Paumanok Chenin Blanc White Long Island White Wine 750 mL

Rated 89 Points from The Wine Advocate! 

“The 2014 Chenin Blanc is unoaked and has 12 grams per liter of residual sugar. It comes in at 11% alcohol. Said winemaker Kareem Massoud: “The 2014 vintage is the first to include fruit from a new clone (982) of Chenin that we planted in 2012. The remainder comes from fruit sourced from our original Chenin vineyard planted in 1982, another block planted in 2000 and from our Sound Avenue block, planted in 2005.” First, this doesn’t seem anywhere near as sweet as the statistics would suggest. In fact, the acidity cuts through everything and is easily the most dominant feature of the wine. Without the sugar, this would likely be shrill or bitter instead of generally dry or dry-ish. It is very impressive in most respects, crisp and juicy, tense on the finish and completely invigorating. It simply grips the palate. The acidity makes this a summer refresher and that should also preserve it well for a few years, at the least. As always, I like to start conservatively. If I had a quibble, this is not really loaded with Chenin character. Just as wine, though, it is pretty nice and a great warm-weather drink.