Dear Fans of the Seneca Lake Wine Trail:

This is your regularly scheduled email from us, and will probably be one of the last emails from the Trail before harvest.

SPRING WINE AND CHEESE WEEKEND-
Congratulations to Pat of Allentown, PA an attendee at our recent Spring Wine and Cheese Weekend, and winner of 4 complimentary tickets to our 2008 event! Congratulations also to Hazlitt 1852 Vineyards for winning the food contest, sponsored by McCadam Cheese, with their Mexican Lasagna! Thank you again to our friends at McCadam Cheese for helping make this year's event so much fun.  Pictured at right are Justin (Assistant Winemaker) and Katie (Tasting Room Manager) at Red Newt Cellars with their Wheel of Cheese game they ran throughout the event weekend.

THE GOLDEN NOSE AWARD: A WINE JUDGING WEEKEND-
The Golden Nose Award: A Wine Judging Weekend was once again a major hit with all participating Judges and awards ceremony attendees. Attendee Judge Rob Lane- also known on his blog as the Finger Lakes Weekend Wino- had this to say about the event: "Paul, Thanks as always for your great hospitality and for an awesome event again this year.... We had a great time!!! Talk to you soon. My summary of the event is now posted at
http://fingerlakesweekendwino.blogspot.com/ ."

Rob even gave the live band a break from their performance and proceeded to play a couple tracks from his recently released CD including the masterful song "I Want To Thank Dr. Frank." You can also read a recently published mention of his performance at the Wine Spectator Online's "Unfiltered" column here:
http://www.winespectator.com/Wine/Features/0,1197,3819,00.html

Congratulations to all the medal winners. Below are the top award winners, with a more comprehensive list at our website:

BEST OF CLASS   
Lakewood Vineyards, Riesling 2006, Best Riesling
Fulkerson Winery, Traminette 2006, Best Hybrid
Torrey Ridge Winery, Diamond NV, Best Native
Ventosa Vineyards, Pinot Noir NV, Best Other Vinifera Red
Prejean Winery, Cabernet Franc 2005, Best Cabernet Franc
Wagner Vineyards, Riesling Ice 2006, Best Dessert Wine
 
DOUBLE GOLD 
Hazlitt 1852 Vineyards, Riesling 2006
Leidenfrost Vineyards, Riesling 2006
Torrey Ridge Winery, Niagara NV
Torrey Ridge Winery, Diamond NV
Ventosa Vineyards, Pinot Noir NV
Prejean Winery, Cabernet Franc 2005
Fox Run Vineyards, Lemberger 2005
Wagner Vineyards, Vidal Blanc Ice 2005
Wagner Vineyards, Riesling Ice 2006
Hazlitt 1852 Vineyards, Port NV

Writer, and event Judge Richard Frisbie (who also captured the image of Chris and Liz Stamp above) had much to say about this event. "It includes breakfast, buffet lunch and an Awards Ceremony Banquet that evening, all prepared to perfection by the executive chef, Brud Holland, of Corning Incorporated. Between the great meals you’ll taste the best of the best Finger Lakes wine, and enjoy the company and comaraderie of some of the nicest folks you’ll ever meet – the wine makers and wine judges of the Finger Lakes. "
The rest of the article is here:
http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.jsp?articleId=281474977005527

Next year's Golden Nose Award event is scheduled to occur on May 31, 2008, will be similar to this year's event and will once again be the finest opportunity for you to sample all the best, most recent wines from the Finger Lakes Region. You can see more about this year's event, and next year's as details are determined, at
http://www.goldennose.com

THE WILLY FRANK AWARD-
We are constantly asked which restaurants serve New York wines, and the recent announcement of the Willy Frank Award, we now have the answer! As a tireless promoter of New York wines, Willy Frank was constantly chiding area restaurants about the dearth of New York wines on their lists, so it’s fitting that restaurants which do a particularly good job of featuring local wines now receive the “Willy Frank Award”.  Winners were recently announced at the Finger Lakes International Wine Competition Gala, and include a few restaurants near the Trail including:
Dano’s Heuriger (Lodi)
Edgar’s at Belhurst (Geneva)
Geneva-on-the-Lake (Geneva)
Red Newt Bistro & Winery (Hector)
Stonecat Café (Hector)
Suzanne Fine Regional Cuisine (Lodi)
For a more complete listing of restaurants that support Finger Lakes wine, please email us.

INTERNATIONAL EASTERN WINE COMPETITION (IEWC)
New York wineries captured a total of 221 medals at this prestigious event, with the following Seneca Lake Wine Trail wineries being given top awards:
DOUBLE GOLD- Lakewood Vineyards Carpe Vinum (Cayuga White); Torrey Ridge 2005 Seyval Blanc
GOLD- Anthony Road 2006 Dry Riesling, Chateau LaFayette Reneau 2006 Pinot Noir Blanc, 2006 Dry Riesling, and 2005 Reserve Chardonnay; Earle Estates Niagara and Pear Mead; Glenora 2001 Brut

Given the relatively small volumes of wine produced by Finger Lakes wineries, it is strongly suggested that if you want any of the award-winning wines from either the IEWC or the Golden Nose, you should rush out soon and acquire them, as they will not stay on shelves for long....

RIESLING TO VISIT PASSPORT-
While May is officially Riesling month here in the Finger Lakes, this year's Riesling to Visit Passport will continue to be on sale, and valid, through the end of the summer. This handy little booklet costs only $10 plus tax, and packs in complimentary tastings from over 26 different wineries and tasting rooms. This is a great, economical product for both residents and visitors alike. You can see more about the Passport here:
http://www.senecalakewine.com/jc/content/view/114/131/
While you can purchase Passports in advance of your visit from our office at our website, they are also oftentimes available for purchase at most participating wineries and our regional partner, the New York Wine and Culinary Center in Canandaigua, NY.

DECK THE HALLS-
This incredibly popular event shows no signs of abating, and tickets to both the November 17/18 and December 1/2 weekend events are selling briskly. While they probably won't sell out anytime in the next couple months, available starting wineries continue to diminish, so if you are considering attending the event, and want a specific starting winery, you would be advised to purchase them sooner than later. Based on this event's extraordinary popularity, and the record-setting number of participating wineries, many wineries will be opening their doors to event attendees the Friday afternoon of the event! We will let you know in the next email exactly which wineries will be open for Deck The Halls Friday afternoon, so you can plan your visit accordingly. We hope this will make it easier on participants to visit all 31 participating wineries throughout the long weekend, so they can safely and comfortably obtain all the ornaments.

Thank you very much for taking the time to read this email.

Please feel free to give our office a call with any additional questions you may have.

Sincerely,

Paul & Glenda
Seneca Lake Wine Trail
"A Tasteful Experience"
877-536-2717
http://www.senecalakewine.com

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