singers in one corner. The fire in the stone fireplace surrounded by comfy couches is what you notice when you first enter in the winter. The welcome from the servers is equally warm, and they do a good job of keeping track of each customer and giving information about the wines.

Sherwood House offers two menus: the Premium Flight of four wines for $12 and the Top Reds Flight of 4 reds for $15. They also offer cheese and/or salumi plates for $15 or $20, prepared by Lombardi’s Market in Mattituck. We decide to share the Premium Flight, thinking we may stop back at some point to try the other one. The pour was generous enough that we decided we had made the right decision.

Array of bottles

White Merlot $19

We compared this to Anthony Nappa’s Anomaly and to various rosés we have tried, and found some similarities and some differences. Like a rosé it has a faint strawberry aroma, though we felt the smell was a bit funkier than most, and like Anomaly it was neither a red nor a white nor a rosé, but its own thing. The color is a very light pink, the taste is lemony and refreshingly dry (1-2% residual sugar, notes our server), and the aroma has a slight mushroomy tinge to it. Good for summertime barbequed chicken!

You can see the pink tinge of the White Merlot.

2013 Oregon Road Chardonnay $19

This is an unoaked chard, a bit on the sweet side for an unoaked chard, with a touch of overripe pineapple plus lemon flavors. “Not much to say,” opines my tasting buddy, as we swirl the wine to open up the flavors.

Generous pour.

2012 Chardonnay $30

“This wine spends 12 months in second year oak barrels,” our server tells us. I now know what this implies! As I’ve learned, the extent to which being aged in oak affects a wine depends on whether the wine was aged in new oak barrels (in which case the oak affects it more heavily) as well as how long it was aged. As expected, we can taste and smell some butterscotch, but not too much, and some toasty, pineappley flavors. My husband claims it reminds him of Reese’s peanut butter cups. It’s not sweet and has some interesting layers of flavor (once we warm up our too-cold taste). It would be great with lobster.

2012 Oregon Road Merlot $19

A combination of 80% merlot and 20% cabernet sauvignon, the wine spends 12 months in oak. Noting our seriousness, our server provides us with a clean glass for the red, something I always appreciate. The aroma reminds me of perfumed soap, but fortunately it doesn’t taste like that! We get blackberry, some cherry, some woody flavors, and no tannins. Soft, we decide, and just okay.

2011 Cabernet Franc $45

Wait, you cry, didn’t she say you get four tastes? Well, yes, but once again the fact that we take notes and discuss each wine seriously gets us an extra taste. And happily, this is the best of the bunch. Our enthusiastic server notes that the reds are “where we shine,” and I would agree as to this one. The aroma includes some scents of forest floor and dried herbs, the taste is very cherry berry, with some tannins and some interest to it. Not sure it is worth the price, but it is a lovely wine.

Reasons to visit: Good place to sit in winter with a glass of wine (I’d choose a red) and listen to music while contemplating a fire in the fireplace; the 2012 chardonnay, the 2011 cabernet franc. They also offer a blanc de blancs.

if you get bored with your tasting you can check out the funky objets at Material Objects next door.

Some Suggested Wine-Tasting Itineraries November 3, 2015

Posted by nofowineaux in Summary Recommendations and tagged with 314 Clone, A Lure, A Mano, Adam Suprenant, agritainment, Barrel Fermented Chardonnay, Beasley's Blend, Caci, chardonnay, Cinq Blanc, Coffee Pot Cellars, Commodore Perry, Coronet, Cracklin Rose, Crazy Fork, Croteaux Vinyards, Diliberto Winery, Erik's, Estate Reserve Chardonnay, Familglia, First and South, First Fruit, Flying and Falling, Founder's Tavern, gewurztraminer, gruner veltliner, Harbes, Hellenic Snack Bar, Jamesport Vinyards, Jubilant Reserve, Laura Klahre, Lieb Cellars, Lombardi's Italian Grocery, Love Lane, Love Lane Kitchen, Magic Fountain, Martha Clara, Mattebella, Mattituck, Mattituck Cabernet Franc, Melange de Trois, Meritage, merlot, Michelangelo, MTK Syrah, North Fork, North Fork Table and Inn, Northville Red, old field vineyard, Old World Blend, One Woman Wines and Vineyards, Pepi's, Pinot Blanc, Red Blend, Reserve Cabernet Franc, Reserve Sauvignon Blanc, Salamander's General Store, sauvignon blanc, Shinn Estate Vineyards, Southold Farm + Cellar, Sparkling Rose, syrah, Tilting at Windmills, Tre, Village Cheese Shop, White Blend, Wild Boar Doe, wine tasting November 5, 2015

