Hudson River Valley Wineries

This blog is dedicated to news, events, profiles and reviews of fine food and wine in the Hudson River Valley. We especially feature and spotlight the burgeoning wineries of the Hudson River Region. We accept and will relay information about releases, events, festivals and any toher happening related to food and wine in the Hudson River Valley. Send pertitnent information to hudsonriverwine@yahoo.com

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Location: Catskill, NY, United States

Carlo DeVito has traveled around the US, France, Spain, Chile, Canada, and Italy. He has been a publishing executive for more than 20 years. He shepherded the wine book program of Wine Spectator as well as worked with Kevin Zraly, Oz Clarke, Matt Kramer, Tom Stevenson, Evan Dawson, Greg Moore, Howard Goldberg, and many other wine writers. He has also published Salvatore Calabrese, Jim Meehan, Clay Risen, and Paul Knorr. He has also publisher such writers as Stephen Hawking, E. O Wilson, Philip Caputo, Gilbert King, James McPherson, Michael Lewis, David Margolick, Arthur M. Schlesinger Jr., John Edgar Wideman, Stanley Crouch, Dan Rather, Dee Brown, and Eleanor Clift. He is also the founder of Hudson-Chatham Winery, co-founder of the Hudson Berkshire Beverage Trail, and former president of the Hudson Valley Wine Country. His the author of more than 20 books including The New Single Malt Whiskey, Big Whiskey, and the forthcoming The Spirit of Rye. https://carlodevito.wordpress.com/

Tuesday, June 20, 2006

3rd Annual Cajun Jamboree at Adair Vineyards





Upcoming Events
Date: August 19.2006
Time: 1:00- 6:00 PM

3rd Annual Cajun Jamboree

Join Adair Vineyards for a New Orleans Bash! There will be live music, authentic Cajun Cuisine, and of course, great wine.

Chef Jes Schoemer will again be catering the event. Enjoy Crawfish Boil, Shrimp Creole, Red Beans & Sausage, Jambalaya, Blackened Catfish, Gumbo, and more! Don't miss out on this event.

We are pleased to annouce that Cleoma's Ghost with Jesse Lege & Friends will be performing throughout the day!

Order your tickets now. $35.00 (plus tax) gets you food, music, and a great time. Reservations are suggested. The party will go on rain or shine. Fully tented. Tickets are non-refundable. $40 at the door.

Hours of Operation
May
Friday, Saturday, and Sunday 11:00 am-5:00 pm
June-October
Daily 11:00 am-6:00 pm


Also...
Annual Woodstock - New Paltz Crafts Fair Labor Day Weekend September 2-4, 2006
Held at the Ulster County Fair Grounds. A repeat of Memorial Day yet larger! One of the largest and highest quality craft shows in the northeast. Hundreds of booths.


15th Annual Taste of New Paltz September 10, 2006
Held at the Ulster County Fairgrounds. An annual favorite - dozens of local restaurants, local wineries, micro breweries and crafts-people offer samples of their best. Fun for the whole family with games and contests for children, a silent auction, door prizes and great Great GREAT food! Funds raised by the thousands in attendance benefit the New Paltz Chamber of Commerce. For more info call (845) 255-0243

AsBilly Crystal and Carol Kane said in The Princess Bride...."Have fun stormin' da castle..."

Thursday, June 15, 2006

Cascade Mountain Winery Undergoes Major Changes

Text by Oren Phillips 06/09/2006 from the Harlem Valley Times

The spring of 2006 has brought sweeping changes to the Cascade Mountain Winery with longtime owners Bill and Margaret Wetmore passing the torch to two new faces after 35 years in the business.

The winery has long been one of the premier wineries in the area, along with a successful restaurant, also located on the property. The Wetmores have named Cesar Baeza, a winemaster who has more than 30 year's experience, as the new head of business.

He has a master's degree in viticulture and enololgy from the University of Madrid and has practiced winemaking in Chile, Spain, France, the Balkans, California and the Hudson Valley.

Besides winemaking, Baeza also worked from 1978 to 1987 in the quality assurance program for PepsiCo's Monsieur Henri line.

In that position, he developed wines imported from Romania, Bulgaria and Hungary. Most recently Baeza has been developing table wines for the Brotherhood Winery in Washingtonville.

Along with Baeza, George Cafiero was named the new managing partner in charge of wine sales and restaurant operations.

After starting his career as a grape picker at Cascade, he moved on to become a chef on a commercial fishing vessel, before returning to the winery.

Since then, Cafiero has been busy expanding Cascade's restaurant operations and bringing the wines to the various farmers markets in the Hudson Valley.

"George is terrific and Cesar is one of the best winemakers in the country," said Wetmore.

"I look forward to working with both of them. Plus I love to eat here, so I am going to keep doing that," he said.

Cafiero said he's excited about his new position and thinks his career at the winery has come full circle from his days collecting grapes.

