New York - Seneca Lake (west) - Barnstormer

Barnstormer Winery - (August 2016) We were greeted by Art, one of the tasting room hosts. He presented the tasting menu and we were they were able to choose five wines to try. I started with the Gewürztraminer, made more in the French style, it was not as floral as others, but still retained the dry, crisp finish. Art gave me a tasting of the dry Riesling so I could compare it to the semi-dry Riesling. Both had good aromas and flavors, but the semi-dry was better overall with its finish. I moved to the reds: the pinot noir and the cabernet franc were average, but the Proprietor’s Red, a blend of cabernet franc, merlot and cabernet sauvignon stood out as smooth and flavorful.

My wife's tasting comprised of the Angel’s Share, made from Vignoles, Jenny White, a Niagara blend, Jenny Red, a concord blend, Mile High Red and Nosedive port, made from Lemberger; not overly fortified like other ports.

New York - Seneca Lake (West) - Lakewood Vineyards

Lakewood Vineyards - (August 2016) When we entered the building, we were greeted by the host, given a tasting sheet, and directed to the tasting bar. Amelia would be out tasting bar host. After I paid the tasting fee, we were given two tokens, which could be used to reduce our bottle purchases later.

They offer two flights: the dry and the sweet. I did the dry while my wife did the sweet. I started off with the Chardonnay, which is aged in New York oak, not a blend of American oak, giving it a soft buttery nose and taste with only a hint of oak. The dry Riesling had a hint of sweet citrus balanced with an acid finish. The Long Stem White, a blend of Cayuga and Vidal Blanc, is a classic summer porch wine; sweet start with a crisp finish. The cabernet franc was flavorful, but not one of the better ones I’ve had; maybe because it is a 2014 vintage and probably needs more aging time. I completed my flight with the Long Stem Red, a blend of deChaunac, Vincent, merlot, marechal focht and baco noir. The soft tannins and the fruity flavors made this a surprise based on the grape blend.

My wife started off with the semi-sweet Riesling. It was more pleasing to the nose and palate compared to the dry Riesling. The Valvin muscat, a Cornell hybrid, offered peach and apricot on the palate. The Abby Rose, a blend of concord, Delaware and Ives (light pink) grapes is their version of a sangria without the fruit. Their Niagara tasted like adult Welch’s white grape juice. She completed her flight with the Glaciovinum, an iced wine made from the Delaware grape.

I asked about the Lemberger and Amelia said I could have a taste. Not as smooth as the Long Stem Red, but it was good. We inquired about the Full Monty Riesling, one I read about on their website. It was the first Riesling started by the winery and it is one of the more popular wines sold. I asked if my wife could get a taste. She enjoyed it. We decided to purchase a bottle of the Full Monty Riesling and the Long Stem Red.

New York - Watkins Glen - Castel Grisch

Castel Grisch Winery - (August 2016) This was the first winery we chose, because the opened early, as part of our Finger Lakes experience. When we got out of the car, we were treated to a view of Seneca Lake with the fog lifting; it was an overcast day. It is one of the smaller wineries in the area.

I started off with the Chardonnay, with its fruit flavor and light oak finish, it was still a bit off; something was missing. I then tried the Chardonnay Riesling, a 80/20 blend of the two grape varieties. The Chardonnay still was missing something; it was the same wine. The Riesling was much better by itself, but my wife was not impressed with it. The Traminette, with a slight tart lime palate had a slightly sweet finish. I completed my tasting with the Baco Noir, not heavily oaked, but having a cherry finish.

My wife started with the Riesling but preferred the Traminette. The Cayuga White had a honeydew sweetness but it was the Seneca Dream White, a blend of Niagara and Delaware grapes that was the winner of the two; it was smooth and just the right amount of grape flavor and sweetness. She completed her tasting with the Seneca Dream Red, made from the Catawba grape.

Pennsylvania - Lewisburg - Fero Vineyards and Winery

Fero Vineyards and Winery - January 2020 - We were at the PA Farm Show and since we have not returned to the winery, we decided to taste what they brought. The Riesling had a light grapefruit aroma with a slight acidic finish while the Gruner Veltliner had lemon rind and peach aromas with a smoother acidic finish. The Estate Lemberger was earthy with a mild tannic, caramel finish. The dry Sparkling Rose was light on flavor and very brut while the Pink Bubbly was not as sweet as expected. The Chocolate wine has the bitterness of the chocolate balancing the grape sweetness and the Berry wine was like eating fresh reaspberries.

