Winemaker Notes
Tango Oaks Riesling has established the vine age and maturity to support a dry and mineral driven Riesling. With the vineyard’s Alsatian clone Riesling and extremely gravelly soil, our goal is to continue pursuing the elegance that Tango Oaks Riesling is capable of both young and with appropriate bottle age.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
A little reductive, with a camembert edge to the dried apricot, mango and lemon rind. It’s medium-bodied, tight and firm, showing length and beauty. Wonderful length. Steely. Holding on beautifully.
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Wine Enthusiast
Bright streaks of grapefruit peel, limestone and yellow apple perfume the nose of this Riesling, sourced from a single vineyard on the lower-east side of Seneca Lake. The medium-bodied palate offers a graceful mix of white blossom, lime zest and white-plum flavors, all sitting on a fine, powdery texture. These tones don't skip a beat and linger on and on.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2014 Riesling Tango Oaks Vineyard, from an Alsace clone, comes in with four grams of sugar and 6.6 total acidity, plus 12.1% alcohol (somewhat different numbers than originally given). When seen in the past, this has consistently been gorgeous. The only question is where it would settle in. Let's check in. It has evolved into what I hoped it would be. It shows fine fruit, classic aromatics and excellent supporting acidity. It's neither austere nor shrill, but it is crisp and lively, just bouncing around the palate. The structure never obscures the fruit, though. When I did a vertical on these, this was the one I had circled for "best of." It certainly seems to be showing why just now. It lacks for nothing—purity, structure, fruit and freshness. I'd only say that as it airs and warms, it does become a bit drier and more austere—relatively speaking.
Riesling possesses a remarkable ability to reflect the character of wherever it is grown while still maintaining its identity. A regal variety of incredible purity and precision, this versatile grape can be just as enjoyable dry or sweet, young or old, still or sparkling and can age longer than nearly any other white variety. Somm Secret—Given how difficult it is to discern the level of sweetness in a Riesling from the label, here are some clues to find the dry ones. First, look for the world “trocken.” (“Halbtrocken” or “feinherb” mean off-dry.) Also a higher abv usually indicates a drier Riesling.
As the most historic wine-producing region in New York state, winemaking in the Finger Lakes area dates back to the 1820s and today as a region, accounts for 90% of the state’s total wine production.
Its narrow and deep lakes created by the movement of Ice Age glaciers create an environment similar to the classic Riesling-loving regions of Europe, namely Germany and Austria. The Finger Lakes retain summer heat that incidentally warms up cold winter air, making it fall down from the lakes’ steep slopes. When spring comes, the lakes, already cooled by cold winter weather, stave off vine budding until the danger of frost has subsided. The main lakes of the zone, that is those big enough to moderate the climate in this way, are the focal points of prime vineyard areas. They include Canandaigua, Keuka, Seneca and Cayuga.
While Riesling has fueled most of the region’s success, today Pinot Noir and Cabernet Franc enjoy some attention.