Category Archives: Travel

Rogue Food: Farm to Table in Southern Oregon

10 Monday Jul 2017

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rogue-keltuceThe farm to table thing has metastasized from fetish to fad to flim-flam. What began as a foodie obsession with freshness and an anti-corporate ethos has become a marketing device for conventional restaurants whose idea of a farm is 500,000 chickens stacked in cages sitting on manure lagoon.

“Farmwashing” is now common with even fast food joints displaying photos of weather-beaten farmers toiling in their fields. Truth-be-told, most restaurants don’t have access to fresh ingredients throughout the year even if they’re intention is to source locally.

It’s hard to know when a restaurant’s claim to farm-to-table is genuine but it’s usually evident in the dish and in the frequency of their menu changes. If they have the same menu every week, they aren’t farm to table. My guess is that Southern Oregon’s Rogue Valley is mostly on the level with their locally-sourced food—the area is packed with small farms, many restaurants have their own gardens supplying produce, continually-changing, seasonal menus are the norm among the restaurants who advertise FTT, and the fresh flavors were explosive in most of the restaurants we sampled. Another indicator of their commitment to locavorism—lots of local wines on the menu.

Any discussion of local, sustainable sourcing in the Rogue Valley starts with Ashland’s Standing Stone Brewery. They raise their own beef and chickens from which they get their eggs, and which are fed leftovers from the kitchen and brewery. Most of the grain and hops used to make their excellent beer is locally sourced as well as is most of their produce when in season. Nearly 100% of their paper is recycled, 99% of their to-go packaging is plant-based and 64% of their by-products are reused by local farms and bio-diesel. Their goal is to reach zero-net energy use. The burgers from their own grass-fed beef is excellent and their beer line up among the best—try their Jasmine rice-based lager. It’s outstanding.

I have already blogged about New Sammy’s Cowboy Bistro—an extraordinary dining experience with produce and herbs sourced from their own garden.

Lorella’s in Ashland has a constantly changing menu of exquisitely prepared, creatively designed Contemporary American dishes depending on what’s fresh that day. The Grilled Celtuce with Braised Frisee, French Lentils, Sauce Gribiche and Grilled Bread (picture above) was one of the more interesting dishes I’ve had this year.

Of the many fine dining restaurants in Ashland, Alchemy seemed to have the most creative and enticing menu and it didn’t disappoint. Seared duck breast with prickly pear gastrique, corn puree, charred nopales, and pistachio brittle was a stand out, as was the crab and sea bean salad.rogue-alchemy

If you want to take a break from wine tasting in this up and coming wine region, the burgers at Jasper’s Café are unusual. You can get burgers made from Kangaroo, bison, elk, Kobe beef, pulled pork on wild boar—you get the picture.

Even small towns in the area have interesting food. Grant’s Pass features The Haul, a well-priced gastropub advertising local ingredients and featuring an eclectic menu of pizza, pasta, sandwiches, tacos, falafel, etc. all designed and prepared with flare and enough creativity to set them apart.

And in Medford do not miss the holy trinity all on the same corner—the outstanding Rogue Valley creamery for some stinky cheese, Lillie Belle Farms Artisan Chocolates for such delights as chocolate covered bacon and smoky blue cheese truffle spread, all washed down with Ledger David’s great wines.

As I discussed in an earlier post, Southern Oregon’s Rogue Valley is soon to be on the wine map and they already have a thriving food scene to support it. If you’re into wine and food destinations put this on your itinerary.

The Wines of Southern Oregon

06 Thursday Jul 2017

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rogue-view-from-serra

The view from Serra Vineyards

As wine regions go, Southern Oregon is under-the radar, sandwiched between the long-established California regions to the south and the more recently prominent Willamette Valley to the north. My crystal ball is as cloudy as anyone’s but, if I might hazard a prediction, you will be hearing a lot more about Southern Oregon in the next decade. The reason is only in part related to wine quality which is quite good here (see below). There is a lot of good farmland available suitable for wine grapes at a relative bargain. The weather is warm enough to ripen almost any varietal and getting warmer as climate change pushes temperatures up. Yet winters are relatively mild, with only occasional damage to vines from hard freezes. The prime growing regions in California are already planted and land is enormously expensive there. The same is true of Willamette Valley where the big corporate wineries are already moving in snapping up vineyards and, of course, bidding up prices. So if you aspire to grow grapes and make wine and don’t have a fortune we’re you gonna go?

Southern Oregon.

Because it’s located near the prime West Coast wine regions, the population is already reasonably sophisticated about wine.  Because Ashland in the southern end of the Rogue Valley is an established tourist center hosting the highly-regarded Shakespeare festival during the summer, the restaurants and lodging options are fabulous, and with the food culture of Portland trickling south even small towns boast good places to eat. Situated on the I5 interstate, the major corridor through Washington, Oregon and California, there is plenty of traffic to keep tasting rooms full. And the gorgeous mountain scenery is a reliable attraction.rogue-wooldridge

Of course, without good wine this will never pan out. But for many years, Southern Oregon has been a mecca for California-trained winemakers seeking a quieter life, and all that knowledge is permeating the wine culture here with quality rapidly improving.

A good  comparison might be Sonoma 30 years ago. Small wineries in a rural, general agricultural community experimenting with many varietals trying to find out what will grow, with some locations growing into destinations, and plenty of Bay Area transplant alt-types to  spread cultural capital. If this isn’t a recipe for success I don’t know what is. One thing that makes this region unique is that it is some distance from a major metropolitan area. Portland is 4-5 hours away; Eugene is on the small side. Thus, limousine traffic is minimal and the hordes that descend on Napa and Sonoma unlikely to materialize. The region will grow, but at a comfortable pace with less population pressure than the more populated California regions have experienced. Corporate influence is not in evidence yet, although many of the vineyards here supply fruit to the large, commercial producers in Willamette Valley.

The Southern Oregon AVA is divided into two distinctly different appellations—the Rogue Valley AVA in the south and the Umpqua Valley AVA in the north. I’ll focus on general characteristics of both but the Umpqua will require a separate post.

Every wine region needs people who can effectively get information to the public about what the region has to offer. In the Rogue Valley one such person is Liz Wan, assistant winemaker at Serra Vineyards, who was kind enough to explain what makes Southern Oregon tick. The character of this region is determined by the surrounding mountain ranges—the Coastal range and Siskiyous to the west and south and the Cascades to the east. The confluence of these mountain ranges create a rain shadow that limits precipitation from the severe winter and spring storms rolling in from Alaska. Rainfall in most of the Rogue and Umpqua Valleys is about half of what the Willamette Valley receives. Although the Illinois Valley sub-region of the Rogue, nestled up against the Coastal Range in the West, receives significant marine influence, as we move inland to the other two sub-regions, Applegate Valley and Upper Rogue, that marine influence recedes and temperatures are higher. Furthermore, as Liz explained, vineyards near the city of Medford in the Rogue Valley are influenced by the built environment that retains heat. Thus, inland valley temperatures, especially the Upper Rogue, are hot during the summer reaching 105 degrees on some days. Spring temperatures are cool with late frost sometimes an issue and fall rains arrive early. Thus, Southern Oregon has a short, hot growing season, with average growing degree days about 2300 compared to 3400 for Napa. But the vines receive lots of light during the growing season due to the northerly latitude, and the diurnal temperature shifts are enormous with night time temperatures often dropping into the 50’s during the summer. The result is sufficient heat and light to ripen almost all varietals, very little disease pressure during the dry summer months, but cool nights that keep acidity in the grapes, resulting in wines that are fresh and crisp with comparatively low alcohol levels.

