Cozy days, with crisp mornings as well as cool evenings; chilly dips in pools that ought to have most likely been closed two weeks back; as well as altering fallen leaves that make trips along even traffic-ridden roadways like Montauk Freeway appear stunning– these are all signs that autumn on Long Island has actually gotten here.
Another indication of the autumn is harvest. And as harvest shows up, so does the modification in period for red wine enthusiasts. For lots of oenophiles it’s all about reds in the chilly months and whites in the summer season. However autumn is a fun time for transitional whites, and also Long Island creates among one of the most beautiful, seasonally transitional, whites of all, chardonnay.
Chardonnay can be quite the chameleon. Fermented and aged just in stainless steel, as are most, yet not all, chablis, it can be so exceptionally dry and also crisp some pinot grigio fans might blunder it for their favored white wine. While fermented and aged for longer periods in American oak, as are numerous California chardonnays, the red wine can be rich and smooth, also buttery, with notes of nuts, salute as well as sugar.
Lieb Cellars, a staple on the North Fork red wine scene since 1992, creates a chardonnay that records the autumn season flawlessly, the 2020 Lieb Cellars Estate Chardonnay. It is an interesting balance of oak and also stainless steel fermentation, with 67% of the juice barrel fermented and 33% fermented in stainless steel. The juices are then incorporated and also aged for 10 months in French oak. The resulting red wine has a very light, virtually lemon meringue nose, and also, on the taste buds, light notes of pear, lemon and apple, fuse flawlessly with warm vanilla. The a glass of wine retails for $28.
Lieb winemaker Russell Hearn describes the decision to use both steel as well as oak in fermentation. “The goal behind fermenting one-third in stainless is to keep the highest possible amount of fruit character,” he claims. “One hundred percent barrel fermentation brings more oak and weight, yet much less fruit retention. I yearn for this a glass of wine to have all of it– intricacy and also fruit.”
A short background of Lieb Cellars: It was founded in 1992 by Mark Lieb with the purchase of a four-acre pinot blanc vineyard. In 2000, Leib, along with winemaker Hearn, opened a sampling space and full-service winemaking center. In 2012, Lieb marketed Lieb Cellars as well as Premium Wine Team to a group of exclusive capitalists, including Hearn, and a new administration team was developed. Hearn has been Lieb’s wine maker given that the start.
Those interested in checking out Lieb Cellars should check out their website for information as well as appointments: liebcellars.com.