The farm stands are starting to close now, though the ones that are open are still overflowing with pumpkins, kale, eggplant, the last of the tomatoes, and more. I have to restrain myself from buying everything. Now that the October crowds have left—and Columbus Day Weekend is the worst time to come to the North Fork, unfortunately, what with the corn maze goers, the pumpkin and apple pickers, and the harvest wine tasters—I thought this would be a good time to discuss a few possible itineraries.

From time to time friends ask me where to go for wine tastings, so here are some summary recommendations for various situations and tastes. I’m going assume you’re heading from west to east for all of these. Each itinerary includes three wineries. I don’t recommend more than that, especially for the driver, who may want to just take a sip of most and dump the rest. All the wineries are fine about people sharing a tasting, another good way to go. However, if you space them out and go slowly, eating snacks here and there, you should be fine. You can get more details on any of these wineries by using the search function on my blog.

A Warm Summer Day

You want to sit outside and relax with a couple of tastings, and then maybe go somewhere for dinner. Also, you don’t want to cope with the crowds you are likely to find on a warm summer weekend.

Another view of Jamesport’s expansive yard.

A nice place to start is Jamesport Vineyards, especially if it is your first stop and it is around lunch time. Out in the back yard there is a pizza oven and an oyster bar, both well worth trying if you have not brought your own picnic. Though they may attract lots of people, their outdoor area is quite large, so you won’t feel crowded. Sometimes they have music, too. The wines I recommend are: the Cinq Blanc, the Reserve Sauvignon Blanc, the Mattituck Cabernet Franc, the Mélange de Trois, the MTK Syrah, and the Jubilant Reserve. If you’re getting oysters, get the Sauvignon Blanc.
The patio at Croteaux
Quite a bit further out on the Main Road is Croteaux Vineyards, one of our favorite places for outdoor wining. The shady garden has comfortable Adirondack chairs as well as pretty tables for groups and many nooks. they don’t allow limos or large groups. I would get a full tasting of all six wines, since they provide an interesting education into the various tastes of rosé—which is all they make here. Rosé is a perfect summer wine, and Croteaux’s are our favorites. They also have a limited menu of snacks, and the goat cheese is excellent. Our favorite of their wines is the 314 Clone, though we like them all.
A view of the tasting shed at One Woman
One Woman Wines & Vineyard is just off Sound Avenue, a bit north and east of Croteaux. The tasting room is tiny, so it is best to go there when you can sit outside at one of the picnic tables on the little deck or stand at the outside bar. Her whites (yes, there really is a one woman) are best, especially the Grüner Veltliner and the Gewürztraminer.

After you leave Jamesport, you may want to stop on Love Lane in Mattituck, where you can check out the little shops and maybe stop into the Village Cheese Shop or Lombardi’s Italian Grocery to buy picnic foods or have a snack. Or you can return there for dinner. Love Lane Kitchen is a very popular lunch, brunch, and dinner spot, and the food is quite good. I also recommend A Mano, across the Main Road from Love Lane, for a more upscale lunch or dinner. Within the strip mall, Michelangelo is a reliable red sauce Italian place, with a casual pizza parlor out front and a slightly more formal dining room in the back. Oh, and don’t ignore Magic Fountain, the ice cream store with an ever-changing roster of home-made flavors.

A Cool Fall Day

The roads are mobbed, and so are all the wineries you drive past. It’s not quite warm enough to sit outside, however, so the above choices don’t appeal to you. Time to go off the beaten path.

Squint and you can pretend you’re sitting in a piazza in Italy instead of Diliberto’s.