The ancient clash of the earth’s plates forming these mountains and the sediment from the many streams flowing into the valley have distributed a complex mixture of soils throughout the region, and the foothills of these mountain ranges punctuate the topology of the valleys leaving an incredible array of microclimates. Reports estimate there to be 170 microclimates in the Rogue and Umpqua Valleys. Some vineyards have so many soil types that winemakers have given up trying make sense of it. Hence the diversity for which Southern Oregon will be famous. The list of varietals being planted here is enormous. Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, Riesling, Gewurztraminer and Chardonnay are grown in the cooler sites. The Bordeaux varietals grow in the warmer sites with Syrah and other Rhone varietals, especially Viognier, appearing almost everywhere. Italian varietals are less plentiful but they do well on some sites as well.

As you might imagine, there is now a debate raging among the locals about the region’s identity. Some people argue that the flourishing of so many varietals harms regional identity using Willamette Valley’s commitment to Pinot Noir or Napa’s penchant for Cabernet Sauvignon to buttress their arguments. Soil scientists and viticulturalists have designated Tempranillo to be the-big-red-of-the-future here because it requires a shorter growing season; thus many wineries are promoting it. No doubt the grape does well here, but as a skeptical Herb Quady, owner/winemaker at Quady North and one of the most prominent of the vintners here asked, “are people really clamoring for more Tempranillo” since the Spanish have that market cornered? Tempranillo is surely part of the mix but the diversity fills out tasting menus and makes the region attractive to wine companies seeking to expand their portfolios. That said, Tempranillo shows a unique expression in Southern Oregon. Winemakers are generally restrained in their use of oak. It’s mostly French and mostly older barrels, so the wood, vanilla and dill pickle aromas found in Spanish Tempranillo are muted here allowing more earth and leather to shine.

Herb Quady notes that what matters is that we make “acceptable versions” of each varietal. Sites that can’t get Cabernet Sauvignon ripe should not be growing it and the Cabernet grown here will always be lower in alcohol and higher in acidity than, say, Napa’s version of Cabernet given the shorter growing season in Southern Oregon. “We should embrace that diversity”, he argues. I doubt this controversy will end anytime soon.

And one note of caution. Southern Oregon’s relative isolation means they have never confronted phylloxera, the vine louse that has destroyed vineyards in many parts of the world including California. The solution to the threat of phylloxera is to graft vines onto resistant rootstock. Southern Oregon is still using own-rooted vines that lack that resistance. But as more trucks and tourists find their way here, the threat of phylloxera will grow.

 Wine Tasting the Rogue

Since the Rogue Valley and Umpqua Valley AVA’s have distinct characteristics I will cover their respective wineries in separate posts.  Here I will focus on the Rogue Valley and it’s three sub-regions—the Illinois Valley, the Applegate Valley, and the Upper Rogue. (Here is my account of Rogue Valley cuisine)

Tasting rooms in the Rogue run the gamut from small, barebones additions on a farmhouse to elegant, well-appointed venues with stunning views of the valley, entertainment and food service. Apparently the economics of the region support chic, alluring properties on, in some instances, a case production of only 3000 per year, mostly sold out of the tasting room and to wine club members. Go figure.

Where are the best wines to be found? I use a combination of reviews by professional critics and recommendations from the locals to narrow down our search, and then extensive tasting to arrive at conclusions about the top producers. We look for overall consistency among a winery’s offerings rather than individual bottlings that might impress. Here’s our rundown of the Rogue Valley’s finest all of which use exclusively Southern Oregon fruit.

Three wineries are at the very top of my list:

Plaisance Ranch Winery

In addition to great wines, this Applegate Valley winery has one of the more interesting stories you will find in the wine world. Owner/winemaker Joe Ginet is a third generation American whose winemaking family hails from Savoie, France. Joe wanted to make wine as his family had done for generations but he lacked the money to start a winery and couldn’t get financing. So he and his wife Suzy had to raise cattle for years building a ranch business that eventually generated the cash to get the winery off the ground. Today, he still raises cattle but also makes highly awarded, small batch wines, many of them from cuttings brought over from his family vineyards in  Savoie. I adored every wine we tasted including a gorgeous Rosé and rich, succulent Merlot, Tempranillo, and Malbec. But an additional selling point are the unusual varieties—Carmenere and Mondeuse (as far as I know the only one in the U.S.) The Mondeuse was out of stock but the Carmenere was deep, rich and spicy.

Cowhorn Vineyards

As their name suggests, this is a state of the art biodynamic operation, as of now, the only one in Southern Oregon. Every wine we tasted was exquisite. The luscious, off-dry, white Rhone blend called Spiral 36 was textured and rich; the Viognier expressive and also richly textured. Both briefly see 20% new French oak. A pretty, strawberry-inflected Grenache with a mineral core was followed by a blockbuster Syrah from 2013, with the chalky minerality I often find in biodynamic wines. (Here is my review).

Kriselle Cellars

The best of the Upper Rogue, everything on their tasting flight was just a cut above. We tasted several versions of Sauvignon Blanc in Southern Oregon during our stay. Only Kriselle’s approached the grassy, gooseberry-driven flavors typical of this varietal. The same with their Viognier which stood out for its expressive, tropical aromas and rich mouthfeel. Their 2013 Tempranillo was to die for, so good it overshadowed their elegant Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon and two beautiful blends, a Bordeaux blend with some Tempranillo call Di’Tani, and a Super-Tuscan of Sangiovese and Cab. These wines were not only elegant but unique with slightly funky, herbal and earth notes that made them interesting as well as delicious.

Other high quality producers include:

Red Lilly Vineyards

The location of perhaps the prettiest winery grounds we visited as they encourage tasters to meditate on their wines down by the charming river that runs through their property. This winery specializes in Spanish varietals—a lovely, off-dry Verdejo, a pretty, yet structured Rosé of 70% Tempranillo, a spicy,leathery Tempranillo/Cabernet Sauvignon blend called Red Blanket, and their 100% Tempranillo 2013 which was very complex but needs a bit more time to integrate tannins. These Tempranillos are powerful, complex, yet utterly charming wines.

Serra Vineyards

Scenic views of the Applegate valley from their tasting room set the mood for impressive Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and Syrah (see my review). Their Cabernet Sauvignon may be the best we tasted and their Syrah near the top as well, both with great complexity and depth.

