Winery Tasting Notes
One of our greatest achievements to date. The grapes used to make this wine were hand-harvested over a period of two weeks in early November, 1998. Crafted in the style of a French Sauternes, the wine was fermented and aged for five months in brand new barrels made of oak from the Vosges Mountains, in France. The solid golden hue suggests an intense wine. And it delivers. The nose is delighted by pleasantly perfumed floral aromas; a qualified candidate for vinous aromatherapy. Very concentrated fruit flavors range from hints of citrus to distinct tastes of quince and litchi. The wine is rich and sweet, and has ample acidity to balance the sugar, resulting in a sensational, full-bodied, dessert wine with a long finish. The oak embellishes the wine by imparting a subtle nutty flavor and by increasing complexity. A rare find, the only 100% sauvignon blanc late harvest on the east coast. 200 cases made.

The Wine Enthusiast - December 15, 2000
90 Dried apricots and candied pineapple aromas also have a certain citric character to them, giving an impression of bright acidity. The flavors are predominantly pineapple and melon, with some lemony notes creeping in on the finish. Very balanced and elegant; sweet without being cloying.

The Wine Advocate - January 2000
89+ Reminiscent of a top-flight Sauternes, Paumanok's 1998 Sauvignon Blanc Late Harvest was fermented entirely in new oak. Its lovely, super-ripe apple aromas are intermingled with spices and oak scents. It is plump, medium-bodied, oily, and crammed with candied white fruits, oranges, and red berries. Long, sweet, well-balanced, and focused, this first-rate sweet wine has the potential for 10-12 years of cellaring.

Newsday - February 13, 2000
...the ripe and remarkable 1998 Late Harvest Sauvignon Blanc from Paumanok Vineyards in Aquebogue. The wine was first sampled in early autumn. A recent tasting underscored that terrific first impression. Charles Massoud's '98 is as close to a Sauternes as you'll find here right now. It has wonderful fruit, depth and style. Paumanok's trademark touch of quince and litchi, of course, also stops by. If you can find the '98, treat yourself. It's even better than the fine '97.

The New York Times - August 29, 1999
It's the late harvest sauvignon blanc that takes the cake. In fact, it's nearly a cake in itself. It is richer, deeper, more honeyed and more viscous than the late harvest riesling, but an underlying dryness prevents the sweetness from becoming cloying. It isn't for weight watchers.

Saveur - April, 2001
Opulent but not sugary, with an exuberance of fruit that suggests ripe strawberries crushed into the juice of bright, acidic grapes.

Alcohol by Volume: 10.9%
Residual Sugar: 9.3%
Brix at Harvest: 30