“As soon as you trust yourself, you will know how to live.”
― Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
When it comes to things such as music, cars, sports, food or even clothes, Americans are adamant about their likes and dislikes. Why is it when it comes to the subject of wine, so many Americans act like a deer in the headlights? How often have you heard someone say, as you pour them a glass of wine – “I’m not connoisseur” as if the need to have a specially accrued knowledge was necessary. It’s probably partly due to the fact that most Americans aren’t exposed to wine as kids like they are in European countries. The “foreign origin” of wine creates a disconnect within our culture, resulting in having to fight an elitist image. A lot has to do with the fact that we as a culture are assaulted with lots of misinformation about wine. The blogosphere has no doubt added to the confusion. This and the vast number of wines available to us – especially here in New York – can make the world of wine a difficult thing for the average American to understand. The bottom line however is that anyone, anyplace, has the tools necessary to judge and appreciate wine – they’re called your own taste buds.
Most Europeans are raised with at least some understanding of wine from their own local region or country. Most are not formally schooled in the wines of the world. That’s something that takes time. Maybe the lesson is we should simply start by appreciating the wines from our own region first before trying to understand the rest of the world. We’ve seen the slow changes occurring in American wine consumption, much of it due to the well-documented health benefits of wine as well as the plethora of good wine available at good prices. Still, the average consumer remains somewhat intimidated with the world of wine. Over half of all wine consumers report that they would like to learn more about it. This brings me to the topic of wine ratings.
Much has been written regarding the use of the 100-point scale for wine evaluation. The amount of space needed to discuss the merits and failings of this system doesn’t exist on this blog – but I would argue that most, if not all consumers could do better all by themselves. More and more wine pundits are telling us the 100-point scale is fast becoming a relic of decades past, when Americans needed the advice of an “expert” to tell them what they should like. The New York Times covered the topic by interviewing a number of major players in the wine ratings world. Most agreed that the 100-point systems used by Robert Parker and The Wine Spectator can be important to a wine producers’ commercial success. At the same time however, most of these critics tell us they would like to see the system disappear altogether – that it has become in essence, a necessary evil in the wine world. Joshua Greene, editor and publisher of Wine and Spirits magazine states that “on many levels it’s nonsensical. I don’t think it’s a very valuable piece of information.” This comes in part from understanding that the 100-point scale is not an exact science. It’s actually not a science at all – it’s just a matter of opinion. The system used by Parker is different than the one used by the Wine Spectator in that the style and type of wine held up to the 100-point standard is different for both. The fact many of these evaluations are not done “blind” also leaves much up to the taster’s preconceived opinions. Add to this the fact that the vast majority of tasters used by most of the 100-point publications are middle-aged, white males. A recent survey by Rossman, Graham and Associates found that while women account for 70% of the shopping for households, only 5% are influenced by advertising or wine ratings. I can only believe that some of these publications are missing are huge part of the equation.
The potential “dark side” of the wine rating game was detailed a few years ago when the New York Times ran a story about Enologix, a consulting company in California set up specifically to help producers manipulate wines in order to achieve higher scores. Enologix claims to have supposedly “solved the math of flavor for wine” and figured out how to break down all the chemical components of wine in order that they may be reproduced anywhere. Sounds like a “terroirist’s” worst nightmare. Somehow this approach reminds me of the music industry’s formula for a producing a hit single. Find out what is selling, put together the right faces and voices and give them the perfectly crafted song to sing. Creative? – No, but it does make a lot of money for the people involved. It also begs the question – is this really all you want to listen to?
We’re now seeing that more importance is being given to how wine is actually made. What kinds of vineyard management were used – was it sustainable to the surrounding environment? How and under what conditions was it harvested? Does it embody the local conditions of the region? What if any, additives were used in the production of the wine in the cellar? And ultimately, does it taste good to you?
As consumers continue to become increasingly aware of the origin of what they put into their bodies, the where and how of winemaking will become more of an issue – which also could lead one right back to their own backyard where producers are known, techniques are verified and fruit origin is validated. The recent Long Island sustainable certification program (LISW) precisely addresses these very issues and is one of the many reasons why this new local program is so important.
I would ask one final question. Since when did you need anyone to tell you what you should and shouldn’t like? After all, who knows your taste buds better than yourself? The best way to learn abut wine is to try lots of different kinds. “Practice makes perfect” they say – and it’s a heck of a lot more fun than those piano lessons you had to take. All you need to do is find out what styles of wine you enjoy, and most importantly, learn to trust your own opinion. It’s fun, and really not all that complicated.
Back when the first vineyards were planted on Long Island, many people “in the know” didn’t believe our region could successfully grow European wine grape varieties like Chardonnay and Merlot. After all, before Long Island, all of the wine produced in New York was in the upstate districts of the Finger Lakes and the Hudson Valley – places that had trouble growing European varieties in the past. Forty years later, we have proved the critics wrong many times over. Today Long Island remains one of the most innovative and creative producers in the world of these two wines. We started producing Chardonnay without oak on the East End long before the trend took hold in the rest of the country. The North Fork was also early to the Merlot dance, planting the first vines in 1974. For a time in late 1980’s, Long Island was not that far behind California in total acres planted to Merlot.
Merlot is the grape that put Long Island wine on the map, has generated the highest level of critical acclaim from local and national critics and was even the wine selected to be poured at the last Presidential Inauguration – a profound achievement for our industry. Chardonnay remains the highest scoring wine (red or white) from Long Island in the Wine Spectator and has achieved more 90-point ratings than any other white grape grown in our district.
