Swedish Hill earns NY's '08 Governors Cup

This release arrived today following completion of the 2008 New York Wine & Food Classic judging:

New Paltz, New York, AUGUST 20—Swedish Hill Winery from the Finger Lakes won the coveted “Governor’s Cup” trophy at the 2008 New York Wine & Food Classic competition, held on August 19 & 20 at the Mohonk Mountain House in New Paltz, NY. The “Winery of the Year” award also went to Swedish Hill Winery.

The elegant Governor’s Cup, a large silver chalice, recognizes the “Best of Show” or top prize of all 775 entries in the Classic, known as “The Oscars” of New York wine. The “Winery of the Year” award is presented to the winery with the best overall showing based on the level and number of awards in relation to entries.

This year’s competition included 775 New York wines from the Long Island, Hudson Valley, Finger Lakes, Niagara Escarpment, Lake Erie, and other regions of New York State. The 2007 Vidal Blanc was also voted Best White Wine, and Best Vidal Blanc on its way to the ultimate award. Swedish Hill Winery received 2 Double Gold, 2 Gold, 11 Silver, and 7 Bronze awards on its way to that honor.

A new “Specialty Wine Champion” award was added this year to recognize consistent quality among the increasing number of wines made from fruits other than grapes, or honey. The 2008 winner was Earle Estates Meadery, with 1 Gold, 2 Silver, and 5 Bronze awards.

The awards were based on blind tastings by 25 expert judges—7 from California, 11 from New York, and 7 from other states. Judges included prominent wine writers, restaurateurs, retailers, and wine educators. Four-judge panels determined the initial awards, with top-scoring wines evaluated by all 25 judges for Best of Category and Governor’s Cup awards.

Celebrating its 23rd year, the Classic is organized by Teresa Knapp of the New York Wine & Grape Foundation, and is open to all 242 New York wineries from all regions. In 2008, a total of 14 Double Gold, 62 Gold, 198 Silver, and 266 Bronze medals were awarded. In addition, “Best of Category” and “Best of Class” designations were awarded to wines rated as the finest in various areas. Double Gold medals require unanimity among a panel’s judges that a wine deserves a Gold medal, whereas Gold medals require a majority vote.

The “Best of Category” awards, all eligible for the Governor’s Cup, went to Swedish Hill Winery NV Spumante Blush for Best Sparkling wine, Swedish Hill Winery 2007 Vidal Blanc for Best White wine, Anthony Road Wine Company 2007 Dry Rosé for Best Blush or Rosé wine, Bedell Cellars 2006 Musée for Best Red wine, Earle Estates Meadery Creamy Apricot for Best Specialty wine, and Casa Larga Vineyards 2005 Fiori Vidal Ice Wine for Best Dessert wine.

The “Best of Class” awards for different varietals or proprietary blends, which were tasted off for “Best of Category” awards, went to Swedish Hill Vineyards Spumante Blush wine for Best Native Sparkling wine, Lakewood Vineyards 2007 Dry Riesling for Best Dry Riesling wine, Hosmer 2007 Riesling for Best Semi-Dry Riesling wine, Paumanok Vineyards 2007 Semi-Dry Riesling for Best Semi-Sweet Riesling, Castello di Borghese Vineyard 2006 Chardonnay for Best Chardonnay wine, Macari Vineyards & Winery 2007 Sauvignon Blanc, Katharine’s Field for Best Sauvignon Blanc, McGregor Vineyard 2007 Rkatsiteli-Sereksiya,Estate Grown for Best White Vinifera Blend, Whitecliff Vineyards 2007 Traminette for Best Traminette, Swedish Hill Winery 2007 Vidal Blanc for Best Vidal Blanc, Rooster Hill Vineyards 2007 Silver Pencil for Best White Hybrid Blend, Arbor Hill Grapery 2007 Vergennes for Best Other Native White Varietal, Hickory Hollow Wine Cellars Liquid Wisdom for Best Niagara, Anthony Road Wine Company 2007 Dry Rosé for Best Blush or Rosé, Torrey Ridge Winery Blue Sapphire for Best Concord, Barrington Cellars Baco Noir for Best Baco Noir, Swedish Hill Winery Viking Red for Best Red Hybrid Blend, Red Newt Cellars 2005 Cabernet Franc for Best Cabernet Franc, Osprey’s Dominion 2005 Reserve Merlot for Best Merlot, Chateau Lafayette Reneau 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon, Estate Bottled for Best Cabernet Sauvignon, Bedell Cellars 2006 Musée for Best Red Vinifera Blend, Earle Estates Meadery Creamy Apricot for Best Mead, Heron Hill Winery 2006 Late Harvest Vidal Blanc for Best Late Harvest wine, and Casa Larga Vineyards 2005 Fiori Vidal Ice Wine for Best Ice Wine.

