Good Food Revolution and the New York Wine & Grape Foundation present Taste NY…

Remember the world before the COVID-19 crisis? In March of this year the New York Wine and Grape Foundation, the LCBO, and a handful of boutique wine importing agencies launched an ambitious project to bring a ‘Boldly, NY’ showcase of some of the best wines of the Empire State to Ontario. The plan was to introduce local wine enthusiasts to treasures from Long Island, the Hudson Valley and the Finger Lakes through this promotion at the LCBO website, and make the wines available online… then COVID struck and like so many plans in March, things didn’t quite go as expected.

The good news is that the wines have been safely stored in the LCBO’s climate controlled warehouse and are still very much available through their online shop (and a few bottles of some wines are on LCBO shelves). Back in the early spring NYWGF got the esteemed wine writers and critics David Lawrason and Sara d’Amato to host a series of video tastings of each wine with the legendary New York City sommelier and Terroir Wine Bar restaurateur, Paul Grieco. Good Food Revolution is working with New York Wines to help get this story out and connect Ontario wine enthusiasts and GFR readers with eight ‘Taste NY‘ wines rarely seen on this side of the border.

The 2019 Sheldrake Point Rosé ($28.80 – LCBO# 727312) is our featured wine this week. At the winery, situated on the western shore of Cayuga Lake in the Finger Lakes AVA, winemaker Dave Breeden makes this dry rosé with 100% Cabernet Franc grapes. Jamie’s provided detailed tasting notes below, and below that you can watch d’Amato, Lawrason and Grieco taste it on video with Breeden as their special guest. Finally, we’ve provided with instructions on how to get the wine onto your table and into your glass. – Malcolm July, Summer 2020

Jamie Drummond’s Notes on the Sheldrake point Rosé 2019

As far as more gastronomically-leaning rosés go, this excellent Finger Lakes Cabernet Franc bottling is simply head and shoulders above so many of its Loire-sourced cousins, and is just what the Doctor ordered for these frankly sweltering summer nights we are currently experiencing.

Pouring a most alluring dusty light watermelon-like hue in the glass, the nose is reminiscent of young, pink, wild strawberries, luscious ripe orchard-fresh peach, slightly herbaceous sun-warmed green hay, and a decidedly fragrant floral profile that sits somewhere in that exquisite olfactory sweet spot between honeysuckle and violets.

In the mouth one will discover pronounced strawberry confit, a creamily textured mid-palate with an acidic red berry snap, delicate fine shoot rhubarb astringency, and a surprisingly extended dry and laser-focused saline finish.

This is a seriously accomplished rosé of considerable depth and savoury intensity. With this kind of structure, it’s a wine with considerable versatility when it comes to food pairings. Last week this was heartily enjoyed with barbecue grilled lobster with lemongrass, ginger, and sweet chili peppers.

HOW TO GET THE WINE

Order this wine, and any of the eight Boldly, NY wines available in Ontario at the online shop at this special LCBO Discover The Wines of New York page. Order for home delivery or store pick-up following the instructions provided. Or, at the time this was posted there were a handful of bottles available at the Dupont and Spadina and the Queen’s Quay LCBO stores on the Vintages shelves. Visit the LCBO.com website for an inventory check by clicking here.

Email versions of this post won’t display video. To see the video please click here.

Watch GFR every week for a new featured Taste NY wine, offered in Ontario for a limited time, while stocks last.

Taste NY, launched by Governor Andrew M. Cuomo in 2013, highlights the quality, diversity, and economic impact of food and beverages grown, produced, or processed in New York State. Taste NY aims to create new opportunities for producers through events, retail locations, and partnerships.
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