On Manor Lane you’ll find Diliberto Winery, just down the street from Woodside Farms apple orchard (which is probably a madhouse if the sun is shining). Diliberto’s tasting room is quite cozy, painted with scenes of an Italian village in trompe l’oeil fashion, and you are likely to encounter Sal Diliberto himself. If you’re lucky, he’ll make one of his thin crust pizzas for you. (He used to serve them for free, but now he does charge for them.) The wines we like the best are the 03 Sauvignon Blanc and the 2013 Tre. Get the Tre if you’re having pizza.
Water for cleansing your palate–or your glass–at Shinn.
Now you’re going to head north on Mill Lane to Oregon Road, where you’ll find Shinn Estates Vineyards. Surrounded by farm fields, Shinn definitely has a laid-back vibe. You may even get to pet the resident pooch. The tasting room is rustic and intimate, so let’s hope it’s not crowded. Our favorite wines are the First Fruit, the Pinot Blanc, and the Wild Boar Doe, and they also make sherry and eau de vie. They sell their own snacks.
Also on Oregon Road is Lieb Cellars. They have another tasting room on Sound Avenue where they feature their lower-priced wines. This room is rather elegant, and the last time we were there we had it to ourselves, but others may have found it by now. However, they do not allow limos or groups, so it will probably be fine. They have cheese boards available. We did our last Lieb tasting at their Sound Avenue location, so I’m not sure what’s on the menu now, but we like many of their wines, especially the Reserve Cabernet Franc or, for an inexpensive everyday red, the Red Blend or white, the White Blend.

When you are done you will be close to Southold, where you have a number of meal options. If you felt the need for brunch or lunch in between the above choices, you could have stopped at Erik’s, on Sound Avenue, where you order at the counter and they bring you your food. Very popular, so it may be crowded. One of our favorite casual spots is Founder’s Tavern, where we love the home-made potato chips, the Buffalo wings, and the house burger. If you’re looking for a fancy dinner, you can choose between North Fork Table and Inn or a newcomer we liked very much, Caci. A bit further down the Main Road is the Port of Egypt marina, which houses two restaurants: A Lure, which features excellent seafood, and Pepi’s, which is fairly classic Italian. Both give you a view of the water.

Kids in Tow

Now let’s imagine that you have kids with you, which we see quite frequently. Some places actually ban children, like Diliberto’s, while others accommodate them. Of course, you’ll probably have to split up, depending on the ages of the children, to supervise them, but at least at these places there will be something for them to do, or at least room for them to run around.

This is the room where you find live entertainment and food for sale at Martha Clara.

Martha Clara has something for everyone. Some good wines for those who are serious, a big room with tables and chairs and an extensive food menu for those who are hungry, and animals in pens outside to entertain the children. You can buy pellets with which to feed the animals, and children never seem to get tired of doing so. They also often have live music in the big room. The wines I like the best are the 2010 Northville Red, the 2010 Syrah, and the 2012 Estate Reserve Chardonnay. They can get very crowded on busy weekends, so be forewarned.
Harbes tasting barn
Agritainment, thy name is Harbes. From what started as a simple farm stand, Harbes has grown into an industry, causing traffic jams on Sound Avenue in October as crowds head for their corn mazes and pumpkin picking. They also now have a tasting barn where you can sample their wines, and I was pleasantly surprised that I liked them. There is plenty of room for kids to run around, but I do not recommend you spring for the entry fee to the “Barnyard Adventure,” which is neither very much of a barnyard nor much of an adventure. However, there are a couple of farm machines kids can climb on without going into the “Adventure.” Across the street, at Pam’s, you can all go berry picking in season. We were last there two years ago, so the wines may have changed, but we liked the merlots and the oaked chardonnay. And while you’re there, I also recommend you buy some of their sweet corn to take home and cook. It’s the best on the North Fork.
Old Field really does feel like an old farm.
Almost all the way to Greenport you come to Old Field Vineyards, a rustic farm setting for the winery. Though they don’t cater to children the way Martha Clara does, they have ample outdoor space with ducks and chicks roaming around, or you can hike along the vines. Though they do have a small indoor space, this is another spot where the outdoor area is the most comfortable. We liked the 2012 Barrel Fermented Chardonnay, the Cacklin’ Rosé, and the ’07 Commodore Perry.
The carousel

