Finger Lakes - Tasting Notes

These are the tasting notes of wines I tasted for an article on the Finger Lakes wine region. The selection of Rieslings was determined on what I was able to find either in retail stores in Manhattan or online. Vintage New York, a store that carries wines exclusively from New York State, is a particular good source (conveniently featuring a bar where you can taste the wines first). Most wineries also ship directly to most US states. With two exceptions, all wines were from the 2006 vintage. Most Rieslings from the Finger Lakes are still rather modestly priced at $13-20. Some wineries offer Reserve bottlings or even dessert wines in Beerenauslese-style. Production volume is generally low and therefore wines are often quickly sold out.

Keuka Lake

Dr. Konstantin Frank Riesling Dry 2006

From the Finger Lakes' most well-known winery one would expect a solid, no-doubt wine that leaves no question unanswered. Wrong. The 2006 Dry Riesling is quite elusive. The wine came straight out of the fridge, will say it was fairly cold. My tasting notes read as following: "Pale lemon color. Very mineral aromas, grapefruit and pear. Bone dry, high acidity, med alc, light body. The palate is a bit thin, there is citrus fruit, again minerals, and a light floral note, all very pleasing and in perfect harmony, were it not for the lack of a mid-palate. The wine gives a first pleasant impression but then quickly peters out without leaving much of a trace." The picture was a bit different after the wine had some time to warm up and breathe in the glass. Serving white wines not too cold and maybe even decanting them if they are still very young helps to rid them of their youthful taciturnity. The nose hadn't changed much, but on the palate it had definitely gained some weight and length as well. The gap in the mid-palate had been filled with more earthy flavors of hay and wet stone. Drink now (after decanting) or keep for 5-8 years.

Heron Hill Riesling Semi-Dry 2006

Aromas of grapefruit and white peach with and intriguing flinty whiff. A well balanced off-dry wine. High acidity and residual sugar provide a solid foundation on which grapefruit and mineral notes play a harmonic duo through a medium long length of pure Riesling pleasure. At $13 an excellent value! Drink now or keep 5-7 years.

Keuka Lake Vineyards Riesling Reserve 2006

Medium lemon color. Pronounced aromas of elder flower, fermented cabbage, hay and peach. Dry, med(+) acidity, light body. Medium intensity of peach, elder flower and citrus. Fairly long length with a pepper finish. Alsatian in style, but with less alcohol. Nice complexity of aromas and flavors. Drink now or keep 5-7 years.

Ravines Wine Cellars Dry Riesling 2006

Pale straw color. Medium intensity of pear aromas, slightly creamy, with a mineral overtone. Dry, with high acidity. Medium body and alcohol. Low fruit intensity on the palate, which is dominated by the acidity and, to a certain degree, by some nice minerality. A bit disappointing after the more promising nose. As nice as the minerality aspect is, it lacks structure to hold the fruit through the mid-palate, resulting in a relatively shorth length with a slightly grassy finish. However, the high acidity and rather austere mineral character make it a very good partner for all kinds of fish. It also handled a Mexican dish with hot salsa surprisingly well. Drink now or within the next 2-3 years.

Seneca Lake

Anthony Road Semi-Dry Riesling 2006

Pale lemon color. Aromas of orange flowers, peach, honey and hay. Off-dry. Medium alcohol and body. Medium(+) acidity. Medium intensity stone fruit, hay and smoke. Medium(+) length. Interesting sweet-smokey flavours. There is a distinct herbal/hay character to it. Very well balanced with a smooth mouthfeel. Rather than shiny fruit it displays more sombre flavors, warm summer afternoons in a field, straw, hay, stones heated up by the August sun. The slight sweetness plays nicely with the idea of a mellow late afternoon sun. Once it has warmed up in the glass the peach character becomes more prominent. Drink now or keep 3-5 years.

Atwater Dry Riesling 2006

Pale lemon color. Slightly floral nose with a medium intensity of citrus fruit, jammy apricot and minerals. Slightly off-dry on the palate, but showing high acidity. The alcohol is on a pleasant medium level. The flavor structure is fairly limited, though: citrus fruit and minerality, with a bit of a creamy mouthfeel. Unfortunately, the length is fairly short. Pleasant, but it has a short length. The crisp acidity, however, makes this Riesling a good choice as a food wine to go with cream-based sauces or seafood.

Miles Wine Cellar Riesling 2004

Medium lemon color. The nose is full with apricot aroma but shows already nice development with a whiff of honey. The palate is off-dry, with a soft mouthfeel nicely balanced by medium(+) acidity. The alcohol is barely noticeable, making it a light but substantial wine. Lot's of stone fruit flavors, apricot in particular. There is still a good deal of malic acid left, that Granny Smith tartness, which keeps the apricot from being plump. Hints of flint in the finish of a fairly long length. It has developed nicely over the last 3 years and it still has a lot in store to develop even further over the next 5 years.

Red Newt Dry Riesling 2006

Pale lemon color. Grassy, green apple aromas, lots of citrus and moist stone. Hints of artichoke. Dry on the palate with a crisp acidity, which is so sharp that it reminds me of Chablis. Pleasantly light body. Citrus flavors dominate only slightly over the strongly mineral character of the wine. Shy flavors of white peach. This is a very focused, finely chiseled wine, nothing for the lovers of supple fruit but a delight for those who enjoy wines with high acidity and minerality. Medium length with an unexpected soft finish. Not a wine to age for a very long time but it will be interesting how its focused structure will develop over the next 3-5 years. Very good food wine, too.

