The WineMadeEasy Blog

One of the most-satisfying aspects of serving the Western New York community is the opportunity to give back to the various organizations that make our region so special. Since the founding of the original Premier Group store in 1969 by Burt Notarius, the stores of the Premier Group have invested heavily in the organizations and institutions that are making a difference in our community. We recognize the importance of health, educational, and cultural institutions in making this a wonderful place to live, and so every year we donate thousands of dollars to support these organizations.

Over the years, we're proud to have supported great organizations like The Darwin Martin House, the University at Buffalo, Hospice Buffalo, Oishei Children's Hospital of Buffalo, and others. Here's a short video we put together about our work in the community.

Although Prosecco has been around a long time, its popularity has grown in the last couple of years. It is viable alternative to more expensive champagnes and sparkling wines and is a "go to" item for holidays and special occasions. It is no wonder that Prosecco is a natural for Mothers' Day. You can toast mom or make Momosas for the Mother's Day brunch. Alternatively, you can also make delicious cocktails and punches as well. Here are a few examples.

Bellini

• 2 cups sugar
• 1 cup water
• 3 (16-ounce) bags frozen peaches, thawed
• 1 teaspoon grated orange peel
• 4 to 6 (750-ml) bottles Prosecco or other sparkling wine, chilled
• Orange peel twists, for garnish

Stir the sugar and water in a large saucepan over medium heat until the sugar dissolves, about 5 minutes. Cool completely.

Puree the peaches and orange peel in a blender with 1 1/2 cups of the sugar syrup until smooth. Strain through a fine-meshed

One of the great perks of working in the wine industry is world travel.

I’ve traveled to wineries and tasted wines across New York, Pennsylvania, Canada, Germany and France. Meeting the people who grow the grapes, care for the vineyards and make the wine is a valuable experience to bring back to customers, associates and friends.

Once I was flown with about two dozen retailers, restaurateurs and wholesalers to Germany for a whirlwind tour of various vineyards. We saw the vineyards, tasted the wine, and listened to history, many times through a translator. We felt the sun over the vines, saw where the slope faced a local river for radiant heat, touched the soil and sampled the traditional local cuisine. Through all that, we found a connection with local growers and families that had farmed there for more generations than anyone could count.

Could all the “information” we received have been more efficiently sent via an email, fax, or by and sending

Easter is upon us and this year I thought it would be fun to offer a few more choices in different categories. Hopefully you will see a few surprises.

WHITES

1. Vouvray: Les Lys Vouvray 2015

Made from 100% Chenin Blanc this is an off-dry white with notes of delicate perfume, stone fruit and tropical fruit, a hint of almond, and a pleasant dose of honey. It has low acidity and a soft, round finish. This wine pairs well with sweet and salty honey-glazed ham with a side of scalloped potatoes.

2. Riesling: Boundary Breaks Ovid Line North 2014

The nose on this Finger Lakes Riesling offers scents of honey, wax, and peach. This off-dry Riesling has fine texture and pleasant, lingering flavors and is very well balanced. This wine can easily take on not just salty-sweet ham, but smoked kielbasa, hard boiled eggs and horseradish.

3. Pinot Gris: Willm Pinot Gris Reserve 2014

The Willm Pinot Gris has a golden color with a very faint pink hue

The 2015 vintage of Grand Passione is a delightful alternative to the much revered Amarone. As stated about previous vintages, this wine impresses with its elegantly embossed bottle and simple yet classic hand written look on the label. The name seems to fit the region itself which is steeped in history and romance. Thus is an impressive present for a loved one.

A delicious blend of 60% Merlot and 40% Corvina, this Rosso is produced in the Veneto region in the same appassimento-style as many Amarones. The Corvina grapes are sun dried before processing creating a raisin-like quality to the wine.  It is full bodied with a deep, nearly black color and rich and bold. There is a strong flavor of dark cherry, black currant, prune, raisin, and allspice with soft tannins and a long, smooth finish. This is a terrific bottle for under $15.00.  It works very well with stews and roasts, but give it a try with hard cheeses, crostini and liver pate.

