#WBC15 Preview - Viticulture in the Cold Climate Finger Lakes

Finger Lakes wineries - theCompass
Winery, Brewery, Distillery Locator app

The 2015 Wine Bloggers Conference will be held August 13-16 in New York's Finger Lakes Wine region. This is the first time the conference is being held in an East Coast cold climate region, in particular, one that is both wet and cold. Historically a region noted for Concord and French hybrids, the Finger Lakes has expanded beyond these varieties because of modern viticulture techniques. Many of these techniques were first implemented by Dr. Konstantin Frank who introduced vinifera varieties into New York in the 1950’s. In his opinion, if "vinifera could be grown in Ukraine, then it could survive in New York". The main problem he theorized was the lack of a suitable rootstock, not the cold weather. He found that rootstock in Quebec and after a couple bountiful harvests founded the Vinifera Wine Cellars in 1962.

Now known as Dr. Konstantin Frank Vinifera Wine Cellars, the winery has passed from Dr. Frank to his son Willy to his grandson, Frederick Frank. The latter explains the first two fundamental steps in grafting pioneered by the winery.  "Our goal is to achieve a medium size vine throughout the vineyard. This is accomplished by using phylloxera resistant rootstock and matching the rootstock vigor to the soil type. Second, hilling up the graft union of the vine with about a foot of soil protects the graft union and basal buds from the cold. We uncover this soil mound every Spring." Even if the buds perish, the vines may survive due to the hilling of the graft union.  The winery also aims to keep the vines free of fungus disease throughout the growing season because a vine weakened by fungus disease would be more susceptible to winter injury. By starting with these techniques, the Frank family along with the hundred other wineries in the region have proved that vinifera can survive and excel in the Finger Lakes.

That's not to say the process isn't difficult; with each year bringing a new challenge. Describing the last two winers, Scott Osborn of Fox Run Vineyards noted:

This winter was a good winter for us principally because it got below freezing in early December and stayed below freezing until a few days ago. So we are looking at 25% bud damage which for us is normal and we prune to compensate for it. Last year it got cold than warmed up to above freezing for a few days in early January and then dropped to below 0 in 24 hours. That happened at least 4 times over the next two months. It turns out each time it gets above freezing and then gets cold again the vines loose some of their cold hardiness and becomes less tolerant to cold each time that happens. A vine can adjust when there is gradual cooling but when you have extreme drops in temps then we experience lots more damage.

The Finger Lakes microclimates assist in alleviating these cold weather casualties, particularly among the four longest lakes: Seneca, Cayuga, Canandaigua, and Keuka. Bruce Murray, owner of Boundary Breaks Vineyard, explained to me how the Finger Lakes are some of the deepest in America, with Seneca Lake dropping to over 700 feet. Thus the lakes never freeze and actually warm the prevailing NW winds. This helps to increase temperatures around the lakes by 2-3 degrees in which Murray says, "this slight increase allows grapes to ripen sufficiently during our short growing season". John Martini of Anthony Road Wine Company believes their proximity to Seneca Lake has provided some protection from frost (as well as hilling each fall). And both Frederick Frank and Scott Osborn noted that they plant more tender varieties in the mildest microclimates in the Finger Lakes, with Frank emphasizing the east side of Seneca Lake. Osborn continued that he then plants more cold hardy varieties like Riesling, Cabernet Franc, Lemberger, and Cabernet Sauvignon further away and at higher elevations.

The founders of Standing Stone Vineyards were the first modern day entrepreneurs to research specific vineyard sites in the Finger Lakes. According to current owner Martha Macinski,"... in the 1960s Charles Fournier and Guy DeVeaux (Gold Seal Vineyards) learned about Dr. Frank’s efforts to plant vinifera in the Finger Lakes, and saw for themselves the variation in microclimates throughout the region. For three years they collected data and made observations on 100 test sites throughout the Finger Lakes, primarily on Seneca, Cayuga and Keuka lakes. In 1969 they purchased what is now Standing Stone Vineyards from Mr. Bedient, for $1,000 per acre, which was a sign of how much they wanted it. That was a hefty sum for vineyard property in those days". Where did Fournier and DeVeaux select their property? The east side of Seneca Lake. 

