Westport Rivers Winery is one of my favorite Massachusetts wineries, and its history extends back about 43 years, to when it was founded in 1986 by Bob & Carol Russell. Over 40 years! It remains a family business and they own about 80 acres of vineyards, making it the largest winery in Massachusetts, and maybe even all of New England. In total, they actually have about 400 acres of working farmland and forests, utilizing 20% for their vineyards. The winery produces about 10,000 cases of wine each year.
They only use grapes that they grow on their own estate, including grapes such as Chardonnay, Riesling, Rkatsiteli, Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris, Gruner Veltliner, Pinot Noir and Marquette. They also practice minimal intervention in their wine making process, allowing their terroir and grapes to shine forth through their wines. It's certainly not easy to grow these grapes in the climate of Massachusetts, but with their lengthy experience, they are able to well handle the myriad of issues that arise.
In 2019, the winery hired a new winemaker, Marco Montez, who previously owned the Travessia Winery in New Bedford. Marco has been making wines commercially since 2007, and even used to purchase some grapes from Westport Rivers. I've met Marco several times, and visited Travessia, and found Marco to be a great guy, personable, down-to-earth and very passionate about wine. He produced some excellent wines at Travessia, and I usually had at least one bottle of his wines in my cellar at all times. The Travessia Winery has since evolved, and no longer makes local wine. Instead, it now produces Portuguese wines, using grapes from his family's vineyard in the Trás-Os-Montes region of Portugal.
Westport Rivers is probably most well known for its excellent Sparkling Wines, made in the Méthode Champenoise. Their Brut RJR was first made back in 1991, and the "RJR" are the initials of Robert James Russell, Bob's father. It's generally made from a blend of Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Pinot Meunier. It usually can be found on wine shop shelves at $30-$35, and is certainly a reasonable price for the quality of this bubbly, which will remind you of Champagne.
The 2019 Westport Rivers Chardonnay is an unoaked version, and will remind you more of France than California. It was an elegant wine, with dry, crisp notes of green apples and stone fruit, and a subtle floral aspect. Delicious and versatile, enjoyable on its own although excellent for food pairing too. A great choice for the summer.
The 2019 Westport Rivers Riesling is a dry version, more Alsace than Germany, and like the Chardonnay, it possesses excellent, crisp acidity. A complex blend of flavors, including melon, apple, and pineapple, with a touch of savory notes, and a lengthy finish.
The 2020 Westport Rivers Rkatsiteli also possess great acidity, with tasty fruit flavors, and a touch of spice. Green apple, citrus, and stone fruit flavors combine with a hint of baking spices.
Having a bit of fun, Westport Rivers produces Farmer's Fizz, a blend of Chardonnay and Riesling blend, which is meant to reflect a Prosecco-style. It's available in cans and small bottles, with a 12.5% ABV. It was fizzy and tasty, with plenty of bright citrus notes and sweet apple. An easy-drinking bubbly, it's not overly sweet, and should appeal to most people. Great for the summer, and as it's available in cans, it's very portable, without the worry of glass breaking. They also make a Rosé version, from Marquette.
Finally, I tasted one of their newest experiments, their 2020 River Flatts Red, out of the barrel. Last year, they sold out of this experimental wine, which is a blend of 83% Marquette and 17% Petite Pearl, and had aged in French and Hungarian oak. This is a lighter style wine, with lots of bright red fruit flavors, including cherry, with dominant spicy notes which blend well with the fruit. It has an intriguing taste, a bit unique, which makes it more compelling. I'd like to sit with this wine for a few hours to see how it develops over time.
At the Expo, they sampled the 2012 Westport Rivers Brut RJR, which is the latest release. It's amazing that allowed this wine to age about ten years before release, and that the price wasn't raised. I've previously enjoyed a number of other vintages of this wine, but this might have been my favorite. It possessed a compelling aroma of apples and toast, with slight spicy accents. On the palate, it was dry and crisp, with fine, tiny bubbles and a complex melange of flavors. Green apple, citrus, lemon, and toasted bread notes. Hints of savory spices and a slight briny aspect. Such an excellent depth of character, with a lengthy, pleasing finish. Perfect as an apertif or celebratory bubbly, it would also pair well with oysters and other seafood, or even fried chicken. Highly recommended!
Although Marco Montez was not involved in this 2012 Brut RJR, he was involved in the production of all of the other wines I tasted at the Expo.
The 2019 Westport Rivers Chardonnay is an unoaked version, and will remind you more of France than California. It was an elegant wine, with dry, crisp notes of green apples and stone fruit, and a subtle floral aspect. Delicious and versatile, enjoyable on its own although excellent for food pairing too. A great choice for the summer.
The 2019 Westport Rivers Riesling is a dry version, more Alsace than Germany, and like the Chardonnay, it possesses excellent, crisp acidity. A complex blend of flavors, including melon, apple, and pineapple, with a touch of savory notes, and a lengthy finish.
The 2020 Westport Rivers Rkatsiteli also possess great acidity, with tasty fruit flavors, and a touch of spice. Green apple, citrus, and stone fruit flavors combine with a hint of baking spices.
Having a bit of fun, Westport Rivers produces Farmer's Fizz, a blend of Chardonnay and Riesling blend, which is meant to reflect a Prosecco-style. It's available in cans and small bottles, with a 12.5% ABV. It was fizzy and tasty, with plenty of bright citrus notes and sweet apple. An easy-drinking bubbly, it's not overly sweet, and should appeal to most people. Great for the summer, and as it's available in cans, it's very portable, without the worry of glass breaking. They also make a Rosé version, from Marquette.
Finally, I tasted one of their newest experiments, their 2020 River Flatts Red, out of the barrel. Last year, they sold out of this experimental wine, which is a blend of 83% Marquette and 17% Petite Pearl, and had aged in French and Hungarian oak. This is a lighter style wine, with lots of bright red fruit flavors, including cherry, with dominant spicy notes which blend well with the fruit. It has an intriguing taste, a bit unique, which makes it more compelling. I'd like to sit with this wine for a few hours to see how it develops over time.
I highly recommend that you seek out the wines of Westport Rivers. They are delicious, well-made, and are from a local winery. You may not realize that Massachusetts grapes can produce such excellent wines, so it's time to learn.
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