SUMMER 2024 RAVINOUS WINE CLUB ONE
A warm summer greeting to the Ravinous ones,
What a lovely summer season we are having! This is the kind of summer that reminds us of how lucky we are to live in the cool climate of the Northeastern US. So many of the wine regions across the world are having climate change issues, but we sit sweetly in a climate that stays moderately warm in the summer, with good rainfall, plenty of sunshine and with the beauty of our glacier-carved Finger Lakes.
During these sunny, mild summers, the grapes develop a delicate translucence as they ripen and swell with the nectar of the season. It is really wonderful to see! As Ravinous One members, part of your benefits is a yearly educational (and fun) tour of the cellar and vineyards. So if you haven’t done it yet, please contact Dan to schedule it for you and your friends. It’s always fun to see what is going on down in the cellar!
Harvest will start early this year, probably mid-September, and then our harvest party is September 22. Don’t forget to reserve your spot at our table! We prepare a delicious lunch with produce from our farms right here on Pre-emption road, humanely raised meat from the best farms in the Finger Lakes, fruits from Red Jacket orchards at the top of our driveway, and plenty of delicious wine. (See back cover.)
This summer also brought us some great new Riesling releases: GLINT, a rich 2020 Riesling with skin contact from the ripest vines of the Limestone Springs vineyard the 2019 Sparkling Riesling also from the same vineyard, and the 2021 Dry Riesling, Limestone Springs, which was just named one of the “best Rieslings of the year” by VinPair.
August is the month we are blending and bottling the last of the 2023 vintage Rieslings. We are very happy to offer wines that have spent time developing character in the bottle before releasing them.
We hope to see you at the winery for a visit during these last lazy days of summer.
Lisa & Morten Hallgren
The Chef & the Winemaker
B e R a v i n o u s !
SUMMER 2024 WINES
Dry Riesling estate grown 2021
2021 was a vintage that really showed the excellence of our vineyard sites and the importance of having control over your grape supply. Our vineyard managers were able to achieve excellent ripeness by keeping the canopy intact and crop thinning The result is an excellent example of our limestone ( Limestone Springs vineyard) and shale stone (16 Falls vineyard) blend that has made our dry Riesling complete and complex. Crisp acidity, citrus, white flower and melon aromas combine with a saline minerality and a lingering finish. Extended aging on the fine lees provides the textural depth.
Field Notes 2023
This is our fourth vintage of our blend of Valvin Muscat, Gewurztraminer and Riesling. All three grape varieties are grown at our Limestone Springs vineyard in Geneva. The result is an interesting blend that combines the generous fruity and floral aromas of the Valvin Muscat with the spices, lychees and textural richness of Gewurztraminer as well as the focus and refreshing acidity of Riesling. We have one of the first vineyards planted to Valvin Muscat, developed only a mile away from the winery at the Geneva Agricultural Experiment station by Dr. Bruce Reisch and his team.
Cabernet Franc 2022
There is no longer any doubt that Cabernet Franc has become the red signature grape variety of the Finger Lakes region. The 2022 vintage is a great illustration of how well adapted to our region is this under-appreciated grape variety. Following a winter with significant crop loss, the small volume was harvested late October in optimal conditions. Four weeks of skin contact with significant extraction gave us a wine that combines the bright, ripe red fruit, earthy and spicy aromas with soft round tannins and a long finish. The components were almost entirely aged in our large oak casks favoring softening and maturing in oak neutral vessels.
Le Petit Caporal 2020
This is our blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Merlot in roughly even proportions from the Glen Eldridge and Argetsinger vineyards. These steep, terraced vineyard blocks – literally a stone’s throw from Seneca lake- provide perhaps the most protected vineyard site in the Finger lakes. The ripeness levels reached in 2020 were exceptional; perhaps the best growing conditions that we have ever seen in our region. Following an extended period of skin contact favoring extraction the components were barrel aged in predominantly French oak barrels for 18 months. While very enjoyable now, this wine will only improve with time.
Notes on the sparkling wine program
by Morten Hallgren
Sparkling wine production has been an important part of winemaking in the Finger Lakes region almost since the beginning; more than 175 years ago. It became so important that there was more sparkling wine produced on Keuka Lake than in any other American wine region. With its cool climate, impeccable natural acidic backbone reliably found from vintage to vintage, and the skill set developed over time and brought to the region from the Champagne region and elsewhere, the conditions have always been favorable. While in the early days, the sparkling wines were made from the native labrusca grapes such as Catawba and Delaware, today all of the more interesting sparkling wines are made from the vinifera grapes: Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Riesling in particular. While short-lived trends with simpler pet nat style sparkling wines and other forms of simple “bubbly wines” will come and go, the higher quality sparkling wines will always be made using the “methode champenoise”. It’s simply not possible to obtain the fine foam, tiny bubbles, and elegant brioche character from extended aging on the lees if you take shortcuts.