Quady North

Several Rosés, intriguing, vineyard-designate Viogniers and structured, expressive Cabernet Franc from Herb Quady one of the early California winemaking transplants in the Rogue. He specializes in red Rhone varietals as well which we did not have the opportunity to taste.

Dancin Vineyards 

This is a relatively new winery that has rocketed to the top garnering a 2017 winery of the year award from Wine Press Northwest. Co-owner Dan Marcon  thinks of winemaking as a ballet and his elegant Chardonnay and Pinot Noir live up to that conceit. Their Assemblage 2016 Chardonnay was the best Chardonnay we tasted in the valley and the several versions of Pinot Noir from various vineyard blocks and clones all achieve that magical, silken quality expected of this grape. For Pinot lovers this is a fascinating tour through various expressions of Rogue Valley Pinot Noir. Their full service restaurant on premises was hoppin’ the day we visited.

Ledger David Cellars

Maybe it’s the location, a tasting room situated on the same parking lot as the world famous Rogue Creamery and the extraordinary Lillie Belle Farms chocolatier, but we found this whole lineup delicious. The whites were good. Their off-dry Radiant White which includes mostly Chenin Blanc was crisp and expressive; the 2016 Viognier and a Chardonnay balanced and flavorful. But the red wines were extraordinary, all elegant and structured, especially the 2014 Cabernet Franc and a super-Tuscan-style blend called Sublimus. But the show-stopper was the Orions Nebula blend of Cabernet Franc, Malbec, Petite Verdot and Syrah with complex dark fruit and earth on a stalwart frame. The reds show a touch of rusticity which gives them great character.

Devitt Winery

A farmhouse winery in the Applegate dedicated to small-batch, aged wines. They hold wines back many years until ready for release. A 2005 Merlot and a 2006 Syrah were just gorgeous. If you want to know how Rogue Valley wines age, this is the place. In fact, if you want to discover the essence of wine, this is the place.

Also worthy of note:

Weisinger Family Winery

A solid lineup, especially the Viognier, a Marsanne/Viognier Blend, a red blend called Mescolare made of Syrah, Tempranillo and Portuguese varietals, and their estate Tempranillo.

Pebblestone Winery

All around excellent wine but the white wines stood out. Outstanding Pinot Gris, Viognier, and a nice Albarino.

Folin Cellars

Their 2013 Grenache was outstanding and a Mourvedre-dominated blend called Misceo was very good.

Augustino Estate and Vineyard

Located in the Illinois Valley, their Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvignon were quite good. But their tasting room is their claim to fame. It is a tree house overlooking the river, a lovely site ideal for spending an afternoon sipping wine. Not to be confused with their other property in the Applegate. rogue-tree-house

As for the food available in Southern Oregon that is worthy of a post of it’s own, available here.

Sonoma Pilgrimage

26 Monday Jun 2017

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somoma-saladA quick stop in Sonoma before heading to Southern Oregon was part pilgrimage and part voyage of discovery.

The pilgrimage was to the place that launched the food revolution on the left coast—Alice Water’s Chez Panisse, still going strong in the same location not far from the UC Berkeley campus. In the 1960’s, Waters was ensconced in the hippie/free speech culture at UC Berkeley when a sojourn in France convinced her that the revolution must be catered. Upon her return, despite the fact she had no culinary training or experience, she opened Chez Panisse in 1971, dedicated to serving exquisitely prepared food using only fresh, local ingredients, a radical, new idea at least in the U.S.

Chez Panisse played a large role in my book American Foodie helping to develop themes regarding the importance of culinary pleasure in one’s life. But I had never had the chance to eat there until recently. Lunch in the upstairs café was the only option; no dinner reservations were available until next month. Iconic restaurants often have trouble maintaining their quality and cachet since people interested in food are notoriously fickle and perpetually seek out what’s new. But I’m happy to report that Chez Panisse is still at the top if its game. This salad of cucumber, Tokyo turnips, and radishes à la crème with watercress pictured above was as delicious as it is pretty, and the grilled lamb chops and braised shank dressed with yoghurt and mint sauce, accompanied by crisp, smashed then fried potatoes and greens, was the epitome of the up-dated, French country cooking for which Chez Panisse is known.

A second icon checked off my list was Littorai Wines. Biodynamic winemaking is still controversial but it is increasingly becoming accepted by the wine culture mainstream as a disciplined approach to vineyard management that forces winemakers and viticulturists to pay close attention to the ecology of their vineyards. Ted Lemon, owner and winemaker, was a pioneer of biodynamic winemaking long before it was cool. Having worked in France for many years, he had long noticed the failure of conventional farming to solve problems in the vineyard. Soon after starting Littorai in 1993 he gradually began to introduce biodynamic principles into his vineyard practice replacing fertilizers with compost and controlling pests with the strategic use of herbal teas and an army of chickens, ducks, goats and other animals that contribute to ecological balance. somoma-littoraiBiodynamics, as originally developed by Rudolph Steiner in the 1920’s, involved a lot of questionable metaphysical beliefs such as making harvest decisions based on the phases of the moon. Ted takes a bemused attitude toward most of that and bases harvest decisions on his judgment about when the grapes are ready. For him biodynamics is practical—healthy soils create healthy vines which produce better grapes for winemaking while preserving the soil for the future.

A tour of Littorai is one of the better tours you’ll find in the Napa/Sonoma area. The Littorai property is a fascinating study in biodiversity and the staff at Littorai do an excellent job of explaining how all the elements fit together to create healthy vines. We were fortunate to be able to chat with Ted for a considerable time about his life in the wine world and his fascinating approach to viticulture. The flora and fauna on this property are interesting in themselves independently of their contribution to wine quality. But does all of this lead to better wines? It’s hard to say. But his Chardonnays and Pinot Noirs sourced from Sonoma and Anderson Valley are fresh and elegant with significant tannic structure and an electric minerality that sets them apart from more typical Sonoma Coast fruit.

After all this history, it was time to seek innovation. I wanted to focus on wines made under the banner of “natural” which is the source of a lot of the energy and novelty in the wine world today. Unsurprisingly, Berkeley supplied the venue. Donkey and Goat is a small urban winery in downtown Berkeley sourcing grapes from the Sierra Foothills, Napa, and Mendocino with a yearly case production of about 6000. Their approach to winemaking is low intervention, meaning unfined and unfiltered, using only native yeasts and no additives or additional enzymes in the winemaking process, allowing fermentations to take their own course when possible.  But they aren’t dogmatic about it. They use minimal sulfur when needed and will intervene if a ferment is going south. After all there is no point in wasting a good barrel of wine just to make a point. Their approach to winemaking is evidence that the natural wine movement is growing up, becoming more pragmatic and less ideological. Of course that means “natural wines” are not much different from traditional, artisanal wines which have long been made without much intervention from winemaking technology at least in good vintages.