Complete results of the 2008 Classic will soon be posted under “New York Gold” at www.newyorkwines.org, which also includes Gold medal New York wines from other major competitions.

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Judges

Mollie Battenhouse, DWS
Wine Director & Educator, International Wine Center, New York, New York

Dan Berger
Wine Journalist and Publisher, Santa Rosa, California

Shannon Brock
Wine Coordinator, New York Wine & Culinary Center, Canandaigua, New York

Rory Callahan
President, Wine & Food Associates, New York, New York

HudsonCattell
Co-Publisher, Wine East, Lancaster, Pennsylvania

Rene Chazottes
Wine Director, Maitre Sommelier, The Pacific Club, Newport Beach, California

Jim Clarke,
Wine Writer and Director, MEGU, New York, New York

Mike Dunne
Food Editor, Wine Columnist and Restaurant Critic, The Sacramento Bee, Sacramento, California

Traci Dutton
Director of Education, Culinary Institute of America, Greystone, California

Ziggy Eschliman
Ziggy, “The Wine Gal,” Wine Country Radio, Sonoma, California

Doug Frost, M.W., M.S.
Wine Writer and Educator, Prairie Village, Kansas

LorraineHems, CS, CWE
Lecturer of Wine Studies, Rochester Institute of Technology, Rochester, NY &
Instructor, New York Wine & Culinary Center, Canandaigua, New York

Fred LeBrun
Columnist, Albany Times Union, Albany, New York

Ann Littlefield
Direct Wine Marketing Brand Champion, Napa, California

Bill Mahoney
Wine Manager, Premium Wine & Spirits, Williamsville, New York

Ann Miller
Marketing Specialist, Missouri Wine & Grape Board, Jefferson City, Missouri

Bert Miller
Food & Beverage Director, Long Island Marriott, Uniondale, New York

Jerry Pellegrino
Chef/Owner, CORKS & & Abacrombie Fine Foods, Baltimore, Maryland

Mike Riley
Regional Manager/Buyer Wine and Spirits, Wegmans East Coast Region, Princeton, New Jersey

Coke Roth
Wine Consultant & Attorney, Kennewick, Washington

Jerry Shriver
Writer, USA Today, New York, New York

Sandra Silfven
Wine Writer, Detroit News, Detroit, Michigan

Dr. Bob Small
Director of Hospitality, Collins School of Hospitality Management, Cal Poly University &
Director, Los Angeles International Wine & Spirits Competition, Pomona, California

Eric White
Wine Consultant & Store Manager, The Winery, New York, New York

Kevin Zraly
Wine Educator & Author, New York, New York

Crossing Vineyards offering intro course

Posting for those living around Philly and looking for a Wine 101 course this fall:

For anyone who doesn’t know chardonnay from cabernet, the difference between francs and blancs and, worse, what not to serve with fish and fowl, Crossing Vineyards & Winery in Washington Crossing, Pa. is offering a six-session course, taught by its French sommelier, Eric Cavatore (right), designed to answer basic and not-so-basic wine questions. The details are as follows:

An Introduction to Wine, 1st in six-course series on wine, 6:30 -8:30 p.m., Sept. 8, Crossing Vineyards and Winery, 1853 Wrightstown Road, Washington Crossing, Pa. Cost: $30 per course, $150 for series. Includes behind-the-scene access to winery during crush and harvest and wine-tasting. Future dates: Sept. 15, 22, 29, Oct. 6, 13. Course listings and info: 215-493-6500, ext. 19 or at the Web site.

At Galen Glen, a chance to warm up to rose

It was a bottling day yesterday at Galen Glen Vineyard & Winery in northeast Pennsylvania, so I snagged proprietor Sarah Troxell between tasks and sneaked in a brief phone conversation that will provide the fodder for a couple of postings.

