Lakes Placid (Finger Lakes, New York - Day 2)

My second day in the Finger Lakes had much better weather thank goodness; it was a bit sketchy driving back to the motel in heavy rain at night (and by night I mean 5:00 p.m.) The Finger Lakes like the Niagara Escarpment were formed in the last Ice Age by glacial movement which not only tore up the gouges the lakes sit in but also shifted a lot of minerals and soil. This makes the region incredibly diverse in terms of terroir. It is also a fairly large region, taking about 1.5 hours to get from the most North East point to the most South West point. It's lovely driving this time of year, as most of the trees have lost their leaves and it is quite stark. There are numerous small towns throughout upstate New York, looking quite rural but not poor. During the Summer this place gets pretty busy, and there is a lot to see, do and taste. The wines aren't enough of a drawcard like they are in the Napa, but in a few years the 50% of the US population who live within a days drive will be flocking here to gobble up the wines.

Starting back on the Western shore of Seneca Lake, my first visit was to Fox Run Vineyards, originally planted in 1984. Although the name implies the vineyards are run by one or more foxes, the chief winemaker is Peter Bell, originally from my new favourite city, Toronto. When I was on the West Coast during the harvest and I was just turning up at tasting rooms without an appointment, I was very lucky if I got to meet a winemaker or viticulturalist. Over on the East Coast the vintage is well and truly over, but there are winemakers around checking on ferments and transferring wines. This means that at many of the wineries I have visited I have got to chat with winemakers, and Fox Run was one of the best opportunities. After trying the wines in the tasting room (with Kyle Anne, a former exchange student to Bright, Victoria), I was invited up the hill to the winery. Peter and his team showed me around and we all looked at some post-fermented wines from tank and barrel. Having tasted the wines I was not surprised to hear that Peter likes fining and filtering his wines, as they are very clean precise and approachable. Also as expected, the rieslings, cabernet francs and lemberger (blaufrankisch) were the standouts, but I wasn't a fan of the cab franc lemberger blend, as the character of each variety got lost in the blend. The fortifed lemberger was surprisingly good, considering the nature of this climate. I certainly appreciated Peter's time and insights, as he was extremely knowledgeable about wines from all over the world, and his young padawan apprentice Kelby is destined for great things having worked vintages in Australia and New Zealand. Best of luck at Yalumba next year Kelby, and I hope you have found your calling Sarah!

About five minutes South of Fox Run is Red Tail Ridge, a mom and pop operation established by Mike Schnelle and Nancy Irelan. They are small but gaining attention and looking to expand and bring new people onboard, including a marketing person and assistant winemaker, which I could do either or both. The lady who runs the tasting room was lots of fun, as was the atmosphere in the tasting room. There are some interesting wines made here, including three bubbles; a white, rose and a sparkling red teroldego, an obscure Northern Italian variety. It was a shame I couldn't try these with my background at Chandon, but it is a quiet time of year and they are very small volumes. Continuing the trend (I sound like a broken record), the wines that showed well were the riesling and blaufrankisch, and the burgundian varieties and meritage blend lacked ripeness and definition.

On the Eastern side of Seneca Lake are numerous wineries, some of the oldest in the region. Red Newt Cellars established a popular following for their very good portfolio of wines made by David Whiting, as well as their respected restaurant at the winery led by his wife Debra Whiting. In August of this year Debra was tragically killed in a car accident, which profoundly affected the winery and the region, as she was respected and loved by many, particularly the local farmers she sourced produce from to use in the kitchen. The portfolio is broad and deep, displaying the great potential for Alsation white varieties and Loire Valley reds (cabernet franc). The gewurtztraminers in particular were exceptional, and there was quite a difference between the Sawmill Creek and Curry Creek single vineyard wines, particularly from the 2007 vintage. These are made in a very classic Alsatian model, with rich viscosity, warmth and some residual sugar adding texture. The cab franc here was probably the best and most balance I tried in the region. Compared to some of their other wines it was good value, but compared to wines from other wineries, the Red Newts were a little higher.

As amazing as it sounds, the first Finger Lakes wine I tried was not in the Finger Lakes region. When I was in San Francisco, over five weeks ago, I was in a wine bar asking for local wines. I mentioned my trip and destinations I was heading to, and upon hearing I was visiting the Finger Lakes they told me they had a FL wine on the list. It just so happened to be a Sheldrake Point Riesling, and it was great. The Sheldrake Point winery and vineyard is located on Cayuga Lake, further East of Keuka and Seneca Lakes. The difference in terroir is noticable, as the rieslings are much more slatey in their mineral characters. They have just opened a brand new tasting room on the Seneca Lake Wine Trail, and they are officially launching it on Thursday night, get down there. The GWT 2010 was the best I tried in the Finger Lakes, the Riesling (semi-dry) 2010 had exquisite texture and balance without compromising on flavour. The reds were a little disappointing, the cabernet franc not because it wasn't ripe enough, it just didn't have enough extraction to achieve the velvety tannins I had come to expect. A great place to finish my Finger Lakes experience. It was also great to finish the day with another enlightening chat with a knowledgeable Canadian, this time one of the owners at Sheldrake Point.

