Wine & Culinary Center getting facelift

Above, Governor George Pataki (in blue shirt) is at the center of a group at a ceremonial

groundbreaking in August 2005. Below, the finished product that opened in May 2006.

PHOTOS BY BILL DOWD

CANANDAIGUA, NY -- It was just five years ago this May that the New York Wine & Culinary Center opened to great fanfare. Nevertheless, it's getting a $200,000 makeover.

Among the highlights:

• A new banquet room will be built where the tasting room now is located, taking advantage of the large space with its view of Canandaigua Lake.

• The tasting room, which offers samples of New York State wines and beers, will be moved to a smaller space on the building's north side. However, it will have a central bar with service on all sides.

• A new gift boutique will replace the exhibit room. Exhibits will be decentralized and placed throughout the center.

• An open space on the second floor will be closed to allow the addition of more tables. Other second-floor renovations may be made.

• A "Set the Table Capital Campaign" will acknowledge donations with donors’ names on plaques on tables and chairs in the dining room. The campaign is headed up by the center’s Philanthropic Advisory Board.

The New York Wine & Grape Foundation has its headquarters at the Center. However, Governor Andrew Cuomo's proposed 2011-2012 state budget strips the Foundation of its funding, which may mean the demise of the organization.

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Lake George Restaurant Week a summer affair

LAKE GEORGE, NY -- Restaurant week promotions tend to be wintertime events to help lure people out of their snowbound homes. Not in this Adirondacks community.

The annual Lake George Region Area Restaurant Week this year will be held from Sunday, June 19, through Saturday, June 25. Participating restaurants will offer a special menu for a fixed price.
It still is too early for a guaranteed lineup of participants, but in a tourist-dependent area such as this, chances are the list will be of a good size.

Meanwhile, mark the date on your calendar.

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Dates set for 'HV Art & Wine' gala

TARRYTOWN, NY -- The "Hudson Valley Art & Wine" project launched last April has scheduled its premier gala event for Friday and Saturday, May 20-21, at the historic Lyndhurst estate.

Hudson Valley Wine Magazine, creator and coordinator of the project, is putting together a gala that will feature participating artists and their works inspired by the local wineries; award-winning wines from 12 Hudson Valley winemakers, samples of locally-prepared paired foods, locally-distilled spirits, and a Cupcake Challenge. The opening night festivities will begin with a sparkling toast on the veranda of the mansion when guests arrive.

Proceeds from the event will benefit the educational programs offered at Lyndhurst, a National Trust Historic Site. Tickets are $85 per person, or $150 per couple. Details are available online.

The project is aimed at promoting the Hudson Valley as a destination for art, wine, food, and culture.

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Albany Craft Beer Fest set for May

ALBANY -- Beer lovers rejoice. Organizers of the inaugural Albany Craft Beer Festival scheduled for The Armory on May 14 are promising 100 beer samples from which to choose for the price -- $35 -- of admission.

"The event is all about the beer, with 100 craft and specialty beers to sample. We are working with breweries to provide special beers not normally available at retail," the organizers say.

In addition to 15 tasting tickets per admission and a souvenir glass, food tastings will available and several brewers will conduct seminars. Designated drivers will be admitted at no charge.

The event is being put together by Craftproducers, a Vermont company that handles wine and food festivals, art and craft shows and street festivals in the Northeast. The company founded the Vermont Wine and Food Festival at Stratton Mountain in 1997 and ran it for four years.

Tickets for the beerfest are available online or from the box office at The Armory Sports & Convention Arena (formerly the Washington Avenue Armory), 195 Washington Avenue, (518) 512-5203.

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Lake Champlain Wine Trail in the works

PLATTSBURGH, NY -- While one western New York wine region has renamed itself as part of a marketing program, an area in the northeast is in the process of creating a wine trail.

Plans for a Lake Champlain Wine Trail, covering an area of the state that currently has five wineries with that number expected to double by year's end, are being worked on by the Lake Champlain Grape Growers Association and the New York Wine & Grape Foundation.

"We're working with the group's president, Natalie Peck, to get legislation in place to define a Lake Champlain Wine Trail, hopefully before this year's tourist season gets into full swing," said Jim Trezise, NYWGF president. "It's great to see a new wine region blossom, and we wish them all the best," Trezise said today.

Current wineries are the ELFS Farm Winery and Cider Mill, Vesco Ridge Vineyards, Amazing Grace Vineyard and Winery, Stonehouse Vineyard and Hid-In-Pines Vineyard. In addition, there are several independent growers without wine production facilities. Stonehouse in 2006 became the first licensed New York winery in the region.

The region's micro-climate, situated as it is with Vermont's Green Mountains and New York's Adirondacks bordering it, has made it a strong producer for many years of apples and "Minnesota style" wine grapes with cold-climate properties are expanding in popularity. Among them are Frontenac and Marquette.

