Shaw Vineyard and other spring fieldtrips

This spring Jim and I enjoyed several wine trips and a vertical tasting!

In March we were back at Standing Stone for a vertical wine tasting of Cabernet Franc. Marti (the owner) was full of great information and it is just so much fun to be able to compare wines throughout several years. I believe we tried the 1998, 1999, 2000, 2005, 2007. The type of summer, methods of pruning and wine making improvements all contributed to the taste of the wine in a given year. The wines were accompanied by delicious crackers, breads, cheeses and spreads. It was a lot of fun as always.

April saw us at Hunt Country. Sadly Gus, the Bernese Mountain Dog and winery mascot passed away, but we spied the new puppy in her kennel. The winery said they were planning on releasing a "Sweet Gus" wine in May. As always, their wines are delicious. We stopped down the road at Dr. Franks for some more enjoyable wine tasting. We really liked their Lemberger, which is available only at the winery. We also got quite an education and a demonstration on the use of proper wineglasses for the type of wine you are drinking and the difference (yes, you can tell the difference) it makes in the taste of the wine.

In May the kid came home from college, so we just did more drinking in general as we all readjusted to each other! By June we made the trip to Shaw Vineyard on the West shore of Seneca Lake. Shaw Vineyard http://www.shawvineyard.com/ is a boutique winery that specializes in dry wines and the philosophy of "quality over quantity." Housed in a beautiful timber framed structure, the tasting room opened in 2007. Steve Shaw Jr. , whose father is the winemaker and owner, poured us tastes of their award winning wines. True to their philosophy, they offer the following white wines: Chardonnay, Gewurztraminer, Dry Riesling and Sauvignon Blanc. Being Riesling lovers, we thought the Dry Riesling was excellent and purchased a bottle, however the reds really stood out. They offer a Pinot Noir, Merlot, Cab Sav, and N.V. Keuka Hill Reserve (a Bordeaux style blend). We purchased and last week enjoyed the 2003 (yes, 2003) Cabernet Sauvignon. Steve believes in letting his reds age before bottling them much like what is done in Europe. It was delicious on its own as well as paired with our beef dinner. An interesting note is that Steve Shaw and friend, Morton Hallgren winemaker and owner of Ravines Cellars, share space at Shaws to craft their wines. We highly recommend a trip to Shaw Vineyards- it is well worth the visit.

Coming up: the winemaker's dinner at the Pultneyville Grill and the cattle stampede on the way to Damiani Wine Cellars!