New York Cork Report

TasteCamp EAST 2010 Interview: Sue Guerra | New Jersey Monthly

By Lenn Thompson, Executive Editor

When Sue Guerra, who writes On the Vine for New Jersey Monthly, expressed interest in attending TasteCamp, I had absolutely no idea who she was. None.

Now, after spending a couple days with her, tasting (and drinking) wine with her, I'm glad she reached out and pushed her way into the TasteCamp experience -- it was a better event because we had her with us. Beyond her impressive palate, she has a great sense of humor and lives an interesting life as a dual citizen of the United States and Italy. 

And now, our TasteCamp questions:

Was this your first visit to Finger Lakes wine country? Yes.

Had you ever had any Finger Lakes wines before? And if so, what was your impression of them? I have had the Hermann Wiemer Dry Riesling and always recommended it to customers when I worked retail because it was closer to a German style riesling at half the cost.

After tasting a larger sampling of the wines being produced in the Finger Lakes, what is your impression now? I was really psyched that the region, which is already known for great rieslings has so much potential for other varieties (i.e. pinot noir, sparkling wines, some of the cabernet francs) in that cold-climate, food-friendly style I enjoy most (read: not jammy, over-oaked fruit bombs)--and best of all is that I can drive there. Now trying to talk 17 year old son into applying to Ithaca College!

What, in general, impressed you the most? I found it really interesting that each winemaker has their own approach and that approach runs the gamut from highly interventionist (chaptalization, filtration, Brett eradication etc.) to more natural (although probably not by the most strict definition) yet by and large the wines are highly drinkable and in a style that is so food friendly. Some obviously stood out above the pack but all of the winemakers and growers were so dedicated -- which I guess they have to be when they are freezing their asses off harvesting grapes in the cold and snow.

Also, perhaps it's the spoiled "proximity to NYC" brat in me but I was pleasantly surprised with the food scene up there.

What, in general, underwhelmed you the most? The Meritage bends. Maybe I am just bored with cabernet blends in general but does the world really need more of those? Some of the straight cab francs were interesting and there was a pretty interesting blend with cab franc (and Blaufrankisch?) at dinner the first night. I don't have my notes in front of me so I have to look that one up.

What tasting or vineyard walk was and will be the most memorable for you? Loved the Damiani Vineyard walk but the Heart & Hands Wine Company visit was the most memorable even though I had to run out early.

I can't wait to see what they do when they start harvesting their own pinot noir from atop that limestone outcrop.

After so much online interaction with the attendees, which person surprised you the most in person? Not one person but the collective whole. It was a brain trust of wine geeks of the highest order!!!

If you had to pick one, what would your wine of the weekend be? Tough question. Can I pick three? Jeez. The pressure is unbearable. OK...my three picks would be the Ravines Cabernet Franc 2007, the Heart and hands 2007 Reserve Pinot Noir and the Weimer 2007 Magdalena Vineyard Riesling.

Guest Post: A Drier Style of Riesling at Ravines Wine Cellars (Rick Van Sickle, Wines In Niagara)

By Rick Van Sickle, Wines In Niagara
Photos by Morgan Dawson

Reflecting back on what truly was a startling discovery of New York’s Finger Lakes wine region during TasteCamp EAST 2010, one aspect of the vino-soaked weekend that I will never forget was our visit to Ravines Wine Cellars.

If I had to pick an experience that changed my mind about how I perceived Finger Lakes from what little exposure I’ve had it would be the very instant that Morten Hallgren (pictured at right) began talking to our group in his no-surrender tone in defense of his wines — not that they needed defending, but he wanted to be clear on his defining style that just might not appeal to the masses.

I thought about all the great winemakers I have listened to and tasted with. The very best have exactly the same convictions, that honest and steadfast resolve to do things their way because they believe it’s the right way and criticism be damned.

Hallgren, along with his wife Lisa, are true believers in the terroir of Finger Lakes and have concentrated their efforts on what does well in the vineyards that are so dear to their hearts.

Morten has staked his claim on the correct varieties for a cool-climate region that is not unlike Ontario’s Niagara region, or other great regions in the world such the Mosel, Champagne, Alsace, the Loire Valley, Burgundy, Bordeaux and Piemonte. Hallgren has decided on riesling and cabernet franc with a bit of chardonnay and pinot noir as the main wines being made at Ravines.

But what was of particular interest to me was Ravines’ portfolio of rieslings. This is where Hallgren draws a line in the sand, a line he won’t yield even one inch. It’s a stylistic battle line where his rieslings are defined by their sharp edges, that steely, citrusy and mineral-laden quality that runs deep through each of his wines.

It’s a risky, but brave, portfolio. Dry, austere white wines need the benefit of time to soften up the hard edges, to tame the racy acidity that props up the raging citrus and slate. This is serious riesling, built for the dinner table, and not for the faint of heart. An unwitting wine lover looking for a fun little glass of wine along the wine route might wonder at the style, not understanding the concept of watching this glorious wine as it comes into maturity. And maybe they won’t be back.

But that is the risk the Hallgrens are willing to take. The payoff, for them and, luckily for us, is authentic, thrilling, terroir-driven wines that go far beyond a cookie-cutter style of wine so prevalent in the world of wine today.

In the Ravines rieslings you can taste the gravelly loam and limestone and you have to believe Hallgren when he says that is best expressed through an austere style that shows balance, elegance, and a purity of aromas and flavors.

“Fine wine is about delicate balance and nuances,” he told us as we sipped through the vast majority of his portfolio.

A Focus on Quality and Expression

Morten was raised in the Provence region in the South of France where his family owned and operated Domaine de Castel Roubine, a 270-acre estate with 170 acres under vine.

He worked as chief winemaker for Dr. Konstantin Frank Vinifera Cellars, another fabulous Finger Lakes producer, before he and Lisa purchased a 17-acre parcel of land in 2000 on a glacier-carved hillside on the eastern slopes of Keuka Lake. It’s a piece of land laden in mineral-rich, well-drained soils and situated between two deep ravines (hence the name of the winery), which drain cold air from the land during the winter.

They operate a charming tasting room, with views to the lake, opened in the spring of 2003. It has been elegantly decorated by Lisa in a Provencal style, including a sculpted head of Bacchus, the Roman god of wine, from the Castel Roubine tasting room. Since opening, the winery is adorned with medals and praise from the wine press.

Ravines’ wine program, which is limited to just 10 or 11 different wines per vintage, is built on an extraordinary riesling portfolio as well as European-styled cabernet franc, meritage, pinot noir and rose.

“We have everything here to make world-class rieslings,” he says. The Ravines style is built around tight, mouth-watering, bone-dry rieslings that are balanced between fresh fruit and acid. They are made for the long haul in the cellar even though they are released to the public with some bottle age.

Morten admits that Ravines doesn’t “try to be everything to everyone” which, to be honest, is a refreshing change from so many of the Finger Lakes wineries that tend to do just that and end up with a whole mess of wine that perhaps is fine for the masses but misses the mark for serious wine lovers. Ravines wines are more likely to appeal to people with wider wine experience and those who seek out the finer wines in life.

A Unique Winemaker-Grower Relationship

The inspiration and fruit for Ravines’ greatest expression of riesling comes from a coddled vineyard overlooking Senaca Lake called Argetsinger, named after Sam Argetsinger (right), the colorful man who owns it and spends most of waking hours nurturing it.

Hallgren crafts his single-vineyard Argetsinger Vineyard Riesling from Sam Argetsinger’s vines, a riesling that shows its teeth with pronounced mineral-slate, floral and citrus notes.

On a walk-through the Argetsinger vineyard with Sam, it’s easy to see why these two men have come together in perfect harmony to make such a thrilling wine. Hallgren, an idealistic winemaker with precise ideas on what he wants out his wines, and Argetsinger, a free-wheeling spirit who covets his vines with the passion of a star-struck lover.

Argetsinger should have been born into the Iroquois nation as he recites stories about Mother Earth and her relationship with his vineyards.

When he gathers us around him to tell the story about Thundering Voices, appropriate after a hellish storm the night before, we listen and believe him when he says the Creator had it out with Mr. Thunder one day and finally decided (after some divine persuasion) they could work together for the good of the people who would one day all live together in harmony (or something like that).

Fact is, as we walked through his spectacular vines, that look straight down into Seneca Lake, we could feel Mother Earth all around us. You got the feeling that Argetsinger is just a caretaker of the land, here to nurture vines so that others (like Hallgren) have some great grapes to turn into spectacular wines.