Each winery has also establish specific steps for pruning, canopy coverage, and yields to assist the vines surviving the winter. Frederick Frank mentioned that their winery insures that crop levels are moderate and not excessive, which could weaken the vine and result in greater winter injury. Murray mentioned that Boundary Breaks manages crop size (the ideal yield is 3.5-4 tons per acre) by dropping grapes just before Véraison. However, he noted that dropping too soon will give the cluster too much vigor, increasing the berry size which dilutes the juice if the grape doesn't split in the summer. Osborn starts pruning in late December with the most winter hardy varieties first the leaving the least hardy to late March. And Macinski says that Standing Stone uses a Vertical Shoot positioning trellis system which they believe contributes to minimal winter damage since the trunks are shorter, thus less area to split.

As for the vinifera varieties grown in the Finger Lakes, Murray stressed the region's similarity to Alsace and Western Germany - thus Riesling is King, with smaller plantings of  Chardonnay, Gewurztraminer, and the Pinot grapes. Bordeaux is prevalent - notably through Cabernet Franc. But there are also increased plantings of unique varieties such as Gruner Veltliner, Lemberger, Dr. Frank's Rkatsiteli, and Standing Stone's Saperavi.There will be plenty of diversity for #WBC15 attendees.

In closing, I'll leave it to Frederick Frank to summarize viticulture in the Finger Lakes: "shoot for a healthy medium sized vine in a favorable site in the Finger Lakes with good air drainage and a sloped contour with drained soils and close to a deep lake. This will give us the best success in growing vinifera in the Finger Lakes".

Cheers to that and looking forward to the 2015 Wine Bloggers Conference. And thanks to Frederick Frank, Scott Osborn, John Martini, Bruce Murray, and Marti Macinski for taking time to correspond.

#Winechat featuring 2012 Finger Lakes Riesling

Last night during our weekly Wednesday #winechat, we tasted through a quintuple of Riesling wines from New York's Finger Lakes. These wines ranged from practically bone dry to frozen iced styled; and its mighty clear that the Finger Lakes delivers quality wine with each style.  When examining the label of a Finger Lakes Riesling be sure to peek at the back label which should include a Riesling Taste Profile. The profile is designed to make it easier for consumers to "predict the taste they can expect from a particular bottle of Riesling" and according to the Finger Lakes Wine Alliance (@FLXWine), there is almost unanimous compliance with the member wineries. Pretty cool.

We also learned about the age-ability of Reisling, in some instances they can maintain themselves for over a decade.  According to Red Newt Cellars (@FLXnewt), "The acid holds on cleanly, the sweetness mellows.  Great Riesling ages better than most red wines could dream of!"  And Fulkerson Winery (@FulkersonWinery) finds "that aging softens them. Brings out the petrol and honey notes." Who knew?

We started the evening with the Swedish Hill Winery (@SwedishHillWine) 2012 Dry Riesling at 0.8% RS and 12% alcohol, the driest of the bunch.  This wine uncorks with powerful floral aromatics which the winery explained in a tweet - is partly due to the season, site, and wine making. The grape itself is clone 90, in which I learned there are approximately four Riesling clones planted in the Finger Lakes. And the site is on Cayuga Lake, one of the right fingers.  The wine itself continues with floral, green apple flavors and nice acidity.

Next up was the single vineyard Standing Stone Vineyards (@SSVNY) Old West Block 2012 Riesling at 1.4% RS and 12.2% alcohol.  The grapes were harvested from the old Gold Seal Vineyards, first planted  in 1972.  The wine has plenty of acidity to balance the additional sweetness and displays a more peaches and honey flavors intertwined with some stoney earthiness.

Moving further along the Riesling Taste Profile, the Red Newt Cellars Circle Riesling 2012 comes in at 3.2% RS and only 11% alcohol. Easy to get carried away with this one. According to @FLXnewt the Circle Riesling is here to remind people that the words "everyday" and "Riesling" DO belong together. And "the RS worked out naturally for us in 2012 to this level; ripe fruit aromas boost the sweet impression instead." During the chat, many of our fellow bloggers recommend spicy foods with the wine or as we dined - spicy pork sausages. The wine itself swayed from apricot to honeyed pear - with the refreshingly balanced acidity.