What  is different about these winemakers flying the “natural” banner is that they aren’t afraid to be unconventional. And winemaker Jared Brandt is no exception. His Twinkle bottling is a light Mourvedre that hovers uncertainly between a Rosé and a California GSM, airy and bright but with a tannic foundation that provides textural contrast and structural integrity. And his “orange wine” called Stone Crusher (see my review here) is an hedonic assault on the senses, one of the most distinctive wines I have sampled .  The 2013 Syrah (Fernaughty Vineyard), (2015) Perli Vineyard Chardonnay, and a white Rhone blend called Eliza all had electric acidity and layered textures, taut, complex, and savory.

Thanks to a recommendation from Donkey and Goat’s tasting room manager, we headed up 101 to pay a visit to Healdsburg’s Idlewild Wines.  Like Donkey and Goat, they profess commitment to low intervention winemaking. But what is extraordinary is their commitment to making wine, not only from Italian varietals, but exclusively from varietals found in Piemonte. Arneis, Cortese, Dolcetto, Barbera,  and Nebbiolo, sourced from mature vines from a vineyard in the hills of central Mendocino Valley,  all were delicious and varietally correct albeit in a somewhat riper style than you would find in Italy. The Barbera was especially dense and fruit-forward; the Arneis surprisingly full bodied and luscious. But for sheer originality, Idlewild’s version of Cortese wins the prize. 25% of the grapes were fermented on the skins like a red wine and then left to macerate after fermentation producing a wine of extraordinary body and texture. But alas my heart was won by the Nebbiolo, because I’m always a sucker for Nebbiolo. Some very carefully handling of the grapes has produced a seductive, accessible wine with all the standard characteristics–rose, fennel, dried cherries, and tar–but without the mouth ripping tannins that require 15 years of bottle age to calm down.

With temperatures soaring alas we had to abandon wine tasting in the valley and escape to Bodega Bay in search of cool temperatures, oysters and crab, happily consumed under this jealous eye.

sonoma-bird

The New Sammy’s Cowboy Bistro: Mom and Pop Excellence

22 Thursday Jun 2017

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new sammysWe’re camped in Southern Oregon tasting wine but today the story is about food.

A few minutes north of Ashland on a quiet, semi-rural highway sparsely populated with lower middle class homes stands one of the most acclaimed restaurants you probably have never heard of—New Sammy’s Cowboy Bistro. The building looks like it could be a restaurant although the vegetable gardens surrounding the property suggest a cook on the premises.

At any rate, this small, low-key restaurant has been featured in many magazine lists of worthy foodie destinations and has been lauded by critics all over the country. It’s been operated by Vernon and Charlene Rollins since 1989.

Long story short, Vernon and Charlene met at Alice Waters’ Chez Panisse in 1978. Charlene was a cook and Vernon imported French wine. Shortly after marrying, they opened a restaurant in the boonies in a place called Booneville, two hours north of San Francisco, with the help of lots of high powered investors. For awhile due to their exquisite attention to detail and love of home-grown fresh ingredients, it was one of the hottest restaurants in the country, but they proceeded to run it into the ground due to bad management. It’s rumored that they hi-tailed it out of town in a borrowed car leaving investors and employees holding the bag. At any rate, after a year in France, they resurfaced in Talent, Oregon opening New Sammy’s Cowboy Bistro, named after their son Sammy and their desire to feed the cowboys living in the neighborhood.

They use the best organic, local ingredients, much of it grown on premises and the wine list was reported to be one of the best in the country a few years ago before they started selling it off. Even today the list is full of impressive wines from France, Italy and Spain at bargain prices. Premier Crus Burgundy for under $70 in a restaurant is unheard of these days but there were several on the menu.  The dining room is spacious but has only about 10 tables.new-sammys-inside The price of lunch is only $15 dollars. The menu included only 4 items one of which was unavailable. But the cooking is exquisite. Perfect ingredients prepared with the utmost attention to detail.

new-sammys-vegetable-stewA stew of various vegetables, black beans and polenta was so well balanced it felt weightless in the mouth. Despite the sheer number of ingredients each component was distinct and perfectly cooked. The burger made from grass fed beef topped with bacon, goat cheese, spinach and alioli was bursting with flavor.

This is the quintessential mom and pop business, purely dedicated to quality.

Alas the Rollin’s are well into their 70’s and announced their intention to sell the business late last year. So if you’re in this part of the country, check out this icon before it’s too late.

Time to Lose the Pre-Conceptions About Emerging U.S. Wine Regions

10 Wednesday May 2017

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us wine mapThis article speaks to the difficulties East coast wine regions have in getting wine consumers to take them seriously.

“The hardest thing for East Coast wineries is the general attitude toward their wine,” says Elizabeth Slater of In Short Direct Marketing, who works with wineries across the nation to improve their sales. “People don’t take wine from Virginia, North Carolina, or New Jersey seriously. They have a preconceived notion, just like they used to have about California, where California was no good next to French wine.”

The issue is not just with East coast wineries; wine regions in the Midwest and Mountain West face the same challenges. And it’s not just getting consumers to try the wine but also to taste with an open mind.

Slater adds that the difficulty can even go beyond getting people to try the wines. “One of the challenges they have is getting people to taste the wine as it is, rather than the way they expect it to be. People will taste a wine from Virginia and say, ‘oh it’s okay,’ when in actuality it’s really very good.”

It’s a new wine world out there. Technology and the expansion of our knowledge about growing grapes and making wine have dramatically improved quality even in locations that were previously considered marginal. More importantly, many of these new regions in the U.S. now have several decades of experience with matching the varietal to local conditions. The result is excellent wine from New York to Arizona and several states in between.

I travel around the country drinking wine and I’ve brought several samples from across the country to my blind tasting group of sophisticated, Southern California wine lovers. Invariably these select wines hold their own and sometimes outshine wines from classic regions around the world.

Have they reached the quality level of the finest wines of Bordeaux or Napa? No. The average wine from New York or Virginia is probably just a cut below the average California wine since many of these regions face extraordinary weather-related challenges and vintage variation can be extreme.

But there are gems to be found in Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, Virginia, Texas, North Carolina, and New York. (Idaho, Michigan, and New Jersey are on my radar) Extraordinary winemakers with talent and a dedication to quality who make distinctive wines. Although have to do your research to find them (which is true of any wine region) there is no longer reason to discount these regions or lower your expectations.

And they will continue to get better.

Napa Under the Radar

05 Wednesday Apr 2017

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napaNapa is known as the “Disneyland” of wine, where opulent tasting rooms in modern architectural marvels await busloads of tourists intent on swilling overpriced juice standing three deep at the bar. The reputation of being expensive and snobbish is inevitable and partly deserved.

If you’re a wine lover, it’s worth patronizing these places despite the expense and the crowds if only because many are icons that once and, in some cases, continue to set the standard for quality American wine. But once you tire of the glitz and glamour and do a little hunting you can find something quieter, more authentic,  offbeat, and artisanal.

