The continuing search for knowledge and context.

There’s a scene in the original Jaws movie where everyone is fleeing from the water, in fear that a large shadow moving towards shore is the man-eating Great White Shark of said movie. One guy on shore yells out, “It’s ok! It’s only bluefish!” Now, I don’t know if you’ve ever caught a bluefish, but I would certainly not want to stumble into a feeding school of them. We used to call them salt water piranhas when we fished for stripers, and dreaded removing one from the hook. Best to settle for a lost line and ten fingers. So, one chomp from the shark, or hundreds of small (actually, rather largish) bites? Only you can say which is worse to you.

There’s another scene in the movie Hunt For Red October, where the sonarman was asked to mark range to another sub (both subs were submersed, as is common) and called out “Five hundred yards, sir!” Due to matters of national security, I can’t go completely into the ridiculousness of that statement, I can only tell you that when I saw that movie in a New London, CT cinema, every sailor in the audience gave out a loud gasp. My girlfriend turned and asked the matter, but of course, we were in a theater, and I was sworn to secrecy.

If I have a point, I suppose it’s that sometimes an extra dollop of knowledge, or even education, can alter your perception of things. I guess I would argue that’s true most, or even all, of the time. It just doesn’t seem that way a lot these days. Knowledge is taking a beating, that’s for sure. Seems like five minutes on the internet is the equivalent of a master’s degree in a lot of peoples’ minds. I’m sticking with knowledge, hard earned and capable of adding perspective to any situation. Perspective and ponder are two of my favorite words anymore. You have to do one to have a chance at the other. All it takes is time. And a desire for the truth, the heart of the matter.

I wrote those last paragraphs months ago, it’s been about four months since I posted anything online, save for the occasional reposting of a Facebook memory. I’ve been laying low, that’s for sure. It might have sounded from that last post that I had turned the corner, that I was ready to jump back into the world of wine with my former passion and commitment. Turns out it was a much rougher and more winding route back than I figured, one that is still continuing in fits and starts. The last four months haven’t been all bad, but December hits me hard every year, and the funk of ‘23 started at least a month early. I guess it probably started that Thursday in April when my mother died. I imagine a lot of you reading this have already become orphans in life, it’s a shared experience most of us will go through, and is a more natural progression than parents having to bury a child, something my mother experienced when still a young woman. I thought being a veterinarian had given me perspective on death but it hasn’t been of much help lately. Depression is like that, there is no perspective, there is only the funk.

Well, I guess that’s enough explanation for my four months of writer’s block. Enough whining I suppose. As I mentioned, the last four months haven’t been all bad, Amy has been coaxing me back out onto the trails and into the tasting and barrel rooms of the region. I thought I’d share, in no particular order, some of our recent experiences.

A Ravines barrel tasting: I descended the metal stairs into the lower level of the Ravines production facility. These stairs have always reminded me of a well built roller coaster, I’m sure they’re very safe, but they feel like they might give way at any second. And that’s with a proper pair of shoes on, high heels are not recommended. I turned the corner and ducked through the plastic flaps that keep the controlled air of the barrel room from escaping. As I entered the room, I saw a familiar face, one that I had not seen in a long while. I don’t know how long it’s been since I did a barrel tasting at Ravines, possibly a year or more, but I know it’s been many more years since I tasted the wines of Ravines paired with the recipes of Scott Riesenberger, It might even be getting on towards a decade. Yet here was the man himself, bending over his prep work as if no time had passed at all.

Chef and winemaker pairing dinners are all the rage now, but the first time I experienced one set the bar high. Scott and Morten seem to have an intuitive grasp of each other’s creations and how they will interact. This was only an echo of one of those dinners, small bites paired with red wine barrel samples. I’m sure I have the menu tucked away somewhere, and I could probably make you salivate with the details, suffice to say it was a fortunate meeting of flavors and textures. I will say that it included pork belly, a Riesenberger staple, and did not disappoint. It was, as I said intuitive. I’m told there might be more of these cooperative events in the future. I’m quivering with anticipation.