Without these two varieties, the face of Long Island wine would be far different and in my opinion, much less successful. Both of these classic varieties have provided a foundation of excellence on the East End, whether as single varietals or as the consistent, solid base onto which many of our best blended wines are crafted.
Any lover of Long Island wines will tell you that the wines we make today are better than what we made in the past. The fact is, even with all of our success, our wines will continue to improve in quality in the coming years. The reason? Some of it of course is due to experience and know-how and an ever increasing understanding of our terroir. But there’s another big reason – clones.
Over the past 10 years, grapevine clones have shown themselves to be of increasing importance in our vineyards. Simply put, clones are a genetic variant of a particular variety. The Chardonnay grown on Long Island decades ago is not the same vine we have today. Plantings since that time – especially in the past 10-15 years, have benefitted from a wider selection of available plant material. Back in 1990, if you wanted to plant Chardonnay, you had one choice. Today there are more than 70 registered clones of this noble white grape being grown throughout the world and they all have their particular nuances and characteristics. Many of these clones are already in existence in Long Island vineyards – from the tropical and aromatic Musqué to the classic and alluring Dijon clones from Burgundy. Although these are all Chardonnays, each exhibits their own distinctive character.
This fact is also true of grapes like Merlot and Cabernet Franc, where profound differences in wine quality can be seen between clones grown in the same vineyard, on the same soils. Over 50 clones of Merlot have been identified in Bordeaux. Pomerol alone has over 35 clones of Cabernet Franc. Newer French clones, long kept overseas as tightly held trade secrets, are finding their way into the United States. In most cases these new clones are better suited to our maritime climate. Often these clones will ripen earlier than the older selections we used to have. Some are more resistant to disease. The ultimate result is higher quality wines. I’ve seen clones so different from each other that you would think the wines were made from another variety entirely.
All this brings me to my point. Long Island has recently been criticized for producing “too much” Chardonnay and Merlot. Some have said these grapes just “aren’t sexy right now.” Although I don’t think one should need a grape to ignite their libido, I believe there is much to say in defense of a stable, long term varietal relationship. This is especially true when there is so much more to do, so many more clone/rootstock combinations to explore and so many more wines to make. The best is truly yet to come.
Don’t get me wrong – there are a lot of great wines being made on the East End from other varieties. It’s always exciting to have something fresh and new to the market – especially with a name that no one can pronounce. But let’s not forget the partner that we first went to the dance with – who’s a pretty good dancer by the way.
Chardonnay and Merlot remain the most popular and best-selling wines in the world for good reason. These grapes are known as classic noble varieties – a moniker attributed to only a handful of varieties in the world. Most importantly they’re delicious and when done well rank among the best (and most expensive) wines in the world. These are the wines that helped make Long Island famous and they continue to produce some of the best wines in the world. In particular, Long Island remains one of the only places on the East Coast that can successfully grow and ripen Merlot on a consistent basis, producing extraordinary wines – something that was unheard of in this part of the country before we did it. There’s something to be said for new and fashionable – but there’s also something to be said for steadfast dedication and time–honored success.
I think it’s important to recognize that from a vineyard and winery perspective, wine fashion is something we need to be careful with. Chasing fads is a consistent approach for many New World regions –a strategy that is surely lucrative for wineries in the short term but is not a sustainable pathway to maintaining a quality wine district. Let’s be honest, the big reason Chardonnay and Merlot have lost some of their trendiness is because of overproduction (and resultant overexposure) in New World areas like the West Coast and Australia. Millions of gallons of plonk made from these two grapes have flooded the marketplace over the years –a greedy response to the growing demand.
The latest fad (inspired by the rap artist Drake) is Moscato. Do we really want Long Island to go after this trend? What’s after that? Port? Wineries that chase fads are like a dog chasing its tail – in doing so it can be easy to forget what made one successful in the first place. Thankfully, we’re not making these kinds of wines and have instead gone in the other direction, focusing on sincere and real wines that are original works – not copies. We encourage low yields, minimal use of oak, elegant extraction and in particular, creative blending that allows our fruit to truly sing a local song.
Its true there is lots of Chardonnay and Merlot made in the world – but not with the tastes and style that only we can make on the North Fork. These varieties are popular here for a good reason – they grow well and have shown they can thrive and succeed year after year in our
sometimes harsh maritime environment. Merlot and Chardonnay are survivors and they’ve been grown long enough that it is from these 2 varieties that we can begin to describe the characteristics of our terroir. Most importantly, with the availability of new clones, these wines can be looked at in a new light. Their success and affinity for the North Fork will just continue to increase alongside our ability as winemakers to bring out the best in the fruit. Oh yeah I almost forgot – they also make some really tasty wines!
Of course there’s plenty of room for diversity. The fact remains that our North Fork climate can support a number of different wine grape varieties from all parts of the globe. I’m especially excited about Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc – two other classic varieties I believe make some of the best wines on Long Island. (more about them later) We’ve also had great success with Malbec and Petit Verdot – two varieties that will make our red wines even better going forward. Other less renowned varieties can be grown with success on the East End. These can be delicious and fun and give the wine drinker some new taste experiences. However there are good reasons why we don’t see more obscure varieties in the greater wine marketplace. Some are very difficult to grow, are highly susceptible to disease or are inconsistent producers. Others simply make wines that just aren’t very interesting.
