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North Mountain Zweigelt Rose 2017 Review – A Fun Twist

North Mountain is a beautiful little estate in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia that grows some interesting Austrian varieties like Gruner Veltliner, Zweigelt, and Riesling in addition to classic wines found throughout the region.

One wine, their Zweigelt rose, hit me as the most interesting during my tasting particularly because the rose style is not one we are used to seeing for this delightful, fruity grape. Naturally, it was my favorite of the bunch and I picked up several bottles to enjoy at home later.

Most of our bottles disappeared rather quickly and well before I could take notes for a review. The last one got lost in our cellar for not one, not two, but six years from its vintage before we finally decided to open it. While we could argue that this one was slightly past its prime, we still have to admit we adore this Zweigelt rose all the same!

The Finger Lakes is a stunning wine region in upstate New York that grows many cool climate grapes like Riesling, Pinot Noir, and Cabernet Franc to name a few.

Throw on native US grapes, fruit wines, a growing beer scene, and impressive opportunities to get out in nature to hike to gorgeous waterfalls, and the region has something for everyone who may be visiting for a Finger Lakes wine tour!

After visiting wineries in Sonoma, we fell in love with one particular producer of Pinot Noirs- Arista.

We liked their Pinot Noirs so much that we joined their club, and after ordering many bottles we decided to expand our cellar to include some of the winery's acclaimed Chardonnays as well. One of the first ones we opened was the Arista Russian River Valley 2018 which shines almost as much as their acclaimed Pinots!

One of the perks of having a wine cellar is that sometimes we do not really know what we have in stock. We keep an inventory of our bottles, of course, but sometimes a few slip through the cracks and we forget about them for years.

Our Lamoreaux Landing Pinot Noir 2014 was one such bottle. We pulled it out not only to find that we had one at all, but also that it was pushing almost nine years old.

As we didn't expect this bottle to age too much longer, we decided to open it up and see how it was faring, and we were pleasantly surprised by what we found!

Through our wine studies via WSET, we have learned a lot about the French negociant system where companies will buy grapes or premade wines from local producers and ferment/mature/blend them into a final product before selling them on their private label.

This practice is also common in the USA; however, is often not discussed nearly as much compared to European counterparts. In some regions this is fairly common, like Washington state, and in others it is less frequent, like California where wine-producing estates are plentiful.

One such merchant taking this unique approach to wine in California is Cameron Hughes, and as a result of their set up they are able to source wines from prestigious wine regions all over Napa and Sonoma for a rather robust product line at approachable prices.

So when we were offered a few bottles for review, we knew we had to give it a try and our first bottle was their Lot 896 from the Stags Leap District in Napa.

We don't often think of California when drinking Sauvignon Blanc, although this is a popular grape to grow throughout the state.

In our Naked Wines subscription, we got to sample Provare's Sauvignon Blanc as part of a mystery box and felt it was a relatively straightforward bottle for its price point.

This article first appeared on our travel blog, Living the Dream.

I am a frequent traveler to the Finger Lakes– in recent years at least.

Part of this is because I now live within a manageable five hour drive, and the other part is that I've developed a love for many of the exceptional vineyards that call the region home (notably Boundary Breaks, Hermann J Wiemer, and Heron Hill to name a few- must visit Finger Lakes wineries in my opinion).

But one problem I've always had when visiting is figuring out where to stay.

The reason for this is because the area known as the Finger Lakes is large. It is so large, in fact, that to drive from the furthest west lake to the furthest east lake in one direction you're looking at a two hour drive time (not to mention bypassing every lake in between). Or if you want to stay in larger cities like Rochester, Syracuse, or Corning (for the Corning Museum of Glass) you're looking at 30-60 minutes of driving before you even begin to see water.

Going even further, if you pick any lake (especially larger ones like Seneca or Cayuga) you will have an hour driving just to go from tip to tip as well- all before stopping at all the vineyards, breweries, and distilleries along the way.

It is because of this that picking a good hotel location is so important when visiting. After my stay at Watkins Glen Harbor Hotel as a guest of the property, I can safely say that I've found my spot for the foreseeable future.

When attending a conference in eastern Washington, I was fortunate enough to be able to sample many wineries near Tri-Cities at events before, during, and after the convention.

One such winery was Fidelitas, whose high-end Cabs and Merlots (plus other varietals) are shining examples of the quality of what the region produces.

I, sadly, did not pick up any bottles during my visit to this winery, but after the conference had ended one of the hosts snuck me a couple of bottles leftover from one of the evening parties. Not being one to say no to excellent wine for free, and this is how I ended up with a Fidelitas Merlot 2018 in my suitcase for the trip home.

Naturally, I had to open it shortly after returning.

I can't remember the last time we opened a light red. So it took us a minute to get used to Anthony Road's Cabernet Franc and Lemberger blend.

As it turns out, while we generally prefer fuller-bodied reds in just about every situation possible, this one really hit all the right notes for us with these two classic red grapes from the Finger Lakes!

Whenever we visit Boundary Breaks, one of our favorite Finger Lakes wineries, we always love to see what new bottle of Riesling they have available.

In a recent trip, we stumbled upon their #356 Dry Bubbly bottle which was made via CO2 injection of an otherwise still wine (so not via the Champagne method like we're used to drinking).

It was a hit for us, we bought a bottle to enjoy at home, and popped it open for this review!

North Mountain Zweigelt Rose 2017 Review – A Fun Twist

How to Plan a Finger Lakes Wine Tour – Tips & Advice

Arista Russian River Valley Chardonnay 2018 Review – Balanced All Around

Lamoreaux Landing Pinot Noir 2014 Review – Showing Some Age

Cameron Hughes Lot 896 Cabernet Sauvignon 2020 Review

Provare Sauvignon Blanc 2020 Review – A Simple Sipper

Watkins Glen Harbor Hotel Review – A Great Stay in the Finger Lakes

Fidelitas Merlot 2018 Review – A Solid Red from Washington

Anthony Road Cabernet Franc and Lemberger 2016 Review

Boundary Breaks #356 Dry Bubbly 2019 Review – Bubbles and Petrol