Mark Squires, a former Philadelphia attorney turned full-time wine obsessive, is taking his new assignment on Wine Advocate’s Long Island watch seriously. Beginning in June, when he released some of the best reviews ever of local vintages, Squires has shown a clear thirst for Long Island wines, with a second round of reviews just released and more coming in December. In all, 26 wines scored 90 or above, with Paumanok Vineyards the big winner with…
By JIM MCCUNE // It’s been nearly three years since Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed the New York State farm brewing law to spur demand for locally grown products and increase the economic impact of the burgeoning craft brewing industry. And it’s apparently working, at least here. Long Island already has a dozen farm breweries, with a dozen more in the planning. The law created a new brewery license that, among other things, allows farm-based breweries…
The Blue Point Brewing Co. is going to the World Series. A pint (or six) of the Patchogue craft brewery’s flagship Toasted Lager is on the line – along with other spoils from across the Empire State – as part of Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s World Series bet with Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon. In addition to wearing the other team’s jersey to work, the loser will deliver a care package of home-grown goodies. In Cuomo’s case, that…
By GREGORY ZELLER // Frosae Wine Sorbae might be one distribution deal away from inching into the black, but that doesn’t mean the people who make it aren’t already having a blast. Ben Amato, cofounder and president of the East Patchogue-based company, acknowledges that turning East End wines, regional microbrews and even an imported Caribbean spiced rum into frozen desserts has its upside. “The tasting is just so much fun,” Amato noted. The next thing…
The State Liquor Authority has approved a host of improved rules aimed at helping craft beverage manufacturers, retailers and wholesalers. The changes come in the wake of the third annual Beer, Wine, Spirits and Cider Summit, at which craft beverage makers had the chance to bend government’s ear on issues affecting the industry, which Gov. Andrew Cuomo has promised to support as a key New York job-builder. Chief among the changes is authorization of contract brewing, allowing small breweries to use…
Albany kicked in $16 million to support the state’s craft beverage industry on Wednesday, including $5 million for no-interest loans, plus stepped-up marketing and beverage-related tourism and grants for beverage entrepreneurs to attend educational events and showcases in other states. Gov. Andrew Cuomo also promised to cut government red tape that has slowed craft beer, cider and other small manufacturers in the sector. “Our investments in the farm-based beverage industry have created a synergy of economic…
By GREGORY ZELLER // Given that he’s American and draws a breath, it’s no surprise Kyle Chandler likes beer. And given that he’s a Long Islander during the Island’s craft-beverage renaissance, it follows that Chandler enjoys small-batch microbrews. In fact, he counts the proprietors of several Island brewpubs – including Riverhead’s Moustache Brewing Co. and Patchogue’s Blue Point Brewing Co. – among his friends, and volunteers often to help them at craft festivals and other…
By GREGORY ZELLER // Long Islanders who appreciate small-batch craft beers can now find them on tap in the mothership of large-scale commercialization: TGI Fridays. In addition to stalwart suds like Budweiser and Coors, the Texas-based restaurant chain is now serving microbrews at several Long Island locations, part of a larger corporate effort to capitalize on the increasing popularity of regional craft beverages. While it includes beers from several Northeast locales – including the fall-flavored…
By GREGORY ZELLER // There’s a few things you should know about EGC 1985 IPA, the newest concoction of Riverhead’s Crooked Ladder Brewing Co. Leaning towards orange in color, the India Pale Ale is made with four varieties of West Coast hops, giving it a powerful aroma and taste. It has a stronger alcohol content than 70 West, the microbrewery’s flagship brew, and significantly more hops. Only about 20 cases of the IPA have been…
By JIM McCUNE // Craft brewing is helping popularize a new wave of gastropubs, where small-batch craft beer and spirits are paired with high-level cuisine. Long Island is home to more than 30 of them, with the latest, Brewology295, recently joining the bustling Port Jefferson bar scene. The concept of a restaurant within a bar reinvigorated London’s pub and dining culture in the early 1990s and then slowly made its way to the United States….
New York has made life a little easier for craft beverage companies. Three new laws signed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo ease burdens on microbreweries, farm distilleries and retail enterprises engaged in the craft-beverage business. Under the retail-focused law, retail outlets that sell beer, cider and liquor are now authorized to conduct tastings without the manufacturer or wholesaler being present, overturning previous laws requiring the participation of a representative of the craft-beverage-maker. State Sen. Carl Marcellino…
Bottoms up, New York. Not only does the state – and Long Island in particular – house a growing craft-beer scene, but liquor-, cider- and wine-producing distilleries are also pouring in, thanks in no small part to cost-savings policies implemented specifically to help these spirits-makers thrive. Policy changes since 2012 have saved New York distillers over $450,000 in labeling and licensing fees, according to Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s office, and helped increase the number of statewide…
By JIMMY MCCUNE // Port Jefferson’s LI Pour House is the first Long Island establishment to deploy iPourIt, an RFID-controlled tap system that allows customers to sample their favorite brews without help from a waitress or bartender. “You pour what you want, and pay for what you pour,” noted co-owner and manager Anthony Pallino. “No bartender, no wait.” The system was developed by a pair of California entrepreneurs – beer drinkers, of course – after…
By GREGORY ZELLER // With a popular diet plan, a new book and a line of beneficial bagels – plus an extensive TV résumé flipping from the “Today” show to “Access Hollywood” – dietician Keren Gilbert is poised for Atkins-level stardom. Six years ago, she’d have laughed at the notion. Her husband and business partner, investment banker Jonathan Gilbert, would not have laughed. “I knew,” he said. “I always believed it. Keren is just too…
By GREGORY ZELLER // It’s one thing for a food startup to conquer the weekend farmer’s market circuit, something much more to break into retail, where the average grocery store offers customers more than 40,000 items, with 20,000 new ones introduced nationally every year. Of which 80 percent fail. How to win over the big boys and keep them coming back for more? There’s an incubator for that. Welcome Spring to Market, a new initiative…