"It's a little overwhelming, but nothing I can't handle," he said.

"Everything works well here, so I don't plan on making any major changes. There are some challenges I have to focus on, like staffing and marketing, but every decision is equally important," he said.

Five years from now, Cafiero said he hopes things stay pretty much the same at Cascade, but he may expand the restaurant's hours to be open all year.

Although the Wetmores are making major changes, the two have no plans of stepping down from the winery.

"We want to stick around and enjoy our good fortune," said Bill Wetmore.

"New York wines have come a long way in the past 30 years and we want to see what the future has in store. We are delighted to have such experienced men, as well as good friends, helping us out. Both Cesar and George are great assets," he said.

The growth of the winery stems to 1972 when the family planted 15 acres of land and had to cut down about 1,000 locust trees to create vineyard posts.

In 1977, the Wetmores started the winery as a school project for their son, with Bill having only a background in writing to start with. In fact, he has four published novels to his credit.

"As a novelist, I couldn't afford to buy wine, so I had to make my own," joked Wetmore.

"For a long time, New York had a terrible reputation for making wines, basically only sweet desert wines. Now that we have cold resistant grapes, New York is just as competitive with the rest of the world," he said.

By 1983, the winery was doing so well that the Wetmores decided to open a restaurant there.

The idea was that people could try the wines with food and learn that wines created in New York were just as good as any other on the market. Today the restaurant has received numerous awards and has been highly rated by both Zagat and the New York Times.

Some of the wines include Vintage Seyval Blanc, Vintage Private Reserve White, Summertide, Summertide Splits, Vintage Coeur De Lion, Vintage Private Red Reserve, Harvest Rose and Heavenly Daze.

"Summertide is the most popular, but Vintage Seyval Blanc and Private Red Reserve are the most appreciated by the experts," said Wetmore.

According to Cafiero, it's not just wine connoisseurs that make their way to Cascade to sample the variety of wines.

"I have seen a lot of new drinkers come up to the vineyard. Our wines are very approachable, not only in prices, but they also are easy to drink. It is also a very relaxed environment so people aren't afraid to ask questions about the wines," he said, adding, "We have a fun setting and that translates when the customers come in."

Word of mouth is spreading quickly and Cascade is seeing more and more people from New York City, Westchester and the tri-state area stopping by when visiting the Hudson Valley.

"Lots of people start their trip or end their trip here," said Wetmore.

"We are the only winery that has a restaurant as well. The summer and the fall are our two biggest seasons," he said.

The Cascade Restaurant is open for lunch Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday holidays with dinners Saturday by reservation only. For more information, call 845-373-9021.

©Harlem Valley Times 2006

11th Annual Bounty of the Hudson Food & Wine Festival

Join the Shawangunk Wine Trail July 29th and 30th at Adair Vineyards as they host the 11th Annual Bounty of the Hudson. This two-day wine & food festival brings together the Hudson Valley Wineries under one tent. Enjoy epicurean delights, farm fresh local produce, cooking workshops and Live Music

POUGHKEEPSIE, NY (PRWEB) June 8, 2006 -- Join the Shawangunk Wine Trail July 29th and 30th at Adair Vineyards as they host the 11th Annual Bounty of the Hudson. This two-day wine & food festival brings together the Hudson Valley Wineries under one tent. Enjoy epicurean delights, farm fresh local produce, cooking workshops and Live Music.

The Hudson Valley has one of the most distinguished culinary traditions in America, from the French Huguenot’s 18th Century plantings of wine grapes, to its present day resurgence as a producer of everything from gourmet mesclun greens to foie gras. Food, farms and our natural history will be well represented at the event.

Tickets for the Bounty are $20 and $8 for the Designated Driver. Tickets can be purchased in advance or the day of the event. The event runs from 12 noon to 5pm each day.

Organized nearly 20 years ago, The Shawangunk Wine Trail offers the most diversity of any wine trail. Located in the Heart of the Hudson Valley. It is home to the third largest winery in the New York, the smallest winery in the New York, the nation’s oldest continuously operated winery and America’s oldest vineyard. Wines produced in the region range from dry complex wines, to soft fruity wines, to sparkling and outstanding dessert wines.

The Shawangunk Wine Trail is the closest wine trail to New York City, Westchester, Albany, Bergen County NJ, and Connecticut. It is conveniently located 85 miles north of New York City, 72 miles south of Albany and 40 miles west of Danbury CT. The Shawangunk Wine Trail is easily accessible by the New York State Thruway at Exits 16, 17, and 18, from Route 17 at Exit 119 and I84 West – 9W North & Union Avenue Exit.

Wine trail members include: Adair Vineyards & Rivendell Winery, New Paltz NY; Whitecliff Vineyards, Gardiner NY; Benmarl Vineyards, Glorie Farm Winery & Stoutridge Winery, Marlboro NY; Baldwin Vineyards & Brimstone Hill Vineyards, Pine Bush NY; Brotherhood Winery, Washingtonville NY; Applewood Winery & Warwick Valley Winery & Distillery, Warwick NY.