We have been making traditional methode champenoise-style sparkling wine since the 2006 vintage. Almost all of our Chardonnay and Pinot Noir-based wines ( Brut, Brut Rose, Blanc de Blancs, and Blanc de Noirs) have been made with grapes grown at the Argetsinger vineyard. This site has already proven its quality potential for this type of wine. More recently, first in 2013 and then again starting in 2017, we have been making sparkling Riesling wines from both the Argetsinger vineyard and our estate vineyards. Since 2018 we have directed more of our grapes, both from the Argetsinger vineyard and from our estate vineyards, towards the production of sparkling wine. This has meant temporarily discontinuing the Chardonnay Argetsinger vineyard, which had become a very popular wine. It was also made possible by the new plantings of Riesling at the Argetsinger vineyard. The grapes from these two blocks do not go into the vineyard- designated Riesling from the old block. Instead, these grapes are exclusively used for sparkling wine while “ under observation” for future inclusion in the still Riesling. As always at Ravines, the approach has been not to rush any projects. We like to offer sparkling Riesling -both estate and from the Argetsinger vineyard- with 4 years of aging “en tirage” and even longer – 5 to 7 years- for the Chardonnay and Pinot Noir-based sparkling wines. For reference, this far exceeds what you find in the vast majority of Champagne wines and is only matched by their top cuvees. We wouldn’t want it any other way…
Recipes and Pairings by Chef Lisa
These recipes are an ode to summer: filled with summer vegetables at the peak of their goodness. They are the result of hard work in the fields throughout the Finger Lakes and we buy all of our produce from local farmers, some who are from the mennonite community but many who studied at the agriculture school at nearby Cornell University.
Ricotta Stuffed Zucchini Blossoms with Blistered Tomato Salsa & Dry
Riesling 2021
A delicate appetizer that can stand alone or served on the side of a salad. Zucchini blossoms are the yellow flowers that grow on maturing zucchini plants. It’s easy to grow your own and even easier to procure them from a gardener-friend. The ricotta mixture can also be used to stuff zucchini or all kinds of summer sweet peppers, and then baked.
6 zucchini blossoms
½ t lemon zest
1 t fresh thyme leaves
Freshly ground white pepper
1 c whole milk ricotta
1 clove and garlic, crushed & minced
2 T parmesan cheese grated
1 T EVOO
1 egg
1 t minced chives
1 t kosher salt
Mix cheeses, egg, herbs and seasonings. Fluff with a fork and then open the petals of each flower and stuff each one with 1 heaping tablespoon of ricotta mixture. Gently close up the top of each flower, turning the petals inward. Preheat a non-stick skillet to medium heat, melt the butter and then place the stuffed flower in the pan. Sautee for a few minutes on each side, turning gently. Ricotta mixture may start to spill out of the flower, but that’s ok, it looks pretty. With a spatula, take out each flower, place it on a plate and let cool slightly. Serve with a spoonful of salsa.
Salsa: 2 c cherry tomatoes, 2 chopped scallions, 1 t EVOO, 1 t minced parsley, lime wedge, s&p
Toss cherry tomatoes and scallions with oil and put into a hot small skillet until tomatoes start to blacken and skin breaks. Add parsley and cook for another half min, then remove from the pan. Chop, season, add lime.
Baby Arugula Salad with Grilled White Peaches and Spicy Chickpeas
& Field Notes 2023
• 6 firm white peaches, pitted, cut into 6 wedges
• 1 ½ c chickpeas, cooked & drained
• 1 clove garlic, crushed and minced
• Juice of 2 limes
• ¼ t cumin
• ½ t smoked paprika
• Shaved Parmesan
• 3/4 c super thinly sliced red onion
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
• 4 T EVOO
• 1 t garlic powder
• ½ t chili powder
• 1 T brown sugar
Our good friends and owners of the Argetsinger Vineyard, Beren and Will Argetsinger, are also dedicated agriculturists who have been working on a chickpea project with NYS Farm Viability Institute. They supplied the chickpeas and inspiration for this recipe.