Depending on your tastes, you could be jumping for joy at the raspberry wine that was emerging yesterday from the end of the bottling line. “We just got fresh raspberries so we take one of our white wines and blend in raspberry juice as a sweetner,” says Troxell, who directs the winery along husband Galen. "So it's our winter sort of dessert offering." A family farm that according to their Web site is “nestled between the Appalachian and Mahoning mountains,” they’ve been going full bore since planting their first two acres of vines in May 1995. It's a member of the Lehigh Valley Wine Trail.

She admits that while other wines on their list rev up her taste buds and palate more than this particular offering, “we live in a Pennsylvania German area, so fruit is big. We don’t do any fruit wines. [This] is a wine with fruit juice added, I call it the faux fruit wine. So, living here, it’s very popular.”

There was a time I’d avoid anything that wasn’t dry, but that’s changing. Exhibit A is that peach wine from Georgia that my wife and I opened last week and then wrote about. Skeptical, we were won over in one sip. And I've had my share of rose alongside the array of foods placed down on the Thanksgiving table.

Galen Glen makes several roses. One is called Win Gris, a dry rose that Troxell says has sold out this season. They plan on making more after this coming harvest. “And then we do a semi sweet and a sweet, more what I’d call blushes; they’re more fruity and fragrant. In the summer, those combined with whites do really well. We’ve had such a [demand]. We didn’t think our dry rose would be as popular as it was.”

Troxell says she sees roses in America gaining popularity, although still lagging behind the large following they have in Europe, particularly the dry roses. In general, she says, it’s a wine that looks far more comfy in the summer atop a blanket spread out under a grove of trees than alongside a midwinter fire. It's definitely picnic friendly.

"The Win Gris we do with our dry red wine grapes, whereas our [semi sweet] Noah’s Blush and [sweet] Galah are made with Steuben grapes, which are big fragrant hybrids, so if you’ve looking for a little dryer tasting [wine] we have something a little more serious and then the other funs are just fun, summery, sort of big bouquet.”

Linganore event targets event-planners

A majority of the wineries in the region schedule events at the site, from wine trail functions that mark the changing wine calendar, to summer concerts. Then there's the smaller percentage that rolls out the red carpet for family and business functions such as weddings and meetings. That includes Linganore Winecellars-Berrywine Plantations, which has scheduled an open house and tour from noon to 5 p.m. this Sunday.

Events coordinator Vania Jacobs said this is the second one the winery has held this year. One during the spring drew 150, and this one already has around 110 people signed up. A third one is in the works for this fall or winter.

It's too early to gauge the success of the event side of the business, at least looking at a bottom line. But Jacobs said the winery has 53 events booked already this year with that number surely to rise before the calendar reads 2009. Those include everything from birthdays to bridal showers and reunions to concerts.

Jacobs said the idea of an open house isn't a unique one. "It's my background," she said earlier today. "If you want to promote something, you do an open house. So it's just innate for me to do something like that."

And she's doing more, having already implemented new programs such as a Mothers Day brunch, a Murder Mystery Weekend and now this open house. "We also intend to do a Ladies Day Out so they can be pampered and whatnot," she said.

The open house will feature more than a dozen vendors on the premises to answer questions. In addition to giving folks a look-see, the hosts will provide samples from their bottles and a taste of what the food vendors bring along. Anyone interested is asked to respond by Friday. Linganore is a 230-acre farm, 60 of those devoted to the vineyard, that makes a very large footprint among several wineries that call Mt. Airy, Md., home.

Another argument for boxing wine

On the heels of yesterday’s post on the boxed wine at Maryland’s Terrapin Station Winery in Elkton, Md., I found this op-ed piece that ran in Sunday’s New York Times on the merits of packaging wine in boxes and bags rather than glass bottles.

Looks like Sept. for Black Ankle opening

Noticed that the long-awaited opening of Black Ankle Winery has been pushed back until early September, according to its Web site. That's no surprise considering that Ed Boyce and Sarah O'Herron have tried to use as many building materials from their farm as possible, such as the maple ceiling boards (in the photo) that will make up part of the interior of the tasting room at the winery's Mt. Airy, Md., location.

An out-of-the-box approach at Terrapin Station

Morris Zwick said earlier today that consumers almost unanimously have applauded the boxed wine that sets Terrapin Station Winery apart from any other producer in the region.