Following our brisk morning vineyard walk, Hallgren, who buys all five acres of riesling grown on the property and bottles it as a single-vineyard wine, showed up with some nice morning frittata and a bottle of Ravines Argetsinger Riesling 2007. Never has a frittata gone so beautifully with a riesling as the sun beat down in the quiet stillness of that amazing vineyard.

A Different Style of Riesling

As a wine writer primarily covering the Niagara region in Ontario, where I work and live with my family, it is hard for me to understand the lack of residual sugar (or late picking of riesling grapes) in the quality Finger Lakes wines.

I drink a steady diet of amazing Niagara rieslings that, for the most part, are made with some RS — more or less depending on the vintage. In Niagara, that little touch of sweetness lifts the flavors to another dimension. From citrus, lime and mineral to peach, apricot and tropical notes, in some cases.

It is a style that now dominates in the Niagara wine region, though many wineries still make bone-dry rieslings.

So it begs the question. Do I wonder what Hallgren’s wines would taste like if he made them in a sweeter style?

I’ve thought about that a lot since visiting the Finger Lakes. I have concluded that I have no desire to see Hallgren do anything other than what he’s doing — making some of the most interesting and thrilling wines in the Finger Lakes. And I can’t wait to get back there.

Ravines Dry Riesling 2006 — A fragrant and floral nose of green apple, citrus, mineral-stone and grapefruit. It’s perfectly dry and austere with a firm acidic spine but balanced off by ripe and zesty citrus-lime fruits.

Ravines Dry Riesling Argetsinger Vineyard 2008 — Definitely one the finest rieslings enjoyed on the trip came from this single vineyard belonging to the quirky and likeable Sam Argetsinger. This is one of the oldest riesling vineyards in the Finger Lakes and shows a pronounced mineral-slate, floral, citrus nose. It’s very focused and firm on the palate with racy acidity and tart-juicy fruits. This is built for food and shouldn’t be touched for a couple of years at least, but, wow, what a beauty.

Ravines Pinot Noir 2007 — Morten is fond of saying that he came to the Finger Lakes for the riesling but was surprised by the pinot. And he’s right. There is a great deal of potential for pinot noir in the Finger Lakes and winemakers are just starting to realize that. I love the earthy cherry fruit, sweet mocha spice, saddle leather and vanilla on the nose. It’s juicy on the palate with fresh red berries, vibrancy, spice and subtle oak/cedar notes on the finish. It’s done in an elegant and classy style.

TasteCamp EAST 2010 Interview: Neil Miller | Stressing the Vine

  By Lenn Thompson, Editor-in-Chief

Neil Miller's blog Stressing the Vine is one that I've been a fan of for some time, so when he expressed interest in attending TasteCamp, I was excited.

It's always fun to meet fellow bloggers -- especially ones so focused on local wines and food -- and Neil did not disappoint. I found him to have a very well-tuned palate and to be both entusiastic but pragmatic about local wines. 

And now, our TasteCamp 2010 Q&A with Neil:

Was this your first visit to Finger Lakes wine country? No.

Had you ever had any Finger Lakes wines before? And if so, what was your impression of them? Yes. Very favorable.

After tasting a larger sampling of the wines being produced in the Finger Lakes, what is your impression now? I was glad to see that many of the 2009 rieslings were showing well, as this was the first opportunity I've had to taste examples of this difficult vintage. 

I also was very pleased by the quality of several Finger Lakes red wines, especially the 2005 Shaw Cabernet Franc, the 2007 Tierce, the 2005 Fox Run Reserve Cabernet Franc and the 2007 Ravines Pinot Noir. 

That having been said, however,  I also still found many of the reds, especially the cabernet sauvignons, merlots, meritages and syrahs, overly lean and tannic. I entirely get the unique characteristics of cool-climate red wines, which I particularly enjoy in comparison to Mediterranean-climate reds, but I am not persuaded, and I don't expect the general wine drinking public to be persuaded, by the often-heard refrain that these wines are made to pair with food, or require extended cellaring.

High acidity and lower alcohol levels are great, but I can't overlook the fact that many of the red wines I tasted lacked concentration and depth of fruit, were over oaked, displayed overly harsh tannins, and/or were generally unbalanced and unfriendly.

Food might mask or mitigate some these issues, but in general I find this claim about food friendliness to be a self-serving rationalization that benefits no one, especially not the winemaker. 

And I am equally skeptical that aging is going to significantly improve many of these red wines.

What, in general, impressed you the most? The remarkable generosity and willingness of the winemakers to share their best/rarest/most recent wines with the attendees, along with their candid views about winemaking.

I was truly overwhelmed by David and Debra Whiting's extraordinary generosity at Friday night's dinner at Red Newt Cellars and Bistro. Not only did David pour a lot of his library wines, along with Anthony Road and Fox Run, so that we could taste the entire history of the Tierce bottlings alongside the wines that went into them, while Debra served up an absolutely delicious dinner that paired beautifully with the 2007 Tierce, but they sent home each of the attendees with a surprise gift package of three Red Newt wines.  It was an extraordinary, singular display of generosity, and was for me the high point of the weekend.

What, in general, underwhelmed you the most? The dinner served at the Stone Cat Cafe (not the BYOB wine tasting or the enthusiasm and camaraderie of the attendees). The Stone Cat should be ashamed of themselves for charging $60.00 for that uninspired, mediocre meal, especially since we brought and uncorked our own wines.

What tasting or vineyard walk was and will be the most memorable for you? I'd have to say the Wiemer tasting, because it revealed how distinctive the wines were from the three designated vineyards. 

After listening to Peter Bell of Fox Run and Morten Hallgren of Ravines discuss their very hands-on approaches to winemaking, which gave me the impression that they viewed winemaking as taking place at least as much in the winery as in the vineyard, I was glad to hear Fred Merwarth describe the less-manipulative methods he employs at Wiemer.

After so much online interaction with the attendees, which person surprised you the most in person? Of the attendees, I was very impressed with the New York Cork Report's own Julia Burke, for someone so relatively young her depth of knowledge of wine and winemaking was impressive.

If you had to pick one, what would your wine of the weekend be? The Anthony Road 2008 TBA was the most memorable wine of the weekend, followed closely by the 2007 Tierce, the 2008 Weimer HJW Vineyard Riesling, 2005 Shaw Cabernet Franc, the 2006 Fox Run Riesling, the 2007 Fox Run Port, and the 2008 Ravines Argetsinger Vineyard Riesling, not necessarily in that order. 

Then again, I selectively sampled the Keuka Lake and Seneca Lake wines on Friday and Saturday, in part because I was already familiar with many of the wine/wineries, and because I had to drive back to Syracuse in the evening, and I wasn't able to attend Sunday's Cayuga Lake tastings, so I did not taste everything.

Guest Post: Heart & Hands Wine Company: A Passion for Pinot at Cayuga Lake (Richard Auffrey, The Passionate Foodie)

By Richard Auffrey, The Passionate Foodie

It was Sunday afternoon, the final event of TasteCamp 2010, and palate fatigue ran rampant among the attendees. There had already been 200-300 wines available for tasting over the weekend and I was not sure I could handle any more. Snow flurries whipped through the air and I faced a six-plus hour drive home.

Plus, my GPS couldn't seem to locate the Heart & Hands Wine Company.

After a phone call, I was able to find the winery and join the rest of the TasteCamp crew. And soon, all of the troubles of the day seemed to diminish in insignificance. The passion of owners Tom and Susan Higgins (pictured at right) and their excellent pinot noirs thoroughly impressed me and it were a fine conclusion to the weekend.

Heart & Hands Wine Company, located on the eastern side of Cayuga Lake, is a relative newcomer to the Finger Lakes region, having been established in 2008. Tom and Susan are down-to-earth, personable and passionate people. Their enthusiasm for winemaking is infectious and it seemed to spread throughout our group.

The winery is small, planning to produce about 1,600 cases of wine this year, and eventually topping out at 2000 cases. They only make wines from pinot noir (about 80% of their production) and riesling.

Pinot noir in New York? Though it might seem unusual at first, the Higginses prove that this grape can succeed in this cool climate. Riesling might be the signature grape of this region, but some excellent red wines are also being produced in this area as well.

Tom presided over the tasting, giving us some background on the winery and their methods of winemaking.  He gave us a very rational explanation for why small producers usually can make significantly superior pinot noir than the larger producers. It centers on the time and labor required to bring out the best in the wine. 