January 2018 - While attending the PA Farm Show, we stopped to taste their limited available wines. The bubbly blush, their Pinot Noir and Pinot Gris blend, was a nice change of pace, and more brut than I expected.The bubbly Riesling was slightly sweet with the effervescence taming the sweetness. Their Chocolate was a nice blend of Lemberger and Pinot Noir with the right hint of dark cocoa. The late harvest Riesling was not as sweet and was well-balanced from a sweet-acid perspective. The Saperavi had dark fruit flavors and good body.

August 2016 It was a busy day while we were here. The tasting host greeted us and started us off at the overflow tasting bar; it was the employee entrance to the tasting bar, a flip down door which made an impromptu low tasting bar. She explained the tasting policies and got us glasses. After she helped customers choose and pay for their purchases, we were the only ones left in the tasting room so they were able to move to the higher bar.

I decided to try the three Rieslings, two pinot noir, two lemberger and the saperavi. I started off with the dry Riesling, a silver medal winner which was fruity on the nose, but a crisp finish. I asked to try the other two Rieslings before going to the red wines. The semi-dry Riesling had better fruit notes and a slight sweet finish. The third one, the late harvest Riesling, was sweet, but not the syrupy sweetness you sometimes find with dessert wines. The semi-dry was the best overall of the three.

After eating a few crackers, I went onto the reds wines. The 2013 pinot noir was lightly oaked, but the 2014 reserve pinot noir had more body and flavor. Lemberger is not a grape seen too much so I enjoyed the contrast between the 1812 Lemberger, named so because the farm has been in the family name since that year and Lemberger is a grape variety that grows well in the region, and the estate Lemberger; the estate was more balanced. My last was the saperavi, which reminded me of petit verdot, dark and rich in color.

My wife started with the sweet blush, similar to a white zinfandel, but not as dry, made from apples, which at first didn’t seem like it would be good, but the finish reminds you of biting into the apple and getting the right amount of skin mixed in with your fruit. The Niagara was sweet and their sweet red, a sweetened blend of their red grapes, was also palatable. The chocolate wine was a bit different than normal as the chocolate flavor flowed like a candy bar versus infusion, but it was the cherry wine that really stood out. Although a blend of Lemberger and deChaunac with cherry flavor, it was not cherry pie flavor, but cherry off the tree flavor; just right. The berry berry, a mixture of raspberry, blackberries and strawberries, was a different type of wine, the individual flavors got lost. My wife finished with the late harvest Riesling, which she enjoyed.

Pennsylvania - Liverpool - Hunters Valley

Hunters Valley Winery - (July 2016) We were on our way to Niagara falls and were not in a hurry to get to our evening destination. When we saw the sign as we got on route 15, we decided to stop. We went into the tasting room and were allowed to taste up to five wines. They asked all patrons for identification; something we encountered in Virginia.

I started with their naked chardonnay. Aged in stainless steel, it had a smooth, crisp finish. The pinot Grigio started off floral and was soft on the palate with a crisp finish. The cabernet sauvignon has a faint blueberry taste and more tannins than the merlot, which had more tart cherry and soft oak undertones. I finished off with the semi-dry Riesling with hints of citrus at the end.

My wife started with the Wedding White, the first wine made by the original vintner for his daughter’s wedding. Made from Catawba grapes, it was not overly sweet. The Hope Whispers, a Riesling with berry juices added, was more (berry) fruit than grape. The late harvest Riesling, Freedom, was smooth, not overly sweet and like by both of us. The Schwartzbeeren, a blackberry wine, was more like a cordial than a dessert wine; not like a fortified port. She finished with Buck’s Backwoods Brew, their Chambourcin port-style wine.

Nevada - Pahrump - Pahrump Valley Winery

Pahrump Valley Winery - (May 2016)  I was interested in the vineyard tour so we decided to have lunch here and see how much more time we would kill before the tour. Joy, our server, stopped by to ask if we’d like a beverage and I said they would decide on some wine based on what they were choosing to eat. She explained that there were two additional wines not on the list, a pinot grigio and a sauvignon blanc and that we could have two tastings as part of our meal. We chose to get one taste each of the pinot grigio and sauvignon blanc; we liked the sauvignon blanc better.

Joy mentioned some of the specialties on the menu, the lobster bisque and the pasta dishes. We decided to share the baked brie appetizer. My wife got the apple pecan salad with grilled chicken and I the dilled salmon with spinach. The appetizer and both meals went well with the sauvignon blanc. We were presented the dessert menu and decided to do the banana caramel xango. It reminded us of a churro filled with banana and banana cheesecake; served with a scoop of ice cream, it was just right.