Instead, I would argue that it’s not the grape alone that provides a unique wine drinking experience – the main quality that sets Long Island wine apart is not varietal makeup. It’s not the fact that we can grow lots of different varieties. On the North Fork, it’s our overall regional style that sets us apart. It’s about the flavors derived from the East End environment and how this is reflected in the wines that we make – no matter what that variety or blend happens to be. These are wines that can be made with moderate amounts of alcohol, crisp, juicy acidity and intense aromatics – wines that are not following a fad but are instead, finding their own voice. With our interpretations of the classic varieties of Chardonnay and Merlot, we’ve helped create a whole new sound. But no matter what the variety, our terroir will always provide the loudest instrument in the ensemble.
It’s hard to believe tomorrow is the first day of March and we have already enjoyed so much excitement this year. Earlier in January, we were honored and humbled when our 2009 Merlot was poured at the Presidential Inaugural Luncheon in the U.S. Capitol, making it the first New York wine in history to be featured at an Inauguration of the President of the United States. The overwhelming response resulted in intense media coverage in print, web, television, and radio, including major publications like The New York Times, Huffington Post, Wine Spectator, The Washington Post, Fox News, and more.
Owner Michael Lynne, CEO Trent Preszler and Winemaker Rich Olsen-Harbich were all interviewed on national news.
Senator Schumer speaks at the 2013 Inaugural Luncheon
If you’re interested in watching videos of these interviews they can be found on our website, http://www.bedellcellars.com or our YouTube channel, user/BedellCellars. The high point of all the excitement was on the day of the Inauguration when we welcomed a large crowd into our tasting room for our simulcast event to watch this proud moment with us on live television; we are so grateful to have shared this milestone achievement with our fans and Wine Club members.
Looking back at the exhilarating past couple of months, we couldn’t ask for a better way to begin celebrating our 30th Anniversary, which began this year. We are thrilled to follow up the historic 2009 Merlot by releasing our 2010 Merlot bearing its own commemorative label by acclaimed artist Eric Fischl. This wine has already received praise from The New York Times wine critic Howard Goldberg, who says “it seems possible that the 2010 Merlot from Bedell may ultimately outshine the charming 2009 Merlot, which was served at the Congressional lunch after President Obama’s inauguration.” in this article in The New York Times.
We are working hard to make 2013 our best year ever with many events, wine dinners, and unique occasions planned specially for celebrating our 30th Anniversary. The first such event is a special vertical tasting of 10 Merlots with Founding Winemaker Kip Bedell at the Bedell Cottage. In addition we have an excellent winemaker dinner planned for April 9th at David Burke Kitchen in NYC as well as one on April 30th at Tellers Chophouse in Islip.
We wish all of you a fantastic Spring and look forward to seeing you in our Tasting Rooms!
From Dictionary.com: Cool: adjective 1. moderately cold; neither warm nor cold: 2. not excited; calm; composed; under control.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia:
Cool : (aesthetic) “Something regarded as cool is an admired aesthetic of attitude, behavior, comportment, appearance and style, influenced by and a product of the Zeitgeist. It has associations of composure and self-control and often is used as an expression of admiration or approval.
In his seminal text Facing East from Indian Country: A Native History of Early America, Dr. Daniel Richter presents an intriguing narrative of early colonial history from the Native American point of view. The reader is asked to imagine what Native Americans thought when they first saw European settlers coming ashore. Richter essentially turns the tables on the Euro-centric version of American history. From their perspective, the native peoples lived in the familiar Old World and the strange white-skinned visitors were the ones from a brand New World, building on historian Carl Becker’s famous assertion that history is often “an imaginative creation.”
The dichotomy that exists between the Old and New World has been ingrained in the wine lexicon for decades. Old World wines are the product of European experience and taste, grown in less than perfect conditions dictated by agricultural evolution, terroir and tradition. Rather than referring to a homogeneous style, the term Old World describes an eclectic category, with grape varieties, viticultural techniques and winemaking practices adapted around their unique climates and landscapes.
Conversely, New World wines are described as grown in warmer climates, with dark, inky extraction, high levels of alcohol and overtly ripe fruit. New World philosophy generally places less emphasis on terroir, and more on the preservation of varietal fruit character, believing that the appropriate use of science and technology in the vineyard and winery can fix any flaws. Compared to New World wines, Old World wines tend to be lower in alcohol and hence more elegant and refreshing, with less extraction and a natural balance. Old World wines have been around a long time and are considered the archetype for many grape varieties. But like the Eastern Indians that Dr. Richter envisioned, East Coast winemakers are beginning to turn this long held state of affairs upside down; the wine districts in region of the New World where our country began cannot be considered “New” anymore.
Often, the cultural zeitgeist in the U.S. drifts from west to east – with trends developed and designed in California eventually making their way to the right coast. With wine however, the West seems to be more of a follower than a leader. We’ve seen it before, with California producers looking for love in all the wrong places – from the barrel-fermented Chardonnay euphoria of the 1980’s to the steamy yet doomed love affair with Merlot in the 90’s and more recently, the geeky young-love nerd fest with Pinot Noir. All these dalliances collapsed eventually, with California leaving each of their old flames crumpled in a heap on the bed, never once taking any responsibility for the failure of the relationship.
Over last 10 years, California seemed to be maturing and looked like it was going to settle down with a full-blown commitment to terroir and to furthering their fruit-forward, extracted (and often delicious) style. But the wandering eye of the West Coast now has a new muse – one that is the complete opposite of their long term partner. She is ethereal and elegant, refreshing and low in alcohol; she is European in style and grace, reminiscent of the Old World. One would have thought California was just too old for this anymore. They now claim that these are the kinds of wines they are supposed to make and can make better than anyone else – and we’re supposed to believe it.