By now you’re surely ready for an early dinner, and, conveniently, you’re near Greenport. It is fun to wander around the town, poking into the various antique and boutique shops, but with kids along you should head for the waterfront, where they can walk along the wharf and look at the ships, watch the ferry heading to Shelter Island, and—best of all—ride the carousel. Even bigger kids like it when they sit on the outer ring of horses and try to grab the brass ring for a free ride. There are plenty of restaurants in Greenport, but not all are good with kids. First and South, on a back street, is great, especially in warm weather when you can sit outdoors. Salamander’s General Store is informal, and has crispy fried chicken. If you’re in town for lunch, the Coronet is perfect, an old-fashioned diner with huge portions. Or you can drive a little further down the road and go to the Hellenic Snack Bar, a large Greek restaurant with lots of outdoor seating. The dips alone are worth the trip. Mmm…hummus…

Talk to the Owner

One of my favorite things to do when we go wine tasting is chat with the owner of a winery. You can learn so much about wine and about how the specific wines you’re tasting were made that it makes the whole experience of wine tasting that much richer. Diliberto’s is one of those places, so do keep that in mind as well, but here are three others where you’re probably guaranteed to chat with the owner, his or her spouse, or a very dedicated member of the wine-making team.

Adam Suprenant in action

We’ve had lots of fun chatting with Adam Suprenant, the owner of Coffee Pot Cellars, who actually figured out who I was and that I write this blog. He and his wife Laura Klahre, who is a beekeeper and has plenty of interest to tell you about bees and honey, have always been behind the bar, sharing their enthusiasm for their products. We like all of his wines, but especially the Sauvignon Blanc, the 2013 Chardonnay, the Beasley’s Blend and the Meritage.
Mr. Tobin entertaining a group.
Just a little further down the road, and look carefully or you may miss the turn-off, is Mattebella Vineyards where you have a good chance of talking with the owners—or even their children, for whom the winery is named. They have a lovely outdoor seating area, and serve a few little tastes of food to go with particular wines. Mr. and Mrs. Tobin, the owners, are generally there, and love to engage customers in conversation about their wines, though they now have a few helpers, so you may not get to talk to them if it is busy. We really liked the 2010 chardonnay, the 2012 Reserve Chardonnay, the 2014 Sparkling Rosé for a fun party drink, the Famiglia Red, and the 2010 Old World Blend.
Regan Meader explaining his wines.
You’ll need your GPS to find Southold Farm + Cellar off on a back street, and, due to some permitting issues with the town of Southold you should check to be sure they are open, but once you get there you’ll find it is well worth the trouble. Regan Meader is the owner and winemaker, and he is also a charming and engaging purveyor of his own wines. We enjoyed chatting with him, particularly about how he came up with the poetic and original names for his wines. The tasting room is rustic but comfortable. I suggest you try all his wines, from Tilting at Windmills to Flying and Falling.

Well, here you are, near Greenport again, but this time sans children. To continue our artisan-ish theme, you might want to go to 1943 Pizza, where you can watch up close and personal as they shove your thin-crust pizza into the oven. I don’t know if you’ll find him hanging around, but Noah’s has good small plates from which to make a delicious meal. If you just want coffee and a snack, you should stop in to Aldo’s, where Aldo roasts his own coffee and may be your barista. He outlasted a Starbuck’s that opened across the street. Ha. Two other excellent, though pricier, options in town are Scrimshaw, on the dock (ask to sit outside if the weather is right), and The Frisky Oyster. We haven’t tried American Beech yet, but it looks good.

That’s it for now, but I have other scenarios in mind!

Bedell Cellars: High Art October 17, 2015

Posted by nofowineaux in Tasting and tagged with Bedell Cellars, Blanc de Blanc, Bordeaux, cabernet sauvignon, chardonnay, Chuck Close, Craisins, gallery, Long Island, merlot, musee, North Fork, petit verdot, syrah, viognier, wine tasting October 22, 2015

http://www.bedellcellars.com/

The bottles feature works of art by contemporary artists.

“Our owner is on the board of the Museum of Modern Art,” explained our well-informed server when we commented on the art on the wine bottle labels. “He commissioned Chuck Close to do that one,” she added, as we admired the bunch of grapes on one label. Wow. And the prices of the wines also elicited a wow, including the Musée 2010, which is $125 a bottle. You can learn more about the artists and the labels on Bedell’s web page, so I’m just going to discuss what’s in the bottles.

