New York City - Oenophiles gathered in Manhattan over the weekend to sip and spit at the Third Annual New York Wine Expo. The event at the Jacob Javits Center drew several thousand wine lovers and more than grape nectars were there for the tasting.

The 2010 New York Wine Expo was an SRO event for both novice and veteran vinophiles.

This year the expo seemed equally unique for the selections that were available, as much as it was for the regions that seemed missing. Although there was some representation, the usual domination of familiar Napa and Sonoma vineyards were replaced by an extensive representation of Portuguese, Spanish and Greek wines.

For the most part the noble French were represented by a single region, one of my favorites, Cotes Du Rhone and there were more New Zealand wines represented than Australian. I also had the opportunity to taste Brazilian wine for the first time, which I would compare to Italian in taste and style.

Only two local Long Island vintners attended, Raphael and Bedell, but there were several from the Finger Lakes region, along with at least one Connecticut vineyard, Sharpe Hill, and Boxwood Vineyards from Virginia. Of course, Chilean wines were in play, but not in pace with their meteor like expansion into the American wine market.

Wine consultant Jacky Ruette at the very popular Cotes Du Rhone table.

Regarding those vintners representing the East End, Matthew Rizzo who was manning the Bedell table noted, "A very nice turnout! We had many first time tasters who were astonished by the quality of the wine coming out of our area." Melissa Martin of Rapheal said, "This was a great event, we are very pleased with the response to our wines and we have made many new contacts in the trade." Raphael's 2007 Cabernet Franc and Bedell's 2007 Chardonnay were standouts among their offerings.

The event was packed and there were indeed hundreds of wines available for the tasting. My suggestion to the organizers is to allow a little pre-crowd press time prior to opening the event up to the public. I made it to as many vintners and importers as I possibly could, but the lines were deep at most tables and the possibility for full selection tasting was virtually impossible. To that end, here are few interesting stops along my tasting table travels.

Among the vast selection of Greek wines presented by Stellar Importing and others was a particularly stunning 2000 Naoussa Grand Reserve Xinomavro and the 2008 Achaia Clauss Muscat De Patras was rich and sweet with great legs. Believe me there is more to Greek wine than Retsina and one should venture into some of the reds, particularly the Macedonian reds.

Designer Camille Meola with her beautiful, hand-crafted wine savers.

The one table where I was able to actually taste the entire selection was at Bodega Del Palacio De Los Fronaura Y Victoria. As three of their four selections were 2005s, I almost had a true horizontal tasting of these beautiful Spanish wines. Brand manager Diego Pinedo deftly took me through each offering and I can say that there was not a miss in the group. My favorite was the Frontaura Reserva 2005, which had a fantastic nose and deeply intense wood, spice and balsamic aspects.

Diego Pinedo and Javier Hernadez of Bodega Del Palacio De Los Fronaura Y Victoria of Spain.

A fun offering from California was the Modesto winery called Barefoot Wine and Bubbly. Their table was a purple explosion in Pacific beach motif with a half dozen beautiful young west coast women pouring their selections of fun, easy drinking wine and champagne. Tasting at this booth made me forget the two feet of snow that I trudged through to get to the Expo.

As I noted earlier in the article, the French seemed to have sent mainly the Cotes Du Rhone contingent, but the selections were superb and it was one of the most popular booths at the tasting. I was very taken with the 2008 Chapoutier Crozes-Hermitage. Particularly entertaining and enthusiastic was wine consultant Jacky Ruette whose repartee and passion for his country's wine was infectious.

Although best known for bulk wine producers, a small winery from the Finger Lakes region had an exquisite selection. Owner/wine maker Steve Shaw of his eponymously named Shaw Vineyard of Himrod, New York took me through a tasting of his whites: Chardonnay, Gerwurtztraminer, Dry Riesling and Sauvignon Blanc. The Chardonnay was crisp with a very subtle butter base and the Riesling was particularly rich in fruit without being too sweet. I did taste one of the Shaw reds and I can tell you that the Cabernet Sauvignon had a great nose and rich woody undertone that lingered long.

Finger Lake wine maker Steve Shaw with his son Steve Jr. of the Shaw Vineyard.

The Portuguese had numerous vintners represented at the expo and I certainly took the opportunity to sample many Ports, including an outstanding 20 year old Tawny. There were also wines from Hungry, Croatia and Argentina at this truly international exposition.

Spattered among the tasting tables were related trade vendors including Hudson Valley Fois Gras that was mouthwatering, Alaskan Salmon that was incredibly fresh and some of the most delicious brie I have ever tasted from Kaserel Champignon of Barvaria. Winecaddys.com had a sensational booth offering a unique selection of wine accessories and the art of Camille Meola's De Vin wine savers where simply stunning. There were numerous seminars available to both those in the trade and the general public including a wine basics crash course by "Thirty Girl" author Leslie Sbrocco.

The 2010 New York Wine Expo was a great opportunity for both veteran and novice vinophiles to sample unique offerings from a wide international selection of vintners. It was a fine Bacchanal on a snowy afternoon.

For other upcoming wine events go to www.wine-expos.com.