Q&A With Wine Director Keven Ring

One of the chief joys of wine is the complexity of flavors that can be extracted from the unassuming grape. But with so many varieties, vintages and vintners, discovering what you like or what pairs well with your meal can be a challenging—and expensive—adventure. Fortunately, Andrew Harper Alliance partners consistently attract the industry’s top professionals to preside over their impressive cellars and select the perfect wines to match your tastes, meals and moments. Gather some exclusive recommendations and peek into the mind of these gustatory wizards as the Andrew Harper Traveler chats with Keven Ring, wine director at Vermont’s Twin Farms.

How do you keep up to date with the seemingly ever-multiplying wineries out there?
I taste a lot with my purveyors and try and take a wine trip each year. I find that’s the best way for me to get a feel for what that region and producers are doing, and it also gives me a story to share with our guests.

What qualities do you consider when pairing wines?
What is going to highlight the course, not compete with it? How will the wine and the food make each other even more interesting, and create balance? I like to start the three to four wine pairings nightly with something that our guest might not have tried before, be it a different grape varietal or part of the world, in the earlier courses. [Then I] share an older vintage of a classic varietal from a well-known producer to anchor the main course. I have also found that food and wine from the same parts of the world tend to work very well with each other. Oysters and shellfish with Muscadet de Sèvre-et-Maine AC from the coastal Loire Valley in France are a perfect match.

There are wineries now in all 50 states. Are there any in Vermont worth knowing about?
Vermont has a very young but interesting and exciting wine industry. Because of the cold winters they have to work with cold-weather hybrids, such as Marquette, Frontenac, Le Crescent and St Croix. I’m a big fan of the work that Deirdre Heekin at La Garagista right here in Barnard is doing, as is Eric Asimov at The New York Times. The folks at Shelburne Vineyards are also doing some really good work with wine and cheese. Vermont also has a wonderful craft cider and beer community.

And what about wines from the nearby region—do you have any selections from, say, Long Island or the Finger Lakes?
Yes, I love the Chardonnay and Rieslings coming from the Finger Lakes, Fox Run being one of them. Long Island has Merlot and Cabernet Franc (Wölffer Estate), which are fine wines.

Are there any more hidden gems on your list that you wish people would order more often?
I’d say wines from Austria and Oregon deserve more attention for their quality and value. Austrian wines get confused with German wines because they share a language, but Austrian wines are closer in style to northern Italian reds and whites. Most people know Austrian Grüner Veltliner, but their dry Riesling from areas like the Kamptal and Wachau are outstanding (from producers like Tegernseerfhof and Steininger). The reds are also great food-friendly wines—grapes like Zweigelt, Blaüfrankisch, St. Laurent and Pinot Noir from the Wagram and the Burgenland.

Oregon, well everyone knows their Pinot Noir, but that’s just the tip of the iceberg as to what is happening in Oregon. They have figured out a clonal issue with Chardonnay, by using the Dijon clone from Burgundy, which is better suited for the colder climate. Also showing great quality are Pinot Blanc, Riesling, Müller-Thurgau, Syrah and Tempranillo. Producers to watch are Winderlea in Dundee Hill, Bethel Heights in Eola-Amity Hills, R. Stuart, Brooks and Teutonic.