A Wine New York State of 42 Arrıve May/June 2009 arrivemagazine.com
Who needs Napa? Central New York s Finger Lakes region is a wine lover s dream and a delicious weekend getaway By David Levine PHOTOGRAPHY BY JOHN FRANCIS MCCARTHY ome 11,000 years ago Sgive or take a millennium the last Ice Age glaciers retreated from New York state, leaving behind a series of long, skinny and very deep depressions that filled with ice-melt. Early North American mapmakers dubbed them the Finger Lakes. That s one story, anyway. The aboriginal Iroquois believed that the great creator so loved the area that he left his handprint on the land. Either way, by happy thaw or divine graffiti, the Finger Lakes region has been blessed with perfect conditions for producing world-class wines. With more than 100 vineyards set on the gorgeous, rolling hillsides overlooking the waters, the Finger Lakes area is the second largest wine-producing region in the country. White wines are the region s calling card, especially Rieslings the climate and terrain compare favorably to Germany s Rhine Valley. You can t find a bad Riesling here, says John McGregor, owner of Keuka Lake s McGregor Vineyard. The pinot grape flourishes too, as does the chardonnay, but it s more like the French style here, delicate and dry, rather than the buttery, oaky California flavor. The region is also known for sparkling wines, dessert wines and ice wines produced during the winter from still-frozen grapes. Keuka Bluff Point in the Finger Lakes region. arrivemagazine.com May/June 2009 Arrıve 43
How Can Such Great Grapes Grow So Far North? Shannon Brock, wine coordinator at the New York Wine & Culinary Center in Canandaigua, says that the Finger Lakes themselves are the reason for the area s great grapes. Because the lakes are so deep, they moderate the climate, she says. In the spring you don t want the vines to flower too early, and the lakes keep the area cool. In the fall they store heat to extend the growing season and let the grapes ripen. The soil plays an important role as well. We have glacial soils here, lots of slate, shale and other stony soils, she says. Poorer soils are actually better there s a saying in the wine world that wines need to struggle. 44 Arrıve May/June 2009 arrivemagazine.com Lucky for visitors, four of the lakes have their own wine trails, providing an ideal excuse for an oenophilic adventure. Canandaigua Lake: New Flavors, Sustainable Ideas With just six wineries within 41 miles, the Canandaigua (pronounced cannon- DAY-gwah) Trail makes for an easy day tour. Although none of the wineries is actually on the lake, the hills on which they are perched give you lovely views of the water as you drive around. Start right in the village with one of the newest trail members, Wilhelmus Estate. The vineyard opened in 2007 but its roots run back to the 1950s, when a Dutch immigrant named Wilhelmus Kuenen began making award-winning wines here. His son and daughter-inlaw, Boud and Karen, named their new winery after Boud s father and continue to win awards, most notably for their Traminette, a hybrid child of the Gewürztraminer grape, with a flowery nose and spicy finish. Another small newcomer is Imagine Moore, in the village of Naples. Owners Tim and Diane Moore use only sustainable agricultural practices to produce vintages with such names as Peace, Joy and Wisdom, which they sell in bottles without paper labels. Their wine called Harmony, a blend of Cayuga White and Traminette grapes, may be their best. Sip it on the wraparound deck overlooking the lovely Naples Valley or on the European-style patio with olive trees, just off the stone cellar. Naples also boasts perhaps the biggest winery in the region, Widmer s Wine Cellars. Known best for its sweet wines think Lake Niagara and Manischewitz, which it owns it produces more than 50 wines in all, including a premium line called Brickstone Cellars. Widmer has the most extensive wine tour in the Finger Lakes, says John Brahm, the trail s president. It takes you on an hour-long excursion to the vineyards, aging cellars and bottling line, which is humming every day. That s not true at the smaller producers, such as Brahm s own Arbor Hill Grapery & Winery in Bristol Springs. But his tasting room is another good place to try Traminette. We were the first to produce it in the U.S., he says. Vineyard image courtesy Dr. konstantin frank vinifera wine cellars
Far left: The Vinifera Wine Cellars run by Dr. Konstantin Frank, with a view of the lake. Below: Belhurst Winery in Geneva, in 100-year-old Belhurst Castle. If you ve never tried ice wine (or if you re a big fan), then Casa Larga Vineyards in Fairport is the place to go, both for its Fiori Delle Stelle Vidal named Best in Class Dessert Wine at the 2008 New York Wine & Food Classic and its setting, a palatial Italianate estate that has become a favorite place for weddings. Keuka Lake: Full-Bodied Reds, Sensational Whites The Keuka (pronounced K YU-kuh) Lake Trail is probably the most scenic of the trails. The roads are perched on a ridge high above this Y-shaped lake, offering great views as you explore the nine member wineries. McGregor Vineyards, on the tip of the bluff on the lake s east side, is one of the few regional wineries producing full-bodied reds. John McGregor, who also serves as president of the trail, uses some obscure vinifera grapes from colder climates, including the saperavi and sereksiya charni the first from the former Soviet Republic of Georgia, the The aboriginal Iroquois believed that the great creator so loved the area that he left his handprint on the land. arrivemagazine.com May/June 2009 Arrıve 45
