Last evening we had a group of friends over to taste some Long Island wines. They include 5 bottles from the award winning Waters Crest Winery operated by Jim and Linda Waters in Cutchogue, Long Island, NY.
I had no real expectations for these wines. Truly good wines from NY or NJ are few and far between in my experience.
The wines we tasted included Waters' 2006 Reserve Cabernet Franc, 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon, 2005 Campania Rossa, 2007 Private Reserve Chardonnay and their 2007 Late Harvest Night Watch. As it turned out every wine was found to be quite enjoyable by our guests.
I started the tasting with the Chardonnay and just for fun did a blind tasting against a pretty decent French Chardonnay, Les Setilles by Olivier Leflaire. At first taste the votes came in 50-50 on preference. Both wines were very good, the Waters Crest had more body and deeper flavor. The Leflaire had a bit more complexity and was lighter. As we started to enjoy some food the Waters seemed to stand out and work better with the lively cheeses and hor devours that were served. In the end every guest but one leaned toward the Waters Chardonnay.
Next we tasted the three red wines. Overall they were all very good, everyone loved the 2005 Campania Rossa. This wine "is a blend of 73% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Franc and 12% Cabernet Sauvignon. This Red Blend displays eucalyptus and black pepper jump from the glass. With abundant dark plumy raspberry notes, followed by pleasingly rustic earthiness. The flavors are round and subtle and have a good mid palate finish." WInemaker. It went very well with the pungent cheeses and the meats on the charcuterie platter.
I decanted this wine and gave it some time to breath but a couple of us felt that it will be better in a few more years.
The Cabernet Franc was good and enjoyed by all but the second favorite of the reds was the Cabernet Sauvignon. It is described as "Blackberry currant with a slight eucalyptus nose. Aromas of smoked meat with earthy roung integrated tannins and a slight earthy mid palate." I liked the earthy unbridled nature of all the wines.
After dinner a dessert of fresh strawberries, deep chocolate brownies and fresh whipped cream was served and with this I poured Waters' 2005 Night Watch.
It is a blend of late harvest a chardonnay, riesling and gewürztraminer, it is was a wow for everyone. This wine earned double gold in the International Eastern Wine Competition held recently in Corning, N.Y. The contest drew over 2,300 entries from 16 countries and 34 states.
As the night closed there were several more compliments. It is no wonder Waters' wines have won so many awards.
These wines can be found through the winery http://www.waterscrestwinery.com/