Here’s a few I discovered on our recent stay:

First up is Burgess located a few miles up Howell Mountain. They’re not exactly small although, by Napa standards, their 17,000 case production is on the small side. And they’re not new; they been around since 1972. That’s in part what makes visiting their tasting room interesting. Their staff has experience and they know the ins and outs of Napa as a wine region. The conversation was intimate and informative and the wines are excellent. I especially enjoyed their Petite Sirah.

Holed up in a small industrial park southeast of the city, Holman Cellars is about as artisanal as you can get. This is one small winery that supports several labels. Winemakers Jason Holman, proprietor of Holman Cellars, and Kevin Cadle  of Cadle Family Winery share the space and help each other out by pooling resources and labor but offer distinctly different wine selections from their respective labels. When you make an appointment, one or the other will show you around and pour wines from both labels. Holman’s Uncharted line is described as “unusual varietals”, from “secluded vineyards”, and using “unconventional production techniques” all in small lots that add up to about 600 cases per year. In other words, you don’t know what you’ll get when you walk through the door. Kevin Cadle produces wine from grapes sourced from Chalk Hill, Knight’s Valley and Carneros, also in small lots adding up to about 400 cases. With these production levels, you won’t find these wines in Safeway.

From Cadle the 2015 Gewurztraminer was Alsatian in style and quite lovely. The Sangiovese was ripe yet still Tuscan-like as the grapes held on to the acidity that gives this Italian varietal its freshness. The Malbec from Knight’s Valley was uniquely earthy and also with robust acidity. These are terroir focused wines made in an old world style (at least as old-world as you can get with warm California sun.) From Holman Cellars, the Grenache Blanc was outstanding with lots of hazelnut and layered textures, the Bordeaux-style blend sourced from the relatively cool Coombsville region was floral and elegant, and the Petite Verdot was rich and structured. This is an interesting tasting experience and unusual in Napa. You see up close how a small, artisan winery can survive in Napa where land, space and grapes are enormously expensive.

maisonrySituated on the main drag in Yountville just down the street from the French Laundry is Ma(i)sonry, an art, design, and wine gallery housed in an historic building. The art on display is impressive and continually changing  with a curator on site to keep the collection up to date. But for wine lovers it offers the opportunity to taste the offerings of 10-15 small Napa producers who don’t have their own tasting facilities. We made an appointment to taste the Pahlmeyer wines, which are poured here. Pahlmeyer is too well-known to be under the radar as they make one of most highly touted Napa Valley Merlots.  But the best was yet to come. Our host was kind enough to let us taste the Sauterne-style. late harvest wine from R.H. Harrison. That is what sold me on this venue. The wine is gorgeous with sumptuous apricot cosseting buttered almond aromas. Pear flavors emerge on the palate as well giving way to a candied citrus finish, pure, clean with a texture like satin and great length and life .

R.H. Harrison, for many years a winemaker at Beringer, started his own winery in 2006 to specialize in this delectable treat. His entire production is focused on botrytized, late harvest wines, a perilous adventure as he depends on nature to develop the botrytis spores each year. Sometimes it happens; sometimes it doesn’t, and even when it happens he has to harvest the grapes before the birds get them.

I doubt I would have discovered R.H. Harrison if not for the venue at Ma(i)sonry. What other gems lurk on their tasting menu? Only another visit will tell. The rooms have the feel of a well appointed living space and the courtyard is enticing when the weather is good.

corisonLastly, it’s odd to refer to Cathy Corison as under the radar; among insider’s she’s anything but, having won several awards for her distinctive wines. However, to the larger public she may be little known since she produces only about 2500 cases per year. Corison’s approach to winemaking exemplifies what Napa Cabernet used to be before the trend toward ripeness and high alcohol took hold. Her wines are restrained yet taut and elegant with savory herbal notes complementing the fruit and plenty of fresh acidity. The staff is experienced and knowledgeable and the tasting flight often includes a wine from their library. We were treated to their 1999 Napa Cabernet, one of the finest wines I’ve tasted all year. Putting library wines on the tasting flight is a sign of quality and care; it demonstrates the winery’s commitment to showing their wines when they are at their peak. Since these wines are inherently rare it also shows a winery not interested in entertaining the hordes. The tasting room is comfortable but decidedly unglamorous since it occupies one corner of the barrel room. Best of all, there is no room for limos in the parking lot and not a faux Romanesque statue in sight.

This is artisan winemaking at it’s best and a great place to forget you are visiting the “Disneyland of wine”.

If you’ve been avoiding Napa because of the crowds and the hype just do a bit of research and look for unusual experiences. The expense unfortunately is unavoidable but the experience can be worth every penny.

Chile Obsession? Go to New Mexico

01 Wednesday Feb 2017

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ristrasI must confess, I love Mexican food, even the cheap stuff, because there is nothing finer than rich, earthy, red chile sauce. And so, for me, traveling to New Mexico is like a pilgrimage because in New Mexico “food” and “chile” are synonyms and “red or green?” is an existential question. (It doesn’t hurt that they’re making some good wine in New Mexico as well.)

New Mexico is after all the home of the renowned Hatch chiles. I’m not enough of an expert to know if Hatch chilies are better than other chilies, but they have a bright vegetal flavor and an outsized reputation and can so many people be wrong? Well yes, popular opinion is often dead wrong, but anyway when something is an obsession, the obsessed usually learn to get it right. So if you’re into chilies go to New Mexico.

To be honest, New Mexican cuisine is really similar to other Mexican border cuisines but we’re talking about food here where minor differences make all the difference. And there are some unique characteristics to New Mexican food.

First, if you can’t decide between red or green chile on your plate ask for Christmas and you’ll get both. In California you would get strange looks. In  New Mexico they understand tragic choices.

Second, if you love red chile sauce there is nothing finer than Carne Adovada, chunks of tender pork swimming in a deep red, chile-based stew, not to be confused with Adobada which is  a similar stew found elsewhere but served with various cuts of meatcarne-adovada

Stuffed-sopapillaThen there are the sopapillas, rolled dough cut into triangles and deep fried so they puff up like “little pillows”, essentially a fry bread. They are ubiquitous in New Mexico often drizzled with honey for dessert. But really the best way eat them is, of course, stuffed with Carne Adovada.

The enchiladas in New Mexico are typically stacked instead of rolled, and smothered in chile sauce and cheese so all the ingredients meld into a glorious, hot mess. And you can get them with blue corn tortillas which, in addition to being pretty, have a sweeter taste.

As you might imagine in a cuisine based on chilies, their Chile Rellenos are a specialty. They are often served without sauce so the vegetal crunch of the chile becomes a prominent part of the dish.

And Green Chile Stew, distinct from Chile Verde in that it typically does not include tomatillos but often has potatoes in it, will replace chicken soup as an all purpose remedy for colds, bad weather, and hangovers.

But the best thing about New Mexico is that it’s not Texas. In Tex-Mex cuisine, everything is doused with sour cream, infused with cumin, with sauces despoiled by  tomatoes and meat sludge, and queso that tastes like Velveeta.

