Running the Hudson Valley Wine Competition and the Results

For the past 6 or so years I've been behind the Hudson Valley Wine & Spirits Competition.  When I took the realm of this competition it was just wine.  The past two years with the explosion of distilleries in the Hudson Valley we opened up to spirits. This year we had 91 wine entries, 4 cider entries and 10 spirit entries.  I hope in the future to expand on the cider and spirits categories.

I am the chief cook and bottle uncorker for this competition.  I have to rally the troups to enter. I catalog everything in a spreadsheet.  My son has taught me Excel so the results and score keep have gotten much easier.

Once everything is cataloged labels for the bottles and tuits are printed and labeled.

Usually a few days before the competition I sort through all the wine, label them and put them in boxes by flights and panels

Then the day before the competition I head up to the Hudson Valley Wine Festival and set up.  It is usually a one truck load trip.  This year it was a truck and car load.  Good thing my son Michael was around to help me.

Once at the fairground we set up for the first few flights. I want to make it easy on my back room staff, as 8:30am arrival on a Saturday can be difficult.

And then it's competition day.  I do want to thank all the judges and back room staff who volunteer their Saturday to learn about Hudson Valley wine, cider and distilled spirits!  I couldn't do it without the support of my husband Paul and son Michael. Thank you!

2014 Hudson Valley Wine & Spirits Competition Results

Sitting at the Judges Table

Many of you may or may not know I run the Hudson Valley Wine & Spirits Competition.  It fell in my lap a few years ago. At the time I needed to know how other wine competitions run because I thought this one could use some improving. I volunteered at the New York Wine & Food Classic to work the back room and have been doing it ever since and have improved my own competition from the experience.  I've always been on the administrative side of the wine competition table but to my surprise I ended up on the other side of the table this month.

Imaging my surprise when a few days before the Ultimate Wine Challenge I received a phone call from the organizer Paul who runs this wine competition and is a judge for my wine competition. He had a judge who had to cancel at the last minute and asked if I would like to judge.  WOW!  Me? Really? I'm thinking to myself, am I qualified?  Is my palate good enough? I know I have my Certified Specialist of Wine designation, but many of the other judges have their Masters of Wine, am I out of my league?  Paul must not think so since he asked me to judge.

I accepted the opportunity, brushed up on wine faults (actually read Wine Faults book by John Huddelson) and with great anticipation headed to New York City June 4th to begin the three day judging.   On my panel was Doug Frost who I knew from the Finger Lakes Competition and Jack Robertiello. Nervous as the judging began and I was dutifully filling out the evaluation sheet according to breakdown.  I think I was putting to much thought into each category and number.  Thinking to hard about each number and bringing up the rear but I took my time because every score is important. I was worried my scores would be way different from the other two judges.  That wasn't the case.  I soon realized that my scores were in line with the other two judges on my panel.  I began to get excited after every flight as we discussed our scores for each wine.  I can do this and am qualified.  I guess I need to give myself a little credit.

Day 1 we tasted 89 wines. Day 2, 74 wines and that brought us to the final rounds on Day 3 which consisted of 25 wines.  How do you feel after you taste so much wine? By the second day after lunch it felt like the 10th time you were running to go jump off the diving board into the pool. A bit on the palate fatigue. I promised myself I wouldn't touch any wine that evening so my palate would be fresh for the final round and it was.

My biggest takeaway from this experience was the last flight of the competition, a wonderful Oloroso Sherry glass number 2.357. Since our panel was done early, I didn't let them take the glasses, I sat there and enjoyed our Sherry and waited for lunch to arrive. What brand was 2.357....it's a Barbadillo San Rafael Oloroso Dulce NV Jerez-Xeres Sherry that retails for $28

I really enjoyed this judging experience and would love to do it again. Thank you Paul for giving me this opportunity.

To see the entire results of the Ultimate Wine Challenge visit http://www.ultimate-beverage.com/the-results/2013-wine-results/

2011 Hudson Valley Wine & Spirits Competition Results & Pictures

On Saturday I hosted, organized and chaired the Hudson Valley Wine & Spirits Competition at the Hudson Valley Wine Festival.  We had a wonderful panel of judges and I can't thank them enough for coming out on a Saturday morning to judge the wines and spirits of the Hudson Valley.