Why is this happening? Simply put, wine consumers have become tired of high alcohol, overly extracted wines. They want variety and choice, but mainly they want sincerity, purity and something they can actually drink with a meal. I describe this trend as a maturation of the wine consumer – they’ve become secure enough in their own taste buds to no longer impress anyone. We’re seeing a higher evolution of the consumer palate leading to a more serious level of wine (and food) appreciation. This trend is especially strong in younger wine drinkers who are unimpressed by the Robert Parkers and the Wine Spectators of the world but instead want to explore and make up their own mind.
Ironically, nobody’s covered this phenomenon better than Matt Kramer at Wine Spectator. In 2011, Mr. Kramer stated that America’s wine palate is slowly trending toward lower alcohol, crisp and elegant wines. More recently, he wrote:
“California wines have changed…emerging from a longstanding and still powerful culture that prized power over finesse, strength over subtlety. As a culture begins to both value and pay for nuance, refinement and subtlety—wines change too. Anyone who visits California’s or Oregon’s best wine producers cannot help but notice that discussion about just these sorts of wines now is universal. This change is in the air.
He goes on the state quite assuredly:
“We’re seeing this in a growing interest in, and celebration of, wines made from grapes picked at lower ripeness levels (which consequently means lower alcohol levels, as well). Do such wines dominate? Not yet. But are they, however slowly, beginning to transform the wine culture? Count on it.”
The big problem with all of this is that the climate of California, Australia and other New World regions can’t easily produce this style of wine. In fact it’s getting more difficult to do so as our climate continues to change. Mind you it can be done – but not naturally. The West Coast push to produce lower alcohol wine started in the 1990′s with the use of spinning cone technology, eventually evolving into the now common practice of adding water to grape juice. But let’s be honest – the current trend in California (and other historically hot-climate regions) to produce wines lower in alcohol and higher in acid is based not on a dedication to terroir, but on a calculated, cynical manipulation of wine in the cellar that will meet the new market expectations. It seems the more things change in the New World, the more they stay the same.
The grand irony in this discussion is that East Coast regions like the North Fork of Long Island have produced aromatic, elegant, and low alcohol wines for almost 40 years – completely naturally – with ever increasing quality and little need for winemaker intervention. Our style has never wavered – we have a dedicated, monogamous relationship with crisp aromatic whites and soft, elegant reds – all with moderate amounts of alcohol and refreshing minerality. Thankfully for us, we don’t have to change to become fashionable. It’s what our vineyards genuinely produce and the wine we sincerely create. It’s what our terroir does all by itself – and it’s the coolest wine style going at the moment. We may not always be hip, but we’ll always be steady. It’s a long-term commitment we have going.
New York has always been where the best information, inventions, food, and fashions have come to be tested and accepted. The growing popularity of low alcohol, cool climate wines continues to rise in this country and is not going away. We know from our great reception in the New York City marketplace – and because our wines are now being copied by our friends in the West – that we have passed the test. Now we need more people to learn about what we do.
Perhaps there is a lesson we can learn from the Native Americans of Dr. Richter’s text – that the New World is not quite what it seems to be. We make wine in the oldest part of America – our country’s historic birthplace – in an entirely new style that is all our own. This requires a new definition along with a new nom de plume – one that breaks with the common dogma and accurately describes our region. It’s an edgy, temperate zone of four seasons, unpredictable rainfall, and cool ripening conditions. It’s a place near the sea with fertile soils, mild temperatures and lots of sunshine – all wrapped up in a distinctive New York groove. It’s a place like nowhere else on earth.
I like to call it – the Cool New World.
-roh
Harvest 2012 is over and what a year it was! A year that started early and ended early with ripeness levels not seen since the great vintage of 2010. All varieties came in extremely ripe and flavorful – from the Chardonnay to the Petit Verdot – we have bold and beautiful melodies coming from every tank.
With the exception of a few blocks of late ripening Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot, most all of the fruit on the North Fork has been harvested. For the past three years in row, Long Island vineyards have finished harvesting fruit before the end of October – something that in the previous 20 years was unheard of. Is this a new trend for our region going forward?
There’s no question that our climate is changing – we are seeing earlier starts to our season, hence earlier ripening times. This is nothing new in the wine world as vintners from around the globe have discussed seeing this same trend for years in Europe, especially in the cool climate areas of France, Germany and Northern Italy. I think it’s generally a good thing for us as a wine producing district; the more time we have for ripening the higher the quality our fruit will be. As in all things relating to making wine however, time will give us the answers.
Another interesting phenomenon we witnessed this season is the increasing importance of ultraviolet (UV) light penetration. We saw almost identical levels of warmth (calculated as Growing Degree Days) in 2012 as we did in 2011 – but the two years couldn’t be more different from each other. While the reds from 2011 showed themselves to be more delicate and less extracted, the 2012 reds generated higher sugar levels and are already showing much more intensity and power. The difference? – 2012 had a far greater number of clear sunny days than 2011, as well as much less rain. During the growing season (March 1st – Oct 31st) of 2011, we accumulated about 35 inches of rain – in 2010 we had 28 inches. As of Oct 24th, 2012 has seen about 25 inches of rain – the lowest of the three. The lesson here? Great vintages are not always about heat but the confluence of heat, sunlight and dry weather that lead to truly extraordinary wines. We had enough of all three this season and the quality in the tanks shows.
