Andrew M. Cuomo
Governor
September 2017
Richard A. Ball
Commissioner of Agriculture
First-Ever Taste NY Craft Beverage Week to be Held November 5 - 11

The first-ever Taste NY Craft Beverage week is coming this November, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo recently announced. During Craft Beverage Week, participating restaurants, bars, taverns and retail stores are encouraged to offer special events and promotions to highlight New York wine, beer, spirits and ciders and increase sales of these top-notch products. Events and promotions may include meet the brewer dinners, sommelier-led tastings, dinner pairings, tap takeovers, happy hour specials, New York craft cocktail specials, and informational seminars. If you are interested in participating, please visit the official website to sign up and learn more.

In anticipation of the inaugural event, a grand tasting was held on September 12 at the iconic Pier A Harbor House to connect producers from across the state to New York City restaurant, bar, and retail owners and purchasing agents. The goal was to promote participation in Craft Beverage Week and provide these businesses an opportunity to build relationships that will last beyond the week-long promotion.

If you are interested in participating, click here.
The Great New York State Fair: Taste NY & breaking attendance records
The Taste NY experience at this year's record-breaking Great New York State Fair, with its largest attendance ever, brought the Taste NY Store and Taste NY Market under the same roof for the first time. 

The Taste NY Store and Market helped connect visitors to a wider selection of New York food and beverage products. These changes support the Governor's $50 million plan to transform the Fairgrounds and improve the experience for guests.
 
The Taste NY Market highlighted more than five dozen companies from across the state, and vendors offered free samples of artisan foods, craft wine, beer and spirits, and other products. A list of participating companies can be found  here.  
 
The Taste NY Store offered a variety of products not showcased at the market, so visitors could buy even more delicious, locally made foods and beverages such as chocolate, wine, gourmet nuts and much more. Operated by Nelson Farms, the Taste NY Store carried products from 74 businesses from across the state. A list of companies featured in the Taste NY Store can be found  here.
 
Learn more about the Great New York State Fair  here and here.
Taste NY expands to more State Parks
 
Six additional state parks have added Taste NY concessions, bringing high-quality New York food and beverage products to park visitors. Guests can now find New York made food and drinks at a total of 10 properties, including:
  • Olana State Historic Site
  • Saratoga Spa State Park
  • Bear Mountain State Park
  • Sunken Meadow State Park
  • Bethpage State Park
  • Robert Moses State Park
  • Jones Beach State Park
  • Letchworth State Park
  • Watkins Glen State Park
  • Niagara Falls State Park
Together, these parks draw nearly 30 million visitors annually. This expansion supports Governor Cuomo's State of the State initiative to double park visitors' exposure to New York products, helping to drive tourism and strengthen local economies across the state. Learn more here or at taste.ny.gov.
PGA features Taste NY Marketplace at The Northern Trust
 
This summer, Lt. Governor Kathy Hochul helped cut the ribbon on a new pop-up Taste NY Marketplace at THE NORTHERN TRUST golf tournament at the Glen Oaks Club on Long Island. Built on the success of the Taste NY Café at the 2016 Barclays tournament at Bethpage State Park, the new Taste NY Marketplace featured products and exclusive dishes from some of New York's top chefs, restaurants, farms, and food and beverage producers.
 
The Marketplace included a large selection of food and beverage stations selling seafood, meats, bakery items, cold-pressed juices and more from farms and producers across the state. Fans also enjoyed exclusive menu items from top chefs and iconic New York restaurants such as Junior's Cheesecake, Nathan's Famous hotdogs, David Chang's Momofuku Spicy Chicken, Marc Forgione's Lobster Press and Mario Batali's Mario by Mary. Learn more here.
Threes Brewing Company earns Best in Show at NYS Fair Craft Beer Competition
 
Brooklyn's Threes Brewing Company earned top honors at the first-ever New York State Craft Beer Competition, winning the Governor's Excelsior Cup. Threes Brewing's Pilsner "Vliet" earned gold in the Light Lager category and moved on to win Best in Show. Nineteen beers from breweries across the State earned gold medals. Sponsored by the New York State Brewers Association, the official New York State Fair competition featured nearly 40 judges sampling a total of 707 entries in the largest professionally judged craft beer competition held in New York State. Learn more here.
 
