WTN: Finger Lakes Riesling and Sauv. Blanc

2007 Sauvignon Blanc, Damiani Vineyards, Finger Lakes, NY:
Very pale, peppery nose. A blast of lime and green chili followed by a intensely flinty finish. Somewhat rough and ready, dry, with good intensity. Tasted sort of musty for the first 20 minutes or so, but this blew off. Until recently, not much SB was being grown in the FL, but on my last visit there were several, this being my favorite. Pretty distinctive, certainly not west coast or NZ in style. $17, 13% abv.

2003 Dry Riesling, Dr. Konstantin Frank, Finger Lakes, NY:
Still looks very young, with not much gold. Classic riesling nose with just a tiny hint of petrol and something floral (lilacs?). Fruit tends towards the green apple with a hint of something more exotic like guava; bracing acidity. Comes off as quite dry but very well balanced. Drinking well now but could be kept. A fine example of FL riesling from a so-so vintage. $15, 12% abv.

Thanks for the notes. Good to have these in case I decide to explore FL wines a bit more.

Damiani is probably my favorite Finger Lakes SB,,they also make a nice cab and cab franc

Damiani is probably my favorite Finger Lakes SB,,they also make a nice cab and cab franc

They are doing solid work overall. Look for their '07 Pinot when it comes out. We were given some barrel samples on our visit that were very impressive - hope the quality makes it into the bottle.

Joe,

Did you ever drink the Ravines SB? I've liked what I've tasted of theirs.

Joe,

Did you ever drink the Ravines SB? I've liked what I've tasted of theirs.

Tasted it around the same time as my visit to Damiani. Also nice, but I had a slight preference for the Damiani.

Joe..Damiani was very customer friendly to me at Christmas time..I was ordering some wines of theirs that my daughter liked as a gift for her and they were nice enough to accomodate me tho the quantity was below their minimum re shipping..Our daughter Samantha likes their sweeter wine, Dolce Bianco..
I have been sticking my head into their cozy little place evey time I visit John Z down the road at Silver Springs, purveyer of one of my favorite ice wines.. a favorite of Sammi and my wife as well.
Tom...I had a terrible experience with Mort's wife when we tasted at Ravines and I will never go back there..Also, having purchased and tasted their wines on several occasions, I think they are over rated.

Jon,

The atmosphere in the Damiani tasting room was great - the young woman there seemed like an enthusiast and was very generous with the pours. When we got talking about the vineyards and such, she called down to the actual winery (about a mile away on a road down to the lake) and got us some barrel samples and a tour with Phil Davis, one of the partners.

I'm not going to stop going to Ravines, because I really like their wines. But my last tasting there was pricey, and the woman was not very good (seemed to be going through the motions based on a spiel), giving those microscopic pours that make it impossible to really evaluate the wine. Some of the prices for 'single vineyard' bottlings are also getting out of line. To their credit, I did hit the place at a very busy time. When I have stopped by in the off-season (and had a tasting with Morton), things have been better.

Have you stopped by Shaw, on the west side of Seneca? They don't publicize much (no web site last time I looked), but it appears to be a serious effort. Morten Hallgren has a hand in the winemaking and Steve Shaw is a long time grape grower at that site. The wines were a mixed bag (but I had to cut them some slack, as they had some reds from cool vintages) but I expect they will be doing some good work. Again, girl in the tasting room was needlessly pompous and stingy with the pours.

Joe..wasn't previously aware of Shaw..will stick my head in there this summer when we hit Seneca..are they near the north end, the middle or the south end of the west side?

I will be looking primarily for whites..#1, that is what I think The Finger Lakes does best and #2, I am on a self imposed moratorium re not buying any reds, period..bought far too many on our trip to California this past Fall..they were just soooo good, I cdn't resist..that and a few of my allocated reds from Cal that come in from time to time leaves me with an abundance of reds..

I've liked the Ravines Sauvignon Blanc. I bought the 2006, and I tasted (I'm pretty sure - my notes aren't at hand since my move) the 2007 at the winery this summer. I haven't tasted the Damiani SB. When I visited there this summer I tasted mostly the reds, which I've bought and enjoyed earlier vintages.

Shaw is an interesting winery. I visited there this summer with MarkS, who posts here. While Morten Hallgren has a role in the winemaking, I got the distinct impression that Steve Shaw is calling the shots. He was there when we visited and poured wines from vintages ranging from 2002 to 2007. He's not a by-the-book guy; I bought a bottle of his 2005 Riesling, which according to my notes underwent a whole cluster fermentation and was pressed multiple times. As a result, it had a very full mouth feel in addition to good flavors and acidity. I have notes on nine wines from the visit; all were interesting, if not all were to my taste. It's worth a visit.

Jon,
Shaw had some good whites: I particularly liked the '07 Gewurz but did not care for the '05 Riesling that Steve mentioned (it seemed heavy and slightly oxidized). But I think their PN ('02 IIRC) was quite good. Worth a stop, not far from Hermann Wiemer.

..and to think that many years ago, Steve Shaw and I discussed a partnership wine business...

Steve is dedicated and wine knowledgeable. On the other hand, I was stupid to say no.

Jon,
Shaw had some good whites: I particularly liked the '07 Gewurz but did not care for the '05 Riesling that Steve mentioned (it seemed heavy and slightly oxidized). But I think their PN ('02 IIRC) was quite good. Worth a stop, not far from Hermann Wiemer.

By the way, the two wines I bought in addition to the Riesling were the '06 Gewurz and the '02 Pinot Noir. I liked both of them very much.