What my personal favorites are at the winery

By Tambi Schweizer, Tasting Hall Manager

Upon your visit to Heron Hill Winery in the Finger Lakes, you will find me inside our barrel-vaulted tasting hall. Starting now and continuing into the end of November, this is where I spend most of my time. I am the Tasting Hall Manager for Heron Hill Winery. I thrive on tasting, comparing and educating myself on Heron Hill’s award-winning wines. We have so much to offer in the way of different wines!

I prefer the fuller bodied dry reds and love to drink a crisp dry white in the summer time. Some of my personal favorites are our Eclipse Red and White. They are blends that suit almost everyone. Blends are wines that are made up of a variety of two or more different grapes. I feel that they are often greater than the sum of their parts. They can be smoother and better tasting with more balance than their varietal counterparts.

I think that the best bonus for the Eclipse bottles, besides tasting great, is that they are such beautiful bottles. Being an artist myself, I am intrigued by the way the consumers are so attracted to the bottles. I love watching the faces at the tasting bar as I present the Eclipse series. I have never seen so many faces light up, especially when I tell them that our retail store has Eclipse bottle oil decanters available to take home!!

I am very excited about the Riesling tasting flight that we are offering here at the winery for May is Riesling Month. You can try 6 Rieslings for only $5 per person. My favorite Riesling is the Old Vines Riesling. It is a must for the hot summer months that are soon to come (…hopefully!). I love to drink it when I am sitting on the dock at my grandparent’s cottage here on Keuka Lake. Pairing it with a crisp vinaigrette salad topped with grilled chicken is my absolute favorite. Just a note: We are currently on the last of the 2005 vintage of the Old Vines Riesling Reserve, but I have tasted the 2007 vintage and it is just as good…and maybe better even though it is a little younger.

Don’t forget to come and visit me at the winery, we are always here to answer all your questions. The laid back style of wine tasting that we offer here makes your tasting fun and relaxing. Remember my motto, “There are no dumb questions!”