For example, it requires hand picking and sorting, to select only the best grapes rather than just lumping everything together, good and bad, into one large vat. The large producers cannot devote sufficient time to hand pick and sort -- not with the amounts of grapes they harvest. There are other procedures as well that a small producer can do more easily and efficiently, though they are time and labor-intensive.

For our tasting, we got to try both finished wines as well as some barrel samples. You really felt as if you were getting an inside view of the winery. We had a chance to taste in their barrel room, buried underground and benefiting from natural cooling.  

 

We began with a couple sparkling wines, the 2008 Blanc de Noir (which has not yet been released) and the 2008 Brut Rosé ($24.99). The Blanc de Noir was good, with a nice creaminess and pleasant fruit flavors, and should turn out well when it is eventually released. The Brut Rosé, made from 100% pinot noir, was delicious with bright strawberry and cherry flavors. It was clean and refreshing, and I could enjoy it on its own or with food. It was probably my favorite sparkling wine of the weekend.

 

We then tasted a few 2009 Pinot Noir barrel samples, from the Sawmill Creek and Hobbit Hollow Vineyards.  Tom likes to experiment a bit with his wines, for example seeing what happens with a 50% whole cluster as opposed to a 100% whole cluster. He is also crafting pinots more in a Burgundian style, which is my preferred style. Of the two vineyards, I preferred the Sawmill Creek wines, as they had more of that earthiness which I enjoy in my pinot. The Hobbit Hollow had more bold fruit and also did not seem as complex as the Sawmill Creek.

 

Of the two finished pinots, we began with the 2008 Pinot Noir ($19.99), a blend of 59% Hobbit Hollow and 41% Sawmill Creek. This lush wine had bright cherry and raspberry flavors with hints of darker fruits and spice deeper within. I could understand how the melding of these two vineyards produced such a wine. I should also note that the grapes from each vineyard are vinified separately. This was a pleasant and easy-drinking wine, resembling far more France than California. At under $20, this is a very good value.

The 2007 Barrel Reserve Pinot Noir ($39.99) simply stunned me.

This was an exceptional wine in the Burgundian mode, and showed the vast potential for pinot noir in the Finger Lakes.  All of the grapes came from Sawmill Creek and it resembled what I had tasted in the barrel samples. The nose seduced me with its melange of black cherry, plum, spice, floral notes and touch of earth.  The taste followed through on the promise of the aroma, delivering a lush and complex blend of flavors.  Each sip seemed to deliver a mouthful of pure bliss. 

Well balanced, the finish was long and satisfying, making me crave more of this wine. 

I consider this a world-class pinot noir and well worth its price. If the Finger Lakes region is capable of such wines, they should plant more pinot noir. It would be a great niche for dedicated, small producers who take the time and effort needed to craft such a superb wine.

I had to buy a couple bottles of this wine, and probably should have bought even more. I recently took one of the bottles to a dinner party and it was greatly preferred over a $50 French Burgundy.

Though we also got to taste their rieslings, I could not stop thinking about their pinot. It had broken through my palate fatigue, and excited my senses. I had tasted several other pinots from this region, but none came even close to the quality of the Heart & Hands Barrel Reserve. TasteCamp ended on a very high note for me.

Pumped Up With Petrol: TDN and Riesling

By Tom Mansell, Science Editor

At TasteCamp, bloggers were generously treated to many library selections of riesling. 

Peter Bell guided us through two vertical tastings of Fox Run Vineyards rieslings (one pictured at right), of the dry and semi-dry persuasion. Bob Madill poured a library flight at Sheldrake Point Vineyard, and the Tierce brothers poured three years of Fox Run, Anthony Road, and Red Newt rieslings (and their collaborative effort, Tierce Riesling).  The oldest variations poured for the masses dated back to 2001.  

One character in particular that stands out in many aged rieslings from around the world is the so-called "petrol" note. This aroma can be somewhat polarizing. It's "goût de petrol" if you like it and it's "kerosene" if you don't. 

Many of the older Finger Lakes Rieslings we tasted along the way had a healthy dose of petrol, which is not surprising if you're at all familiar for riesling with a little age on it. What may seem surprising, though, is that a number of 2007 Rieslings we tried (and that I have tried in the past, even just after release) also had a bunch of petrol on them.

 The aroma compound we're talking about is known as 1,1,6-trimethyl-1,2-dihydronaphthalene, which is often thankfully shortened to TDN. 

Where's this aroma coming from, and why is it appearing in newer rieslings?

TDN itself is not often found in grape juice or in young wines. It originates from the gradual breakdown of protective plant molecules generally known as carotenoids.

Carotenoids are pigments that absorb light. They are important in leaves to support photosynthesis (and once the chlorophyll is gone from leaves in the fall, they give the leaves their oranges, yellows, and reds). In the berries themselves, these compounds absorb UV rays that would be harmful to the DNA and other cellular components.

Think of carotenoids as grape sunscreen. When UV light is high (i.e., in a year with lots of sunlight) carotenoids will build up during berry development to shield the cells from the harsh rays. Near the end of the growing season, the molecules break down into smaller components, some of which are precursors to very powerful aroma compounds, some of which are detectable in the parts-per-billion (micrograms/L) range.

These aroma compounds are often bound to sugar groups and known as glycosides when found in the must.  Glycosides are not aroma-active, so they won't be observable by smelling or tasting the must per se.  However, during fermentation, yeast enzymes liberate glycoside-bound aroma compounds, helping to create the complex bouquet that we love about wine.

So carotenoids can break down to form potent aroma compounds (1) during a hot harvest season or (2) by slow degradation of the compounds in the bottle over time. In a few years, a 2006 (from a cooler, wetter year) riesling may start to develop some TDN due to the bottle age, but some 2007s have already got some now due to the hot, sunny coditions. TDN formation can also correlate with water stress (and in some cases, atypical aging) but right now it's not clear whether the two are related or distinct phenomena. (aside: Yes, even in a relatively wet grapegrowing climate like the Finger Lakes, vines do occasionally suffer from water stress, which has led some growers to install drip irrigation systems.)

Not all carotenoid breakdown products are bad news, though. Beta-damascenone (cooked fruit, canned apple), Beta-ionone (raspberry, violet), and a fruity-smelling molecule known as riesling acetal are all carotenoid breakdown products, and are part of the essence of what makes wine "winey."

While it may seem like shading the grapes is a good way to reduce TDN (it is), there are many other reasons why it is desirable to have clusters exposed to sunlight and have an open canopy (see my post on leaf removal). A very recent paper in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry, authored by a team of viticulture researchers at Cornell, addressed this issue.

Current evidence indicates that leaf removal immediately pre-veraison (33 days post-berry set) leads to increased TDN in the juice and finished wine. According to the authors,"growers could implement leaf removal at berry set or postveraison for disease control, etc., without a resulting increase in TDN. Conversely, preveraison leaf removal could be employed if higher TDN concentrations were desired in wine."

So, exposure sunlight can increase TDN precursors and hasten their conversion to sugar-bound TDN in the grapes, which is then released by fermentation. Alternatively, carotenoids can break down in the bottle, leading to increased petrol with age. This could explain why years like 2007, which was hot and dry, and great for red wine production, may not be the best years for Riesling, compared to years like 2006 and 2008. 

I can't wait to see what the 2009 Rieslings have in store, but given the wackiness of that summer, I doubt there will be much petrol on them in their youth.

Guest Post: Hermann J. Wiemer Stands Out at TasteCamp 2010 (Remy Charest, The Wine Case)

Hermann J. Wiemer winemaker Fred Merwarth discussing his winemaking philosophy

By Remy Charest, The Wine Case

This may not come as that much of a surprise to those familiar with the Finger Lakes, but the region does make really great riesling. For participants in the second edition of Tastecamp EAST, however, this three-day, three-lake stint in the region was a great opportunity to confirm that the region indeed lives up to its reputation in that respect: just like merlot in Long Island – Tastecamp’s first destination, last year – the Finger Lakes' flagship grape consistently delivers.

Throughout the weekend, we had the opportunity to taste a great range of rieslings, made in a great variety of styles, and from vintages ranging from 2001 to 2009. I don’t believe I tasted one I didn’t at least reasonably like, and many were delicious and worth cellaring.

Rieslings from Red Newt, Ravines, Damiani, Lamoreaux Landing, Fox Run, Anthony Road, Heron Hill and others were distinctive, well-crafted and balanced, each in their own distinctive style.

