New York wines made a strong showing at this week's Riverside International Wine Competition run by Dan Berger and Juliann Savage, and held at the fabulous South Coast Winery, Resort & Spa in the Temecula wine region  east of Los Angeles.  South Coast has twice been recognized as the "Best Winery in California".

             Hazlitt 1852 Vineyards 2009 Finger Lakes Dry Gewurztraminer led the charge as Best White Wine in the entire competition (out of about 1,000), barely edging out Heron Hill 2008 Dry Riesling--meaning two New York wines were right at the top, along with several other New York wines in the final  "Sweepstakes" round.  New York wines copped a total of 137 medals including 9 Chairman's Awards (unanimous Gold), 37 Gold, 56 Silver, and 34 Bronze awards in one of the country's most rigorous competitions.

             Other Chairman's Awards, most included in the Sweepstakes, included Anyela's Vineyards 2009 Finger Lakes Riesling; Chateau LaFayette Reneau 2010 Finger Lakes Late Harvest Riesling; Fox Run Vineyards 2008 Finger Lakes Lemberger; Glenora Wine Cellars 2010 Finger Lakes Dry Riesling; Heron Hill 2009 New York Semi-Dry Riesling, 2008 Finger Lakes Dry Riesling Ingle Vineyard, and 2008 Finger Lakes Late Harvest Vidal Blanc; Lakewood Vineyards 2009 Finger Lakes Riesling; and White Springs Winery 2009 Finger Lakes Gewurztraminer.

             Gold medals went to Anthony Road 2009 Finger Lakes Vignoles; Atwater Estate 2010 Dry Riesling and 2009 Finger Lakes Riesling; Chateau LaFayette Reneau 2010 Finger Lakes Dry Riesling; Coyote Moon New York State Pinot Noir; Dr. Konstantin Frank 2009 Finger Lakes Gewurtztraminer Reserve and 2008 Rkatsiteli; Fox Run 2009 Finger Lakes Riesling, and 2008 Finger Lakes Tierce Riesling; Glenora 2009 Riesling,  2010 Vidal Iced, and 2010 Finger Lakes Pinot Blanc; Hazlitt 2010 Finger Lakes Semi-Dry Riesling; Heron Hill 2009 Finger Lakes Dry Riesling; King Ferry 2008 Late Harvest Eis Riesling; Knapp 2010 Late Harvest Vignoles; Lakewood 2009 Dry Riesling; Liberty Vineyards 2009 Lake Erie Noiret; Merritt Estate Lake Erie Bella Ice; Prejean 2009 Finger Lakes Estate Grown Gewurztraminer; Sparkling Pointe 2005 North Fork of Long Island Blanc de Blancs, and 2001 North Fork of Long Island Brut (Seduction); Swedish Hill New York Raspberry Infusion, Spumante Blush, 2009 Finger Lakes Dry Riesling, and 2009 Finger Lakes Vidal Blanc; Thirsty Owl 2010 Finger Lakes Pinot Grigio, 2010 Diamond, and 2010 Riesling;  and Torrey Ridge Daisy Mae.

             The Riverside competition, with a large majority of California judges, once again affirms that New York is making high-quality wines with many different varietals, including the different styles of Riesling.  In fact, in the Sweepstakes round for white wines, 7 of 22 wines were Rieslings (more than any other variety including Chardonnay), and 5 of those were from the Finger Lakes--an apt celebration of May as Riesling Month in the Finger Lakes.

             At another recent California event, the Consumer Wine Awards held in Lodi, Merritt Estate Winery won Golds for its Pinot Grigio and Edelweiss, while Coyote Moon Vineyards scored three Golds including LaCrescent, River Run Rose, and Naked Chardonnay--an unoaked version that wowed the judges in the land of Chardonnay.  Coyote Moon also won a Gold for Best Label Series at the recent Pacific Rim competition with art from Mary Randazzo in collaboration with a local graphic designer and a Rochester printer.  Local goes national.

