Craft New York is the debut restaurant from renowned chef Tom Colicchio. It opened in 2001 and has become a timeless classic and a must-visit destination for those seeking an exceptional dining experience.

Food: 4.5/5 &ndash; Craft New York offers an outstanding culinary experience with a thoughtfully curated farm-to-table menu that caters to a wide range of tastes and preferences. The standout dish for me was the perfectly cooked Prime T-Bone steak, which was tender, flavorful, and perfectly cooked. The selection of sides, like the Hen of the Woods (mushrooms) and Gnocchi, complemented the main courses beautifully. However, I was slightly disappointed by the absence of exceptional fries, but this minor blemish was overshadowed by the overall excellence of the food. Also, the souffle was a true masterpiece, leaving me in awe of its exceptional taste and texture. A must-have!

Service: 4.5/5 &ndash; The service at Craft New York is genuinely excellent. The staff is highly attentive, welcoming, warm, and knowledgeable. They displayed a genuine passion for providing exceptional service and went the extra mile to ensure every guest had a memorable dining experience. However, there were a few instances where the staff seemed slightly overeager. Nonetheless, the overall level of service was exceptional.

Wine Program: 5/5 &ndash; Cheron Cowan, the Beverage Director, has curated a fabulous wine list. The selections are extensive and offer a thoughtful choice of wine for casual enthusiasts and wine nerds. The list includes all the classic bottles one would expect, as well as some hidden gems for those seeking a unique experience. The staff is well-versed in the wine offerings and can provide expert recommendations to pair with your meal. Additionally, Craft New York offers a selection of after-dinner digestives, adding the perfect touch to conclude your dining experience. Please check out the wine list in the <a href="https://www.corkrules.com/restaurants/craft/49">CorkRules</a> app for reference and also note our two CorkRules podcasts reviewing their list:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.corkrules.com/craft/episodes/649" target="_blank">Episode #304</a>&nbsp;with Cheron Cowan and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.corkrules.com/craft/episodes/61" target="_blank">Episode #55</a>&nbsp;with Grace Hood.

Vibe/Atmosphere: 6/5 &ndash; The vibe at Craft New York is simply fabulous. The restaurant exudes a trendy and hip ambiance while maintaining a comfortable and inviting atmosphere. The energy in the dining area is vibrant, making it an ideal setting for social gatherings or business dinners. Despite the lively ambiance, the acoustics are well-managed, allowing enjoyable conversations without strain. The seating arrangements are spacious and comfortable, and the modern decor adds to the aesthetic appeal. Even the bar areas look like a neighborhood place to enjoy a libation with delicious bites.

Craft New York surpassed my expectations in every regard and continues to be one of my go-to places. When I entered the restaurant, I was greeted with warm hospitality and attentive service. The menu presented various tantalizing options, and each dish exceeded my expectations regarding flavor, presentation, and quality. The wine selection was impressive, and the staff&#39;s knowledge and recommendations enhanced the dining experience. The stylish and inviting ambiance added to the overall enjoyment, making Craft New York a must-visit destination for any food lover. I highly recommend this restaurant for a remarkable dining experience, whether for a special celebration, a business event, or a memorable night out.

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Craft New York is the debut restaurant from renowned chef Tom Colicchio. It opened in 2001 and has become a timeless classic and a must-visit destination for those seeking an exceptional dining experience.

Craft New York Restaurant Review

Wines from grapes grown in higher altitude areas with cooler climate has become quite the trend recently. This specific growing environment gives intense flavor but elegance and freshness to the final wines. To highlight and champion these conditions more and more winemakers are starting to use alto as a marketing and labelling term to show their grapes were grown in high altitude vineyards.

Decoding the wine label: Alto

Brut is a word often seen on labels for different kinds of sparkling wine. As you may have discovered when drinking these wines, it indicates that the wine is dry, meaning there is no perceived sweetness in the wine. But how about Extra Brut or Dry, what do they mean and are they the same as Brut?

Decoding the wine label: Brut

Semi-sweet Riesling, a type of wine falling out of style. It’s a shame, since these wines are perfect to pair with flavorful cuisines like Asian or Mexican, or simply drink as they come under the summer sun. The higher level of sugar left in the wine also means that the alcoholic fermentation was stopped before finishing, providing a wine with lower alcohol level and therefor easier grabbing a second glass of.

Decoding the wine label: Spätlese

Have you ever heard the word Xinomavro? Most have not. It is however a word on many sommeliers’ lips today, as it happens to be considered the grape variety with the highest quality in Greece, and one that is trending at the moment. The fact that Greece have been making wine for a long time comes as no surprise, but they have never exported an amount to make sure wine lovers around the globe tried it. With the growing wine tourism many have discovered these wines and are serving them in wine bars and restaurants in many countries today.