A 2002 riesling from Heron Hill was beautifully aged, with a lot of typical petrol notes and still nice fruit – and the 2007 looked even more promising. Lamoreaux Landing’s three single-vineyard bottlings showed truly distinctive character from site to site, in a crisp, refreshing style with good weight and length. Fox Run rieslings were exotic and fruit-driven, with a capacity to age very well, as demonstrated by a vertical tasting where the 2001s and 2003s still shone. Ravines’ Argetsinger vineyard riesling, bone-dry and mineral, yet aromatic and complex, showed a completely different take on the grape – and was also great with breakfast at its vineyard of origin. I could go on with many other examples: Hunt Country, Sheldrake Point and Three Brothers also had good wines to show.

However, the highlight of the weekend, as far as riesling is concerned (there was also some great pinot from Damiani, Ravines and especially, Hearts and Hands), was a visit to Herman J. Wiemer Vineyard, a winery that has been at the heart of winegrowing in the Finger Lakes since the late 1970s.

Hermann J. Wiemer, who moved from Germany to the Finger Lakes, determined to show the region’s potential for riesling, clearly knew his way around a vineyard and a cellar, and built a solid reputation in the region, even becoming an important source of vines for local growers, in his own nursery.

A few years ago, Mr. Wiemer handed over the reins to a group of young investors, including his winemaker Fred Merwarth. Merwarth's approach shows a willingness to pay careful attention to the specificities of individual vineyards and of the grapes provided by each vintage, and a rare willingness, in the Finger Lakes, to let nature work its way into the fermentations.

Merwarth’s approach offers the closest thing to natural winemaking that I saw all weekend, in a region where the approach tends to be very technical and control-oriented. I almost choked on my wine, one time, when a winemaker seriously stated that to let the local terroir express itself, you had to exert control on every step of the process – including using cultured yeasts to ensure predictable fermentations. Merwarth, thankfully, though he remains careful in his technique, is willing to give his wine more leeway.

When he presses the juice at harvest, he does not add sulfur and lets it aerate substantially, something which likely helps the yeasts present on the grapes to start their work spontaneously. Still, in the first ferment of the season, he uses a cultured yeast, and then takes a bucket from that first tank and pours it into the next to help the fermentation start. His argument is that, by the time you get further down the line, the composition of yeasts has likely changed considerably, giving room to the yeasts present in the vineyard and cellar.

Why not go all the way and let fermentations start spontaneously, I asked him when we were tasting his wines, right by the stainless steel tanks where the wines, in many cases, were still slowly finishing their fermentations at their own – I daresay natural – pace? Giving the juice a little kick-start at the beginning of the process provides him with a “comfort level”, a greater confidence that everything will head in the right direction. A bit of a safety blanket, in other words: it feels like he is just this close to letting natural yeast fermentations start on their own, and I personally would encourage him to do so on a couple of tanks, at least. In fact, there was at least one spontaneous fermentation in his cellar: a barrel of 2009 trockenbeerenauslese, fermented in a barrel that, he says, always starts quickly and reliably and gives great results. Keep it up, I say…

Indeed, the Wiemer rieslings were very distinctive, with a particularly vibrant, expressive character and layers of aromas and flavors that I only found, otherwise, in the Tierce rieslings, a joint cuvée mixing wines from three wineries (Anthony Road, Red Newt and Fox Run) in a particularly successful blending exercise. With the exception of the Frost cuvée, a blend of wines that did not make it to single vineyard or reserve cuvée, and that I personally found a bit too sweet, everything was pretty much impeccable.

The 2008 Dry Riesling had lots of fruit up front, with a mineral layer rising towards a stoney, crisp finish. The 2008 Reserve Dry Riesling was indeed a cut above, with apples and pears blending in over the nice mineral touches: a wine of impeccable balance, created from the best tanks from the various vineyards operated by the winery. The 2003 Reserve, actually all from the HJW Vineyard, located immediately next to the winery (Hermann J. Wiemer had a different approach to his reserve wines), showed apricots and honey and great length: it could still evolve beautifully.

Single vineyard bottlings also showed a distinct personality, with the 2008 Magdalena Vineyard Riesling showing floral notes above the apple, pear and citrus that were at the core of the 2008 HJW Vineyard riesling’s expression. The Magdalena site, ten miles north of the winery, is actually warmer than the Wiemer vineyard, which may explain its slightly more expansive nature. A 2009 tank sample from Magdalena was luscious, with beautiful honeycrisp apple notes, while the HJW seemed a little tighter, even though it still had some residual sugar, as the fermentation was still under way.

On another grape front, good points also go to the 2008 Gewurztraminer, which showed beautiful rose and white peppercorn, with a more open nose and complex expression than anything else I tasted that weekend. Many of the gewurzes I had during TasteCamp reminded me of Thrills “soap” gum, and simply didn’t give the full measure of the grape. This was a welcome exception. Merwarth pointed that he picks those grapes over several weeks, with earlier pickings providing an acidity that otherwise drops quickly, while later-harvested grapes provide a wide range of aromatics. A very successful approach.

With what I tasted, in what was a very friendly, instructive tasting, I would be very happy to keep following what’s going on at Wiemer. Merwarth has a sure hand and a good capacity to listen to what the grapes are telling him. I hope he keeps going further down that path.

TasteCamp Takeaway: To Continue Climb, Finger Lakes Must Close the Gap

By Evan Dawson, Finger Lakes Editor
Photos by Morgan Dawson Photography

It took no more than seven minutes for me to see one of the defining stories emerging from TasteCamp East 2010. There in the Heron Hill Winery tasting room, with several dozen writers from around the country, a gap came into view. It was so wide, so severe, that it could not be ignored.

And if the Finger Lakes is going to continue its climb to wine world prominence, the gap will have to close.

Specifically, I'm talking about the gap in quality from the top producers to the bottom tier. I am not sure there is a wine region in the world with a gap so obvious. I don't know if there is, of course, but I have not experienced anything close to what we see in the Finger Lakes. Even Long Island doesn't suffer from nearly this massive a disparity.

In some sense, it feels hectoring or even wrong to write such a post. After all, I don't work in the wine industry. Who am I to offer advice or ideas on how wineries can improve their business? But then, I knew in those opening TasteCamp minutes that everyone was seeing the same gap.

Standing at the bar at Heron Hill, enduring the worst flight of wines I've ever had (I'll choose not to mention the producer), I walked away, only to have another writer whisper, "You can't leave me here." When we stopped over to taste the wines of Keuka Spring Vineyards and McGregor Vineyard, for example, confidence was restored. But how can the difference be so vast?

Still, you might wonder: So what? There are disappointments, but there are also producers like Ravines Wine Cellars and Hermann J. Wiemer and Heart & Hands Wine Company and Anthony Road Wine Company and Fox Run Vineyards and Red Newt Cellars and more. When the top producers are revealing the potential of this region, that's the story, right?

Not necessarily. First of all, the top producers are, on average, slightly more expensive and smaller in total production. The result is a wine-buying public that has to work harder to find the world-class bottlings, and when they instead find the dreck, they might not give the Finger Lakes another chance.

So what to do? Here are some ideas intended only to begin a conversation. 

Drink wines from around the world

I'm constantly surprised to hear industry professionals declare that they "mostly drink Finger Lakes wines." When I ask what their benchmark for riesling is, often I'm told, "There are some good ones locally, but I don't really taste European riesling. I'm too busy for that."

I'm not sure how any wine professional can seek to make world-class wine without knowing what the rest of the world is doing. I would hope that the curiosity is inherent, burning constantly, leading winemakers to explore the endless possibilities. But too often there is a regional palate, a big ole house palate if you prefer, and that's dangerous.

"We're not looking to mimic a wine from another region," explained Ravines' Morten Hallgren to the TasteCamp crowd. "But we have to have reference points. We can't isolate ourselves."

Several TasteCamp writers said something to me about the lack of worldly curiosity in the winemakers they interviewed at the various grand tastings. That is a troubling sign for the region, but it's easy to change.

Tell your story -- and the story starts with making wine in a cool climate

If you want to make cabernet sauvignon or sauvignon blanc, you'd better have a good explanation for thoughtful customers. At one of the grand tastings, a winemaker poured a cabernet sauvignon, explaining, "Our cab is a big, full-bodied red with nice structure." The writer standing next to me later said, "Why are they borrowing the language of Napa?"

I didn't have a good answer.

In general, the region would do well to continue to narrow the focus to grapes that perform well in cool climates. The TasteCamp crowd left the weekend convinced that riesling is a powerhouse performer here, but pinot, gewurztraminer, cab franc, and even interesting grapes like blaufrankisch have tremendous upside. 