Really Reasonable Rieslings 

           Wine & Spirits magazine's June edition features the Top 100 Values of the Year, all under $15, and four of them are Finger Lakes Rieslings:  Heron Hill New York Semi-Sweet Riesling (92 points; $13); Lamoreaux Landing 2009 Finger Lakes Dry Riesling (92, $13) and 2009 Finger Lakes Semi-Dry Riesling (92, $13); and Fox Run 2008 Finger Lakes Riesling (92, $14).

               Some other New York wines got high scores as well, including Chateau Frank 2006 Finger Lakes Blanc de Blanc (90, $25); Tierce 2008 Finger Lakes Dry Riesling (92, $30); Anthony Road 2009 Finger Lakes Semi-Dry Riesling (91, $15, Best Buy); Fox Run 2009 Finger Lakes Riesling (90, $14, Best Buy); and Dr. Konstantin Frank 2008 Finger Lakes Rkatsiteli (89, $18, Best Buy)

               Separately, at the Beverage Testing Institute, Dr. Konstantin Frank 2010 Semi-Dry Riesling won the top rating (93 points, "Exceptional") joined by its 2010 Dry Riesling (90).

Magnificent Merlots

          Long Island merlots compared very favorably with top wines from other famous producing regions at a recent tasting held at City Winery in Manhattan and sponsored by the Long Island Merlot Alliance (LIMA).

             The event included a blind-tasting by independent experts of 14 merlots from the 2007 vintage, with seven from Long Island and an equal number from famous merlot-producing regions like Pomerol and St. Emilion in France, Napa Valley, and Washington State's Columbia Valley.  The 40 tasters included leading wine writers, retailers, and restaurateurs.

              At the top of the list was the 2007 Christian's Cuvee Merlot from Wolffer Estate Vineyard in The Hamptons, and the local McCall Wines 2007 Ben's Blend also ranked in the top half of the wines. Based on a 100-point system, the range among all the wines was only 3.9 points, with several wines scoring within only a few tenths of a point.  In addition, participants remarked that it was often difficult to distinguish Long Island entries from other wines, especially those from France.

               For more information about this tasting, and the Long Island Merlot Alliance, visit www.longislandmerlot.com.

Wine & Cheese Weekend

            Lake Erie Wine Country, the group representing 23 wineries in far western New York and Pennsylvania, is gearing up for a major Wine & Cheese Weekend on May 13-15.  Visitors can sample local wines and artisanal cheeses or food samples created with Yancey's Fancy cheeses at 21 different wineries along the route.  They also receive a souvenir wine glass, recipe booklet, $5 voucher for wine purchase, and a unique gift: a double deck of playing cards, with one featuring red wine facts and the other white wine facts.  Tickets are only $35 and may purchased at www.lakeeriewinecountry.com

Wine-Powered Car 

            The Royal Wedding captivated millions of people around the world with all the tradition and pageantry, but a detail often overlooked is that the Royal Couple immediately took a quick spin in Dad's (Prince Charles's) car, an Aston Martin powered by surplus British wine.

             British wine?!  Yes, our friends on the other side of the pond do indeed make some wine, and in fact much of it is jolly good.  Coincidentally, New York Times wine writer Eric Asimov just wrote a very positive piece about English sparkling wine.

Decanter Features Finger Lakes 

     Decanter magazine in London has a great article by Howard G. Goldberg on the Finger Lakes as a wine destination.  The piece provides an overview of the region, travel information, recommendations for dining and lodging, and descriptions of "Six of the best wine estates to visit": Dr. Konstantin Frank, Hermann J. Wiemer, Heron Hill, Lamoreaux Landing, Red Newt, and Sheldrake Point.

     Decanter bills itself as "The World's Best Wine Magazine", and Howard Goldberg is a leading expert on New York wines.  It wouldn't be surprising if we sawsome Brits this year, as well as others since the magazine has an international readership.