And what’s in the bottles is quite good—though I’m not sure it’s $125 good. The tasting menu offers two options: five Estate wines for $15, or five Premium wines for $20, both featuring three whites and two reds. We decide to share a Premium tasting, which turns out to be a good idea, as the pour is generous. We also decide to return later in the winter to try the other menu.

One view of the large porch tasting room.

We are standing at the bar, our favorite place for tastings, as this gives us the chance to chat with the servers and observe the scene. This part of the tasting room is not very large, but an enclosed porch off to one side is much bigger, and is where most of the people doing tastings have congregated on this brisk sunny fall day. It looks to us as though they could use more help behind the bar as it gets quite busy, but the servers do a good job of keeping us in mind, and we’re impressed that they never stop smiling.

This is my favorite label

Blanc de Blanc 2010 $60

We start off with a 100% chardonnay sparkling wine, fermented in the bottle using the Méthode Champenoise. Whoa, this is REALLY dry, also crisp and quite good, with a nice minerality and lots of flavor. The aromas include yeast, mushrooms, and celery. As it sits in the glass we get some hints of sweetness. Definitely lighter than a California sparkling chardonnay, it would pair well with goat cheese or a mushroom terrine. Mushrooms are on our mind lately, since we hope soon to check out the local mushroom growers whose storefront always seems to be closed.

2014 Viognier $40

Mmm, this smells nice, maybe some sticky peach, and my husband says French toast. Maybe. Light, dry, with what the tasting notes call “flinty minerality,” and also some peach tastes, this is a delicate wine that would go well with local flounder lightly sautéed in butter.

2013 Gallery $75

This is a blend of 70% chardonnay, 24% viognier, and 6% sauvignon blanc, and is described by our server as a “white wine for red wine lovers.” I want to ask her why, but she’s called away at that moment. Perhaps it is because of the complexity of the flavors or the richness of the taste. The wine is first fermented in steel, then spends ten months in new French oak, so it does have some buttery vanilla notes, but not too much. We taste unripe peach, minerals, “hay” (according to my husband), and a touch of something chemical. This starts off seeming quite tart, then gets sweeter, with a slight tingle on the tongue, and I could see drinking it as an aperitif. It would also be fun to give this to people at a tasting and see what they make of it.

Merlot art

2013 Merlot $35

We get a new glass for each red. The merlot spends ten months in French oak, so not very oaky. We smell some chocolate, maybe Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups, then taste. Briermere blueberry crunch pie, my tasting pal insists. Hmmm. It is very soft, not at all tannic, though dry, and does not have lots of the cherry flavor you usually get in a Long Island merlot. It’s okay, but I see no reason to buy it over many other merlots.

I guess you could soak off the label and say you own a Chuck Close print.

Musée 2010 $125

A Right Bank Bordeaux blend, this is 65% merlot, 30% cabernet sauvignon, 3% petit verdot, and 2% syrah, and features the Chuck Close label. Though the price somewhat takes our breath away, this is a pleasure to drink. It is aged 14 months in French oak, and has lots of layers of fruit flavors, with very soft tannins. Nice mouth feel, and the aroma reminds us of raisins or Craisins. We have had the opportunity to taste very high end French Bordeaux, and this does not quite equal those (at least in memory—don’t know what we’d think in a head to head tasting), but it is quite good.

Reasons to visit: the chance to admire some very artistic labels; the Blanc de Blanc, the Gallery, the Musée.

Patient pooch on the porch

Another view of the porch

Southold Farm + Cellar: Poetry in and on a Bottle 10/3/2015

Posted by nofowineaux in Tasting and tagged with Artful Dodger, cabernet franc, chardonnay, Counting Stars, Flying and Falling, Horton's Point Lighthouse, North Fork, One Woman Winery, petit verdot, red sparkling wine, Regan Meader, sauvignon blanc, Southold Farm + Cellar, Sparkling Pointe, Tilting at Windmills, wine tasting October 6, 2015

https://www.southoldfarmandcellar.com/

The entrance to the tasting shed

The Artful Dodger, Tilting at Windmills, Counting Stars, Flying and Falling—how could I, an English major, resist wines with such allusive names? I could not, especially since I was also quite happy with what was in the bottles. Regan Meader, the owner and winemaker of Southold Farm + Cellar, loves to experiment, and doesn’t like to compromise. He likes to make what he wants to make, and since the results are so good, let’s hope his experiments lead to his success.