That doesn't mean everyone should rip up their cabernet sauvignon and merlot. But growing those varieties begs for a careful approach and a well-honed explanation, consistent with the benefits of food-friendly wine and cool-climate performance. How often do you show up in a tasting room in the Finger Lakes, discover that the staff is pouring cabernet sauvignon and chardonnay... and have them explain that a cool-climate approach delivers a different version of these familiar wines? I'd say almost never. Instead, it's typically something like, "Our chardonnay is big and luscious and buttery," or "Our cabernet sauvignon is rich and demands a slab of beef." 

(Of course, if the people making those pronouncements aren't drinking cab or chardonnay from around the world, perhaps they think this is an effective way to present these wines.)

Every group tasting is not a wine festival

Lenn and I were dismayed to see some of the choices made by Finger Lakes producers when it came to what to pour at the grand tastings. Some of the lists looked like the exact same list that winery would take to a drunk-fest in the middle of summer, designed to move hard-to-sell product rather than present the region's best face.

The challenge rests in the fact that so many wineries can hardly afford a marketing director, let alone a staff that can help with such decisions. But every winery can help its own cause by showing each tasting group a thoughtful selection of wines and an interesting story about why they were chosen. Each tasting is an opportunity.

At TasteCamp, some producers brought detailed technical notes along with individualized packages for each attendee. That's not the cheapest route, but it's one way to leave an impression. 

Sweet doesn't mean not serious

As strong as Finger Lakes rieslings are in general, I'd have liked to see more of the semi-dry variety (or even sweeter) at TasteCamp. One winery owner told us that they assume writers want dry wines only. I'm not sure where that myth developed, but it should be detonated. Local riesling shows world-class potential all the way up the sweetnes scale, and that should not be ignored.

One of the reasons that Lenn and I felt TasteCamp was such a success was the opportunity to show everything about the region. We selected some of the strongest producers for individual visits, but we wanted to make sure the writers saw both sides of a gap that remains too wide.

That kind of examination should only help the region's winemaking improve.

TasteCamp EAST 2010 Interview: Joe Roberts | 1WineDude.com

Joe Roberts tasting Lamoreaux Landing rieslings, while John Witherspoon (r) stares blankly

By Lenn Thompson, Editor-in-Chief
Photo by Neil Sjoblom

Joe Roberts, also known as 1WineDude in the wine blogging world, was one of the first people to sign up for TasteCamp -- this year and last. He's enthusiastic about tasting wines from around the world and even talks up some of his local Pennsylvania wineries if you corner him (I have).

He's also a fellow Pittsburgh Steelers fan, so he'll continue to be invited to events.

So, without further ado, here is his TasteCamp 2010 Q&A:

Was this your first visit to Finger Lakes wine country? No. I've been to the Finger Lakes a few times over the past several years, mostly as a wine buff!

Had you ever had any Finger Lakes wines before? And if so, what was your impression of them? Yes, certainly those I've purchased for myself as well as a steady stream of samples over the past year or so. Generally, in the past I'd found the rieslings to be really, really, good, the sparklers and dessert wines to be good, and the reds to primarily be not-so-good.

After tasting a larger sampling of the wines being produced in the Finger Lakes, what is your impression now? I was amazed at the quality improvement in the red wines from the area, versus even just a few years ago. The improvement is staggering, really. The rieslings continue to impress, especially those from Wiemer which seem to have handled well the transition to new ownership.

What, in general, impressed you the most? The people, of course -- passionate winemakers and (in some cases woodchuck-eating) grape growers for the most part, and the level of passion and wine knowledge from the bloggers/writers who participated is beyond impressive.

What, in general, underwhelmed you the most? The variable range of quality in the wines not just between producers but also within portfolios made by the same producers. I'm all for experimentation in emerging wine regions, but not all of those experiments should be put on the market because when they're not very good they undermine the perception not only of the individual brand for that producer, but also of the grape growers and the region in general. I was unpleasantly surprised at that quality level variation.

What tasting or vineyard walk was and will be the most memorable for you? Well, I don't see how anyone could EVER forget meeting someone like grape grower Sam Argetsinger!

After so much online interaction with the attendees, which person surprised you the most in person? Wow. Impossible question to answer, so many of the attendees impressed me! I will always keep fond memories of sharing sake on the boat with Richard Auffrey and Richard Schnitzlein during the after-party -- great people, very knowledgeable and engaging; and that sake was out of this world!

If you had to pick one, what would your wine of the weekend be? Another VERY tough question. It's a tie: the 2008 Hermann Wiemer Magdalena Vineyard Riesling for its pure fruit expression, and the 2008 Red Tail Ridge Pinot Noir for its "surprise!" factor.

Heart & Hands Wine Company TasteCamp Finale: Finger Lakes Pinot Noir In Its Purest Form

Owner Tom Higgins addressing TasteCamp attendees before the tasting.

by Bryan Calandrelli, Niagara Region Editor

Last Sunday TasteCamp 2010 came to a close with a memorable visit to Heart &Hands Wine Company on the east side of Seneca Lake. We’d all heard about this boutique winery that specializes in pinot noir but most of us had never had the opportunity to experience unfinished wines in the barrel room with owners Tom and Susan Higgins leading the way.

As a home winemaker, I was once again using this opportunity to ask some of the questions that build up over a season of playing with grapes and yeast. In the last few years I’ve become especially intrigued with pinot noir and last Sunday’s visit to Heart and Hands was, for me, one of the highlights of the weekend.

I have to admit that I am confident that the soils of the Niagara region will ultimately be where the best pinot noir on the East Coast will be made. I can’t deny the raw potential in what comes out of the vineyards. I’ve had some extremely well made Finger Lakes wines that I know are the work of passionate winemakers getting the best from their crop but I’ve struggled to describe them as anything but simple, light-bodied fruity reds.

When they’ve been bad they’ve been over-oaked or under-ripe. The good ones have remained true to their cool climate roots, revealing light cherry and strawberry fruit with restrained oak influence, but I haven’t gotten much funk or earthy qualities in Finger Lakes pinots. I’ve also noticed a lack of mid-palate depth that I assumed was partially influenced by lighter soils, but I admit I’m no expert and up until this weekend, I hadn’t had as many examples back to back.

With his flight of pinot noir, Tom Higgins showed what he does best: meticulously controlling each aspect of vinification. From his sorting of grapes to his complete separation of vineyard fruit until bottling, his method seems more like a controlled experiment then wine as art. Need an example? He uses only the best cooperage from Burgundy without exception.

Heart and Hands currently sources its pinot noir fruit from two main vineyards: the popular Sawmill Creek Vineyard on the eastern side of Seneca Lake and Hobbit Hollow Vineyard on the western side of Skaneateles Lake.

The 2009 Sawmill Creek barrels are further divided into two primary fermentation styles: one 50% whole cluster and one 100% whole cluster. Having never done whole cluster fermentation I was eager to taste the difference.

The 2009 50% whole cluster Sawmill Creek sample had a fierce red cherry aroma, reminiscent of the white-fleshed Queen Anne cherries that I love picking in my neck of the woods, and a hint of deeper raspberry fruit. The midpalate was spicy and the finish was chalky. The 100% whole cluster sample showed spicier aromas without such overt cherry notes. The mouthfeel of this one was reminiscent of merino wool: it had just enough grip to let you know its wool, but it was soft enough to make you all cozy and comfortable. It too had a chalky finish.

The Hobbit Hollow barrel sample was also 100% whole cluster fermented had a darker color. There was less spice on the nose then both the previous wines and the fruit profile was more concentrated dark cherry. On the palate this wine was less impressive as it wasn’t as seamless, lacking the mid-palate weight of the first two wines.

With the way these samples were showing last weekend, it’s hard to believe that these are still only works in progress. I was amazed at how well the 2009s are drinking already because I’d hang out with a glass of any three of these barrel samples today.

Next up we tasted the bottled pinots, starting with the 2008. Made up of 60% Hobbitt Hollow with 30% whole cluster, this wine showed pure fruit from end to end. It was filled out nicely in the mid-palate and had just enough oak to frame the fruit.

The heavy-hitting 2007 Barrel Reserve Pinot Noir was next and to no one’s surprise stole the show thanks to its bright fruit, cocoa and vanilla aromas. The perfectly ripened grapes of that vintage in combination with the 100% whole cluster process gave this wine a wonderfully fleshy texture with big fruit and stylish oak.