The Wagner Vineyards (@WagnerVineyards) 2012 Riesling Select is in a similar ballpark  at 4.2% RS and 11.2% alcohol. This wine is made from grapes grown from the winery's oldest block of Riesling, planted in 1979, with the original vines still yielding fruit. Once again, balance. The sweet pineapple flavors blended seamlessly with the effervescent finish. 

Last was from the far right on the Tasting Profile, the Fulkerson Winery 2012 Riesling Iced Wine.  They had wanted to leave the grapes on the vine to produce a true ice wine, but Mother Nature interfered so they grapes were harvested at full ripeness and then frozen. After fermentation, the wine was then aged six months in new oak. The result is a honeyed fig flavored wine coming in at 19.7% RS, but, once again, only 11% alcohol. But even with the intense sweetness the inherent acidity comes through again. The winery tells us that the "Riesling Iced Wine is fantastic with an apple tart or rich cheeses (sharp cheddar, Danish Blue, etc.)". I also want to sample their 0.2% bone dry Riesling as well as their true 2008 Cabernet Franc Ice Wine. Nice range of offerings.

For the past decade, I've said I'm going to visit the Finger Lakes, I need to get on that promise. Look how many there are to choose from. Cheers.

Discovering Georgian Wines for #winechat

Quick question? What is the oldest known vinifera wine grape? Muscat. Maybe. One from Greece - perhaps Agiorgitiko? Maybe. How about Rkatsiteli - where clay vessels in the Republic of Georgia have been found that contain Rkatsiteli seeds which date back to 6,000 BC (A Short History of Wine). And  Jancis Robinson The Oxford Companion to Wine, 3rd Edition states that the wine tradition finds its roots in the valleys of the South Caucasus - its not far fetched to believe that Rkatsiteli is one of the first vinifera wine grapes. Yet Rkatsiteli is just one of 500 unique Georgian grape varieties; perhaps one is   even older. Moving forward, Georgian wine is mentioned in Greek literature,particularly when Jason finds "fountains of wine" there on his quest for the Golden Fleece. The wine culture is further encouraged in the 4th century AD by the spread of Christianity in Georgia by St. Nino from Cappadocia, who wore a cross made from vine stems. Being pottery experts, the Georgians mastered qvevri, clay vessels used to ferment and age wine.

My first contact with Georgian wine came through the Georgian Wine House who poured at several successive Washington D.C. Food & Wine Festivals.Then I learned that Horton Vineyards grew Rkatsiteli in their Gordonsville Virginia vineyard and that they had gotten the idea from drinking Rkatsiteli from Dr. Konstantin Frank Vinifera Wine Cellars. This ancient grape was one of the first planted to prove that vinifera grapes could survive and prosper in the Finger Lakes. I was hooked. Needing a red partner, I naturally turned to Saperavi, the most popular red Georgian wine grape that is used in popular semi-sweet to dry wines.


When asked to host #winechat, Georgian wine and their American counterparts seemed a perfect topic. Representatives from the Georgian Wine House, Horton Vineyards, Dr. Frank, Standing Stone Vineyards, and Castle Hill Cider agreed to participate.Why the last two? Standing Stone is the only grower of Saperavi in the United States and Castle Hill is the only American user of Kvevri vessels. Before the chat we sampled ten wines and used them as a reference during the conversation.

Teliani Valley Tsinandali 2010 (SRP $10). Georgian wines are usually blends and named for the region or village so Tsinandali is the appellation and the wine is composed of 80% Rkatsiteli & 20% Mtsvane. This wine is made in the Western style so fermented in stainless steel with no skin contact. The Mtsvane provides a more floral bouquet, while the  Rkatsiteli provides structure and acidity. And at the price, a great bargain.

Vinoterra Rkatsiteli 2011 (SRP $13). This wine is produced in the traditional Georgian  method where the wine is fermented and  macerated on skins for 6 months within qvevri vessels. This skin contact produces an orange coloring to the wine which many falsely think as oxidized. Not here. The wine has a somewhat spicy, apricot aroma with a mild tannic finish. Since most Georgians consume white wine this one is made to hold up to red meats - particularly lamb. Did I mention Rkatsiteli translates to Red Horn? Interesting factoid.