Speaking of Hatch and meat, chilies are not the only thing they do well. That would be the chile-cheese burger at Sparky’s, a barbecue joint serving the best burger I’ve had in some time.

If you’re heading to New Mexico this is where you find the good stuff:

For Sopapillas stuffed with Carne Adovada try Mary and Titos in Albuquerque or Nellie’s in Las Cruces.

chopes-rellenosFor Chile Rellenos, it’s Chopes, a mom-and-pop restaurant about 20 miles south of Las Cruces. But start the meal with their outstanding Chile con Queso, basically a green chile stew without the meat and with lots of melted cheese. They also feature the best salsa around.

And for Green Chile Stew I enjoyed the version at Albuquerque’s Pueblo Harvest Café at the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center.

Should you want to take a break from traditional, low budget, New Mexican cuisine and try something a bit more upscale, Albuquerque’s  Farm and Table does a nice job with local ingredients.

New Mexico’s landscapes are magical and their wine is improving but the main attraction is red chile sauce.

Wine in the Land of Enchantment

05 Thursday Jan 2017

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Pockets of brilliance and lots of mediocrity sums up my assessment of New Mexico wines.

It will probably come as a surprise to learn that New Mexico is the oldest wine region in what is now the U.S. When Spanish conquistadors moved north out of Mexico in the 17th Century, Spanish priests followed in their wake bringing vines from Europe to provide wine for communion. The first vineyards, likely planted with the Mission grape, were established in 1629. The wine industry continued to grow even as the Spanish were thrown out and Mexico gained independence, producing 1 million gallons of wine in 1884. But not long after New Mexico became the 47th state in the U.S., prohibition devastated the wine industry and it remained dormant until La Viña Winery (still in operation) began planting French varietals in 1977. Today, New Mexico’s wine region is growing rapidly with 44 wineries in operation. It has the sun to ripen grapes and soils conducive to making wines with complexity and finesse. What it needs is a broader, sustained commitment to quality and good luck from the weather Gods especially in winter.

Vintners in New Mexico have some advantages but face unique challenges. Although most of the grapes are grown in the southern part of the state, especially near Deming where winters are relatively mild, there are some hardy vineyards in the north near Albuquerque, Santa Fe, Taos, and Alamogordo that manage to survive frigid winter temperatures, at least in most vintages. Summer days are, of course, very hot but cool nights slow down the ripening process allowing flavor development and keeping acidity in the grapes. Disease and insect pressure tend to be low because of the dry climate. The viticultural challenges are late frosts and cold winters that will destroy vines not suited for the climate or planted in the wrong location. In some of the higher elevation vineyards, bud break happens the last week of April and harvest begins the last week in August. This is a short, hot growing season that requires skillful management in the vineyard to develop flavor before the sugars get too high.new-mexico-3

The cultural challenges are significant as well. The local population enjoys sweet wines and many tasting rooms feature them, sometimes pouring them first before getting to the dry wines. That is a boon for local traffic and sweeter wines play nicely with their chile-based local cuisine. But for wine lovers used to dry wines, it takes some getting used to, especially because tasting sweet wines first in a tasting menu will cause the dry wines to taste tart and thin in comparison. This is a dilemma for wineries. Some choose to satisfy local tastes; others want to compete for wine lovers more accustomed to drier styles. Some try to do both with varying degrees of success. One wine bar that offers tastings of New Mexican wine serves their pours in double tequila shot glasses—not so good for concentrating aromas. So there are some growing pains here.

Nevertheless, they have the soil and the climate to make fine wines and there is remarkably high quality among the best producers.

The story of New Mexican wine cannot be told without reference to Gruet, the sparkling wine producer. In the early 1980’s Champagne vigneron Gilbert Gruet decided to expand into the new world and settled on land south of Albuquerque as the place to make sparkling wine in the French style. They have since grown to achieve nationwide distribution. In 2014, their production was reported to be 125,000 cases.  Gruet sparkling wine is a great bargain at the low end with some bottles selling for around $12.  But their pricier, premium sparklers are excellent as well if you’re  looking for a celebration wine. If you visit their tasting room, be sure to taste their premium menu—it won’t disappoint. Their non-vintage Sauvage (Brut nature) stood out. It was crisp and taut with abundant apple, lemon, and brioche flavors and a long, chalky finish. However, success brings its own challenges. Their national distribution is putting pressure on their supply of New Mexican grapes especially in challenging vintages. They now import some grapes from Washington, Colorado and California to fill their fermenters although they intend to bring more New Mexican vineyards online to keep up with demand. Now in partnership with the large, Washington-based wine company Precept, with growth and reputation comes the inevitable corporate-style tasting room currently undergoing some remodeling. Will high-yield viticultural and bottom line corner cutting follow? Time will tell but this is a remarkable success story.

The other large winery in the state is St. Clair. A significant portion of their production is sold out of their bistros in Las Cruces, Albuquerque, and Farmington. They serve a full line up of whites and reds with several price tiers. I can’t comment on their food and their bistros are attractive but their wines were uneven. Their Lescombes line of more pricey limited release wines were mostly competent (except for a dreadful Syrah) but the lower priced reds left much to be desired. Among whites the Chenin Blanc stood out as interesting and refreshing.

Happily, artisan winemaking is alive and well in New Mexico. While too many wineries are focused on becoming tourist destinations and are content to pour wine of average quality or worse we found some real gems that would be standouts anyplace.

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Casa Rondeña

Casa Rondeña, located on beautiful grounds not far from downtown Albuquerque, has been in business since 1995, and that experience shows. Inspired by the art and architecture of Spain, winemaker/owner John Calvin makes wines of structure and finesse.  Red wines are their specialty, especially the Bordeaux varietals and Syrah which are offered as blends as well as stand-along varietals. Here is my review of their Cabernet Franc and the blends are equally outstanding.

Milagro Vineyards also excels. This is a small operation producing only around 2000 cases in good vintages with all grapes coming from vineyards owned or controlled by winemaker/owner Rick Hobson. Just a few minutes of conversation with him shows he cares little for big profits, big crowds or marketing hype. It’s all about quality which shows up in every bottle. These are old world-style wines with great elegance and vitality. The reds are held in neutral oak for at least two years before release, an expensive proposition for small wineries, but necessary in order to develop complexity and texture. Here is my review of his Zinfandel.

These two wineries were among the most impressive we encountered this year.

In Southern New Mexico, the area around Las Cruces is developing into a center for tasting rooms and wineries. Winemaking here is less developed than in the North, perhaps due to the wealthier clientele in Albuquerque, but these wineries around Las Cruces show considerable promise. We enjoyed the Cabernet Sauvignon and Tempranillo from Amaro Winery, an urban winery in Las Cruces. They also make a good Refosco, an Italian varietal that gets some attention in New Mexico. But perhaps the best wine from the Las Cruces area was an orange wine, called Queue Tendre, from Rio Grande Winery. An orange wine is made from white-skinned grapes that are left on the skins and seeds to extract some color and flavor and then are aged in oak. Winemaker Gordon Steel doesn’t publish the varietals that make up this wine but it is one of the better orange wines I’ve tasted. With 3% residual sugar it has plenty of sweetness but the tannins from the extraction give this wine a firm texture and racy acidity balances the fruit. The lemon oil aroma was simply beautiful. And near the Texas border La Viña Winery, the oldest, continuously operated winery in the state, makes simple, earthy wines, soul-stirring and satisfying. Their pretty, light-bodied Sangiovese won me over.