It seems that Higgins’s deliberate techniques and careful selection of grapes has clearly shot him to the top of the “who’s who” in East Coast pinot noir. His wines are showing such purity of fruit while they also demonstrate a poise on the palate that is not being replicated by anyone else in the region. Unfortunately, I’m still not finding that funky quality or the autumn leaves aroma I get in some pinot and I am looking forward to tasting wines made from his estate vines he is planting this spring on the limestone-rich slope.

In the meantime though I’d really love to see what he would do with Niagara Escarpment pinot noir. From what I can tell, he might be the best person to express what those grapes have to say just like he’s already doing in the Finger Lakes. But if that never happens, I hope winemakers from my area make the trip out to see what he’s doing because they’re bound to learn something about how to get the most from their pinot noir.

I know next fall I’ll be experimenting with whole cluster fermentations myself.

TasteCamp 2010: A Very Wiemer Saturday

By Julia Burke, Niagara Correspondent

When a winemaker asks if you need to be anywhere, the answer should probably be “no.” When that winemaker is Fred Merwarth (pictured above left) of Hermann J. Wiemer Vineyard, the answer is always “no.”

Of the many surprises I encountered at my very first TasteCamp, this was perhaps the best – the fact that the head winemaking staff at one of the most famous and respected wineries in the Finger Lakes took time out of his day to personally take us through a flight of young and aged Wiemer wines was exciting enough for me, and Fred’s willingness to answer winemaking questions candidly and thoroughly made the experience all the better.

But after the tasting, when many TasteCampers had trickled outside and only a small group of die hard wine geeks lingered, Fred asked that magic question. “Hey, do you guys have to be anywhere?” I asked what he had in mind. “I was just going to show you some more stuff – maybe something from our library,” he offered.

And with that, like a less-grumpy and slightly palate-fatigued Ebenezer Scrooge on Christmas morning, I discovered the true meaning of TasteCamp.

As amazing as it is to meet and socialize with the many fine writers of the east coast wine scene, getting to share with them this intimate wine tasting experience, geeking out together over stuff the winemaker himself is most excited to pour – that’s what it’s all about.

Fred whipped out some exciting treats including two reds, a barrel sample of 2009 trockenbeerenauslese, and my personal favorite: a 2001 gewurztraminer.

I have to confess that I've never been floored by gewurztraminer. I've had some nice examples from the Finger Lakes and Alsace, sure, but it seems like it's often too boozy, too flabby, too oily – the used car salesman of wine, if you will. But I learned two more things at TasteCamp: that I should forget everything I know about Finger Lakes wines, and that Wiemer whites are in a class by themselves.

I've never tasted this grape aged, and I was shocked to find the nose focused and intensely petrolly with just a hint of tangerine - more like a fine ten-year-old riesling than the perfumey, rosey noses typical of young examples of this style. A firm, full palate with remarkable balance and structure confirmed my suspicions: this was no $8 Hogue. Despite its intensity, it had an elegance that I've come to recognize as typical Wiemer. My absolute favorite thing about this wine was the sense of power: the incredible concentration and simplicity of the diesel and fruit flavors on the nose, and the gorgeously layered palate simply commanded my attention and my respect.

Warming up to the reds – 2008 cabernet franc and pinot noir – was a bit more challenging for me, which is a part of a greater issue that I have with many Finger Lakes reds which I won’t get into at the moment. They were clean, light, fruity, and oaky, and at first I wondered, why make such seemingly-pedestrian reds when you can make such superstar whites? But it was pointed out to me, rightfully, that this was a German-owned winery, and these are the sort of reds that people drink in Germany. Having never been to Germany but understanding that personal taste is part of what makes wine interesting, I realized I was projecting an unfair expectation onto the wines, and I saw them for what they are: supremely clean, drinkable, friendly, and uncomplicated.

While tasting these wines we enjoyed an opportunity to ask Fred about everything from his oak treatment to vineyard soil differences to what he looks for in a wine. Friendly, open, honest, and clearly passionate, he truly made the afternoon the highlight of my TasteCamp wine tasting experience.

A little TBA right from the barrel provided a nice finishing touch to this wonderful tasting. Thick and dusty, with concentrated apricot and caramelized peach flavors, it was a nice contrast to the petrolly rieslings and oaky reds and a lovely finish to the afternoon.

I might’ve arrived at Stone Cat in a rush, without a change of clothes or a reapplication of makeup (or chapstick in my case, but you get the idea). But telling Fred I had nowhere to be was the best decision I made all weekend.

TasteCamp EAST 2010 Interview: Rick Van Sickle | WinesofNiagara.com

By Lenn Thompson, Editor-in-Chief

Just like last year, we're going to publish short Q&As with TasteCamp attendees to find out about their individual experiences at the event, starting with Rick Van Sickle.

Rick, who will be launching WinesofNiagara.com this week, was one of of the people I was most looking forward to meeting last weekend at TasteCamp. 

Prior to last Friday, my only interaction with Rick had been via Twitter (he's @rickwine) where he enthusiastically Tweets about the wines of Ontario. Local wine geek? Absolutely. He's one of us.

He brought some local wine to our BYOB dinner on Saturday night -- a cab franc and a riesling -- and both impressed. Enough that I'm going to seek out more Ontario wines.

And now...the questions:

Was this your first visit to Finger Lakes wine country? Yes, strictly for wine tasting. Have been there to vacation.

Had you ever had any Finger Lakes wines before? And if so, what was your impression of them? Many years ago. My impression is not printable here. Very poor quality, sickly sweet hybrid grape wines.

After tasting a larger sampling of the wines being produced in the Finger Lakes, what is your impression now? Very impressed. The quality wineries are finding a stride and making what the microclimate delivers: Crisp rieslings, finesse cab franc, potentially great pinot noirs and sparkling wines and a sprinkling of other interesting varietals.

What, in general, impressed you the most? The rieslings and cab francs. The rieslings, in particular, were outstanding world-class wines with a style that is consistent with the top wineries.

What, in general, underwhelmed you the most? The number of wineries producing crap wines and crap hybrid horrible wines. There should be a move toward a quality assurance that wineries have to adhere to.

What tasting or vineyard walk was and will be the most memorable for you? The Ravines Wine Cellars tasting and Argetsinger Vineyard walk where his top wine grapes are grown. Fascinating owners and winemaker who is steadfast in his beliefs. And perfectly matched to his grower.

After so much online (Twitter, blogs, etc.) interaction with the attendees, which person surprised you the most in person? Would definitely say @lenndevours ... he's a lot nicer in person and not as mean looking as his avatar (this is just between us, right?)

If you had to pick one, what would your wine of the weekend be? Hermann J. Wiemer Magdalena single vineyard riesling. The older the better, preferably the 2003.

TasteCamp East 2010 Visuals: Vertical Tastings at Fox Run Vineyards

Fox Run Vineyards' winemaker Peter Bell leads TasteCamp 2010 attendees through three verticals

By Lenn Thompson, Editor-in-Chief

As the NYCR staff sorts out all of the stories we want to write about TasteCamp (and we're going to have some guest columnists as well) we'll continue to share brief snapshots of different events during the weekend.

Fox Run Vineyards hosted the group not only for a grand tasting of Seneca Lake wineries (16 all told) but also for lunch, which included three vertical tastings -- two riesling and one (get this) Tawny Port.

I found it to be one of the more educational tastings of the weekend, and I'd like to thank owner Scott Osborn, winemaker Peter Bell and assistant winemaker Tricia Renshaw for hosting us. It was a lot of fun.

TasteCamp EAST 2010 Video: Sam Argetsinger Shares the Iroquois Tale of the Thundering Voices

By Lenn Thompson, Editor-in-Chief

As part of TasteCamp, one group of attendees visited Argetsinger Vineyard with long-time grower Sam Argetsinger.

During the course of an hour-plus walking the vineyard with Sam, he shared many insights into how he manages his vineyard as well as several Iroquois tales, including this one about the Thundering Voices -- which was absolutely appropriate given the thunderstorm that had rolled through the night before.

TasteCamp 2010 Visuals: I'm On a Boat

With the passage of time we'll be able to give it a fuller evaluation, but for now, I'd vote for this photograph as the Best Picture Ever Taken.

The man in the tuxedo, proudly displaying a magnum (what, no methuselah?) of Red Cat, is our Science Editor, Tom Mansell. 

See, if you missed TasteCamp 2010, you might not have had the opportunity to join us for the Saturday night after-party on The Boat. Perhaps more will be said of this. Perhaps it should pass quietly into legend. But the bottom line is: We were on a boat, climbing buoys, in our flippy floppies. You were likely at Kinko's, straight flippin' copies.