Another incredible view on Keuka: I’ve gone on and on about the views of the Keuka bluff from such wineries as McGregor, Weis and Domaine Leseurre. It really is a special location and a favorite part of the lake to hang out around. Now, move south on the east side of Keuka from the bluff, nearly to the town of Hammondsport, and take Rt 87 up the hill. You’ll come to Rt 113 on the right, and just past this is the entrance to Living Roots Winery. This new Finger Lakes winery has wines from both the Finger Lakes and from the family’s vineyards in Australia. The wines are worth the trip alone, but man, the view. From the tasting room at Living Roots, you’re looking north, with Keuka laid out before you like a jewel, and the bluff looming in the distance. I’ve seen this view in many weather conditions now, starting last year with a pop up tent before the winery and tasting room were finished, it never disappoints. A couple of weeks ago, we visited when the lake was covered in fog and the bluff obscured. It’s still a fantastic view. If you spend an hour or two there, make sure to try the marinated cheese. Fantastic. And perfect with the wines. Of course.

Penn Yan keeps on cooking: When we started coming to the Finger Lakes more than a decade ago, we discovered that Penn Yan was a great place to stay and have easy access to the wines of Keuka and Seneca. Food wise, the story was a little grimmer. The names don’t matter, many of them are no more, but it was mostly standard American diner meals, done without fanfare. Now, there’s a good Mexican restaurant (Casa Mezcal), a gem of a coffee shop (Amity), a couple of wine bars on the main drag (18th Amendment and Burnt Rose Tavern) an incredible bakery (Blue Heron), and any number of places to get a glass of wine and a bite.

One of my favorite new places is Outlet 111. As the name implies, it is right on the Keuka outlet, with a pretty cool view of the canal. The interior is modern industrial, there’s a bar, a dining room, and an event space for groups. They have light fare, including a really nice way to design your own charcuterie board, and homemade soups that are top notch. You can get wine, beer and spirits, either Finger Lakes, New York or, for the rare ones that are from elsewhere, by women owned businesses. In the interest of full disclosure, if you happen in on a Saturday evening, you are liable to see me hammering out some tunes on the guitar. So there you have it, I’m biased. Visit once and you’ll understand.

I’m getting a little long winded so let’s finish up with some bullet points.

• The salon at Forge remains a top spot to while away an afternoon. I’m always impressed with the cheese plates, and I could dream about the baguettes. And that Chardonnay. (Damn, he says wistfully, might be time to open another bottle.)
• Silver Thread Vineyard continues to impress with wines produced with no manipulation besides a touch of SO2. These are whispered wines of import that show what is possible with a favorable location and an intuitive winemaker. I love them.
• Michael Cimino at Ryan William Vineyard will walk you through a wine tasting, or tell stories about rock legends with equal ease. The location is as nice as the wines, and the food is the perfect foil. A must stop for lunch.
• The library room and aged wines at Wiemer. I’ll be writing more about Thera and her library offerings in the future, suffice to say, go there. The room is stunning and chocked full of perfect examples of the ageability of Finger Lakes wines. I don’t like to play favorites but, damn, we’re in the stratosphere here.
• Check out Fox Run. The cafe is mostly closed for the season, but they just might have a meatball, or some other such pop up going on. The wines are always in season.
• Anthony Road. Some of my favorite people anywhere on Earth. And I don’t know anyone better at blending than Peter Becraft. Great view. Rotating artwork. Sunday suppers. There’s a lot to pull you in.
• Billsboro. I don’t know if you all know this but Vinny Aliperti is making seriously ageable wines. They did a series of library tastings last year and I was blown away at the quality, but even more so by the varieties tasted. I don’t know too many Finger Lakes wineries that could offer a deep vertical of Syrah. Amazing.
• Cary Mo Chocolates. These are available at Billsboro, you might even get served by Cary herself. Eating these chocolates is like doing a wine tasting; they are complex, layered, and they have a mid palate and a finish. Too much to go into here. I’ll probably mention these again as well. Remarkable.
• Carla at Keuka Lake. Jolie at McGregor. Renee at Domaine LeSeurre. Janice at Silver Thread. Thera at Wiemer. Natalee at Anthony Road. And on and on. Women of the Finger Lakes rock.

This is a somewhat erratic diatribe I’m offering here, all these way stations along the road to knowledge and context. I’m not there yet, probably never will be, but I’m paying attention to the journey again and letting the destination sort itself out. I’m no longer obsessed with wine but the passion remains, both for the wines and for all the good people who love them as well. I hope some of these observations are helpful. See you out on the trails.