Wine & Spirits - August 2012 - (Page 50)

and fresh, lemony reﬁnement. Chill it for sashimi. Michael Skurnik Wines, Syosset, NY 183520 | Llopart $ 2008 Cava Brut Rosé Reserva (Best Buy) A blend of monastrell, garnacha and pinot noir, this spicy rosé lasts with a red berry character. Juicy and ﬁrm, it has the feel of a light red wine, with enough ﬂavor depth to accompany a meaty paella. Tempranillo Inc., New Rochelle, NY 182953 YEAR’S BEST US RIESLING Our blind panels tasted 145 new-release US rieslings over the past 12 months. Our critics rated 21 as exceptional (90+) and 10 as Best Buys. Joshua Greene reviews wines from California; Patrick Comiskey reviews wines from Idaho, New York, Oregon and Washington. Find a complete list of wines tasted and all reviews at wineandspiritsmagazine.com. | Ramon Canals Canals $ Cava Rosat Reserva Brut Nature (Best Buy) This pale ruby sparkler smells like a red wine, with scents of herbs and raspberries. The tart ﬁnish is round and weighty, a full-bodied Cava to serve with braised game birds. South River Imports, Edgewater, MD 183562 CALIFORNIA 417994 | Pey-Marin $ | Segura Viudas $ Cava Aria Brut Pinot Noir (Best Buy) A red-fruited Cava with clean scents of raspberries, this is gentle and peppery, ready to chill for seafood paella. Freixenet USA, Sonoma, CA 183530 2010 Marin County The Shell Mound Riesling With its bosky apple orchard scent and crisp apple skin ﬂavors, this is assertively malic, a halbtrocken style with mouthwatering acidity that lasts. Crisp, clean and ready for oysters. (400 cases) PeyMarin Vineyards, San Anselmo, CA 417834 tage in the Finger Lakes, this generous riesling leads with scents of pear and caramel, adorned with just a hint of herb. The ﬂavors are as rich as pie and have a pleasing salted caramel depth, gathering power in the mouth only to ﬁnish with deftness and dexterity. This has the stuﬀ to age, and the price to cellar by the case. (902 cases) Sheldrake Point Vineyard, Ovid, NY 416881 | Segura Viudas | Navarro | Hermann J. Wiemer $ $ $ Cava Brut Rosé (Best Buy) This simple rosé has a Beaujolais-like fruit character, with tart cherry and red berry ﬂavors integrated into a leesy ﬁnish. Chill it for chorizo. Freixenet USA, Sonoma, CA 2010 Anderson Valley Riesling (Best Buy) This wine’s round texture gives it a generous feel, tightened by scents of ﬂint, of dusty rose and tart pink grapefruit. It’s a clean riesling with a hint of fusel in the ﬁnish. For stuﬀed cabbage. (812 cases) Navarro Vineyards, Philo, CA 2010 Finger Lakes Dry HJW Vineyard Riesling With an intriguing mélange of aromas falling between peach and apple butter, this wine’s ﬂavors are rich and weighty. It feels broad and mouth coating, grounded by a caramel accent, and ﬁnishes lean. Hermann J. Wiemer Vineyard, Dundee, NY 417675 S PA I N | Ravines $ | Loxarel IDAHO $ 417806 2010 Penedès Blanc de Vermell Chill this wine to serve while your paella is cooking, the chorizo and shellﬁsh slowly roasting in the pan. This unusual xarel-lo rosé will keep you company as you wait with its freshness, its full cherry ﬂavors over a crisp, almost electric texture. (W&S, 2/12) Classic Wines, Stamford, CT 183582 | Sawtooth $ 2011 Snake River Valley Riesling (Best Buy) Broad and peachy, this ripe riesling has plenty of heft in its thick stone fruit ﬂavors. Chill it down for an aperitif. (4,500 cases) Sawtooth Winery, Nampa, ID NEW YORK 2011 Finger Lakes Dry Riesling Attractive toasted lees aromas recede after a moment of air, giving over to golden apple scents. The ﬂavors are more lemony, mingling with the lees accents, lasting through a long, minerally ﬁnish. For all the ripeness in this stylish white, its lean austerity commands attention. (3,000 cases) Ravines Wine Cellars, Hammondsport, NY 417848 | Tampesta $ | Anthony Road | Glenora $ $ 2011 Tierra de Leon Rosado Prieto Picudo The enthusiasm this rosé packs is infectious. It’s as bright and lusty in ﬂavor as it is in color, a raspberry blast heightened by its jazzy acidity, the sharp herbal notes adding a pleasantly bitter bite to the ﬁnish. It has the conviction to stand up to a spicy sauté of chorizo and clams. Peninsula Wines, New Rochelle, NY 183508 | El Coto de Rioja $ 2011 Rioja Rosado (Best Buy) Bright with sweet watermelon ﬂavors and herbal notes, this is an easy summer pour for bacalao fritters. Frederick Wildman and Sons, NY I 2009 Finger Lakes Martini-Reinhardt Selection Riesling This powerful riesling leads with scents of ripe apples and white ﬂowers. Then it’s the purity and the depth of its pear ﬂavors that make a lasting impression, riding like a swift stream across the palate, giving the wine tremendous intensity. Pair with a Massaman curry. (W&S, 4/12; 95 cases) Anthony Road Wine Co., Penn Yan, NY 417928 2010 Finger Lakes Riesling (Best Buy) Ripe with a wheaty, pinot gris-like scent, this posh riesling has plenty of warm sweetness in its attack, and feels ample and juicy in its ﬂavors, but a thrilling, pencil-thin line of acidity snaps the wine toward an invigorating ﬁnish. (2,800 cases) Glenora Wine Cellars, Dundee, NY 416882 | Hermann J. Wiemer $ | Sheldrake Point $ 2010 Finger Lakes Riesling (Best Buy) One of the better expressions of a warm vin- 2010 Finger Lakes Magdalena Vineyard Riesling One of Fred Merwarth’s warmest vineyard sites, Magdalena has silt loam soils. In 2010, it gave a ﬁrm and concentrated riesling with tangy mineral ﬂavors and a pleas- 50 W I N E & S P I R I T S A U G U S T 2 0 1 2 http://www.wineandspiritsmagazine.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Wine & Spirits - August 2012

Wine & Spirits - August 2012
Editor’s Note
Happenings
Contents
Fined & Filtered: Lou Bustamante on cocktails aged in cask and bottle
Spirits: Tonic + Gin Reviewed by Lou Bustamante
North American Riesling
Tapas in the Capital of Cava
Prosecco + Prosciutto
Malagousia
Cirò & La Cucina Calabrese
Summer on the Road in Sonoma
Extreme Values
Tastings Overview
Summer Sparklers
Rosé
US Riesling
Rías Baixas/Vinho Verde
Greek Wines
Northeast Italian Wines
American New Releases
Imported New Releases
Joshua Greene on moscato’s sweet disruptions

Wine & Spirits - August 2012