The season took off in early April after a mild, almost non-existent winter. The vines grew quickly and the sunlight and heat worked together, bringing some fruit to maturity as early as September 1st. The cool and dry days of late September and early October allowed the fruit to race across the finish line, with sugars rising quickly and maturity levels advancing rapidly by the day. Some days the grapes seemed to jump out and sing to us that they were ready. The final reds were picked in a fury, with our crew working hard to avoid the oncoming rains. The results were amazing and now we can take care of the bubbling wines inside our tanks and barrels over the next several months.
I want to give hearty congratulations to our vineyard and cellar crew who handled this harvest as smoothly and efficiently as any I’ve ever seen. They endured long hours, cold wet conditions and grueling work day after day in order to get all of our fruit inside the winery. It takes a lot of hard work (as well as lots of coffee) to make great wines. Our labors will no doubt be rewarded when these wines are released and the quality of the vintage makes itself known.
I’m so excited about the wines we have in the tanks right now. The whites are full of vibrant aromatics and zesty acidity, the roses are lush and flowery with waves of saline minerality and the reds are dark, bold, and velvety, with lovely savory, gravelly depth and lots of earthy spiciness. All of them sing loud and clear and represent what the North Fork can do best – and I can’t wait for you to try them.
In the meantime, if you’d like to get a feel for what the 2012 wines will be like, close your eyes and listen to this…
Long Islanders have been leading the way for the rest of the country for a very long time. Whether in politics, science, entertainment or most recently, fine wine – mainland America’s largest island is filled with a consummate record of achievement. As a native Long Islander, I’m extremely proud of where I come from. But I also know that many of our most extraordinary stories get lost in the strident sounds of today’s media. This space is usually reserved to talk about wine but I think it’s important to remember the place where we make it and understand the framework in which we live – not with only climatological or environmental descriptors but in historical and cultural terms as well.
The first English colonists came to live on Long Island in 1640, long before the rest of the country was even discovered. A great historical narrative has taken place on Long Island – from the critical Battle of Long Island (the first and largest battle of the American Revolution) to the seminal flight of Charles Lindberg – to the building of the Lunar Module. Throughout all of this, farmers and fishermen made up the backbone of our economy. Agriculturally, Long Island was the “bread basket of New York City” with local farms supplying produce and livestock to the Big Apple so it could thrive and grow into the great city it is today.
Of course being so close to one of the world’s largest cities doesn’t come without a price. Long Island was also one of the first areas in the country to experience suburban development. We’ve been called the “first-born burbs of the baby boom.” In fact, the birth was fast and furious with large tracts of farmland eaten up by the post-war families and their housing needs. Luckily for the East End, the expansion fizzled and left what is today a modern miracle – the bucolic area of the North Fork with a thriving agricultural economy. Today, Suffolk County still remains the most important agricultural county in New York generating more farm revenue than any other county in the state.
In addition to agriculture, science holds a prominent place in our regional history. Guglielmo Marconi – the father of radio transmission – set up one his first stations in Babylon, Long Island for training wireless operators and for beaming wireless messages to ships at sea. Among the most important centers for scientific research in the United States are the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory and the Brookhaven National Laboratory. In 1952, James Watson and Francis Crick presented their model of the double helix for the structure of DNA at Cold Spring Harbor and in 1983 Barbara McClintock won the Nobel Prize for her discovery of genes that could jump around chromosomes. Brookhaven is also the home of several Nobel Prize winners including T.D. Lee, Chen-Ning Yang, Samuel C.C. Ting, James Cronin, Val Fitch, Leon Lederman, Melvin Schwartz and Jack Steinberger.
The reach of Long Island stretched the furthest with the development of the Apollo Lunar Module. In Bethpage, Long Island, the Grumman Corporation designed, assembled, integrated and tested the Lunar Module (better known as the LM), the famed Eagle of the Apollo program. Between 1969 and 1972, six Grumman lunar modules carried 12 astronauts to and from the surface of the moon and one – Aquarius – served as a lifeboat for three astronauts during the ill-fated Apollo 13 mission.
From a creative standpoint, the output of Long Island artists is almost without peer in our nation. The list of people is quite impressive and their impact has resonated not only across our nation, but around the entire world. Here’s just a short list:
Authors: Walt Whitman, Doris Kearns Goodwin, Thomas Pynchon, Nelson DeMille, Louise Glück, Maurice Sendak
Comedians: Lenny Bruce, Mel Brooks, Andy Kaufman, Billy Crystal, Jimmy Fallon, Rosie O’Donnell, Rodney Dangerfield, Don Rickles, Jerry Seinfeld, Eddie Murphy, Kevin James, Howard Stern, Dom DeLuise, Jimmy Kimmel, Buddy Hackett, Jim Breuer
Movies: Michael Lynne, Jonathan Demme, Francis Ford Copolla, Judd Apatow, Steven Spielberg, Woody Allen
Musicians: George Gershwin, Jay-Z, Simon and Garfunkel, Richie Havens, Buddy Rich, Lena Horne, Lou Reed, Arlo Guthrie, Public Enemy, Mariah Carey, The Ramones, Adam Yauch, Harry Chapin, LL Cool J, Billy Joel, Chuck D., John Sebastian
Designers: Michael Kors, Donna Karan, Kenneth Cole, Steve Madden, Calvin Klein
The above list highlights those who were actually born on Long Island – but there were many others who thought the area was so cool they just had to live here. Here’s a short list: Theodore Roosevelt, William Cullen Bryant, Albert Einstein, Jack Kerouac, F. Scott Fitzgerald, John Steinbeck, John Philip Sousa, Joseph Heller, Louis Armstrong, John Coltrane, Jackson Pollock, Isaac Asimov, Lee Krasner and William DeKooning.
