Now that we’ve arrived at high summer and the temperatures in much of the country are soaring past records, the time has come to rethink summer activities. Don’t get me wrong - swimming, grilling, hiking, beach volleyball, these are all great, but unfortunately they all typically require one to be out in the sun, and often pair that with a not insignificant amount of physical exertion. Well when its 95º in the shade, I’m afraid that simply won’t cut it.
The finger lakes has a lot of vineyards and wineries (144 as of eight years ago, definitely many more now), and some of them are actually fairly well known, but to me, the real gems are the smaller producers making interesting wines with impeccable attention to detail and an eye toward the future. On the wine tour my wife and I went on recently, these are the types of places we focused on. Read on for a brief synopsis of the three wineries we visited (and one cider house! The cider in the finger lakes is also superlative), but mostly pictures because they are more fun and immersive.
The finger lakes wineries are, for the most part, situated on the hills facing three lakes in the area: Keuka, Seneca, and Cayuga. Interestingly Seneca lake and Cayuga lake are recognized as separate AVAs situated within the larger finger lakes AVA. With the exception of the Finger Lakes Cider House, all the places we visited are around Seneca lake.
The Finger Lakes Cider House is a working farm in addition to a cidery. They offer stunning views, delicious snacks and sandwiches, and delicious ciders made with impressive craftsmanship. These aren’t like the spiced sugar bombs you can find on grocery store shelves. These ciders share more in common with the dry, acidic, and funky offerings you can find in the UK, France and Spain. They drink more like wines and have deep, rich, complex flavor profiles.
They also have a cute garden through which you can stroll, and sample some of the wine grapes. If you come in the right time of year you might also hear the intermittent firing of their sound cannons to ward off birds that would otherwise make a snack of their harvest.
If you, like me, love having a fun time with good friends, and spending time outside (or outside adjacent), but hate the feeling of your body instantly becoming slick with sweat upon setting foot in the sun, then maybe you should think about giving a wine tour with some friends a shot during these dog days. And if you want to brush up on your wine knowledge before you set off then check out our upcoming Wine and Cheese Pairing class (tonight with just 2 spots left!) or our War and Wine class (a personal favorite of mine) on Friday, August 26 at 6pm. Cheers!