Tag Archives: croteaux vineyard

Croteaux Vineyards:  Ooh La La

Posted by nofowineaux in Tasting and tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

July 20, 2013

Many (many!) years ago, while traveling in Europe, we rendezvoused for several days in Paris with dear friends.  Recently, they came north from Florida to escape the summer heat, and we were delighted they included a trip to the North Fork in their itinerary.  To honor those memories of France, we made salade niçoise for lunch, and then took them to the most French of the North Fork wineries, Croteaux.  Croteaux only makes rosés, and makes them in the dry Provençal style.

This view makes the garden look empty, but behind me it was full.

Happily, the weather cooperated, and it was pleasantly warm and sunny, because you want to sit in the lovely garden when you go there.  We followed a path from the parking area to an entrance in a barn, where we were promptly greeted and escorted to a table where we were given a nice cold bottle of water and some cups.  As we looked around, we noted that the garden was fairly crowded though they have added additional tables in an extended area.  Soft music set a relaxing mood.

You can scan the QR code or we can give you a printed-out menu, we were informed.  We opted for the printout.  Puzzlingly, the printed menu lists the prices of the wines as $39 and $37, while they in fact are $29 and $27. They should probably fix that. 

Croteaux only has table service—no standing at a bar.  They also offer a nice menu of real food, and we saw several very good-looking lobster slider rolls sail past our table enroute to lunchers.  I can definitely see coming here for a chilled glass of rosé and a lobster roll. 

This tub filled with water bottles is typical of the slightly funky aesthetic of the garden.

After some discussion, we decided that each couple would share one tasting—which proved to be more than enough, since, as much as we all liked the wines, we left over quite a bit.  One tasting of their six still wines is $28.  One could also opt for a tasting of their three sparklers for $26.  In past years we have belonged to their case club, which is their version of a wine club.  Buy a case (which one should do early in the season), and you’re in.   

If you are familiar with rosé, you can skip this paragraph… Rosé is usually made from red wine grapes, and how long they sit with the skins on determines how dark the rosé is. Rarely, it is made with white grapes, which then also sit with the skins on.  Some people think rosé is some sort of blend of red and white—which it actually could be, but not in the sense of here’s some red wine, let’s mix it with white until it is a pale pink. 

Our tasting in progress…you are told the order in which to try them, but then we kept going back and forth.

 2022 Chloe Sauvignon Blanc       $29

As you can tell by the name, this is made from white wine grapes.  This is a rosé for white wine drinkers, with a sweet aroma of honeysuckle and peach.  The taste is also of peaches and other stone fruit, but it is a dry wine.  Delicious, we all agree.

  • 2022 Merlot 181              $29

Of the six wines we tasted, this is our least favorite.  It is more austere, less fruity, than the others, and really needs to be paired with food, like seafood in a rich cream sauce.

  • 2022 Merlot 3                   $29

I smell orange blossoms and minerals, and we joke about licking rocks from the beach.  Lots of strawberry and orange tastes, with a long finish, make this rosé a real contrast to the 181.

  • 2022 Merlot Sauvage      $29

I explain to our friends that “sauvage” refers to the use of wild yeast, and one friend, a music aficionado, says the word “sauvage” reminds him of a line from the Benjamin Britton ballet, “Les Illuminations,” “J’ai seul la clef de cette parade sauvage.” The line is from a poem by Rimbaud.  Thus illuminated, we sip the wine, and are quite pleased.  Comments include “mouth-watering,” “a lot of taste,” and “peaches again.”  It also has a very pleasing minerality.  We each buy a bottle.

There are helpful tasting notes undeneath each glass.
  • 2022 Merlot 314              $27

I swear, this smells like orange juice.  Yummy.  It is fruity, and would pair well with charcuterie.

  • 2022 Jolie Cabernet Franc            $27

They saved the best for last, we decide, as we enjoy this flavorful sipper, with notes of strawberry shortcake and spice.  We also each buy a bottle of this one, as well.

The pretty bottles make nice gifts.
When it is time to pay, you go through the doorway in the background, where there is a little retail store.
Checks are charmingly delivered attached to shells.

Reasons to visit:  the lovely, relaxed garden setting; dogs are allowed; you like rosés; all the wines we tasted, but especially the Sauvage and the Jolie; nice menu of snacks.

Some of the items for sale in the retail store.
Cans of wine are becoming increasingly popular.

Croteaux Vineyards July 27, 2013

Posted by nofowineaux in Tasting, Uncategorized and tagged with , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

This gallery contains 5 photos.

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

Croteaux Winery

Posted by nofowineaux in Tasting and tagged with , , , ,

July 14, 2012:  Bastille Day, the perfect day to visit a French winery!

http://www.croteaux.com/

We are here after another day on the water with friends who like wine, but are not used to wine tastings.  They are a little surprised that you do have to pay for a tasting, and tend to violate the “drink these wines in this order” instructions, but otherwise enjoy the experience.  Croteaux is just off the main road, a little west of Greenport, and used to be somewhat undiscovered.    No more!  The parking lot (a grassy field bordered by rows of corn on one side and vines on another) is pretty full, and so is the tasting “room”–a lovely patio with umbrella-shaded tables and comfortable Adirondack chairs, bordered by a picturesque half-ruined barn.  However, the very competent and attractive young staff guides us swiftly to a table, and asks us if we would like some bread and cheese ($10).  A basket with slices of baguette and a crock of goat cheese quickly arrives.  There are two tasting options:  $10 for 3 of their $19 wines or $15 for 6 of all their wines (the more expensive group sells for $25 per bottle).  We easily decide that each couple will share a tasting of 6 wines.

1)  Merlot 181 (all named for their clones)

The server describes it as “summer in a glass,” and we agree.  It is a light, rosy rose, with a taste of unripe melon and a lemony finish.

2) Merlot 314

This has a lovely flowery aroma and a tart strawberry taste, with some hints of citrus.

3)  Merlot 3

The aroma is not too sweet but not unpleasant, and, even though it is 100% steel fermented seems to have a trace of vanilla.

As a transition between the two groups of three, our server turns over the little label in the tray that held the first three tastes (in attractive round-bottomed glasses) so that the next three are detailed.

4) 181 Sauvage

This wine uses the same Merlot clone as the other 181, but uses wild yeasts, and since Channing Daughter’s L’Enfant Sauvage is one of my favorite wines, I’m interested to see how this will taste.  (By using wild yeasts, the winemaker gives up a measure of control and sees what the air brings to the wine.)  The aroma has notes of mineral or clay, and though the flavor is more interesting than the 181, our friend dubs it “sour.”

5)  Chloe

This is a Sauvignon Blanc Rose with some Cabernet Franc as well.  We like it. The aroma reminds us of ripe peaches and the taste is dry but with plenty of fruit.  This is good, but not like what one expects a rose to be like.

6)  Jolie (French for pretty!)

This is a Cabernet Franc rose, a Bordeaux style, and my favorite of the afternoon, with lots of ripe strawberry/raspberry tastes.

That should be the end of our tasting, but we have a nice surprise in store.  In honor of Bastille Day, we are given free tastes of their two sparkling wines, the Cuvee Sparkle and the Cuvee Rouge Sparkling Cabernet Franc Rose, each $28 per bottle.  The first is light, made in what our server says is the French “charmat” style, and the second I really like, with tastes of lots of berries.  A final nice touch–as we sit and chat with our friends, the server brings a bottle of chilled water for us, a welcome treat on this hot day.  Tres civilized…

Reasons to visit:  great place to sit and relax on a warm day; best roses on the North Fork; you can pretend you’ve gone to France!