There are many great Long Islanders – people who are working to help their communities and enrich lives every single day. Most of them are unsung heroes. Others are remembered for their sacrifice. Thousands of Long Islanders gave their lives serving their county in the great wars of our nation. More recently on 9/11, nearly 500 Long Islanders lost their lives in the World Trade Center. We remember all of these people as great Long Islanders.
This is the land we work, the soil we till and the region we live in. This is the legacy of where we planted our vineyards and where we make our wines. It’s a chronicle of greatness written by some of the most incomparable pioneers in our nation’s history. It’s about reaching across vast oceans, flying into the great unknown and to our eventual exploration of space. It’s about service and sacrifice. It’s about beauty, song, laughter and the creation and appreciation of the finer things that life has to offer. It’s where we are – and its way cooler than we ever thought.
-roh
“Eventually, all things merge into one, and a river runs through it.
- Norman Maclean
Living on the North Fork, we are always reminded about water. It surrounds us, protects us and affects our lives every day. It cools us in the summer, warms us in the winter and provides endless beauty and enjoyment in so many ways. But many of us don’t realize that we’re surrounded by water underneath the ground as well – a dark, cold river that flows unseen, year-round and holds the key to our future. Long Island contains three major bodies of water under the ground – these are our aquifers – geologic remnants from the Island’s early period of glacial formation. Three separate aquifer layers make up the Long Island system. In sequence from shallowest to deepest, the Long Island aquifers are: the Upper Glacial (100-150 ft.) the Magothy (500-1000 ft.) and the Lloyd (1500-2000ft.) All exist underneath the area of Long Island with the exception of the North Fork. Here we only have one – the Upper Glacial. It is our sole source of drinking water.
Our aquifers receive their fresh water from rainfall – on Long Island we average approximately 44 inches of precipitation a year. Of this, about half percolates into the ground and is recharged into the groundwater system. The remaining precipitation is either evaporated, used by plants, or runs off into our surrounding waters. In a pristine natural system, Long Island’s groundwater would eventually reach the coast and flow out into the ocean and Sound, while being replenished with new precipitation. But our population constantly requires water to live; the 3 million people who live in Nassau and Suffolk Counties are completely dependent on groundwater for all of their freshwater needs.
Over 138 billion gallons of water is removed each year from beneath Nassau and Suffolk. As water recharges the system, it can also carry contaminants into the groundwater. Since it is the shallowest and closest to sources of runoff, the Upper Glacial aquifer is the most susceptible to contamination. The Magothy aquifer supplies over 90% of the water used in Nassau County and about 50% of all water used in Suffolk County. On the North Fork however, it’s all about the Upper Glacial. On average, the North Fork lies 10 feet above sea level making it fairly easy for runoff to vent out to our surrounding waterways. This process can take up to a century to complete, meaning that whatever we do today above the ground can stay with us for at least 50-100 years. Needless to say, this is a very important concept as it relates to sustainable winegrowing.
One of the major sources of groundwater contamination is nitrates. According to the EPA and the Safe Drinking Water Act of 1974, testing is done periodically to determine the level of contaminants in drinking water. Years of research have determined that the acceptable level of nitrates in water should be no more than 10ppm. The natural level of nitrate in pristine well water from undeveloped tracts of land is almost always less than 3ppm. Nitrate in Long Island groundwater stems from a number of different land activities but overall the greatest contributor to nitrates is wastewater via septic tank/cesspool systems and home turf grass fertilizers. Clearly, development has taken its toll on our water supply.
Agriculture has played a role as well. Traditional row crop farming over the past 100 years has led to increased nitrate levels in many areas. Thirty years ago, most North Fork farmland sat over wells that contained levels of nitrate of 10ppm or higher. Many older residues, or “legacy materials” are also found – a remnant of our farming past. Today, only 10% of private wells exceed 10ppm of nitrate and 29% exceed the concentrations of 4 and 6 ppm – a testimony to better farming practices in use today and greater homeowner awareness of fertilizer use – but clearly a lot more needs to be done.
What does all of this have to with sustainable winegrowing? Quite a bit. Back in March, our Long Island Sustainable Winegrowing committee attended a presentation by Hydro-geologist Ronald Paulsen of the Suffolk County Department of Health Services Groundwater Investigations Unit on the impacts of agriculture on the East End. For over 25 years, this county agency has been monitoring Suffolk’s groundwater for various chemicals. In fact, they were the first such agency in the United States to detect pesticides in groundwater in August 1979. These findings led to a longer term investigation which is still ongoing – much of which will be laid out in larger report sometime later this year.
In order to analyze the impacts on our aquifers, Suffolk County DHS has been studying samples from wells located across the county – from fallow farmland, housing developments and traditional agriculture. DHS also installed 29 monitoring wells at 9 different vineyard sites. Vineyard wells were tested annually with over 182 samples taken in just the last 5 years alone. The result is a great piece of scientific work providing us with some very useful information that will help us become better growers moving forward.
During the presentation, Mr. Paulsen explained that the vineyard well samples contained minute remnants of 12 agricultural chemicals. These materials were found in relatively trace amounts – (from 0.5 to 3 parts per billion) and 8 out of the 12 materials were considered “legacy materials” as they were never used for growing grapes. The 3 that remained can be attributed to grape growing (metalaxyl, imidacloprid, and simizine) but are also used by traditional agriculture, as well as homeowners on residential and commercial lawns. For reasons pertaining to their chemistry, these materials are particularly leachable. The Long Island Sustainable Winegrowing group decided soon after this presentation to prohibit these three materials from our program; no vineyard that is certified by LISW can apply any of these chemicals on their property. Even though the levels were small, we felt it was better to safe and move forward without these materials.