And the back room staff worked very hard.  It was no easy task...we had 94 entries which was the largest number since I've been involved with the competition.  We had two wonderful CIA students help us.  I hope it was educational for them.

After 3 hours of swirling, sipping and spitting it was time to socialize, eat and taste what wasn't in your flights.  Our lunch was provided by Gigi's in Rhinebeck.

Now for the results that you were waiting for:

2011 Hudson Valley Wine & Spirits Competition Results

Hudson Valley Wineries Win at Classic

The Hudson Valley Wineries took home 24 Medals at the NY Wine & Food Classic.  Congratulations go out to Hudson-Chatham Winery, Benmarl Winery, Brotherhood Winery, Clinton Vineyards, Robibero Family Vineyards, Whitecliff Vineyards & Winery, Millbrook Vineyards & Winery, Oak Summit Vineyards,Tuthilltown Spirits  & Stoutridge Vineyards.


Here are the Medal Winners:

GOLD
Hudson-Chatham Winery 2008 Baco Noir Reserve Casscles Family Vineyard

SILVER
Benmarl Winery 2008 Baco Noir
Benmarl Winery 2008 Frontenac
Brotherhood, America's Oldest Winery 2008 Pinot Noir
Brotherhood, America's Oldest Winery 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon
Clinton Vineyards NV Nuit
Hudson-Chatham Winery NV Paperbirch Cassis of Good Farm
Robibero Family Vineyards NV Dry Riesling
Robibero Family Vineyards NV Riesling
Tuthilltown Spirits NV Hudson Baby Bourbon Whiskey
Tuthilltown Spirits NV Hudson Single Malt Whiskey
Tuthilltown Spirits NV Hudson Manhattan Rye Whiskey
Tuthilltown Spirits NV Hudson 4-Grain Bourbon
Whitecliff Vineyard & Winery 2009 Chardonnay
Whitecliff Vineyard & Winery NV Awosting White
Whitecliff Vineyard & Winery NV Redtail

BRONZE
Brotherhood, America's Oldest Winery 2009 Riesling
Clinton Vineyards 2009 Tribute
Millbrook Vineyards & Winery 2009 Tocai Friulano Estate Bottled
Millbrook Vineyards & Winery 2008 Pinot Noir Block Five East Estate Bottled 
Oak Summit 2008 Pinot Noir Estate Bottled
Robibero Family Vineyards NV Cabernet Franc
Stoutridge Vineyard 2008 Seyval Blanc Unfined Unfiltered 
Stoutridge Vineyard 2007 Frontenac Unfined Unfiltered

Behind the Scenes - HV Wine Competition

I thought I'd give you a behind the scenes look at what goes into a wine competition here in the Hudson Valley. Months prior to the competition, a letter went out to about 25 wineries in the Hudson Valley. The wines intered in the competition need to be made with 100% NY State Grapes preferably grapes grown in the Hudson Valley. There were 80 entries from approximately 15 Hudson Valley Wineries.

After collecting the various entries and unpacking them. My dining room looked like this. Wine was arranged according to flight and judges.Left hand side of table were Judges on the X panel; the right Judges on the Y panel. Head and foot of table were all taste.

Next was time to take the capsules off the wine and put the labels on wine and bottles. Colleen and I enlisted the help of my daughter Melanie and her friend Nicole. It's good to put to teenagers to work on a Friday night. They received quite an education on wine as well. Look for them as future Sommeliers.
Then Colleen and I had to bag each of the bottles and pack them for transport in the morning. We were up quite late and I got quite cranky. Thanks for putting up with my crankiness Col.

Arriving at Terrapin Restaurant in Rhinebeck a good 30 minute ride, we unpacked and set up.










Let the judging begin. All judges arrived on time, however we did have a no show. Chris Carbone the Beverage Manager for Terrapin was nowhere to be found. We started and proceeded without him. Let the Judging Begin!










There are many things we do "back stage" like tallying the scores, getting ready for the next flight, drying glasses etc. I will post the official winners later this week.


I would like to thank all the judges for taking time from their Saturday to Judge this competition. We had a great panel and I hope to see you all there again next year.

Brotherhood Winery brings home a Gold at The Finger Lakes Inernational Wine Competition

Congratulations go out to Brotherhood Winery, America's Oldest Winery for bringing home the Gold.

Brotherhood won a Gold Medal in the Finger Lakes International Wine Competition for their 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon.