One-Stop Sipping Want to experience 40 Finger Lakes wineries without the hassle of actually driving to them? Then head to Sonnenberg Gardens & Mansion State Historic Park in Canandaigua. Along with nine formal gardens, an 1887 Queen Anne style mansion and the Lord & Burnham greenhouse complex, the park also houses the Finger Lakes Wine Center, where you can sample regional vintages and foods. The tasting room offers selections from a dozen or so different wines each day, selected from a rotating inventory of more than 100, including the center s three private-label wines. A flight of five samples is $2 per person. The Deluxe sampling, which pairs the wines with cheese, crackers and fruit, is $4.95 per person. You also can purchase any of the wines by the glass. If you like what you taste, the center sells more than 160 wines and dozens of gourmet food products, all produced in the Finger Lakes region. Above: The 1911 stained-glass Tiffany window the focal point of the wine center s tasting room was crafted by the Pike Stained Glass Studio in Rochester, N.Y. The image is also featured on the label of Sonnenberg s own Abundance wine. second from along the Black Sea. His aptly named Black Russian Red, a blend of these grapes, is tart and smoky with hints of elderberry, blackberry and currants. You can t peg it to being similar to anything else, he says. Keuka s best-known vineyard is Dr. Konstantin Frank in Hammondsport. In the 1950s the vast Gold Seal Vineyard commissioned Frank, a Ukrainian immigrant with a doctorate in vinifera, to study growing European grapes here. His winery has won more awards than any other in New York. The Rieslings and Blanc de Noirs are outstanding, and for something different, try the Rkatsiteli, a light but spicy and herbaceous wine. Seneca Lake: Award-Winning Whites, Tourist Fun From small to large Seneca Lake, with 36 wineries, is the biggest trail in the region and one of the biggest on the East Coast. It s also the most crowded. The tasting bars can be three people deep in the fall, says Shannon Brock, wine coordinator at the New York Wine & Culinary Center in Canandaigua. So now is the time to go. Far and away our most awarded grape, nationally and internationally, is Riesling, says Seneca Lake s executive director, Paul Thomas. Be sure to sample recent gold-medal winners such as the 2005 Riesling from White Springs Winery in Geneva, Homestead Reserve Riesling from Hazlitt 1852 Vineyards in Hector, and the 2008 Dry Riesling from Lakewood Vineyards in Watkins Glen. Of course, it s not just Riesling here. Lakewood s chardonnay is another winner, aged in oak barrels derived from New York state wood. And Hazlitt is best known for its sweet, Catawbabased Red Cat. More people have heard of Red Cat than have heard of Seneca Lake, Thomas says. For purely touristy reasons, visit Belhurst Winery in Geneva, in 100-yearold Belhurst Castle, overlooking the water, and Miles Wine Cellars in Himrod, in a 200-year-old home that the owners insist is benignly haunted. Cayuga Lake: A Long Tradition, Undiscovered Gems The Cayuga (pronounced cay-youguh) Trail, organized in 1983, is the oldest wine trail in the United States. Yet, even though it s been around longest, it s the least discovered and tends to be the quietest, says Brock. 46 Arrıve May/June 2009 arrivemagazine.com stained-glass image courtesy of sonnenberg garden & mansion state historic park
Above: Raise a glass to this area landmark, an old mill building in Seneca Falls soon to be the home of the National Women s Hall of Fame. It will feature displays and exhibits honoring the achievements of some of the country s most extraordinary women. Of the 16 trail members, sister wineries Swedish Hill and Goose Watch are perhaps the most highly regarded. Swedish Hill, in Romulus, swept the 2008 New York Wine & Food Classic the Oscars of New York wines, according to Cayuga s executive director, Cathy Millspaugh. It was named Winery of the Year, and its 2007 Vidal Blanc won the Governor s Cup as the best wine. Goose Watch, also in Romulus, offers fine wines and even finer views of the lake from the tasting room in a restored century-old barn tucked into a grove of chestnut trees. Other top picks: Thirsty Owl in Ovid boasts a terrific dry Riesling and nearly a half mile of lake frontage. Sheldrake Point, also in Ovid, has a lovely bistro called Simply Red for lakeside dining. And if you grow tired of all that wine, stop by Montezuma Winery in Seneca Falls for some mead, or Bellwether in Trumansburg for hard cider. arrivemagazine.com May/June 2009 Arrıve 47