The other aspect of the well testing presentation had to do with nitrate levels. In this part of the study the findings showed that vineyards were clearly on the right track. For one, the average level of nitrates found in the vineyard wells was a little over 4ppm – while the levels found in the traditional agricultural wells was over 13ppm – three times as high. These results were surprising even to the researchers who (when they began the study) believed internally that vineyard sites would be lucky to reduce nitrates below 6ppm. Clearly we have been doing something right in our vineyards. The combination of careful management, permanent cover crops and limited fertilizer use has resulted in a low environmental impact. The bottom line is vineyards have a lower nitrogen impact on our groundwater than a typical house on .5 acres of property (6ppm.) and only slightly higher than a pristine piece of fallow land. It’s anticipated that as vineyards continue to thrive, these levels will be reduced even further.
Our LISW program limits nitrogen application to 20 pounds per acre per year, and discourages fall applications to reduce leaching. It’s also true that vines don’t require a lot of nitrogen to grow and produce quality fruit. Most of what we remove from the vineyard – the fruit – is returned after pressing as compost. The rest of the vines’ parts – leaves, shoots and canes – are mostly all returned to the soil, leaving a small net nitrogen removal. As stewards of our land, we feel really good that we’ve made a difference.
For almost 40 years, Long Island vineyards have worked hard to develop unique and safe practices for producing quality wine grapes. Through the LISW program, East End vineyards and wineries have endeavored to create our own definition of sustainable viticulture and we want to ensure the sustained agricultural use of these lands for many more generations. LISW formed with the purpose of trying to make our world a better place to live and work – while trying to produce some of the best wines in the U.S. The viability of local vineyards is dependent on our ability to steward our land in a way that allows it to stay healthy and productive into the future. We also need to remember the water that flows underneath us every day – what we do on our land today is going to be in someone’s glass of water 50 years from now. We need to pay attention.
The fact is, people can live without wine but they can’t live without water. It’s important to LISW that we attempt to preserve and protect all of our surrounding waters as much as possible by limiting nitrogen use and reducing the number of chemicals in our vineyards. Today in its first year, over 650 acres of vineyard land is enrolled in the LISW program, almost 25% of the total vineyard acreage on Long Island, with more growers to follow suit in the years to come.
So when you’re raising a glass of local vino, not only should you think about the vineyards and the sea, but of the water that runs beneath our feet and how local vineyards are working hard to be sustainable. It’s really another part of our terroir – a part that is hidden yet so vital to our lives. It’s an entirely new way to look at Long Island wine.
Dear Friends of Bedell,
We hope you enjoyed your Fourth of July! Last week we bottled our extraordinary flagship red, 2010 Musée – perhaps the finest wine ever made in the 33-year history at Bedell Cellars. We even bottled a few magnums of this beauty that will be held in our library for years to come. No wine has generated more excitement in the winery this past year than Musée, and we are ecstatic with the cohesiveness, depth, and beauty of the blend. We hope to release it in early 2013, and are predicting this wine will become a historically important Long Island powerhouse.
A great day for the beach is a great day to be a grapevine! Warm and hot days during the past week really kicked the vines into gear and they are growing beautifully. We’ve had just enough rain and our vineyard crew has been busy removing excess shoots, cutting the grass between the rows and hedging the excess growth that can reach over the top of the trellis. This is important to keep sunlight streaming into the “fruit zone,” allowing our grapes to ripen and mature under ideal conditions.
Last night we hosted the first meeting of all the current members of Long Island Sustainable Winegrowing, a group we helped found, with a casual potluck gathering on our pavilion at sunset. So far we have 14 member vineyards who are participating, and in doing so are making the East End a better place to live, grow and make wine. For more information on this important initiative – the first of its kind in Eastern North America – check out the LISW website at http://www.lisustainablewine.org.
In case you missed it, our 2011 Taste Rose was featured in an article in Marie Claire magazine and winemaker Rich Olsen-Harbich was interviewed on the long running East End Show by erstwhile News 12 anchor Doug Geed (insert link).
As always we invite you to visit our Tasting Rooms at Bedell and Corey Creek any day of the week. We have live music scheduled every weekend during the daytime and also during our very popular Moonlight Mondays and Twilight Tuesdays at Corey Creek from 5-9pm we will have a full menu of barbecued ribs, hamburgers, sandwiches, and freshly shucked Peconic Bay oysters.
For the last two days we’ve had a soft warm rain falling on our vineyards in Cutchogue. During this time of year it’s always good to have rain to recharge our soils before the heat of the summer. Like any other plant, grapevines need water in order to grow and thrive. Water enables the vines to take up much needed nutrients to keep them healthy.
Over the next two weeks most all of our vines will go through their flowering period – what we call bloom. This is important as it determines the quantity of crop for the coming harvest. Unlike many other fruits, grapes are self-pollinated and don’t need any help from bees or other insects; the gentle winds coming off the surrounding waters are enough to move the flowers around to cause fertilization. The grapevine blossom is one of the most unassuming flowers you will ever see – it’s actually devoid of any petals and just contains the reproductive pieces of the flowers. So although they really aren’t much to look at, they do have a faint yellow color and a beautiful, sublime aroma that permeates the entire vineyard during the bloom period. If you’ve never experienced this, the next two weeks will be a really a wonderful time to visit us here at the winery.