They also brought home 2 Silver Medals and 1 Bronze Medal.

Silver Medals were won for their 2007 Riesling and their N/V Ruby Port.

Bronze Medal was won for their 2006 Pinot Noir.

Congratulations to Brotherhood, their Winemakers and Staff!

Hudson Valley Wine Competition

This years Hudson Valley Wine Competition will be held on April 25th 2009. The competition will determine the best of the Hudson Valley. The past few years have been a great growing season, I am sure the wine entered will be outstanding.

The winning wines will be paired with dinner on June 12th at Terrapin Catering at the Dinsmore. The dinner is open to public and is a wonderful time to mingle with the winemakers and owners of the Hudson Valley Wineries. You will have no other chance in a public forum to chat and dine with the winemakers of the Hudson Valley. This dinner sold out with a waiting list last year. I urge you to think ahead and purchase your tickets early.

Here is a look at the video from last years dinner

Here is a copy of the press release that was sent out.

Hudson Valley Wine Competition Press Release

Publish at Scribd or explore others: Cooking & Menus wine and food pairin wine competition

Wine Competition Judging

Do you ever wonder what goes on at a wine competition? How are the wines judged? Do the judges know what wine from what winery is in each glass. The answer is NO.

First a wind competition is a blind tstingby wine experts of a large number of wines to determine their relative quality on that day. Keep in mind, the same wine tasted a month earlier or later can be different.

Blind tasting means the judges have no idea what specific wines they're tasting. Sometimes they know the varietal type and vintage. They don't even see the bottle, even in a brown bag. Reason, the capsule could give the winery's identy.

What wines are judged in a competition – those that are entered.

Who are the judges? Usually a diverse group of wine experts from many different professional areas. You might have wine makers (but not wine makers that have entered their wines.) wine writers, sommeliers, wine retailers etc.. They all have two things in common; a passion for wine and daily exposure to it.

How are wines judged? Each wine is judged on it's own merits – color, clarity, aroma, bouquet, taste, aftertaste, and overall quality.

Do judges get drunk? No!!! When you're judging wines, you don't swallow the samples, you spit them into a container.

What do the results really mean? The results reflect the collective opinions of expert judges about a specific group of wines on that day. Wine competitions are a unique blend of objective and subjective. The objectivity involves several people in a blind tasting process which eliminates personal bias for a region or winery. The subjectivity involves the personal taste sensitivities and preferences of different people.

You can hold your own wine competition at home with friends. It will make for a fun evening.

Results from the NY Wine & Food Classic

Congratulation to all Hudson Valley Wineries who won at the New York Wine & Food Classic.

Whitecliff Vineyards Double Gold Medal 2007 Traminette
Whitecliff Vineyards Gold Medal 2007 Gamay Noir
Hudson Chatham Winery Silver NV Paperbirch Bannerman's Castle Amber Cream
Palaia Vineyards Silver 2003 Merlot
Benmarl Winery Silver 2007 Traminette
Benmarl Winery Silver 2006 Baco Noir
Brotherhood Winery Silver 2007 Riesling
Brotherhood Winery Silver 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon
Whitecliff Vineyards Silver 2006 Sky Island Red
Millbrook Winery Bronze 2007 Tocai Friulano Estate Bottled
Millbrook Winery Bronze 2006 Pinot Noir
Millbrook Winery Bronze 2006 Chardonnay Proprietor's Special Reserve
Palaia Vineyards Bronze 2005 Lemberger
Palaia Vineyards Bronze NV Mead
Silver Stream Winery Bronze NV Franky Say Relax Cabernet Franc
Whitecliff Vineyards Bronze NV Awosting White
Whitecliff Vineyards Bronze NV Redtail

Shall we all descend upon your tasting rooms to taste you award winning wines.

Congratulations !!!

For a full list of winners visit http://tinyurl.com/5evbhw

New York Wine & Food Classic in the Hudson Valley

Today 25 judges will blind taste 790 New York Wines over the course of three days at the Mohonk Mountain House in New Paltz.

At the Governor’s Cup luncheon on Wednesday, the top-rated (Governor’s Cup) wine will be unveiled along with Winery of the Year, and the Best of Category winners for Sparkling, White, Rosé, Red, Dessert, and Specialty wines.