Dr. Konstantin Frank Vinifera Wine Cellars 2010 Rkatsiteli (SRP $15). The first Rkatsiteli produced in the United States, this wine is slightly sweeter than the previous two. It has an intriguing  grapefruit\orange aroma with a crisp acidic finish that balances the sugar. 

Horton Vineyards 2011 Rkatsiteli (SRP $15). This wine is made from estate grapes growing right in front of the winery and a full Monticello AVA wine. 2011 was a poor growing year in Virginia so this wine has more skin contact because of the condition of the fruit. It is also semi-dry at 1.8% RS and possesses a similar grapefruit\orange aroma. Very flavorful with the required acids to balance the sugar.

Teliani Valley Unfiltered Saperavi 2007 (SRP $19). Saperavi is translated as dye or black (wine) and in the glass seems as dark as Norton. This wine is from the Tsinandali sub-region of the larger Kakheti region - which is responsible for a large percentage of Georgian wine production. Like the previous Teliani Valley wine, this one is made for the Western market (fermented in stainless steel; aged 6 month in new French oak).  Here we first encountered the standard sour cherry nose representative of Saperaviand the muscular tannins. This is a big wine.

Vinoterra Saperavi 2008 (SRP $22). Moving to an even bigger wine that was decanted an hour before tasting, this wine was produced using a combination of new and traditional methods. The juice was macerated on their skins for 18 days; fermented in qvevri; then sealed for six months. At that point the wine is racked into 75% new French oak and 25% neutral oak. The result is a larger sour cherry profile on the nose and through the palette. The tannins are smoother - but the oak treatment is noticeable throughout.

Vinoterra Saperavi Selection 2009 (SRP $24). Here is a 100% traditional Georgian wine made from 50 year old vines and fermented and aged in qvevri. No oak treatment. The result (also decanted one hour ) is a surprisingly fruity and earthy wine, with lower tannins and more finesse. Seems like the oak in the 2008 may have masked the earthy characteristics of the fruit. This was my favorite Saperavi for the evening.


Standing Stone Vineyards The Dark Red (SRP $30). The only Saperavi produced in the United States, the winery first thought of this grape as a side-kick to Pinot Noir.  When they learned how cold hardy and productive it was, a single varietal wine was in the cards. This wine has the traditional sour cherry nose, but with a less tannic and more fruity profile than the Georgians. This is a party fun - easy drinking.

 Teliani Valley Kindzmarauli 2011 (SRP $15). This is a semi-sweet Saperavi made in the Kindzmarauli micro zone in Kakheti. Grown at a higher elevation this wine has great acidity and all natural sugar - coming in at 2.5% RS and 11.5% alcohol. This is an easy drinking wine and is no surprise its the top seller in their portfolio. Dark chocolate, here we come.


A very nice assortment of wines - both from the Republic of Georgia and the United States. And with affordable SRPs, there's no excuse to start your Georgian wine experience. Cheers.

#winechat - Rkatsiteli and Saperavi - from Georgia to America

#winechat will reconvene in 2013 on January 9th with a focus on the birthplace of wine-making - the Republic of Georgia - where archeologists have unearthed viticulture artifacts from 5,000 to 8,000 years old. Accompanied by the Georgian Wine House, we will discuss Kvevri terracota vessels, the popular Rkatsiteli and Saperavi grapes, and counterfeit wines. Georgian wines are available through Potomac Wines & Spirits. Rkatsiteli and Saperavi have also migrated to the United States where a handful of wineries cultivate and vinify these grapes. We hope to have representatives from Dr. Konstantin Frank Vinifera Wine Cellars (NY), Standing Stone Vineyards (NY), Horton Vineyards (VA), Tomasello Winery (NJ) and Avanguardia Wines (CA) as well as Castle Hill Cider, who utilize Georgian Kveri terracota fermenting containers in their Keswick Virginia cidery. We are looking forward to seeing everyone online on the 9th - 9PM ET on Twitter.