The cellar has been bustling with activity this week. We’re just about ready to release our gorgeous 2010 Taste Red and we’re so happy with how it came out. The wine is like a plush velvety bowl of dark berries and is one of the most sensuous red wines we’ve ever made. The first release of the 2010 will be available this weekend so be sure to taste this one when you visit.
On Tuesday we hosted a small group of local wine shop owners as well as a few of our top salespeople from our distributor, Lauber Imports. We tasted some special blends and many of them got to see firsthand how we go through the process to make the best wine possible. We also had another visit this week from our old friend Doug Geed at News 12 Long Island. Doug was filming some segments for his popular East End Show. He proudly let me know that his show is one of the longest running on television – now going on 15 years. We’re very happy to keep providing him with good stories and great wines to talk about!
This week we were featured in stories about our sustainable winegrowing initiative in Santé, and Hamptons magazines. We are also excited that our wines will be part of a four course dinner prepared by Marcus Samuelsson acting as guest chef at Solé East’s Backyard grill in Montauk, NY. You can find more details on the event in this article featured on Haute Living. As always we invite you to visit our Tasting Rooms at Bedell and Corey Creek any day of the week. We have live music scheduled every weekend during the daytime and also during our very popular Moonlight Mondays and Twilight Tuesdays at Corey Creek from 5-9pm we will have gourmet BBQ by Custom Catering, freshly shucked oysters by Twin Forks Oyster and wood-fired pizza by Rolling in Dough Pizza Truck.
Give fools their gold, and knaves their power; let fortune’s bubbles rise and fall; who sows a field, or trains a flower, or plants a tree, is more than all.
John Greenleaf Whittier 1807-1892
Any smart winemaker worth his salt knows that “wine is made in the vineyard.” It’s never about how fancy the winery is or how much equipment you have in the cellar. If you haven’t got what it takes out in the vineyard – both in terms of terroir and vineyard management – you’ll have a hard time making good wines. So today I’d like to add another phrase to the winemaking lexicon – “behind every good winemaker is a great vineyard manager.”
Dave Thompson, Vineyard Manager at Bedell Cellars
Growing grapes on the East Coast is not for the faint of heart. There are constant forces of nature that will either work with you or against you, but one thing is certain – you are never in control of any of them. One of best vineyard mangers in the business is Dave Thompson, vineyard manager at Bedell Cellars. Dave has been managing vineyards since in the early 80’s when he helped Kip Bedell plant his first vines. Few people in our district know more about the climate, soil and process of growing vines than he does – and few have as much intuition about it.
Unlike many annual vegetable and fruit crops, grapes are around for a long time. Once their roots take hold in a vineyard they can live about as long as people do (70-80 years on average) before they become less economically viable. Because of this, a good farmer gets to know his vines in all seasons and a healthy and happy balance is achieved by keeping a close eye on the vines. I’ll often hear Dave say half-jokingly that “the vines are speaking to me” – or the vines don’t seem to like this or that. Dave almost knows how the vines feel by being around them all day. He lives and breathes the cycles of the vineyard as well the natural world that surrounds them.
Along with mastering the art of growing wine grapes, Dave has been keeping bees on the vineyard property since 1986. He got into it because he felt a connection to his past. As a young boy, Dave spent many days at his grandfather’s farm in Harbor Creek in Western New York. During the summer months, Dave helped out on the farm, working in his grandfather’s planting of peaches plums, apples and Concord grapes. One day when he was very young, Dave got lost on the property and wound up behind a barn sitting between two bee hives. He became fascinated watching the bees flying in and out of the hives toward the fruit trees and not only felt safe but completely entranced by how they seemed to know where to go and what to do. His family finally found him, completely happy and without a single sting. He was hooked.
Bees are very important as pollinators for fruit trees like apples and peaches but as Dave mentioned, “they aren’t important at all for growing grapevines – I just like to have them around.” Grapes are self-pollinating and don’t require bees to do any of the work of producing fruit. But other flowers and plants found in a vineyard do benefit from bee pollination. Yellow clover and the wildflowers that cover the row middles rely on bee pollination for survival.
Bee Friendly Farming
I always love to see the honeybees flying around at harvest time. They travel to the winery in the baskets of fruit and we try to wave them off when we’re ready to put them into the press. Dave is always looking out for them, shooing them back into the vineyard and telling them to fly back home. Today all of our vineyards are certified as “Bee Friendly” as we have become members of the Partners for Sustainable Pollination Initiative. This national group pursues collaborative approaches between farmers, growers, beekeepers and scientists to develop ways to improve health of honey bees in pollination services and support native pollinators.
Making great wine is all about farming. One needs suitable soil and just the right weather conditions with lots of sunshine in order to guide grapes from vine to bottle. But another part is equally important – a vineyard manager like Dave Thompson – who can steward the vines throughout the year, caring for them in the dead of winter, helping them to wake up in the spring, keeping them healthy and happy all through the growing months of the summer, and guiding them to their natural conclusion of maturity in the fall. No easy task – and one that requires intense dedication, enormous patience and unbridled passion.
Farmers know that in order to succeed they need to be in close touch with their surroundings – with the change of the seasons and vagaries of the weather. For as much as they closely manage their crop, there is so much more beyond their control. A great vineyard manager knows he can only care for the vines and give them a good healthy place to grow –but at some point, they need to be able to prosper and succeed on their own. Like children, we provide care, training and guidance but eventually we have to set them free into the world of nature. Dave has and continues to be the best parent our vines could ever have.
He is the Farmer in Bedell.