TasteCamp East 2010 Visuals: Argetsinger Vineyard Walk

I haven't been to every lake-view vineyard in the Finger Lakes...but it's hard to imagine there is any vineyard in the region that is more beautiful to stand in on a sunny Saturday morning than Argetsinger Vineyard on eastern Seneca Lake.

It's just a special place. One worthy of it's ever-growing legend. It doesn't hurt that Sammy Argetsinger is one of the more charming, interesting people I've ever met.

TasteCamp EAST 2010... The Morning After

By Lenn Thompson, Editor-in-Chief

The post-TasteCamp hangover has set in -- a Meritage-style blend of relief, happiness and sadness, because it was such a great weekend with great people tasting great wines.

I (along with Nena and Jackson) head back to Long Island later today after an evening here outside of Albany celebrating Mother's Day with my in-laws. Everyone drank Finger Lakes wine, of course, though I did focus a bit more on some beer.

As my teeth enamel recovers from all that wine and I reflect just a bit on the weekend, I think the event was a tremendous success. Everyone involved -- from the attendees to the members of the Finger Lakes wine community to the event organizers -- seemed to truly enjoy themselves. Better still, the weekend went off just about without a hitch. For that, I have to thank all of our hosts throughout the weekend -- and our attendees for (mostly) being on time for things and keeping us on schedule.

This isn't the official "thank you" post though -- that'll come later today or tomorrow.

Instead, I just wanted to let everyone know that the event went incredibly well and that we're already talking about next year's event -- and even that will very likely take place outside of New York.

That's right...we're taking TasteCamp national...or maybe even international.

In the meantime, Evan, Tom, Bryan, Julia and I will be discussing who wants to write about what from the weekend and we'll be posting links to various stories written by other attendees.

Recovering From a TasteCamp Weekend

 By Evan Dawson, Finger Lakes Editor

This week, we'll have plenty to say about a fascinating and successful weekend here in the Finger Lakes. While our palates un-nuke and our brains re-solidify, we'll be posting occasional photos to illustrate the events and memorable locations.

This shot shows Damiani Wine Cellars grower Phil Davis, leading a vineyard walk on Saturday morning. The photo fails to capture how steep this particular vineyard site is. It was an educational and physical workout. 

Cheers, stay tuned, and rest well, fellow TasteCamp folks. 

TasteCamp EAST 2010 Continues Through the Weekend

TasteCamp attendees tasting Tierce riesling (and components of) at Red Newt Cellars yesterday evening.

By Lenn Thompson, Editor-in-Chief

Why am I up at 6 a.m. on a Saturday when I'm technically on vacation? Easy -- I'm up early getting ready for what I'm sure will be an incredible day two of TasteCamp EAST 2010.

Yesterday was a stunningly wonderful day in the Finger Lakes -- one filled with the kind of passion and top-flight wines that makes the Finger Lakes a wine destination.

I'm sure that we'll see a lot of blog posts come out of the weekend's events, but I have to tip my virtual cap to Julien Marchand of Empty Glasses, for being the first to publish one.

Thank you to all of the winery hosts and sponsors yesterday: Anthony Road Wine Company, Fox Run Vineyards, Heron Hill Winery, Ravines Wine Cellars, Finger Lakes Wine Country and the Finger Lakes Tourism Alliance. 

And as I mentioned yesterday, you can follow the action and get updates from attendees on Twitter by searching for the #TasteCamp hashtag.

TasteCamp EAST 2010 Begins Today

 By Lenn Thompson, Editor-in-Chief

If the Twitter chatter is to believed, many of this year's TasteCamp attendees are either in the Finger Lakes already or are on their way. It's an exciting morning for me, Evan and all the Finger Lakes wineries who are taking part in this weekend's festivities.

John Witherspoon (Anything Wine) and I kicked off the fun yesterday with a visit to Village Tavern in Hammondsport, not to eat, but to drink some older Finger Lakes riesling.

After perusing the list for a long time (it's a long list) only to learn that our first choice (a Lamoreaux Landing 1995 Cabernet Franc) wasn't available anymore, we settled on a bottle of Dr. Konstantin Frank 1991 Rkatsiteli.

It was a slightly oxidized-but-still bright wine with nice menthol-herb, caramelly-nut and dried orange peel notes. John thought it may have had a bit of cork taint, but I think it was just that oxidative note. A good-natured argument ensued that could only be appreciated by wine geeks. To others, we probably sounded like lunatics.

It's fun to taste older wines from the Finger Lakes, and there may not be a better place to do so than Village Tavern. The best part? This impeccably stored bottle of 1991 wine was only $36.

TasteCamp East 2010 Finger Lakes Kicks Off on Friday

By Lenn Thompson, Editor-in-Chief

TasteCamp, the roving regional wine event that fully immerses wine writers and bloggers in a wine region is back for its second edition this weekend in the Finger Lakes region of New York.

As you might remember, the innaugural TasteCamp was held here on Long Island last year (read all the posts) and it went so well that we decided to do it again in a different New York region.

Most smaller and/or lesser-known wine regions in the world would love to get their wines in front new audiences, but it can be a challenge. 

With TasteCamp, a new audience comes to them.

This is not a junket. Attendees pay their own travel expenses — including for their hotel rooms — and meals.  Through generous sponsors, some meals have been paid for this year and others will be cheaper than the otherwise would have been.

The idea is really catching on. I'm already talking with people from no fewer than four different regions about doing TasteCamp in their backyards (some in the east, some not). But before we get to TasteCamp 2011 and beyond, let's talk a bit about TasteCamp East 2010: Finger Lakes.

I've built a TasteCamp website this year that will house anything and everything related to the event. As you can see, we've got a jam-packed weekend itinerary filled with the best Finger Lakes wineries, wines and people. It's excited that we're going to be able to hit all three of the major lakes -- Keuka, Seneca and Cayuga -- during the weekend and enjoying some terrific meals to boot.

The Finger Lakes wine community has really embraced the endeavor, so I'd like to thank them for their enthusiasm. Their contributions to the weekend, along with the generous support of Finger Lakes Wine Country and the Finger Lakes Tourism Alliance are sure to result in a great weekend for everyone involved.

If you'd like to follow along with the action, keep an eye on the event site, follow the attendees' blogs and if you're on Twitter, use #TasteCamp.

TasteCamp East 2010 Finger Lakes: Open Call for Wineries to Pour

By Lenn Thompson, Editor-in-Chief

Evan Dawson, our Finger Lakes Editor, and I have been working hard to get all of the plans and details together for this year's edition of TasteCamp EAST, taking place May 7-9 in Finger Lakes wine country.

The concept for TasteCamp is a simple one -- getting enthusiastic bloggers together in a region that is new to them to taste as much wine as possible and speak to as many winemakers as possible over the course of a weekend.

Most smaller, lesser-known wine regions in the world would love to get their wines in front of bloggers, but with TasteCamp, the bloggers come to them.

After the huge success of last year's Long Island program, we wanted to head up to the Finger Lakes and have been met with boundless enthusiasm on the part of the wineries in the region.

Over the course of the three days, we'll be visiting several wineries, but there obviously isn't enough time to visit every winery in the region, so we're organizing three tasting sessions to open it up to the rest of the region:

• Friday, May 7: Grand Tasting of Keuka Lake
• Saturday, May 8: Grand Tasting of Seneca Lake
• Sunday, May 9: Grand Tasting of Cayuga Lake

We're still sorting out some of the details (times, locations and number of wines per winery) but if you'd like to pour for the 40+ people attending TasteCamp this year, please send us an email as soon as possible. The deadline for signing up to pour is Sunday April 4 at 8 p.m.

Update: TasteCamp EAST 2010 Finger Lakes

By Lenn Thompson, Editor-in-Chief 

It's been almost two months since we announced that TasteCamp EAST 2010 will take place in the Finger Lakes region of New York, so I thought it was a good idea to mention it again here on the site. 

I know a few bloggers missed the original announcement.

With so much more ground to cover -- literally -- during 2010's event, we'll probably begin the formal programming Friday afternoon and extend it well into Sunday this year. 

We already have 40 bloggers and spouses/significant others signed up to come, so if you're interested, make sure you let me know soon. I imagine we'll have some cancellations, but we're probably going to cap the event to 50 people.

Evan and I will be working on the plans this weekend, so I hope to have more information ready to publish soon.

Join us in the Finger Lakes May 7-9, 2010 for TasteCamp EAST 2010!