That success seemed to be in doubt this past summer when, due to some issues with permits with the town of Southold, he wasn’t able to open his tasting room. Fortunately all is settled now, and he used the time this summer to re-decorate the tasting room, located off a back road next to his house, on his farm. His own grapes still were not quite ready to be used, so he sourced grapes from Osprey (where he used to work), Gristina, and other places.

Comfy couches are a nice addition to the tasting room.

We arrived on a cold, damp day to a warm welcome from Mr. Meader, with whom we discussed not only the wines, but also the traffic we encountered last weekend (mainly due to activities at Harbes), development on the North Fork, and literature. After a while some additional people came in with kids in tow, so the room became quite lively as they settled on the comfy couches. One couple had arrived on bicycles despite the weather, and we and Mr. Meader discussed various options for their next stops, including Horton’s Point Lighthouse and One Woman Winery.

A tasting of his four wines is $15.

2014 Artful Dodger (Sauvignon Blanc) $26

Well, of course I had to ask why name a wine after a Dickens character. Mr. M. and I discussed the Dodger’s character, how cheeky he is, and that moment when he is being hauled off to jail and berates the policemen for not knowing what a special gent he is. This version of sauvignon blanc is also pretty special and a bit cheeky. Unlike most local sauvignons, this is not steel fermented. Instead, he uses neutral oak barrels which add just a touch of vanilla to the citrusy tangerine taste and a more textured mouth feel. Good! Of course this would be good with raw oysters, but could also complement something like oysters Rockefeller or you could just sip it, perhaps with a slice of brie. We buy it, thinking about the local scallops sautéed with onions, red peppers, and local corn I’m planning to make for dinner.

Tilting at Windmills!

2014 Tilting at Windmills (Old Vines Chardonnay) $26

Chardonnay can be such a pedestrian wine, so clichéd, so perhaps it is Quixotic to take it on and try to do something different with it. The Man of La Mancha may have failed in his attempt to vanquish the windmill (a passage which had me laughing out loud when I read it), but Mr. M. is certainly not defeated. “I was thinking of Chablis,” he says. We smell mineral, asparagus and taste baked pear, minerals, with something a bit herby at the end. There is a touch of sweetness but not too much. He ferments it on the skins, again in neutral (i.e. old) oak barrels, achieving some nice texture. Good! I could see having it with duck, though usually with duck I want red or rosé.

2014 Counting Stars (Red Sparkling) $28

Having recently had an unfortunate encounter with a red sparkling wine at Sparkling Pointe (I dumped it!), I was a bit leery of this option, but no fear, this was lovely. Made from 100% petit verdot, it has an aroma of dark fruits, then is tingly on the tongue. Not sweet, it is light but not inconsequential, with a mineral aftertaste. It would be perfect with charcuterie, or perhaps with a Thanksgiving turkey. In the tasting notes, Mr. M. says he let petit verdot’s “freak flag fly.” His tasting notes are fun to read. Oh, and the name? The bubbles rising in the dark wine remind him of stars in the night sky.

The glass is a touch foggy from my attempts to warm the wine.

2014 Flying and Falling (The Farm Cabernet Franc) $32

What’s the difference between flying and falling? Hmmm. This is 100% cabernet franc and spends seven months in oak. Lots of aroma—we smell olives and chocolate and maraschino cherry. The wine is a bit too cold—time to set up the heater, we agree—but as it warms we like it better. At first it seemed as though it didn’t follow through with as much interest as the aroma would suggest, then it got better. It might also benefit from more time, or from sitting longer in the glass. At first we were afraid he had fallen, but he’s still flying.

Nothing like a short commute! This is where he lives.

Reasons to visit: All four of his wines are worth tasting and thinking about; nice to get away from the usual places and be somewhere where the winemaker likes to experiment; Mr. Meader, who is fun to talk to, enthusiastic about his wine, and a really nice guy; pretty rustic little tasting room.

Regan Meader explaining his wines.

These grapes have been picked.

Pretty, isn’t it? I took this photo from one of his menu cards!