Seventy Seven Days Riesling 2005

Medium lemon color. Youthful nose with a medium intensity of tropical fruits and minerality. Dry, med acid, med body and alcohol. Rather low intensity of lemon, more mineral and old wood flavors. Medium length. A flawless wine, albeit not very complex and rather low on fruit. If the minerality would be more intense to cover the lack of mid-palate the missing fruit wouldn't be as obvious. For the price one should expect a little more, though. Not just a fancy label. Drink now as the lack of fruit does not promise much improvement over time in the bottle.

Shaw Vineyard Riesling 2005

I immediately was taken by the aromas of this Riesling. Unusually perfumed, very flowery and fragrant, but it also had a nice aroma of moist rock and some citrus fruit. It was dry on the palate, with medium acidity and medium alcohol. I got mostly white peach, along with hints of white pepper. Although nice and balanced the palate didn't quite keep up with the promising aromas, though. It seemed a bit shy in the mouth. The minerality which I had registered on the nose did not show on the palate. Nevertheless a pleasant and well-balanced wine. Medium length. Drink within the next 2-3 years.

Standing Stone Riesling Off-dry 2006

Aromas of ripe peach, blossoms and spices. Dry. Medium(+) alcohol. Medium body and medium(+) acidity. Pear and wet stone on the palate. The nose, with its heavy scent of flower blossoms, is quite complex, the palate less so but still harmonious and balanced. Although the wine is labeled off-dry it tasted completely dry due to its acidity level. Drink within 3-5 years.

Hermann J. Wiemer Riesling Dry 2006

Medium lemon color. Flowery, lemon and apricot aromas. Dry. Medium(+) acidity. Medium body with well-integrated alcohol. Smoky apple flavors with some minerality, elegant. Medium(+) length. This is not a light Mosel-style Riesling. It has quite a bit of weight, enough to smoothen salty speck and tame a pungent blue cheese. Drink now or keep 10-12 years.

Hermann J. Wiemer Riesling Semi-Dry 2006

Medium lemon color. Fruity aromas of citrus, pear and peach with hints of flint. Sweet palate, high acidity. Medium, soft body with medium alcohol. Spicy pineapple, lemon and minerality on the palate. Medium to long length with a spicy finish. This is a Spätlese style wine, well balanced with bright acidity. I recommend to let the wine warm up and breathe for 15 minutes if it comes straight out the fridge. Drink now or keep 7-10 years.

Cayuga Lake

Hosmer Winery Dry Riesling 2006

Pale lemon color. Youthful nose with a light intensity of grapefruit and green pear aromas. Hints of smoke and alcohol. Overall a bit muted with the fruit barely shining through. Dry on the palate with medium-crisp acidity. Medium alcohol and body. Low fruit intensity, citrus flavors. Short length with a slightly alcoholic finish. A simple wine but its crisp acidity makes it a good partner for chicken, turkey or liver pate. Drink now.

Lamoreaux Landing Dry Riesling 2006

The Lamoreaux Landing Riesling came highly recommended by a friend of mine who had tasted the 2005 vintage at the winery. The wine is indeed flattering one's nose: aromas of pear, tropical fruit, floral notes and hints of cream. It's dry on the palate and has a medium body with a rather soft mouthfeel. More spicy fruit flavors of ripe peach on the palate. Just when I thought the wine would be all too round and cozy it finished off with hints of grapefruit bitterness. In the cae of the Dry Riesling winemaker Mark Wagner uses cultured yeasts to intensify the fruit character. He succeeded; the fruit aroma is enticing, but perhaps at the cost of a wine that could be more expressive of the vineyard. There is hope, however, that over time the all too tropical notes will fade. Drink within the next 3-5 years.

Treleaven Dry Riesling 2006

Pale straw color. Youthful nose with a medium intensity of minerality and grapefruit. Dry. Medium(+) acidity. Low alcohol, light body. The flavors reflect the aromas: citrus fruit and stone. This is a very linear wine with strong focus on minerality and citrus fruit, the high acidity adding to the razor-sharp impression. Very refreshing wine, very good for fish or chicken dishes with creamy sauces. Drink now or keep 3-5 years.

Other

Rivendell Dry Riesling 2006

The Rivendell winery is situated in the Hudson Valley, but the grapes for its Riesling are grown in the Finger Lakes.

Pale lemon color. Youthful nose with a very Sauvignon Blanc aroma of elderflower and grapefruit, with citrus notes and hints of flint. Dry, high acidity. Medium body and alcohol. Medium intensity of grapefruit and white pepper. Medium length with a nice bittersweet finish. A very good wine, but the question remains of how much a Riesling should resemble a Sauvignon Blanc.

Conclusion

Based on the 2006 vintage the Finger Lakes Rieslings consistently offer good quality. Noticeable are particularly high acidity levels paired with a good amount of minerality in most of the tasted wines. Overall Finger Lakes Rieslings are very refreshing with a fruit intensity rather on a medium level.

Overall the quality of the wines was good. None were outstanding, but there was also no wine of poor quality. Quite a few showed a fine mineral character, often with bright acidity. More austere versions like the Ravines reminded me of an Austrian Riesling, but at a much lower price level. The wines of Wiemer were good to very good, but 2006 does not show the complexity of 2003 yet. The same is valid for Konstantin Frank.