“There’s the rare person who just sort of snorts at boxed wine,” Zwick said, “but for the most part it’s been very positive and, especially from the public, they seem a lot more receptive to it. Particularly younger people, they love it. The issue we’ve had more is with the retail stores that kind of look at it and ‘[Ugh], boxed wine. I don’t know about whether we’ll be able to sell it, that sort of thing.’”

Currently they are selling eight wines in the unique cube, which holds a bag filled with 1.5 liters of wine, essentially two bottles worth. Zwick said that they use all of the grapes they grow on their 46-acre farm, filling in the holes with purchases from a few other producers in-state. A potential deal with a provider in California could further diversify their list before the year is out.

Buyers would recognize several of the varietals that carry the Terrapin Station wrapping, so to speak: Merlot, Shiraz and Vidal Blanc. But what they’ve torn open the most is Traminette, a relation to that white with a bite, Gewurztraminer. “That’s been our best seller, by far,” Zwick said. “And it’s a grape that the general public isn’t that familiar with. But we sold out of it in the first five weeks. Once people had a chance to try it, they loved it. We still have people asking for it.”

Their farm is located in the proximity of Elkton in extreme northeastern Maryland, close enough to be able to drop-kick one of their boxes over the Mason-Dixon Line over I-95 as it heads toward Philly. If you don’t catch them at one of the festivals that have run Morris, his wife Janet and three kids in circles since the spring, you can find their wines at several shops in Cecil and Montgomery counties. At some point they plan to convert the early 18th century barn located on the property into a combo tasting room/gift shop/event space.

No matter how much folks like their wines, however, it’s the container that probably will leave the biggest impression. Zwick, who made a number of family sojourns to Italy as he was growing up, called the traditional glass bottles and corks “sort of an anachronism. Really, the association of that and fine wine is more fixated in the United States than anywhere else.”

Corks, in his mind, leave too much to chance. “If you’re a winemaker, you’re trying to convince somebody to buy your wine, and let’s say 6 percent of them through no fault of your own [drink a bottle where the integrity is compromised]. They just assume the wine is bad, so they’ll never go buy it again. I just feel that is incredibly self-defeating.”

Screw caps didn’t make much financial sense because of the inability to find a bottling line that they could lease. That left the boxes, which are lighter to ship and easier to store a far greater friend to the environment. “I’ve heard figures that say hundred of thousands of tons of carbon goes up in the sky in the transportation of wine from California to the East Coast, just because it’s in glass,” he said.

While there remain a few creases to iron out, they’ve been delighted with the route they’ve chosen (produced by Scholle) and the reaction to it. Kevin Atticks, the director of the Maryland Wine Association, said recently that folks attending a festival earlier this summer were raving about concept. Zwick added that there are more compelling reasons for people in their back yard to change traditions.

“It’s got so many nice features to it,” he said. “We’re at the top of the bay and we have a lot of boaters around us. It’s perfect for boating with; the waves won’t tip it over and cause a problem. It won’t break and shatter glass everywhere. And you don’t have to guzzle down a liter and a half of wine all at once. You can drink it over a period of weeks. It’s just like a baby bottle; the bag collapses around the product. We puff nitrogen in when it’s getting filled. And so it stays in good shape, the oxygen egress is actually quite low. So all of those factors really appealed to us.”

And they’re likely not done experimenting. Zwick said he could see a day when they follow the lead of Wolf Blass wine in Canada and offer a .750ml container made out of lightweight polyethelene terephthalate, known as PET, rather than glass. In fact, a story on the Pennsylvania Wine Association site noted that Eagle Rock Winery in Sullivan County has started to bottle its wines in the plastic bottles.

“I checked with the Ball Corporation several years ago and they weren’t selling them yet and I couldn’t find an in-country manufacturer for the bottles,” Zwick said. “But I knew that Ball would get there eventually. They’ve done .375s [ml] for awhile, and they do the smaller bottles for the airlines and stuff like that.”

And he has no doubt that those will be as popular as the cubes have been.

“I just want to emphasize that the issue is not been with consumers,” he said. “They generally seem to like the packaging once they understand there are two bottles of wine in that box. The issue has been more with the retail chain because [at this point] they just don’t know how to deal with it.”