Downtown Pinot
Correction: April 1st, 2010. TheOther46.com didn't host the tasting, actually Lenn Thompson (from the New York Cork Report) in conjunction with the Finger Lakes Wine Country hosted. I told you I was a total Newbie. :-)
Last night I attended my first wine tasting in historic downtown Orlando. My good friend, and founder and editor of theother46.com, hosted a TasteLive.com event for Finger Lakes Wine Country. It was a very enjoyable evening, but more than the wine, I enjoyed the social aspects of the event, both personal and cyber. Our little gathering was but one of many around the country tasting wines from the Finger Lakes wine region of New York State. It was all coordinated via TasteLive.com, a site dedicated to bringing wine lovers together via social media like Twitter. Our little band of four (two experienced, two newbies including myself) sampled five unique Pinot Noirs from the Finger Lakes while our host tweeted the results.
I think I finally 'get' Twitter now. Using Twitter, we were able to be part of a virtual wine tasting event and get instant feedback from everybody. So, not only did I enjoy the company of my good friends while drinking fine wine and noshing on cheese and crackers, I was also part of a larger community of drunks connoisseurs all participation in the same event around the country.
We tasted five Pinots from the Finger Lakes region:
- Atwater Estate Vineyards 2007 Pinot Noir
- Damiani Wine Cellars 2008 Pinot Noir
- Hazlitt 1852 Vineyards 2008 Pinot Noir
- Heart & Hands Wine Company 2008 Pinot Noir
- Ravines Wine Cellars 2007 Pinot Noir
The Ravines was the hands-down winner of the night with the Atwater being the least enjoyed. The gang differed on placement on two through four. I really enjoyed the Damiani, the others...not so much. Hearts & Hands was a fan favorite as well, but I was fixated on the Ravines with the rest.
See what others had to say about the tasting on Twitter (#FLXwine, #TTL).
April 1st, 2010 - 20:41
Ravines stole the show, but Damiani was my #2.
The social aspects, well let’s see…my conversations M-F from 7:30 am until 6:00 pm are with a babbling toddler, so I probably talked your ear off. ;o) It was nice to have adult interaction and not discuss kid related topics or decipher baby babble.
Looking forward to our next drunken twitter night!
April 1st, 2010 - 22:46
I mostly talk to my cat (and she wins most arguments), so I can appreciate the need to speak with adults. :-) Good thing it was a school night, and we ended early. If it was the weekend, you would probably would have had to decipher baby babble by the end of the night, but it wouldn’t have come from your toddler!
April 1st, 2010 - 21:11
Glad you had a great time! I love introducing newbies to new wine regions, especially outside of Cali, Washington, and Oregon! New York is really bringing it and I’m glad we had the opportunity to taste an up-and-coming Pinot Noir region like the Finger Lakes. That said, be sure to check out friend and fellow wine blogger, Lenn Thompson, at the New York Cork Report (http://www.lenndevours.com/). Besides his coverage of New York wine, it’s one of the best damn wine blogs out there, period.
I’m excited for you to try the Ravines Cab Franc. I’m still trying to finalize the Cab Franc lineup (and details), but it should be a great tasting! Cheers!
April 1st, 2010 - 22:47
Just name the time and place, and I’m there!
April 19th, 2010 - 21:56
I have a Twitter account but have never, ever updated my status. I think I simply never saw the point of it. This is a good use for it but still I’d rather be present.
April 19th, 2010 - 22:33
The kids love it.
April 19th, 2010 - 21:56
I like Finger Lakes Reisling, by the way.