Announcing TasteCamp EAST 2010: Finger Lakes

By Lenn Thompson, Founder and Editor-in-Chief

By any measure, TasteCamp 2009:Long Island was a huge success. 30 bloggers descended upon Long Island and tasted more than 150 wines over the course of 2 1/2 days. Great discussions ensued, as did a dozens of posts about the experience. I think it was historic both for the blogging world and for the Long Island wine community.

Well, tonight I'm thrilled to announce that we're doing it again -- May 7-9, 2010 in the Finger Lakes wine region of New York.

The programming specifics are still to be worked out, but I guarantee that we'll be tasting plenty of great wine, meeting passionate, interesting people, and I hope getting the word out about this jewel of a wine region.

If you're a wine blogger interested in attending, please let me know as soon as possible (via email). We're going to expand the event to 40 or 50 people, but I think we'll fill up fast if TasteCamp 2009 was any indication.

In coming weeks, we'll be publishing more information on hotel rooms, recommended airports, and of course information about where we'll be tasting over the weekend.

A word of warning for the fathers out there -- the final day of the event is Mother's Day, so tread lightly and talk to your wife before committing to anything. And we'll make sure we have some sort of Mother's Day happening Sunday morning for all the mom's in attendance.

TasteCamp 2009: An Interview with Megan Witherspoon

 By Lenn Thompson
Photo courtesy of Dale Cruse

When Megan Witherspoon attended TasteCamp EAST 2009, she didn't have a blog. She was simply the better half to Virginia-based blogger John Witherspoon (that's the wine blogging power couple at right). But, not long after the event, she  started her new blog, Wine Conscience, one of the few blogs that I read every day. She uses her blog to support and celebrate environmentally friendly winemaking.

Megan is a fine artist-turned-corporate workhorse, who maintains her sanity with the help of fine wine. Megan's family also owns, Woodland Vineyard, a small vineyard and winery in Virginia, and she occasionally travels under the alias Mrs. Anything Wine. 

Was this your first time to Long Island wine country?
Yes, and it was not at all what I expected. For some reason I had envisioned Long Island as a big industrial suburb of New York City, but now that I’ve been there it is on my short list of vacation spots for next year -- I had no idea there were so many vineyards on Long Island!

Had you ever had any Long Island wines before? And if so, what was your impression of them?
Only one, and I’m not sure that was the best preview…

After tasting a larger sampling of the wines being produced on Long Island, what is your impression now?
I am very impressed by the quality of wines being produced on Long Island. For such a small, young and self-contained wine region, the wineries are producing some great wines.

The winemakers we met all seem to have a general understanding of the region’s key strengths and weaknesses, and all expressed pride in their wines and a dedication to continued improvement.

What, in general, impressed you the most?
I was very impressed by all of the winemakers we met and their willingness and excitement to share their knowledge and wines with us. The winemakers we met generally fell into two different categories:

1. Those who embrace winemaking tradition and emulate Old World techniques (like Wolffer and Raphael)
2. Those who are leveraging the “newness” of the region to experiment with innovative viticultural and winemaking techniques (like Shinn, Macari and Channing Daughters). 

Both approaches have their merits, and both are producing some great wines, though I found this second group to be the most exciting and inspiring. I was most inspired by the efforts being put forth by wineries like Shinn and Macari to reduce the environmental impact of their winemaking and to advance general knowledge around “green” growing techniques.

What, in general, underwhelmed you the most?
My greatest disappointment with the region will come as no surprise, as it was echoed in nearly every other blogger interview--the price tags.

I think Virginia wines are often overpriced, but they pale in comparison to the prices being asked by Long Island wineries. While I do admit to buying a bottle of the Wolffer Estates 2004 Premier Cru Merlot ($85 with industry discount), it was a major splurge and we probably wouldn’t have bought the bottle without the special 20% discount they gave us. I recognize that land in the Hamptons costs upwards of $1MM/acre, and that summer tourists are willing to pay these inflated prices. However, if these wineries ever want to compete on a national scale, the prices will need to decline substantially.

Was there a winery or tour stop that stands out in your mind as the “best”?
The most memorable stop was probably the lunch at Shinn Estate Vineyards, which involved a sampling of wines from Shinn, Macari Vineyards and Jamesport Vineyards. While these weren’t all my favorite wines of the weekend (although the 2007 Shinn Estates barrel sample Cabernet Franc is vying for the top of the list), this lunch really gave me a feel for the character and ideology of the producers in the region, and this group’s dedication to eco-friendly winemaking. See my related post about this lunch called “Pass the Poop.”

The other stand-out would definitely be Channing Daughters. While John and I only bought one bottle at this stop (the cabernet franc rose was fantastic), I was truly inspired by their passion, creativity, and resourcefulness. They are creating very unique and exciting wines using innovative techniques, obscure grape varietals (at least in the U.S.), and with very limited space and resources.

If you had to pick one, what would your wine of the weekend be?
This is a tricky question, particularly because I wasn’t taking tasting notes. A few standouts would be the chenin blanc from Paumanok Vineyards, the Shinn barrel sample 2007 Cabernet Franc, and the Wolffer Estates 2004 Premier Cru Merlot.

I also really enjoyed two of the three roses that we tasted from Croteaux Vineyards.

TasteCamp 2009: An Interview with Nick Gorevic

Forgive the gap in getting this TasteCamp interviews posted. There are still a few to come, but I'll probably space them out a bit, now that we're relatively distant from the event itself.

Today's interviewee is a fellow New Yorker, Nick Gorevic. As with many of the East Coast-based wine bloggers, I had to go to Santa Rosa, CA last fall for the 2008 Wine Bloggers Conference to meet him.

Nick is works in a retail wine store in Manhattan, and runs Homewineschool.com, a business that provides everything you need to educate yourself about wine in the privacy of your own home. If you live in the New York City metropolitan area, he will come to your house and give you a customized wine class. If you live elsewhere, he can ship you a wine class in a box.

Nick believes that wine education should be fun and unpretentious, and is all about tasting what's in the glass in front of you.

Was this your first time to Long Island wine country?
Yes.

Had you ever had any Long Island wines before? And if so, what was your impression of them?
Yes, I'd had a few. I had a pretty good impression that generally they were made in a french style which appeals to my personal palate. I had also heard, however, that there was some pricing issues in comparison to other winemaking areas.

After tasting a representative sample of the wines being produced on Long Island, what is your impression now?
My impression now is that the majority of Long Island wines are vastly over priced. I enjoy the style of many of the wines, but I feel like their prices are inflated due to the wineries ability to sell all of their wine to local wealthy consumers in the Hamptons and New York City. Far higher quality wines made in a similar style can be obtained for significantly less money from other areas of the world, mainly including the Loire Valley in France. As a retailer, I have a keen eye for wine prices, and I know that 95% of the wines I tasted would not sell on the shelf because they just don't compete price-wise.

What grape or variety, in general, impressed you the most?
I liked the cabernet franc wines the most. I think this is due to the fact that it's just a more interesting and complex grape than merlot. Not to say that merlot is always uninteresting. Cab franc seems like it is the kind of grape that has enough flavor on its own to be interesting without complex soil, although it certainly benefits from good soil as well.

What grape or variety, in general, underwhelmed you the most?
Certainly some of the finest wines in the world are made from Merlot, but those wines come from areas with some the most outstanding soil on earth. At least based on what i tasted in Long Island, it seems to me that Merlot does not respond very well to uninteresting soil. Perhaps Merlot is a grape that truly reflects the terroir in a very pure way. That would explain why all the Merlots I tasted seemed very similar to each other. There just isn't much difference in Terroir from one vineyard to another in Long Island.

Was there a winery or tour stop that stands out in your mind as the "best"?
The best winery stop for me is a close matchup between Channing Daughters and Shinn Estates. I think I have to give the edge to Shinn, because they passed around the pot full of horn manure at the lunch table. Now that's dedication to biodynamic winemaking! Their setup was really beautiful and they served us such a nice lunch that they won me over.

If you had to pick one, what would your wine of the weekend be?
My wine of the weekend is the Channing Daughters 2007 Scutttlehole Chardonnay. This wine is everything I would hope for from an up and coming wine region. It's funky with lots of character, and sits at a great price point- $15. When I think of other up and coming wine regions, like Chile, Argentina, or Hungary, I value them because if you look hard enough for really great producers, you can find unbelievable values. The Scuttlehole Chardonnay was the only wine I saw all weekend that fell into that bracket. As a retailer I have to be very focused on the price to value ratio, and too many of the Long Island Wines have prices that compare very poorly with wines of the same caliber from other regions.