This is a region still finding its way seeking the right balance of entertainment venues and wine quality, goals which are not always in alignment. The reds are more highly developed than the whites. But as Rick Hobson told me “just about anything will grow here.” I would like to have a better handle on what is distinctive about New Mexican terroir. But it’s still too early in the game to have distinctive characteristics emerging consistently. “I don’t think we know yet what our terroir is,” said Hobson. Generally, varietals that ripen quickly and withstand extreme temperatures will do well. But they’re still sorting out how soil characteristics and clonal selection interact with climate. It should also be noted that many wineries are serving wines made from non-vinifera varieties that are more cold tolerant than our familiar vinifera varieties. I have yet to develop an appreciation of these wines but these experiments are exciting because, if successful, they greatly expand the possibilities for New Mexican vintners.

As with all emerging wine regions, to reach their potential there must be a critical mass of producers dedicated to, not just making decent wine to sell, but to making the best wine they can. New Mexico is approaching that critical mass. As noted, the challenge is cold winter temperatures. Many vineyards are still recovering from the 2011 winter that destroyed vines and harmed yields.

We were able to taste wines from only about half the wineries in the state. I suspect there are more gems out there to be discovered in our next visit.

Cool Climate Class: The Wine and Food of the Finger Lakes

26 Wednesday Oct 2016

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finger-lakesA Raft of Riesling

Cool climate wine regions are always interesting. Because they cannot rely on consistent sun and warmth to sufficiently ripen grapes, every vintage is different, theories abound on how to meet nature’s challenges, and ingenuity and experimentation are existential requirements. There is also a steep learning curve for novice producers and substantial quality variation. The Finger Lakes in New York are no exception. In our intensive, month-long exploration we found a fascinating region with rapidly improving quality but some inconsistency as well.

Although they’ve been making wine for many decades, until the mid-20th century, the Finger Lakes wine business was built on cheap, large production, jug wines, invariably sweet and made from hardy native varieties such as Catawba and Concord. But in the mid-1950’s, pioneers influenced by the Ukrainian immigrant Dr. Konstantin Frank began to believe vitis vinifera could be grown here—after all Germany does it and that’s no temperate winter climate. Thus began the long process of becoming a world-class wine region. It’s the depth of the lakes, among the deepest in North America, along with a diverse mix of soils that makes this a viable wine region. Seneca, Cayuga, and Keuka Lakes are deep enough to resist freezing in the winter. The relative warmth of the lake water moderates the temperatures of the land around their perimeter allowing vines planted in the right locations to survive frigid conditions. In the summer the lake effect moderates temperatures when the heat spikes.

Because many varietals will neither survive harsh winters nor ripen during a short growing season, cool climate regions have a limited number of varietals to choose from and will often specialize in one grape. Like Germany, the Finger Lakes are committed to Riesling, because it is suited to cold winters and short summers. Thanks to some dedicated growers and producers who care about quality, their Riesling is thriving. Racy and lively, precisely etched with great clarity, most display a thrilling mineral core and some manage substantial fruit expression as well. They range from bone dry to “Auslese” or “Beerenauslese” sweet and everything in between.

The secret to Riesling quality in the Finger Lakes (as in Germany) is many passes through the vineyard. Harvest the first-ripened bunches early in the harvest season. Then send your crews into the vineyards again to pick off later ripening grapes with more fully developed flavors. Rinse and repeat as long as the weather permits, giving wineries a variety of sweetness levels and flavor profiles to work with. This is time consuming, expensive, and perilous given the uncertainties of fall weather but that is what it takes to create quality.

With the better tasting flights featuring the full gamut of Riesling expression, the Finger Lakes can now claim to compete in quality with Oregon and Washington State Riesling if not Germany. Finger Lakes Riesling has less of the peach and apricot expression produced by the warmer sites in Washington State, instead showing more searing minerality and citrus, especially lime. But only the very best approach German Riesling’s combination of strength, richness, and delicacy.

Among the best dry Rieslings we tasted were Kemmeter Wines Seneca Lake 2015 , Boundary Breaks 2014 #239, Red Knewt’s The Knoll 2014, and Hermann J. Wiemer HJW Vineyard 2014 . (Here are my reviews of Kemmeter and Boundary Breaks) Bellwether and Bloomer Creek also stood out for their quality as well as experimental approach to Riesling taking it in new directions using native yeasts, very slow fermentations and extended lees contact.

On the sweeter side, once again Kemmeter’s Sheldrake Point Vineyard was impressive as was Fox Run’s Lake Dana 2012 (Reviews are forthcoming). But the knockout was Sheldrake Point’s 2014 Wild Ferment Ice Wine. Gorgeous apricot and honey with an evolution on the palate from viscous entre to an ethereal, lifted finish, this was one of the better wines I’ve tasted this year. No one at the winery seems to know why this vintage was so superior. Getting just the right amount and quality of botrytis (a form of fungus that can give wines a honeyed, apricot flavor) is essential but how you encourage that is a mystery. They’ve tried to duplicate it to no avail. It’s nature’s mysterious gift but keep an eye out for the next bestowal.

Gewurztraminer also grows well here for the wineries who give it attention and don’t mind its finicky nature. Keuka Lakes’ version is lovely. Many wineries including Keuka Lakes make an Alsatian-influenced, dry style Gewurztraminer that is captivating. The Chardonnay tends to be average throughout the region, Gruner Veltliner, Pinot Gris and Pinot Blanc are planted as well but I found them undistinguished.

Red varietals are another story. For wineries who make the commitment, Pinot Noir is interesting and expressive although invariably lean when compared to California or even Oregon. Ravines (my review here),  Heart and Hands (review forthcoming), and the Damiani Reserve level were top notch.  Finger Lakes Pinot Noir tends to be herbal with some spice notes such as clove,  but seldom show the earthiness of Burgundy, the crushed rock aromas of Oregon’s Willamette Valley, or the vanilla of the robust California versions.  With colder winters and a shorter growing season than Washington, Oregon or Burgundy, Pinot Noir will always be a dicey proposition but its allure has captured the imaginations of many of the highest quality producers, and I expect constant improvement as producers learn to adapt to the unique conditions here.

Cabernet Franc, easier to ripen than Cabernet Sauvignon, is common but undistinguished except from a few producers in the best vintages. Offerings from Ravines, Red Newt and Domaine Le Seurre stood out. Wineries who take the utmost care can make acceptable Bordeaux-style blends using Merlot, Cab Franc, and what small quantity of Cabernet Sauvignon they can get ripe. But for red wines, especially, the gap between the best and the rest is enormous. Aside from Pinot Noir, I should mention two red wines I found especially interesting:  Bloomer Creek’s Bordeaux Blend called White Horse and Standing Stone’s Reserve Saperavi.