Decoding the wine label: Xinomavro

Chianti Classico, Valpolicella Classico, Soave Classico… Why do all these Italian wine regions have the Classico addendum and what does it mean? What is the difference for wines labeled as Classico?

Classico is a wine term in Italy seen on a few wine labels and it indicates that the wine’s from the historic center of the region, the heart. Using Chianti and Chianti Classico and their Sangiovese-based red wines as an example, Chianti is a rather large wine district within the Tuscany region. Chianti Classico is located withing Chianti as the central part and the one that originally existed. Back then this smaller region was actually called Chianti, but as the region grew the quality of the wine plummeted and the well-known characteristics of these red wines were watered down. The reputation took a hit and sales diminished. Eventually this led to the creation of Chianti Classico, which would be drawn from the original Chianti borders to recover the typicity of these wines. Today the quality of both Chianti and Chianti Classico have risen a lot due to modern techniques and knowledge about pruning, planting and temperature control in the winery.

Decoding the wine label: Classico

In the rarefied world of fine wine, where bottles can command prices equivalent to luxury cars, authenticity is everything. Laurent Ponsot's gripping memoir "FBI: Fake Bottle Investigation" reads more like a high-stakes thriller than a traditional wine book, chronicling his relentless pursuit of one of the wine world's most infamous counterfeiters, Rudy Kurniawan.

From Burgundy's Vineyards to the FBI's Most Wanted: A Winemaker's Quest for Justice

Chablis – one of the more popular styles of wine today and a region known by many. Most are familiar with the word Chablis and the light, fresh white wine with a touch of minerality it brings. Even though it’s a renowned wine, few knows what it really is.

Decoding the wine label: Chablis

Many grape varieties around the world of wine have names local to the region or country they’re grown in, even though they’re exactly the same. The most famous example would be Syrah in France where the same grape is named Shiraz in Australia. Another variety with two names is Pinot Grigio, or Pinot Gris.

Decoding the wine label: Pinot Grigio

Have you ever seen the term sur lie on a wine label? It’s not a grape and not a wine region, but a winemaking method used to give certain styles of white wine a rounder texture and a more complex flavor profile.

Decoding the wine label: Sur lie

Samantha Hohl, certified sommelier, and Robert Tas explore the wine list at Little Donkey, a global tapas restaurant by James Beard Award-Winning Chefs.

Wine List Review of Little Donkey, Massachusetts

Sam Hohl

Little Donkey

Little Donkey

RT: Hello and welcome to CorkRules!&nbsp;

A podcast where, in each episode,&nbsp;we will review a wine list from your favorite restaurants. I&rsquo;m your host Robert Tas along with Samantha Hohl, certified sommelier.

Hello Sam,&nbsp;it&rsquo;s great to be back together for another episode.

SH: Hi Robert!

RT: Before we jump in, let&rsquo;s talk about CorkRules.

We created CorkRules to demystify wine lists because we know from experience that sometimes when we get that list handed to us, well&hellip; it can be intimidating, and even a little daunting.

Our aim is to help prepare you to navigate that list, find those hidden gems, or value wines or that special bottle that will take your dining experience over the top.

RT:&nbsp;So, sit back and listen as we review your favorite wine list.

Cork Rules

Little Donkey

Overview

Little Donkey is located in Cambridge, Massachusetts and they&rsquo;re offering up internationally inspired small plates and tapas. The owners are James Beard Award-winning chefs who provide a variety of unique flavor combinations- and of course there&rsquo;s great cocktails and wine to go along with them.

Sam, I can&rsquo;t wait to hear what you think of their wine list.

Where to start

Much like their food, their wine list is also globally inspired and unique! The list is straightforward to navigate, sectioned into types- like bubbles, white and red, but there are definitely some really cool finds on here that might not be familiar! To start, there were a few interesting blends that caught my eye and would be a fun way to kick off the evening.

The 2021 Summer Nat by Borachio would be a really lovely bottle to start with. Borachio is a natural winery in the Adelaide Hills of Australia. They produce mostly field blends, which are blends where the grapes have grown in the same vineyard, are picked together and then co-fermented, as opposed to wines that are blended after fermentation. Summer Nat is a Pet Nat (short for Pettilant Naturel, meaning naturally sparkling). It&rsquo;s a blend of Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Franc, which is unusual and results in this grapefruity fizz with notes of refreshing watermelon. This zippy pet nat would be so good alongside the salmon and tuna belly tartar!