And thus, my North American Wine Adventure comes to a close. I'm on my way to Boston for a few nights, then New York City before I head to South America. I may try to visit some wine bars and stores there and report in, but otherwise I'll see you in Chile!

Click here to see more photos from Day 2 of the Finger Lakes

Purple Rain (Finger Lakes, New York - Day 1)

Quick question; how many readers actually knew that they made wine in New York State? If you answered yes, how many knew that grapes were grown here dating back to 1829. Much like in the West Coast, Prohibition and phylloxera all but destroyed the wine industry here, and it wasn't till after the end of WW2 that it was re-established. Until the 1960s varieties planted here consisted of either native varieties or hybrids between French and American varieties. Many might think that it is simply too cold to allow grapes to ripen sufficiently. Similar to the Niagara Peninsula, the vineyards in the Finger Lakes are planted near large bodies of water which have a moderating influence on the micro-climate, reducing the difference between daytime and nighttime temperatures allowing for a more even ripening. It gets pretty cold in winter here though, so grafting onto European vinifera varieties onto native root stocks is vital to survive the severe cold.

The man to introduce and persevere with European varieties was Ukrainian born Dr. Konstantin Frank. This Ukrainian born PhD in viticulture saw the potential of vitis vinifera in this area, but understood why the vines had previously not survived in the climate. It was his understanding of European regions and the necessity of grafting onto native roots that resulted in him establishing his Vinifera Wine Cellars in 1962. Several generations later, many in the industry here have learnt from his experiences and the region is poised to capture the worlds attention. The winery now produces a large range of wines, from sparkling to white, rose and red. A wine making team consists of a German, a Frenchman, an Australian and two Californians. The sparklings are very good, focusing on the traditional champagne varieties of chardonnay, pinot noir and pinot meunier. The region is gaining much attention for its Alsatian varieties though, particularly riesling. The rieslings at Konstantin Frank are very delicate and balanced. They don't have a strong minerality to them, but there is a certain rich lime blossom character to them. A highlight was the Lemberger 2009 (the German name for Blaufranksich), which had great acid and tannin structure, good balance and finesse.

Located on the opposite side of Keuka Lake to Dr. Konstantin Frank is Ravines Wine Cellars. A Provence-born Frenchman who spent six years as the chief winemaker at Dr. Konstantin Frank, the winery was established in 2000 by Morten Hallgren and his chef wife Lisa. Understanding what this region can offer, and also attempting to produce food friendly wines were the primary focus for this couple. This philosophy is reflected in the tasting room, as visitors can enjoy flights of the wine matched with locally-made delicacies. The focus is clearly on European varieties, but he does produce a white blend and red blended made from hybrid varieties, which are the weakest of the range, showing little elegance and a foxy wild character. Once again the highlights were riesling and cabernet franc, with the meritage (bordeaux) blend looking good too. The chardonnay was interesting, as it had gone through a rack-drying before pressing and fermentation, not unlike Amarone. The resulting wine was very textural and rich for such a cool climate wine, but was a little too oaky. It is an interesting approach to try and get depth and character from a variety that in my opinion isn't suited to this climate, much like pinot noir.

The modern wine industry in the Finger Lakes owes a lot to European migrants who persevered with the European varieties knowing that they would be great in the climate. Another of the pioneers was German-born Herman J. Weimer. Having grown up in the Mosel and worked in the Pfalz, he understood better than most the potential for German, Alsatian and Austrian varieties in this New York region when he established his vineyards on Lake Seneca in 1979. In 2003 he handed the reigns over to his apprentice Fred Merwath, who in 2007 brought in long-time friend and Swedish-born Oskar Bynke to handle marketing and sales. The legacy left by Hermann is very noticeable, as the very mature vines produce exceptional fruit. The wines were the best made I tried in the Finger Lakes, and are unbelievably undervalued, particularly the rieslings at under US$20.

Three vineyards provide the fruit for H.J. Weimer, all on the Western bank of Seneca Lake. The HJV vineyard is the original vineyard planted in 1976, and is located on the same estate as the winery. The soil types vary on the site, and when I visited they were installing tiles to assist with drainage. The other two vineyards are located about 10 miles North, but planted at different times. The Josef vineyard was planted in 1977 and purchased by Herman in 1996, whilst the Magdelena vineyard was purchased and propagated in 1999. Whilst there is quite a difference between each vineyard, the two close to each other have a distinct characteristic of ripe fresh-cut parsley, something I've never seen in a wine and never expected to see in a riesling. All of the reislings exhibit a minerality and austerity rarely seen outside of Europe. The Late Harvest Riesling 2010 is actually a Spatlese style, and would be an awesome companion to spicy Asian food. As expected the Cabernet Franc wines were spectacular, whereas the Pinot Noir lacked ripeness and depth. Fred was good enough to show me some wines from tank at various stages of fermentation, and even here I could see the parsley character, superb.

Click here to see more photos from Day 1 in the Finger Lakes