This holiday season I have opted to repeat my blog from last year because the films obviously remain classics and the pairings still apply.

It is the busy season at Premier, so I am just doing one large blog for the Holidays. I have listed 10 of my favorite Christmas movies with one bonus film many of you probably have never seen or heard of, but should take a look at. For each movie I have suggested a wine or spirit to go along with your viewing pleasure.

1. A Christmas Carol (1951): My favorite all-time Christmas movie with the incomparable Alistair Sim. It’s full of dark, brooding, Victorian London along with cheery snowy street scenes and lovely carols. A figgy and nutty Tawny Port like Niepoort Ten Year is just the thing to sip along with a slice of Christmas cake or pudding as you view this ideal Christmas movie.

2. A Christmas Carol (1984): My second favorite version of Dickens’ classic with wonderful set

Here is my list of some favorite wines for Thanksgiving. Most of these are old favorites, and all are interesting and worth your time. With a couple of exceptions, these wines will fall under $15.00 a bottle.

1. Georges Duboeuf Beaujolais Nouveau 2016 / 750 ml.: A good vintage with a deep, dark, plum color and juicy, ripe flavors with a smooth finish. This light refreshing red should be served slightly chilled and works nicely the day after Thanksgiving when you build that monster of a turkey sandwich.

2. The Borell-Diehl 2014 Gewurztraminer Kabinett Pfalz: This wine should be of particular interest to you if you like some sweet with your spice. This wine is very aromatic, with rose, grapefruit, lychee, coriander. With ginger, citrus and golden apple notes on the mouth, this wine will be a winner for complex Thanksgiving flavors.

3. Domaine L’Enclos Moelleux 2015: This is a lovely, bargain-priced French white

This Sunday is the last day for our Double Up for a Buck.  So now is the time to stock up for your Halloween party.  New to our sale are two very well made French wines: Les Argelieres Chardonnay and Pinot Noir.  Both of these wines will run you $8.00 per bottle with our sale which is a great deal for good French wine.

The Chardonnay is well balanced with notes of apple, pear, a hint of pineapple and creamy vanilla pudding.  There is just enough oak to give it heft for enjoying with cream laden dishes such as corn and potato chowder.  The Pinot Noir is a bit heavier and darker than many of the traditional French Burgundies, but make no mistake, this is not a jammy fruit bomb either. This Pinot has very good balance with plenty of lively raspberry, cherry fruit with slight birch beer and wet earth notes.  Try this with sweet and spicy Sloppy Joes for a solid Halloween pairing.

Get here soon to take advantage of this sale because it ends on Sunday.

It’s October and fall is in full swing with changing leaves, less daylight and somewhat cooler temperatures.  This is a good time to enjoy some of the wines you’ve been meaning to try but felt the warm temperatures made them seem less enticing.

Such a wine would be the Stoller 2014 Pinot Noir from the Dundee Hills region located in the Willamette Valley AVA in Oregon. Made from estate grown grapes, this Pinot Noir is sophisticated yet approachable. On the nose there are wonderful notes of dark cherry, raspberry, clove, cinnamon and licorice. On the palate there are lingering flavors of cherry, vanilla, more spice and pepper. At around twenty-five dollars, this wine over delivers and will stand out as a Sunday dinner favorite.  Pair with grilled salmon, roasted chicken, mushroom tart appetizers and assorted hard cheeses.

In keeping with the fall season and the state of Oregon, there are a few movies that were entirely or partially filmed in the picturesque state tha

Next Thursday marks the beginning of fall. Summer temperatures aside, there are definite earmarks that the season is upon us. Out in the hills, leaves are slowly beginning to turn and shadows are gaining length as the sun departs earlier in the evenings. Pumpkins are appearing on roadsides and apples are more prevalent at the grocer’s. Apples and autumn are inseparable. Crisp bites of Cortland and Macintosh apples, fresh, sweet cider and spice laden apple pies are all strong associations with fall.