After lunch, we went to the tasting room and were able to try seven of the available wines. My wife chose from the left side – white, sweets and dessert wines, while I chose from the right - all red wines. I was especially interested in the Nevada wines, produced from grapes grown in the local area.

My wife started off with the viognier, which was slightly oaked; it was different and still enjoyable (for me). She then tried the Symphony, a blend of moscato, Grenache and pinot gris. This wine is one of their best sellers. She enjoyed it and compared it to a summer sipping wine. She tried the Sunset Rose, the vintner’s blend of several grapes to make the blush wine; its taste was similar to a jolly rancher (interesting). She followed this with the Desert Blush, another blended rose wine. She liked the Sunset Rose better. She finished her tasting with the three dessert wines. The Sweet Melody is a red wine infused with chocolate; it hits at the start and continues through to the flavor (I thought overpowering), the vinho doce, their port style wine fortified with brandy tasted like a Tootsie Roll, and the crème sherry had a nice caramel ending. She liked the crème sherry at the Sanders Family Winery better (another post).

I started my tasting with the syrah and petit syrah, from grapes grown in California. The petit syrah was the driest of the two and heavy on the tannin; notes of lavendar on the noses. I then moved to the Nevada wines. I started with the barbera, a dry, yet fruity wine with a hint of spice. Next was the primitivo, a red grape I had not had before; it too was dry but had a smooth finish. The zinfandel had hints of black raspberries. The Silver State Red, a blend of seven grape varieties – a very dry wine with heavy tannic structure, yet bold. I finished my tasting with the tempranillo, a very dry wine but flavorful.

We were in time for the tour. The tour guide took us into the vineyard and explained the history of the winery (started by the Sanders family) from its first plantings (some of the vines are over twenty years old) until present day. She explained how the winery is working with local grape growers to produce wine from within the state of Nevada. We walked back into the winery and looked at all the winning wines and were then treated to going into the wine cellar. Gretchen, the winemaker, was in the winery getting ready to filter one of the reds that she would like to bottle the next day. She had part of her operation already set up for the next day, most of which was done by hand. The tour guide took a picture of us with Gretchen.

Nevada - Pahrump - Sanders Family Winery

Sanders Family Winery - located about an hour from Las Vegas, my wife and I made the trip to try something new within the area. We got to try all their available wines as part of the tasting. It started with the whites and their unoaked Chardonnay; it was light and crisp. My wife liked it and I got a hint of citrus. Next was Serenity, a 50/50 blend of Riesling and French Calamare. This was the first wine produced by the family and is their best seller. We both enjoyed it and said it would be a good compromise wine which we could sit and have together. I got a hint of fresh-brewed tea. Last was their blush, Harmony, which is a 50/50 blend of zinfandel and pinot noir.

While we were drinking the reds, I struck up a conversation with the winemaker, Jack Sanders. I asked him how he got into wine making in Nevada due to its climate. He had been in the wine business in California and needed a change. He started Pahrump Valley winery in 1988; this is his second winery in the state.

We moved to the reds; first was their merlot, the only wine aged in oak barrels (for three months); it was young in flavor and had light tannins. The cabernet sauvignon also was a young wine too. The last red was a burgundy made from zinfandel, syrah, cabernet franc, cabernet sauvignon and pinot noir. It was on the sweet side, but served chilled, it would be just as relaxing as the Serenity.

Finally, the dessert wines were served. We started with the cream sherry, which is a five year process to make using chardonnay, with golden color and nutty flavor. It was followed with the ruby port, a seven year process using petit syrah, was like eating liquid jam. As an additional treat, each of the dessert wines was made into a spritzer using ginger ale and lime. The ruby port spritzer was the better of the two.

Virginia - Williamsburg - Busch Gardens - Mistletoe Marketplace

My wife and I were wondering around Busch Gardens, Williamsburg and found the Mistletoe Marketplace. It was an outdoor marketplace off of the arcade. There were many different artisans and we found the special holiday wine tasting. There were many to choose from so we had decisions to make first. My wife started off the tasting with the Geyser Peak 2012 sauvignon blanc, the Juve y Camps cava reserve de la familia 2008 brut nature with its peach undertones and apple finish, but she really enjoyed the Rockbridge Virginia white wine, an ice wine.

I chose the Pine Ridge 2012 Forefront pinot noir over the Justin cabernet sauvignon. Another couple at the tasting bar agreed that the pinot noir would be a better choice.My wife finished off the tasting with the Chocolate Shop chocolate lovers wine. She chose that over Grahams fine ruby port. Although it is a red wine, it is infused with dark chocolate and cherries. She enjoyed it over other chocolate wines she has had in the past.