This is part 2 of our east coast wine dinner from this past weekend. In my previous part 1 review it was baked oysters appetizer with Westport Rivers grüner veltliner. This review covers the main dinner and is a pretty special treat for us in many respects. First the dinner course main entree was elk burgers from a good hunting friend who traveled to Oregon to bow hunt elk … successfully. For condiments nothing special except for roasted poblanos and avocado slices. Side dishes were oven baked sweet potato fries and a Waldorf style salad. It was all good and my better half made a very delicious strawberry tart as the dessert.
For the wines we were doubly lucky to have 2 older examples of long island red wines from Paumanok & Palmer Vineyards. The 1993 Paumanok Cabernet Sauvignon was generously gifted to us this past Fall by the Massoud family. Charles Massoud was the winemaker for this vintage. The bottle had a nice full fill level with sediment clearly clinging to the sides. Several years back a local wine store friend was unloading the 1997 Palmer Vineyards Reserve Merlot as nobody locally would buy this wine off the shelf at $19. After a free taste we bought the remaining 8 bottles for $15 each. For this wine the winemaker on the label is stated to be Tom Drozd but we do know that the 1997 vintage started with Dan Kleck at the helm of the winery…team effort. Both the 1993 Paumanok Cabernet Sauvignon & Palmer Vineyards Reserve Merlot were stood on the counter for a day before opening. Not knowing what to expect for the corks I pulled out the Durand combi-puller. No issue for either wine. In fact the cork on the Paumanok was barely wine soiled.
We knew what to expect for the Palmer merlot but for the 1993 Paumanok cabernet we were in new territory for us as aged Long Island cabernets are hard to find. You have to remember that up to that time in the early 1990s Long Island was well known for their bordelais style of merlot. In the glass the Paumanok wine had deep garnet color with a slight aroma of cedar and dark berries. Once my lips touched the wine I was thinking ah yes a beautifully made full bodied wine that was balanced and still going strong. The complexity of the soft tannins with dark cherries and black raspberries with a touch of currants to give it some zip provided a long lasting taste profile. The wine lasted with no flavor loss over a 2 hr period. Well done Charles !
During dinner we had opened both the Paumanok and the Palmer Vineyards merlot to drink side by side with the elk burgers. In the glass the merlot carried a reddish purple color. The aromatics were mild with cherries and plum making up the profile. This translated to a well balance wine on tasting with plenty of dark fruits forward of the tannin structure. Sweet cherries and plums come through on the palate with the wine lasting in the mouth for a good duration. Definitely a full bodied wine that still has years to go. I’m glad I still have a few squirreled away for later tastings. I should add that the people we had over for dinner drink very little merlot and when they tasted the Palmer Vineyards merlot their response was " ooh ! ". Congrats to Tom Drozd & Dan Kleck for crafting such a beautiful long lasting wine ! As many here know, Palmer Vineyards is now under ownership of the Massoud family. We are assured of many great wines in the coming years.