The judging panel consists of 7 from California, 7 from other states, and 11 from New York. Quite an impressive list of judges. The California contingent includes Dan Berger, wine journalist; Rene Chazottes, wine director of the Pacific Club; Mike Dunne, food and wine writer for the Sacramento Bee; Traci Dutton, Director of Education at the Culinary Institute of America-Greystone in the NapaValley; Ziggy Eschliman of Wine Country Radio; Ann Littlefield, Direct Wine Marketing Brand Champion in Napa; and Dr. Bob Small, Director of the Los Angeles International Wine & Spirits Competition. Those from other states include Hudson Cattell, Co-publisher of Wine East (PA); Doug Frost, MW and MS, Wine Writer and Educator (KS); Ann Miller, Marketing Consultant for the Missouri Wine & Grape Board (MO); Jerry Pellegrino, Chef/Owner of Corks Restaurant (MD), Mike Riley, Wine Buyer for Wegmans (NJ); Coke Roth, Wine Consultant (WA); and Sandra Silfven, Wine Writer, Detroit News (MI). The New York contingent includes Molly Battenhouse, DWS, Wine Director & Educator at the International Wine Center; Shannon Brock, Wine Coordinator at the New York Wine & Culinary Center; Rory Callahan, President of Wine & Food Associates; Jim Clarke, Wine Writer and Director of Wine at MEGU restaurant; Lorraine Hems, CS, CWE, Lecturer of Wine Studies, Rochester Institute of Technology; Fred LeBrun, Columnist at the Albany Times-Union; Bill Mahoney, Wine Manager, Premium Wine & Spirits in Buffalo; Bert Miller, Food & Beverage Director of the Long Island Marriott; Jerry Shriver, Writer, USA Today; Eric White, Wine Consultant & Store Manager at The Winery in New York City; and Kevin Zraly, Wine Educator & Author.

I should have the result late Wednesday of the winners. I will let you know as soon as I find out. It should be an excitiing competition

Hudson Valley Wines win at New York State Fair

The New York State Fair on Monday announced their winners in the state wide commercial wine competition. Fairgoers will be able to view the top award winning wines which will be on display in the "Giant Wine Bottle" in the Horticulture building during the fair. Sample of wines entered in the competition will be available to fairgoers following most of the presentations in the Demonstration Kitchen in the lower level of the Arts and Home Center.

Five local Hudson Valley wineries took away prizes, competing against the best of the Finger Lakes and Long Island Regions, including a gold and ‘Best of Category’ in the Fortified Wines Class for Hudson-Chatham’s ‘Paperbirch Raspberry Fine Ruby’.

BenMarl Winery took Silver for 2007 Seneca Lake Traminette and Bronze for 2006 Hudson Valley Baco Noir and 2007 Slate Hill White

Brotherhood Winery took Silver for 2007 Riesling 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon 2005 Pinot Noir Holiday Spiced Wine and Blanc de Blancs and Bronze for May Wine, Ruby Port and Cream Sherry

Clinton Vineyards took Bronze for Cassis and Seyval Naturel

Hudson-Chatham Winery Took Gold and Best of Category for Paperbirch Raspberry Fine Ruby
and Silver for 2005 Hudson-Chatham Merlot andPaperbirch Bannerman’s Castle Amber Cream

Silver Stream Winery took Bronze for their 2007 New York State Cabernet Franc

Entire Results can be found at:

http://www.nysfair.org/docs/results/2008-Commercial-Wine-Results.pdf

Congratulations to ALL!

Hudson Valley Wine Competition - Competition Day

Well yesterday was a long day. It all started Friday night with last minute changes to entries. Colleen and I were up until 2am making sure everything was correct. With 4 hours of sleep and a stop at the A&P for brown lunch bags (it's a blind tasting) we headed to Rhinebeck for the competition.

While the results aren't official yet...there were some nice results for newcomers at Hudson-Chatham Winery, Baskhill and Palaia. Congratulations to them. I will keep you in suspense until the results become final.

Here is a video I put together from the competition.

Online Videos by Veoh.com

Everyone is invited to attended the Hudson Valley Wine & Culinary Food Pairing May 30th at the Culinary Institute of America's, St Andrew's Cafe. You will be able to mingle with the winemakers and winery owners and their wines are paired with dinner prepared by the Culinary chefs. For more information click here.