Took a drive to the North Fork wine country, was curious to try the new winery (EV&EM) that was under renovation the last time I visited the area.
Pellegrini Vineyards 23005 Main Road, Cutchogue
One of the early wineries in the area opened in 1991 with 70 acres of vines planted and a distinctive architecture for the winery and a wood beamed tasting room (with cherubs!).
2019 Stainless Steel Chardonnay
Unoaked, light gold in color with grassy cooked fruit on the nose, clean and crisp with lime notes at the finish.
EV & EM Vineyards 3165 Main Road, Laurel
Former Laurel Lake Vineyards, new owner completely renovated the tasting room. The winery was named after the owners two children, Everett and Emilia.
2019 Cabernet Franc
Clear dark brick with an amber rim with tobacco and green olives on the nose, silky red fruit, chewy and dusty with nice balance.
The 11th annual Westchester Magazine’s Food and Wine Festival was held on June 6-11.
It was a week of wine dinners, a Burger & Beer blast, a Party on the Pier and capping off the week on Saturday afternoon, the Grand Tasting Village which I attended.
The Grand Tasting Village was an outdoor, tented event with scores of booths with wine, spirits and food. There was an additional “VIP” tent with wine upgrades and additional food.
The tasting was held at Kensico Dam Plaza in the village of Valhalla, an upstate suburb about a forty-minute train ride from Grand Central Terminal in Manhattan.
As usual, it was a huge event with plenty of drink and food from Westchester restaurants. This year though, I was a little disappointed. Normally in the General Admission section the quality of the wines poured were high for a consumer event. It seems like this year the quality was cut back as there were more off labels being poured than in the previous events. I was particularly disappointed in the VIP tent which could be counted on to pour some nice juice. It felt like they cut back there as well.
To make up for the changes in the wines, the number of spirits available at the festival doubled in size from the previous year, which already was double in size from previous festivals. This year there were copious varieties of different spirits to sample and near the end of the event, those booths became very popular.
It was still an enjoyable event and a fun way to spend a somewhat cloudy Saturday afternoon.
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