Update: Facebook event describing the wine is now available #WineChat talking Rkatsiteli & Saperavi

Finger Lakes Wine Country Goes Sparkling and Icy

This week we participated in a Finger Lakes Wine Country Finger Lakes Wine Virtual Tasting Series tasting on Dessert, Sparkling, & Ice Wines. We were sent samples from seven Finger Lakes wineries - specifically three sparkling wines and four dessert or ice wines.during the tasting several bloggers shared their insight on the wines via Twitter (#FLXWineVT), submitted questions to the winemakers, and watched real time as the winemakers discussed their wines. 


We started with the sparkling wines and while tasting learned that this style is a "Labor of Love" for the winemakers and also, the the Finger Lakes cooler climate allows for more intense flavors at a lower brix measurement.  We started with the Atwater Estate Vineyards 2008 Sparkling Cuvee ($30), which is a
66% Pinot Noir and 34% Chardonnay blend. The grapes ripened at the same time, which allowed them to be co-fermented after being whole clustered pressed. The winery then follows the traditional Champagne Methodoise where the the wine undergoes a secondary fermentation in the bottle with active riddling so that the lees do not settle in one area. The lees are removed during disgorging, more sugar and wine added during dosage, and then sealed with a champagne-style cork closure. The result is an impressive sparkling wines - full of green apple flavor, a strong mid-palette, and a refreshing lemon finish.

We moved next to the 100% Pinot Noir 2008 Blanc de Noir ($30) from McGregor Vineyard Winery. This wine was created because winemaker Jeff Dencenburg wanted to experiment with a 100% PN. My feelings is that the wine is just not on par, particularly when following the Atwater Cuvee. Yes this wine had a decent mouth feel, but the flavor was bland and not exciting. Many of the other bloggers disagreed, proving that no two palettes are the same.

The final sparkling wine was the Swedish Hill Winery Riesling Cuvee ($18) - a most interesting wine fermented to 3.5% R.S. and reminding many of us as a Proseco - with more flavor. The Riesling juice was tank fermented in order to retain the inherent flavor of the grape. The result is a food friendly sparkler with a strong amount of lychee on the nose and a nice balance between sugar and acidity at the tail. Nicely done.

Round two consisted of the dessert and ice wines and these were all well received. We started with the Casa Larga Vineyards 2008 Fiori Vidal Blanc Ice Wine ($45). The name translates to Flower of Stars in Italian and is what the harvest workers view in the dead of night when harvesting the frozen grapes. Yes, true German style Eiswein are produced from grapes harvested when completely frozen in the middle of night - usually in late December or early January. As expected, the volume at harvest is much lower than for grapes harvested on a normal schedule resulting in 1/4 less yield (1 ton of grapes = 160 gallons vs 1 ton of grapes = 40 gallons). The Eiswein juice is then cold fermented and the result is a slightly syrupy sweet nectar. And the beauty of using Vidal Blanc is the natural acidity and the grape balances the concentrated sugar in the wine. The is a very nice apricot flavored wine - perfectly balanced between sweetness and acidity.

The other true "Eiswein" was the Knapp Vineyards Winery 2010 Vidal Ice Wine ($25). The was my preferred dessert wine of the evening showcasing an orange aroma, followed by a full - full apricot profile, finishing with refreshing acidity.  This reminded of the famed Hungarian Tokaji wines - with a high puttonyos. And at $25 a bargain.

The last two wines were produced in an ice wine style where the grapes were harvested late and then immediately frozen in order to concentrate the sugars. The Lucas Vineyards 2010 Vidal Blanc Iced ($25) was very similar to the Knapp, without the orange aroma, but a very similar apricot flavor profile. Just a tad lighter - but a very nice wine. The Standing Stone Vineyards 2010 Gewurztraminer Ice ($25) is an excellent alternative to the Vidal, emanating a more lychee flavor profile with a spicy finish. Gewurztraminer is an interesting grape to use for an ice styled wine since its low level of acids would be difficult to balance the concentrated sugar. Yet freezing the grapes solves this problem by concentrating the acids in addition to the sugar. The result is a balanced wine.

Cheers to the Finger Lakes - there's more than just Riesling.