If you&rsquo;re feeling something red and playful, try the 2020 &lsquo;Petal&rsquo; by Sonshine Vins. Not too clobbering and super drinkable, this would pair well with so many of the starters or small plates. Lisanne van Son is the winemaker behind Sonshine Vins. She is from the Netherlands and after years of working in restaurants as a&nbsp; sommelier she decided to follow her dream of making wine and moved to France&rsquo;s Loire Valley. She sources grapes from vineyards that practice organic or biodynamically which she explains can be difficult due to the effects of climate change on the vineyards. She then makes bottles that are vibrant and let the grapes truly shine. This bottle is mostly composed of Grolleau gris and Muscat Roug- another blend that&rsquo;s going to give you a unique glass. This bottle is a light red with delicate tannins, some beautiful floral notes and juicy red fruit. With its lighter body and tannins but fruity profile, it would be awesome with the pork sticky ribs.

Value Bottle

The 2021 Meinklang Burgenland White is a great value bottle on this list. Meinklang is a family-run farm that&rsquo;s located in the heart of a national park in Pamhagen, Austria. The three brothers who own it each focus on a specific part of the farm, the vines, the animals and plants, and the winemaking. They practice biodynamically and each part of their farm plays into how the other thrives. They pride themselves in taking equal care of their animals and land, as well as anything produced from it. Their wines are created with this integrity and straightforwardness that really does tell the story of their farm. This bottle is primarily Gruner Veltliner blended with some welschriesling and muskat. It&rsquo;s going to be super fresh and bright, great acidity, with notes of green apple and lime. This zingy white wine is going to help cut through things that are creamy or fried, so it would be a great start with the shrimp and pork wontons or the burrata with golden beats.

Celebratory

If you&rsquo;re up for something special, the 2016 COS &ldquo;Cerasuolo di Vittoria&quot; would definitely make your night. This Sicilian red blend of Nero d&rsquo; Avola and Frappato is balanced and structured, serious enough to celebrate with but rounded and juicy, making it a real joy to sip on. COS winery is owned by three friends who are committed to representing their familial lands through their wines. The blend of these two grapes make a great partnership- with the Nero d&rsquo;Avola offering dark fruit notes and the Frappato bringing those raspberry and red cherry tones. The Frappato is also aged in stainless steel tanks while the Nero d&rsquo;Avola is aged in oak so you have this added complexity of those vanilla notes from the oak and bright freshness maintained from tank aging. It would be wonderful with the Manti, which is Istanbul Meat Ravioli, with red pepper butter to compliment those bold fruit flavors and zingy acidity.

RT: Sam Thank you so much for all your great suggestions and helping us navigate Little Donkey&rsquo;s wine list. I can&rsquo;t wait to go try them myself.&nbsp;

To our audience, thank you all for joining us here on CorkRules.

If you would like Sam to review one of your favorite restaurants, please send us email to: <a href="mailto:Info@corkrules.Com">Info@CorkRules.Com</a> or visit our web website where we have a request form available and we will do our best to get it in the queue as quickly as possible.

We are looking forward to being with you on another CorkRules episode soon. In the meantime, please check out our website for other episodes of your favorite restaurant wine lists.&nbsp;

And finally, drink what you love and please make sure you drink responsibly.

Thank you.

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BRAT

Bocca di Lupe

Gap Weekend: A Film Shoot in Wine Country

Alba Restaurant

Alba

10 Greek Street

L'Auberge Chez Francois

Andrew Edmunds

Salt Seafood and Oyster Bar

Matteos Ristorante Italiano

Matteo's

Vintage Crush is a family-owned winery located in the heart of Ontario's wine country. Founded in 1995 by John Smith, the winery produces a range of premium wines that reflect the unique character of the region.

Meson

Brasserie Mon Chou Chou

BondST

Buenos Aires Restaurant

Buenos Aires

Meadowsweet

Casa Mono

Atera

La Cava

LAVO Italian Restaurant

Lavo

Quality Italian

homepage

CorkRules application allows you to discover wines at your favorite restaurants, learn with friends and be confident with price transparency. Order wine with confidence at restaurants and retailers. Get personalized recommendations. #DrinkWhatYouLove

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Moscato d'Asti NV

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Emmolo

Sauvignon Blanc NV

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Vietti

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Whitehaven

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Disruption Riesling, Columbia Valley NV

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Castellani Vermentino, Italy, Tuscany, Toscana IGT NV

Vermentino

Tuscany, Italy

Anderson's Conn Valley Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc Napa Valley NV

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Jermann

Pinot Grigio NV

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Dry Creek Vineyard

Fume Blanc NV

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Pike Road

Pinot Noir NV

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Oregon, USA

Franciscan

Chardonnay NV

Chardonnay

Napa Valley, USA

Kettmeir

Pinot Bianco NV

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Italy

Alpha Omega

Two2 Red NV

Blend

Napa Valley, USA

Argiano

NC (Non Confunditur) NV

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Tuscany, Italy