Pale straw color; green apple, lime, honey, spice on the nose and palate.
Extra dry; no tannins, bracing acidity (2.86 pH). Light body. Very fine bubbles. Méthode champenoise method—secondary fermentation in the bottle, 24 months aging on the lees, all in stainless steel. 100% riesling estate grapes from Keuka Estate in Finger Lakes region of New York State. Grapes planted by Willy Frank in the early 1980s with sole purpose of making sparkling wines. Whole cluster pressed. Each bottle is individually disgorged and date placed on the label; this sample disgorged in August 2024. 12% ABV
Dr. Konstantin Frank is located in the Finger Lakes region of northwestern New York State. No small surprise the principals in the business are graduates of Cornell University, which has been at the forefront of the grape and wine industry for more than a century. Frederic Frank has been the winery’s president since 1993. He worked for Banfi and held several other prestigious positions at CALS—College of Agricultural Sciences—at Cornell and the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Megan Frank is the vice president, also a Cornell graduate with post-graduate degrees from the University of Adelaide, Australia, and Cornell. Barbara Frank, yet another Cornell grad, is the consulting sparkling winemaker. She also earned a masters from California State-Fresno in enology.
Dr. Konstantin Frank (1899-1985) was a pioneering winemaker in the Finger Lakes region of northwestern New York State. Born in Odessa, Ukraine, he received his PhD in viticulture from the Odessa Polytechnic Institute. His thesis explored techniques for growing wine grapes in cold climates. After working for a time in Soviet Georgia, he came to the United States in 1951. He spoke nine languages, but English was not one of them. He worked as a dishwasher to save enough money to move his family to the Cornell University Geneva Experiment Station in 1953. His work there demonstrated grafting techniques to overcome challenges of cold weather. He founded Dr. Konstantin’s Vinifera Wine Cellars on Keuka Lake in 1962, finding special success with riesling and gewürztraminer. His work revolutionized winemaking in New York and Eastern United States.
Dr. Konstantin Frank Célèbre Riesling Cremant, Finger Lakes NV—sparkling riesling is not common wine. This is excellent, a great bargain, and demonstrates how well the Finger Lakes region is doing with riesling. Fruity, inviting, easy drinking. Dr. Konstantin Frank has been major force in the region for decades; this sparkler is one of the reasons.
Works as an aperitif or toasting wine at an event. Both sparkling and riesling are enormously versatile. Pair with oysters and other shellfish, sushi and sashimi; grilled or pan-fried trout; shrimp ceviche. Asian cuisin—ginger chicken, slightly spicy Asian dishes, sushi rolls with soy sauce and wasabi. Light appetizers and salads, especially ones involving fruit. Pork schnitzel, sauerkraut, bratwurst. With its hint of sweetness, can pair with fruit-based desserts—peach cobbler, lemon meringue pie. Cheese—soft, creamy cheese like brie, camembert, chevre; goat cheeses; hard, dry cheese like swiss, parmesan; semi-hard, aged cheese like havarti, jarlsberg, young cheddar, monterey jack; blue cheese like gorgonzola dolce. $25
