My Favorite Finger Lakes Wine of 2006 - Part 2

I pulled out all of my tasting sheet comments for this year and here's Part 2 of what I liked, in no particular order. This gives me a record of my favorites for the year. Keep in mind my palate is about right in the middle of dry and sweet. I do like dry wines that are very fruit forward and I like sweet wines that are balanced with appropriate acidity and/or fruit. I'm more of a white wine drinker, but that's mainly because I find that red wines stir up my Acid Reflux Condition. But I do taste both reds and whites.

- Glenora Wine Cellars- Glenora produces about 30 different wines and is a beautiful place to visit. -Seyval Blanc, Semi-dry, melon and lime/citrus. - Peach & Raspberry Spumante, perfectly sweet & bubbly with lots of fruit flavor, perfect for the Holidays and a nice value.

- Barrington Cellars- Delaware, not overly grapey and subtly sweet, nice summer sipping wine. Diamond, aromatic light grape nose, sweet with soft citrus and grape flavors.

- Keuka Overlook- Late Harvest Riesling, sweet dessert wine with luscious honey and peach flavors. - Late Harvest Vignoles, sweet dessert wine with pineapple/citrus flavors.

Keuka Spring- Riesling, semi-dry, classic Riesling flavor with long finish. - Vignoles, concentrated flavors of honeyed apricot and lemon.

Castel Grisch - Estate Reserve Burgundy, Very soft and smooth red blend. - Cayuga White, bright and balanced, apple and citrus flavors.

Dr. Frank - Merlot, soft medium tannins, lots of plummy fruit. - Salmon Run Riesling, very floral, perfectly balanced, clean and classic. - Celebre NV Champagne, dry but lively and fruity.

Billsboro Winery - Chardonnay, firmly balanced acidity with elegant fruit. -Classic Cuvee, Blend of Elvira, Catawba, and Cayuga White, some bubbles, very interesting.

Rooster Hill Vineyards- Dry Riesling, crisp citrus and mineral. Merlot- very soft silky tannins with the perfect amount of oak.

Prejean Winery- Cabernet Franc, Lots of cherry and a long finish. Gewurtzraminer, balanced and perfectly spicy. Late Harvest Vignoles, intense honeyed peach and pineapple. -Bird of Paradise, unique Chardonnay Port, Chardonnay crispness with dessert wine sweetness.

Belhurst Winery- Traditions Dry Riesling, Dry with a very long lemon/lime finish. Traditions Chardonnay, Light clean and crisp.

Heron Hill Winery - Game Bird White, Seyval/Cayuga blend, balanced with nice acidity and a great value. Riesling Ice Wine, unbelievable intensity of flavor to the infinity, My notes state "I did not want to swallow". And for good reason- A taste was $7 and a bottle was $99. If anyone needs a Christmas gift idea for me, this is it! The winemaker Thomas Laszlo makes some of the most elegant wines in the Finger Lakes and his ice wines compare with the world's best.

Miles Wine Cellars- Cabernet Franc, smooth smoke and oak. Pinot Noir, smoky cherry, Very Nice!

Torrey Ridge Winery- This winery gets my vote for Most Underrated Finger Lakes Winery. They don't get a lot of the press that some of the others get, but I am continually impressed with the quality of their wine, and they have one of the most beautiful facilities also.
Cayuga White, excellent balance of acid/sweet and fruit with a long lightly sweet finish. -Traminette, very floral, hints of citrus and spice and very smooth. - Riesling, sweeter style with layers of honey, peach, citrus, and pineapple. -Diamond, one of my top faves, sweet but not overly sweet, with layers of grape, grapefruit, pineapple, and mango.

Earle Estates Meadery- This winery is the sister winery of Torrey Ridge specializing in mead, which is wine made from honey. Unfortunately for me, my palate perceives a bitter taste in a lot of mead wines, but there are some mead/fruit blends here that I like. Strawberry Shadows, strawberry/mead blend, nice natural sweet strawberry flavor. - Autumn Harvest, Pear/Raspberry/Mead blend, sweet raspberry flavor.

Arcadian Estate- Starry Night Riesling, crisp dry style with lots of Seneca mineral. - Take My Time Black Raspberry, intense berry aroma and flavor.

Cascata Winery- Fireside Chardonnay, Abundant upfront fruit with a kiss of oak. -Sweet Maggie, Cayuga/Vidal blend, easy drinking light blush.

Anthony Road- Tony's White, Cayuga White, Riesling-like in taste with a lime/citrus zing, excellent value. - Martini Reinhardt Vignoles Trockenbeeren, incredible flavors of apricot, citrus, and honey but at $75, a little out of my price range, but an awesome special occasion wine.

Stay tuned for Part 3.......