Preheat the grill to medium. Toss onion with lime in bowl, set aside, tossing occasionally. Toss chickpeas with 1 T EVOO, spices, salt, sugar. Pan roast in heavy skillet until crisp, about 10 mins.Toss peaches in 1 T oil. Grill on both sides for a few minutes on each. Remove, set aside. Add to onion bowl: 2 T EVOO, 2 dashes sriracha sauce, s & p. Toss with arugula, fold in apricots and chickpeas. Served with shaved Parmesan.
Grilled focaccia with Pancetta, Smoked Paprika Aioli & Cabernet Franc 2022
This is an easy recipe to make ahead of time and is oh-so-satisfying with lots of umami to please a crowd of friends over for summer fun. The dish is great even without the pancetta–just cut the focaccia into smaller pieces and spoon on a dab of aioli after the bread is grilled.
2 c all-purpose flour
1 t sugar
¼ t Kosher salt
2 T fresh rosemary leaves
5 tablespoons warm water
2 ½ t active dry yeast
3 T EVOO, divided
1 small red onion, sliced thin
Mix 5 T warm water, yeast, and sugar in a large bowl and let sit for 10 mins. Stir in flour and salt, adding additional water 1 T at a time, if necessary, until all flour is absorbed and mixture has pulled together into a dough. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until springy, 4-6 mins. Lightly oil a large bowl. Place dough in the bowl and turn to coat with oil. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, apprx 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 465℉. Grease a large, rimmed baking sheet, approx 18”x13” with a T EVOO. Deflate dough and turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead briefly, then pat or roll dough into a sheet the size of your baking sheet and transfer the rolled dough to it. Brush with remaining oil and make dimples across the surface with your fingertips. Sprinkle with rosemary, onion slices and extra kosher salt. Bake in the preheated oven approx 15 mins. Cut into single serving size squares.
Aioli: 1 t sea salt,1 t smoked paprika, 1 clove garlic(minced), 1 egg yolk, 1 T sherry vinegar, 1 C EVOO
Blend minced garlic and salt in a blender. Add yolk, paprika and vinegar, pulsing to blend. Press blend then add ½ C EVOO in a slow stream. Add 1 T water, then the remaining EVOO, slowly. Add an additional T of water to adjust consistency.¼ lb.spanish pancetta ham, sliced paper thin. Spread aioli on top of warm focaccia pieces and layer pancetta on top. Place in a low -moderately heated grill for appx 4 minutes or until the bottom of bread is toasted and the pancetta is limp.
Le Petit Caporal 2020 Grilled Flank
The last of the red wines from the famed 2020 vintage needs a flavorful dish to pair with and this spicy, charred beef marinated with a balsamic vinegar mix is a family favorite. Vegetarians can use this marinade on portobello mushrooms for a delicious non meat skewer.
3 lb flank steak sliced
1 large onion
Marinade: 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar, ½ c olive oil, ¼ cup soy sauce, 2 T Dijon mustard, 4 cloves garlic, 1 T fresh rosemary leaves, 1 T minced chives, 1 t fresh thyme leaves, 1 t kosher salt, 1 t freshly ground white pepper
Puree all ingredients in a blender. Put into a ziplock baggie along with the flank, onion, and marinate overnight. Remove steak and onion from the marinade and bring to room temperature. Pour the marinade into a bowl. Preheat grill to med-high. When grill is ready, put on the steak and onions. Cook for approx 6-7 min per side(to in center), brushing with reserved marinade. When center temp is 150° F, remove from grill and let rest 20 minutes before slicing it in 1/2” slices against the grain. Remove onions when tender and slightly charred, then serve on top.
Ravinous Harvest Festival
Join us for a celebration of the 2024 grape harvest. September 22, noon - 3 pm
Ravines Winery and Vineyards at the Geneva TR
•Winemaking in the Cellar with Morten
•Food & wine pairing throughout the Winery & Cellar
•Live music • Grape stomping • Harvest lunch
•Vineyard games • Grape picking in the vineyard Fun and merriment
Fall Events
Summer Revelries at Geneva: Fri 8/6, Sat 8/7, Sun 8/8
Ravinous ONE Summer Revelry: Sat 9/7
Harvest Party: Sun 9/22
Harvest Revelries at Keuka: Fri 10/4
Harvest Revelries: Fri 10/18, Sun 10/20
Harvest Revelry Reserve : Sat 10/19
Thanksgiving Fare : Sun 11/17
Holiday Revelry: Sun 12/8
For event details & RSVP go to Enjoy.Ravineswine.com/ClubEvents
Log-in to your Ravines Account at Enjoy.Ravineswine.com/RavinousClub/Login
Ravinous Questions? Contact us at wineclub@ravineswine.com or call us (315)781-7006