Lake Champlain Wines will be holding a winemaking workshop called "Making Quality Wines from Cold Hardy Grapes" on Friday, March 11, in Peru, NY. Registration information is available online The workshop will feature enology extension associate Chris Gerling and assistant enology professor Anna Katharine Mansfield, both of Cornell (she came to New York State from the University of Minnesota), as well as Chris Granstrom, proprietor/winemaker at Lincoln Peak Vineyard in New Haven, VT.

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Eye-in-the-sky mapping Finger Lakes

NASA satellite image of the Finger Lakes.

WATERLOO, NY -- The 60th annual Finger Lakes Growers Conference, coming up on March 4 in this Seneca County community, will be showing off satellite-generated images that have mapped about 8,400 acres of vineyards in the region.

The Cornell Cooperative Extension's Finger Lakes Grape Program is using the images to help target areas where specific grape varieties grow. That helps the planners identify trends and make projections about the region's grape-growing industry, as well as provide growers with information.

Hans Walter-Peterson, viticulture extension specialist for the grape program, will discuss the project at the opening session of the conference.

The Finger Lakes region has nearly 9,125 acres of vineyards. The grape program plans to map every vineyard. Program coordinators are asking anyone who has recently planted or removed a vineyard in the Finger Lakes to call their office at (315) 536-5134.

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Fighting 'Cabin Fever' with wine, beer tastings

CORNING, NY -- If the incessant snow is getting on your nerves, you may want to consider heading for this Southern Tier city for its 8th annual Cabin Fever wine and beer tasting.

The event, part of the Gaffer District schedule, is scheduled for 5 to 8 p.m. next Friday, February 11. It will feature unlimited tastings of local craft beers and Finger Lakes wines for the single $15 admission price, which includes collectible wine glasses and novelty beer glasses. In addition, free limo shuttles will be available to move visitors from site to site.

Check-in will begin at 5 p.m. at any of three locations: the Informatin Center of Corning, 1 West Market Street; the Radisson Hotel, 125 Denison Parkway East; or, The Site Cyber Bar, 67 Bridge Street. Photo ID as proof of age is required.

Advance tickets are available at The Information Center of Corning, or by calling (607) 962-8997.

The Gaffer District is a historic downtown business district with restaurants, retail, local art and museums. It creates and hosts a series of visitor programs year-round.

A Bloody Mary heaven in the Big Apple

NEW YORK -- When it comes to ordering a Bloody Mary, your choices usually are with or without alcohol. Period.

True, recipes vary from establishment to establishment, even country to country, but the basics are the basics. In a move to relieve the monotony, the newly revamped Rum House in the Edison Hotel that offers a huge range of cocktails is offering six different weekend Bloody Marys from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays.

They are:

• The Classic (Polish vodka, Worcestershire sauce, horseradish, tomato juice and hot sauce, garnished with a celery stick)

• The Caesar (like The Classic except this is the Canadian version, so Clamato juice is used instead of tomato juice)

• Con Sangre (tomato juice, tequila or mezcal, habañero hot sauce, garnished with a pickled carrot)

• The Andrew Jackson (White Rye whiskey, smoked paprika, tomato juice, garnished with hot salami and olives)

• The Colonial (tomato juice, gin, sriracha hot chile sauce and basil, garnished with cucumber)

• The Rum House (tomato juice, white Haitian rum, ginger, allspice and a pickled pepper; garnished with a piece of candied ginger)

Each one goes for $12, except the Mezcal version of the Con Sangre which is $17, a steep surcharge for a lesser spirit than the tequila-infused version.

The Edison Hotel is located at 228 West 47th Street between 8th and Broadway.

The winery of Madison County

Architect's rendering of the main building plan.

CAZENOVIA, NY -- Tonight’s Cazenovia Town Planning Board meeting is a crucial one for Ben Reilly.

He is the operations director of the budding Owera Vineyards project, which is seeking to become the first winery in Madison County, with a fall opening being targeted.

So far, things have gone without a legal hitch and final approval is expected from the Planning Board. If received, work will begin as soon as weather permits on the planned 8,500-square-foot winery building and a smaller pole barn. (Architect’s rendering of the main building shown above right.)

Owera Vineyards is located near the intersection of East Lake and North Lake roads on the north shore of Cazenovia Lake. Plans call for several acres of vineyards, a winery and a tasting area for visitors.

In 2008, a variety of grapes were planted on the 60-acre tract owned by Peter Muserlian, along with a range of fruit trees and an organic garden. Experimentation with grape varieties is needed to find those best for the slightly harsher climate compared to that of the Finger Lakes, an hour’s drive west of here. Reilly has said he will apply for state agriculture grants to test different varieties.

When Owera, which has been experimenting this season with ice wines, officially opens, it will mean that 51 of the state’s 62 counties has at least one winery. Given the absence of other wineries nearby, Owera is being planned as a destination site that will host tasting events, live entertainment and guest chef demonstrations and dinners.