Bloomer Creek’s line up is as close as you can get to a Finger Lakes “natural wine”. Winemaker Kim Engle uses some sulfur dioxide treatments, a necessity in this region, but prefers to allow fermentations to do their thing without a lot of intervention. The results are unique wines unlike any others I tasted. (My White Horse review is here)They are not for everyone but if you’re interested in new approaches to winemaking in the region, Bloomer Creek is a must stop. But the experiment with Saperavi may be the most promising. Saperavi is a varietal indigenous to Georgia (in Eastern Europe) and does very well in cold weather so some wineries in FLX are experimenting with it. Standing Stone and McGregor Vineyards (whose version called Black Russian is blended with Serekseya)are the most prominent. I found the elegance of the Standing Stone version preferable (my review is here) but both are worth seeking out. There are promising experiments with Lemberger (AKA Blaufrankisch in Austria and Germany) and French/American hybrids such as Chancellor all of which may pay off as wineries continue the long, empirically-driven process of discovering what works.

Certainly with the cool weather whites, but even with regard to some reds, the Finger Lakes region is just beginning to realize its potential, and there is a critical mass of producers who are willing to sacrifice short-term profit in order to realize their goal of making world-class wines. The Rieslings have already arrived, Gewurztraminer is close, the reds  still a dream but one that is becoming more vivid as time goes on. When visiting, keep in mind that vintage variation is substantial. Consistency from year to year cannot be expected; the variation is part of what makes the region captivating.

The only reservation I have is that emerging wine regions benefit greatly from having a large city nearby within driving distance for a day trip. The Willamette Valley has Portland; Hill Country, Texas has Austin and San Antonio; Virginia has Washington D.C. The Finger Lakes have both Syracuse and Rochester nearby but these two cities are considerably smaller and less affluent than the others. The five-hour drive from New York City is too long for a day trip although the city remains a great market for restaurant and wine shop sales. The lack of affluent, local tourists limits the prices they can charge at the winery (as well as the capital to invest in quality wine). But for wine lovers there is a silver lining to this cost structure. Tastings at the winery can be had for a nominal fee (often as low as $3) and first-rate bottles of their higher production wines are often well under $20.

The Food

As for the regional foods in this part of New York, the most prominent is seldom found in restaurants but is ubiquitous at cookouts and state fairs. That would be Cornell chicken,  a must try for barbecue fans seeking an alternative to thick, sweet, tomato-based sauces. It’s usually served with salt potatoes, a product of Syracuse that will satisfy spud-seekers everywhere. (See my discussion and recipes for both dishes).

When winetasting in the region you will not go hungry. Many of the wineries are serious about their food offerings and the small towns and cities that dot the region have thriving foodie cultures that will keep taste buds interested.

For the Fish Fry, another Finger Lakes tradition, seek out Doug’s Fish Fry in Skaneateles. When winetasting on the West side of Seneca Lake, check out FLX Weinery in Dundee for creative gourmet sausages, burgers, and hot dogs. And I couldn’t resist a trip to Rochester to sample the garbage plate—a melange of sausage, home fries, macaroni salad and meat sauce best sampled at 2:00 A.M. after an extended bender.

But the restaurant which I think best captures the taste of the Finger Lakes is Danos on the East side of Seneca Lake. This region had a lot of Germanic influence long before Riesling arrived. Now that they have adopted the principle grape of Germany and Austria, German/Austrian cuisine is a natural and Danos does it right, serving some of the dishes Heuriger style. (A Heuriger is a wine tavern where new wines are served in mugs and the food is served family style). The spreads and salads were exquisite, the smoked pork, sausage and sauerkraut memorable, the wine list interesting and filled out with plenty of local favorites.

There are also a variety of outstanding cheesemakers, distilleries, and breweries in the region, along with ubiquitous farm stands with seasonal fresh vegetables on almost every major road.fingerlakes-2

And I should mention that this region is drop dead gorgeous. Because the wineries are situated along the perimeter of the lakes, many offer beautiful lakeside views and the region is dotted with small farms and charming towns giving the region a bucolic atmosphere.

Fans of Riesling should be paying attention to this region. And if you’re not a fan you should be.

The Taste of the Finger Lakes: Cornell Chicken with Salt Potatoes

29 Thursday Sep 2016

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cornell-chickenOne of the paradoxes of seeking out traditional regional foods is that restaurants often don’t serve them. If a dish has been around a long time and it’s prepared often at home, the locals prefer something more trendy when they go out to a restaurant. Such is the case with Cornell chicken, a style of BBQ chicken developed at Cornell University in the 50’s. It’s standard fare at state fairs, little league games, and home barbecues in central New York, but finding a restaurant that serves it would require a lengthy car trip.

So I made it myself along with another dish endemic to these environs—Syracuse salt potatoes.

Cornell chicken was developed by food scientist Dr. Robert Baker, who is also responsible for chicken nuggets and poultry hot dogs. It’s a simple, very effective marinade and basting sauce that gives the chicken a briny flavor with a subtle vinegar essence that penetrates below the meat’s surface. If you’re not a fan of sticky sweet gloopy barbecue sauce, this recipe is for you.

Salt potatoes are another simple, effective recipe that originated in the Finger Lakes. Syracuse has a long history of producing salt the traditional way. Brine from salt springs was placed in large trays and heated. When the water evaporated, the salt residue was harvested and packaged. In the 1800’s salt miners would bring potatoes to work and boil them in the brine for their lunch.

Today 5 lb. bags of small white potatoes with packages of salt included are sold in grocery stores here, and salt potatoes are a staple at cook outs and clambakes. Use a ratio of one cup of salt to six cups of boiling water and stir until salt is dissolved . Boil the potatoes with skins on until a knife slips easily into and out of the potato. Drain and return the potatoes to the pot. Add butter according to preference and gently stir until the potatoes are coated. Then serve. These potatoes have a wonderful creamy texture with a salty crust on the skins.

 

Bob Baker’s Cornell Chicken Recipe

Makes enough marinade for 2 chickens, halved, or cut up

1 egg

1 cup cooking oil

2 cups cider vinegar

3 tablespoons salt (I used 2 tablespoons)

1 tablespoon poultry seasoning

½ teaspoon pepper

1. Beat the egg, then add the oil and beat again forming an emulsion similar to mayonnaise.

2. Add vinegar, salt, poultry seasoning and pepper and stir until well mixed

3.  Place chicken in a container suitable for a marinade (I use freezer bags) add marinade and marinate for 24 hrs. if you have the time.

4. Grill over indirect heat at 325 degrees turning the meat several times and brushing with the marinade.

5. When the dark meat reaches 155 degrees, grill over direct heat to crisp the skin.

6. Remove from the grill and serve when the dark and white meat reaches 165 degrees.