Crooked Lake Winery - Proprietor's Red. Delicious!

Somehow we haven't managed to tell you yet about one of our absolute favorite wineries - Crooked Lake Winery!  Located on Keuka Lake (also known as Crooked Lake) in the finger lakes, these guys make incredible table wines and sell them at a very fair price.  They make a Chancellor varietal wine that is just out of this world, which I really have to tell you about soon.. but for today, I wanted to talk about something that everyone can enjoy - the Proprietor's Red.

Crooked Lake Winery's Proprietor's Red is sure to please everyone!

This red table wine is something that will please everyone.  It starts off a little foxy, indicating that there are some native (Vitus Labrusca) grapes in here.. I would say Concord or perhaps Iona or Isabella grapes.  I really can't say, and I don't think that John would tell me his secret formula even if I asked him, so this is just a guess.  Unlike a straight concord or native wine however, this has some other non native wines added in, making it sweet but not too sweet - really just tasty all around.

Proprietor's Red is table wine suitable for any day of the week!

The lady loves the wine - It goes well with virtually everything, goes does easy, and is delicious without being too sweet.  The flavor is that of your classic native grape, along with cherries and sweet fruits.  This is what's so nice about this wine.. it SMELLS sweet, even if it tastes just semi sweet.

Very often, the lady wants to drink one of her many wines, and many of them are rather foxy or Concord  based.  There's nothing wrong with that - beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and people's tastes are different.  But I for one get bored with the standard flavor profile of the Vitis Labrusca wines, finding that the standard "foxy" smell and taste overpower what subtler flavors might be present.  Proprietor's Red takes care of this issue nicely - there's enough sweet "fox" to keep the lady happy, with enough interest to keep me happy.

John from Crooked Lake is a gentleman and a scholar - and makes a damn good bottle of wine.  A great guy if there ever was one!

In case you're wondering what this "fox" aroma I'm talking about is like, think of a bottle of your standard Welch's grape juice.  You know that aroma of "grapes" that you smell and taste?  Well, that's the "fox" aroma that's present in so many native American Vitis Labrusca grapes.  Depending on your nose, you might interpret it as kind of a 'candied strawberry note', or more of 'animal-like fox note' - me, I get both.  The term "foxy" used to describe that smell, which is actually caused by a chemical called methyl anthranilate, is indeed apt.. it's the same chemical as is present in a fox's musk glands.  Or so I've read - I've never had the chance to smell a fox up close, even though we do have them locally.  They're pretty small :)

You simply can't go wrong with the Proprietor's Red!

Anyway, Crooked Lake Winery usually shows up at the Oswego Harborfest festival and also the Hudson Valley Wine and Food Festival.  As near as I can tell, they do not have a website - these guys are kind of small I've surmised, and seem to have better things to do than make one - i.e. make great wines!  If you happen to make it to any of the local New York wine festivals and see them there however, don't hesitate to stop by and sample some of their fine wares.  They offer incredible wines at a very fair price and you would be remiss not to sample some of their delicious wares!

Enjoy!