Pellegrini: All-Around Good Place September 26, 2015

Posted by nofowineaux in Tasting and tagged with chardonnay, gewurztraminer, Medley White, North Fork, Pellegrini Vineyards, petit verdot, sauvignon blanc, wine tasting September 28, 2015

http://www.pellegrinivineyards.com/

The entrance to the tasting room and courtyard

It was a beautiful fall weekend, which meant the agritainment business was in full swing, which meant we were stuck in traffic on Sound Avenue for a frustrating hour, which meant we decided to turn our pick-up of our Pellegrini wine club shipment into our tasting for the weekend. Anyway, it’s been a year since I wrote about Pellegrini, one of our favorite wineries.

Wedding guests starting to gather outside

When we went to pull into the parking lot, we were somewhat dismayed to see a huge party bus pull in just ahead of us, but when the first passenger to get out was in a long white lace dress we realized it was a wedding party. The large central courtyard was still in the process of being set up for the reception, while guests milled around in the tasting room and out on the lawn. As a result, we decided to quickly share one tasting of the whites, since we get—and know we like—the reds in our subscription. If you’re not in the wine club, a tasting consists of three two-ounce pours of your choice and one “complimentary” one-ounce pour of the oaked chardonnay for $12. The glasses are arrayed on a labeled place mat on a tray, which helps you choose the order in which to drink them (roughly top to bottom, left to right). Oh, and either our server was flustered by the influx of wedding guests or she forgot or they are no longer on offer, but we did not get the usual little bag of oyster crackers that comes with a tasting.

2014 Gewürztraminer $24.99

I used to think I didn’t like gewürztraminers because they were too sweet, but several of the North Fork gewürztraminers are not. However, this one is a touch too sweet for my taste. It has a very strong honeysuckle aroma with tastes of sweet plums—perhaps greengage?—and mineral. My husband and I turned to each other simultaneously and said, “It would be a good choice with spicy Thai food.” Steel fermented.

Our tray of tastes

2014 Medley White $21.99

The Medley White is also steel fermented, and includes 5% gewürztraminer, plus 55% sauvignon blanc and 40% chardonnay. We like this one much better. It has some nice complexity of both aroma and taste, and we agree that we smell something like cigar or pipe tobacco plus rock or mineral. Though it is not very dry, it is also not too sweet, with a good balance. We taste pear and an almost salty minerality which my causes my tasting buddy to wax poetic. “Like salt spray on a windy day at the beach,” he opines. Okay.

2014 Chardonnay $19.99

This is our complimentary taste, an oaked chardonnay that spends eight months in French oak, and is 80% oaked and 20% steel fermented. You can smell the usual woods/vanilla aroma of an oaked chard, and the taste is similarly undistinguished.

One of the outdoor tables

2014 Sauvignon Blanc $24.99

“It smells like a florist,” I say. “You mean a florist shop, not the florist herself!” corrects my husband. Well, yes. This, like the Medley, is a well-balanced wine, with a good mix of tart and sweet, nice and crisp and lemony. I’d have it with oysters any time.

We amused ourselves watching the caterers setting up.

Reasons to Visit: a good all-around winery, with room to sit inside or outside, space for children to run around outside, good whites and reds; you can bring your own snacks; the Medley White, the Sauvignon Blanc; we didn’t try it today, but the Petit Verdot is generally excellent.

One view of the tasting room

Sparkling Point: Bubblicious? August 15, 2015

Posted by nofowineaux in Tasting and tagged with Blanc de Blancs, Brut, Brut Seduction, Carnaval Cuvee Rouge, Champagne, chardonnay, Lieb Blanc de Blanc, merlot, New York State, North Fork, pinot noir, snacks, Sparkling Pointe, sparklling wine, wine tasting August 18, 2015

http://www.sparklingpointe.com/#

The entrance to Sparkling Pointe

Every time we visit Sparkling Pointe we go home convinced that we should drink more champagne—or, to be precise, more sparkling wines, since only wines from the Champagne region of France can actually be called champagne. Sparkling Pointe only makes sparkling wines, a focus that disappointed a couple who wandered in as we were enjoying our tasting and left, despite the best efforts of our very knowledgeable and passionate server to persuade them to stay. “Here,” she offered, “try a little sample on me of two very different sparkling wines,” pouring them tastes of the Brut and the Carnaval. They should have stayed.

