Wine Recommendation
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Wine Recommendation

Shinn Estate Vineyards 2007 “First Fruit” - Sauvignon Blanc-Semillon  (North Fork of Long Island)

Shinn Estate Vineyards

2007 “First Fruit” - Sauvignon Blanc-Semillon
(North Fork of Long Island)



Sauvignon Blanc has been rescuing me from a lake of local Chardonnay lately. It's the second most planted variety on Long Island — Merlot being first — and, by far the most planted white variety, so it only makes sense that there's a lot of it made, but it seems like too many winemakers over-oak these wines to the point of beating any Long Island terroir out of them completely.

That is why I'm still so excited about the local Sauvignon Blanc that some wineries have put out in recent years, including Shinn Estate Vineyard's First Fruit, which is 96% Sauvignon Blanc and 4% Semillon, their nod to the white wines of Bordeaux.

The nose is expressive with fresh pear, lemon, grapefruit and herbal-grassy notes that lurk in the background. The palate offers similar flavors - with the addition of a squirt of lime and a sprinkling of sea salt minerality. Medium bodied and impeccably balanced with snappy acidity, this is a wine born beside the sea and one that goes with anything from the sea. This is a wine that you’d expect from a winery owned by a chef and a restaurateur.

Reviewed July 22, 2008 by Lenn Thompson.

The Wine

Winery: Shinn Estate Vineyards
Vintage: 2007
Wine: “First Fruit” - Sauvignon Blanc-Semillon
Appellation: North Fork of Long Island
Grapes: Sauvignon Blanc (96%), Semillon (4%)
Price: 750ml $23.00

Review Date: 7/22/2008

The Reviewer

Lenn Thompson

Lenn Thompson writes about New York wines for Dan's Papers,
Long Island Press, Long Island Wine Gazette, Edible East End
and Hamptons.com. Two words describe his taste in wine — balance and nuance. Lenn prefers food-friendly, elegant wines to jammy, over-extracted fruit bombs and heavy-handed oak. When reviewing, Lenn tastes each wine three times — alone right after opening, with food, and again the next day — believing that 90-second reviews are unrealistic and not how the average person enjoys wine.