Gold, silver, and bronze medal winners were awarded in each of the 20 categories, which include major styles of beer, such as IPAs and Lagers, as well as niche or emerging styles, such as sour beers or fruit and spice beers. Gold medal winners by category are: 
 
  • Light Lager: Threes Brewing Co.'s "Vliet" - Brooklyn
  • Wheat Beer: Brewery Ommegang's "Witte" - Cooperstown
  • Fruit and Spice Beer: The Peekskill Brewery's "Pinky Up" - Peekskill
  • Belgian Farmhouse: Threes Brewing Co.'s "Wandering Bine" - Brooklyn
  • Amber and Dark Lagers: Naked Dove Brewing Co.'s "Naked Dove Exposinator Doppelbock" - Canandaigua
  • Amber/Red Ale: Seneca Street Brew Pub's "Irish Red Ale" - Manlius 
  • Pale Ale: War Horse Brewing Co.'s "Lieutenant Dan IPA" - Geneva 
  • American IPA: Good Nature Brewing Co.'s "Blight Buster" - Hamilton
  • American IPA Variations: Prison City Brewing's "4 Piece" - Auburn
  • American Double IPA: Big Slide Brewery & Public House's "Giant IPA" - Lake Placid
  • Porter, Stout and Brown Ale: Stumblin' Monkey Brewing's "Oatmeal Stout" - Victor
  • Imperial Stout and Porter: Spider Bite Beer Co.'s "Boris the Spider" - Holbrook 
  • Belgian Other: Thin Man's "Hyperballad" - Buffalo
  • Strong Ale: Heartland Brewery's "Old Red Nose Special Edition 14" - New York City
  • Wild and Sour Ale: Mill House Brewing Co.'s "Citra Bridges"- Poughkeepsie - and Rushing Duck Brewing's "Zingerbier Berliner Weisse" - Chester - tied in this category
  • Barrel Aged Sour: Brooklyn Brewery's "Kiwi's Playhouse" - Brooklyn
  • Barrel Aged (Non-Sour): Three Heads Brewing's "Baltic Porter Aged in Iron Smoke Whiskey Barrels" - Rochester
  • Experimental: Prison City Brewing's "Wham Whams" - Auburn
  • New York State Beer: Saint James Brewery's "Saint James Brewery Pomme- Apple Ale" - Holbrook
Upcoming Events

Recruiting vendors for: Craft Brew and Artisan Festival 
  • Taking place Saturday, September 30 at Knox Farm State Park in East Aurora from 1 to 5pm, the Festival will have a focus on NY crafted products, especially beer, cider, wine and spirits. There is no fee to participate in this event, which is expected to draw 1,500 to 2,000 attendees. To participate, please email buffalocidermill@gmail.com or call Lenny Ciolek at 715-912-5020.
     
Recruiting vendors for: 2017 World Canals Conference
  • On Sunday, September 24, 2017, Taste NY will be participating at the Inner Harbor kickoff event as part of the 2017 World Canals Conference. The Canals Conference has invited Taste NY to promote the "Best of New York" theme by sampling and selling your products from 1:00 PM - 6:00 PM. If you are interested in attending, please complete the attached application and return to clarksl@morrisville.edu . There is no cost to participate. 

Upcoming events: 
  • Locktoberfest: Enjoy the fall harvest season along one of New York's four historic Canals.  The all-day, family-friendly events will feature entertainment, local food vendors, regional craft beer tasting and canal-themed activities. The Locktoberfest celebrations were launched in 2014 to create signature events that would extend tourism into the fall season along the canal corridor. 
     
    • Lockport Sept 30 (12-6pm)
    • Seneca Falls Oct 7 (All Day)
    • Rome Oct 7 (2-6pm)
    • Phoenix Oct 7 (11-8pm)
    • Fort Edward Oct 14 (All Day)
Local winners at New York Wine & Food Classic
 
At the 32nd New York Wine & Food Classic, a nationally recognized competition highlighting the best of New York's wine, spirits, and ciders, many local businesses took home prizes. This year, the coveted Governor's Cup trophy, the most esteemed award given at the Classic, was presented to Buttonwood Grove Winery from the Finger Lakes Region for their 2016 Riesling wine. In addition, CK Cellars/Torrey Ridge Winery, also from the Finger Lakes, and Sparkling Pointe Vineyards & Winery from Long Island tied for the 'Winery of the Year' award.
 
Known as "The Oscars" of New York wine competitions, the Classic is organized by the New York Wine & Grape Foundation and is open to the more than 420 New York wineries across the state. This year's competition included 958 individual entries: 915 New York wines, 27 hard ciders and 16 craft spirits from Long Island, Hudson Valley, Finger Lakes, and Western New York and other regions. Learn more here.
Welcoming new companies to Taste NY 

The following New York businesses have officially signed up to participate in Taste NY. If you are a New York food or beverage producer interested in Taste NY, click here.