A view of the chandeliers

The tasting room is a bright, airy space, decorated with large crystal chandeliers and paintings of Brazilian scenes (because the owners like the culture of Brazil, we’ve been told). Outside there are more seats on a shaded patio overlooking the vineyard. We could have opted for table service inside or outside, but, since there is room at the bar, we decide to stay there, which gives us a chance to observe the somewhat frenetic actions of the serving staff, as they quickly move from task to task. “Like a beehive!” observes my husband. Our attentive server not only (noticing our interest) gives us more information about each wine than I can cover in my notes, she also gives us an extra taste, about which more later.

A view of the mural, plus a very active server

The menu offers four tastes for $17, each one in a fresh champagne flute. There is also an extensive menu of snacks—almost all of them of New York State origin, including cheeses and charcuterie, chips and olives, and Tate’s cookies—which is good, since they don’t allow outside food. We also noted quite a few people ordering whole bottles for a table, plus snacks. The shop off to one side is full of gift items, also featuring many New York State grown or made products, as well as the sparkling t-shirts many of the servers wear.

NV Brut $29

This is their least expensive and most popular wine, a non-vintage blend, meaning they strive for consistency year to year. This one is made from 38% chardonnay, 38% pinot noir, and 24% reserve wine—which means they use some of the wine they reserve from each vintage in order to make up the blend. It ages for two years on the lees. The aroma is toasty and yeasty, the wine itself very pleasant, with tiny bubbles that burst on the tongue. The chard probably accounts for the lemony taste, more like a touch of lemon peel than fruit. The wine is nicely dry, but could have more fruit flavors. I think it would be better as an accompaniment for food than by itself. Pretty label.

2010 Blanc de Blancs $42

We clear our palate with our own individual bowl of round crackers, a nice idea—almost ruined by a man who comes to the bar to order a bottle for his table and helps himself to a handful. An observant server quickly dumps the bowl and gives us a fresh one. Nice! This one is a 100% chardonnay, aged 3 ½ years on the lees, with a slightly funky green apple smell. This has tastes of lime and mineral and fruit, and, though not complex, is quite good. We recently had the Lieb Blanc de Blanc, made from pinot blanc grapes, which tasted very different. We prefer this one.

2006 Brut Seduction $72

Now we’re getting serious. They only make the Brut Seduction in a good year for pinot noir, which is not every year on Long Island, as this is 54% pinot noir and 46% chardonnay blend. This one has been aged eight years, and it shows. Wow. The aroma is yeasty and toasty again, but we also smell some bitter almond. Mineral, fruit, layers of flavor—we’ve had excellent vintage champagnes (yes, from France) and this would give some of them a run for their money. Our server thinks it needs another six months in the bottle, which would make it perfect for New Year’s Eve. The tasting menu says it has a “super organoleptic profile”—which is a fancy way of saying it appeals to all the senses. Yes indeed.

The servers are smart and attentive and know a lot about the wines.

Our favorite–not counting the ’05!

2005 Brut Seduction

Not for sale, not on the menu, but we get a taste. The server has noted our seriousness, and my note taking, and we have had a great discussion of sparkling wines. She is so enthusiastic about them that she actually traveled to Champagne, France. The ’05 earned scores in the 90s, and we can see why. We smell a more complex aroma, with fruit and spice, perhaps fennel, and the taste…I wrote OMG. This could definitely stand up to a French vintage champagne.

Our individual dish of crackers, which we almost lost!

NV Carnaval Cuvée Rouge $34

From the sublime to…not our taste. This is described as a demi-sec red sparkling wine, made from 65% merlot, 23% pinot noir, and 12% chardonnay, having spent five days on the merlot skins, which accounts for the pretty garnet color. The aroma is black raspberry, the taste is candy, or raspberry syrup mixed with seltzer. Unlike the others, which are made in the méthode Champenoise, this is made in the méthode traditionelle. If you like sweet, you can try this. I would skip it!

A carnival outfit from the gift shop to get you in the mood for our last taste.

Reasons to visit: you like bubbles; the only winery that only makes sparkling wines; an airy pleasant setting with table or bar service; lots of interesting snacks; smart, attentive servers; nice little gift shop; the ’06 Brut Seduction.

A view of the room during a brief quiet moment.

Looking towards the outside patio

Some of the gift items

In a few years, these grapes will sparkle.

NoFo Wineaux

Wine notes from Long Island's North Fork

Tag Archives: chardonnay