Magic In A Bottle

Here at Food Republic, we love a good mystery. So we were a bit intrigued when we received an email from Raphael Lyon titled "NY area wine crazies." What could that mean?

Apparently, Lyon runs Enlightenment Wines, which he claims is the smallest winery in New York state, a "cult winery," that, the company claims, "puts the alchemy back in alcohol." Lyons makes his wine not from grapes, but from fruits and flowers. Wines like Ardor (an apple champagne) and Memento Mori (a dandelion wine) are made using local ingredients and old-fashioned techniques, with no pumps, filters or chemicals.

Because the winery, located near New Paltz, New York, is extremely small, production is limited to about 250 cases a year. The bulk of it goes to members of the winery's CSA ("Community Supported Alcohol"), who get deliveries of about 2 to 3 cases a year. Each case includes 12 bottles of whatever is being produced at the time — mead, dry sparkling fruit wine, potions. According to Lyon, 10 spots have been added to the CSA in advance of the August 28 shipment, and he's offering up the spots to Food Republic readers who are interested in joining. Here's your chance: Send him an email by this Friday and he'll try to squeeze you in to those select few who have already been Enlightened.