For more information and to purchase tickets go to www.gunkswine.com.

Tickets On Sale Now for the Fifth Annual Hudson Valley Wine & Food Fest

Tickets are now on sale for the Fifth Annual Hudson Valley Wine & Food Fest that will take place September 9 & 10, 2006 at the Greig Farm in Red Hook, NY. Purchasers can take advantage of an advance sale discount of $5 off the regular gate ticket price by ordering their tickets prior to August 15, 2006.

Red Hook, NY (PRWEB) June 7, 2006 -– Tickets are now on sale for the Fifth Annual Hudson Valley Wine & Food Fest that will take place September 9 & 10, 2006 at the Greig Farm in Red Hook, NY. Purchasers can take advantage of an advance sale discount of $5 off the regular gate ticket price by ordering their tickets prior to August 15, 2006.

The Hudson Valley Wine & Food Fest is a celebration of the bounty of New York state wines and food. We will bring together over 200 wineries, gourmet food, and fine art and craft vendors this year. We’ve also added an expanded Family Friendly area that includes a corn maze, a hay maze for the little ones, hayrides, apple and berry picking and more. There will be wine tasting, gourmet cooking demonstrations by celebrity chefs, wine seminars and great local music to fill the weekend with wine, food and fun for the whole family.

We will kick off the Fest with a benefit Grand Reserve Wine Tasting on Friday, September 8th from 6 to 9pm at the Wine & Food Fest site. The Grand Reserve Tasting will feature pourings from select New York wineries of their special reserve vintages that are generally not available to the public. There will be hors d’eourves from great local restaurants and caterers, as well as an auction for to benefit the Ulster and Dutchess County’s Cornell Cooperative Extensions (CCE). A portion of the proceeds from the evening will benefit the fine educational programs of the CCE. Tickets for this event are also on sale now and are $50.00.

Advance Sale ticket prices are $15 for One Day Tasting Ticket, $25 for Weekend Tasting Ticket, $5 for One Day Non-Taster Ticket, $10 for Weekend Non-Taster Ticket. Tickets can be purchased online at www.HudsonValleyWineFest.com, www.WineRacks.com, www.LocalWineEvents.com or by calling WineRacks.com, toll-free 888-687-2517.

The weekend Fest hours are 11am to 6pm on Saturday and 11am to 5pm on Sunday. The event is held Rain or Shine under giant white festival tents. Parking is free.

Go Sailing on the Shawangunk Wine Trail With Holland America

Exclusive Wine Vacations has partnered with the Shawangunk Wine Trail to offer Sail with the Trail Cruise departing New York January 17th 2007 on Holland America’s ms Noordam. The cruise will sail round trip to the Caribbean.

POUGHKEEPSIE, NY (PRWEB) June 12 2006 -– Exclusive Wine Vacations has partnered with the Shawangunk Wine Trail to offer Sail with the Trail Cruise departing New York January 17th 2007 on Holland America’s ms Noordam. The cruise will sail round trip to the Caribbean, making stops at the ports of Turks & Caicos; Tortola; St Maarten; St Thomas and Puerto Rico. Prices start at just $1784 per person for this 10 day cruise.

From Terrior to Taste. Sail with the trail and learn about the Hudson Valley Wine Region. Follow the tradition of the fine winemaking established by the early French Huguenot settlers who brought their wine making expertise to the Hudson Valley over 300 years ago. There will be special seminars, wine tastings and cocktail receptions.

Seminars to include an Introduction to the Hudson Valley Wine Region, Grape Growing and Wine Making, Wine & Food Paring and Other wine and beverages produced in the region. Guest will be invited to two private cocktail receptions featuring wine from the Shawangunk Wine Trail and light horsdoeuvres. Wine from the Shawangunk Wine Trail will be served at four dinners

Exclusive Wine Vacations is where Wine & Travel Come Together. Exclusive Wine Vacations specializes in travel to the wine regions of the world. We allow you to indulge yourself in your passion with a unique and personalized vacation of a lifetime! Pamper your taste for fine wines and cuisine, enjoy a luxury cruise and experience culinary creations, great chefs and splendid vintages, visit prestigious wineries, participate in culinary classes in the top gastronomic regions of the world, are just of few of what Exclusive Wine Vacations can arrange.

Organized nearly 20 years ago, The Shawangunk Wine Trail offers the most diversity of any wine trail. Located in the Heart of the Hudson Valley. It is home to the third largest winery in the New York, the smallest winery in the New York, the nation’s oldest continuously operated winery and America’s oldest vineyard. Wines produced in the region range from dry complex wines, to soft fruity wines, to sparkling and outstanding dessert wines.

For more information go to www.exclusivewinevacations.com or www.gunkswine.com