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.
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.
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.
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.
- 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.
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.