5 Amazing Party Wines

By Lettie Teague

Looking for fellow Long Island wine lovers, Lettie Teague decided to organize a Meetup—a real-life gathering for friends who meet online. Here, five excellent bottles she discovered in the process.

2007 Robert Foley Petite Sirah ($60). Photo courtesy of Robert Foley Vineyards.

Great Wines for Any Meetup:

2007 McCall Vineyards Merlot ($24)

Russell McCall has grown grapes for more than a decade, but this is the first Merlot under his own label. A big, broad-shouldered wine, it's made by Gilles Martin, a Frenchman who also produces a very nice Merlot for Sherwood House.

2007 Wölffer Estate Late Harvest Chardonnay ($37)

Although winemaker Roman Roth crashed the Meetup (he couldn't figure out how to RSVP online), his delicious dessert wine was a welcome addition.

2006 Bodegas El Nido Clio ($42)

A cultish Mourvèdre-Cabernet blend from Spain's Jumilla region, this is a voluptuous red with notes of spice and oak.

2007 Robert Foley Petite Sirah ($60)

I brought the '03 vintage of this astonishingly rich red to the Meetup; the '07 is the current release. Foley is also using North Fork grapes to make wines in Brooklyn, New York, under the Red Hook Winery label.

2007 Jamesport Vineyards Petit Verdot ($100)

This inky North Fork red was the wine everyone at the Meetup was talking about: "Who knew Petit Verdot from Long Island could be this intense?" It will be available this spring.