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The Cayuga Lake Wine Trail

We had a lovely Saturday this past week tasting wines along the west side of Cayuga Lake. Our tour, organized by Christine's high school friend Lisa, was a part of a promotional weekend that included hors d'ouevres at each stop and a chance to win prizes (I ended up taking home a free bottle of Riesling.).

We also had the benefit of a small tour bus, so no need to worry about designated drivers and so on. Still, I did the best I could to taste only the wines I was interested in and dumping my surplus wine. Judging from the 5PM wooziness of some of my companions, this strategy really paid off.

Here are some notes and recollections from the eight wineries we visited:

Six Mile Creek Vineyard

Pleasant, laid-back atmosphere, knowledgeable staff and a decent Pinot Noir and Reserve Chardonnay. A good start to the day.

Americana Vineyards

I had been here before on a wine tour about nine years ago and was not looking forward to this stop, but I was pleasantly surprised. They've definitely raised the quality of their wines and seem to be putting more of their energy into the vinifera varietals than I remember. Plus, Max the dog was a cutey-pie.

Lucas Vineyards

Our least favorite stop. I don't think anyone on the bus bought anything here. They had only five or six different wines to sample and the sommeliers (really, they were just wine-pourers...) were less than enthusiastic about it.

Sheldrake Point Vineyard

A friendly, pleasant stop. They make a fine Pinot Gris and a Cabernet Franc that Kari especially liked.

Cayuga Ridge Estate Winery

Another good stop where we enjoyed the Reserve Chancellor, a French grape with its own unique character.

Thirsty Owl Wine Company

At this stop, right next door to Cayuga Ridge, we tasted perhaps the best red blend of the day, Lot 99.

Goose Watch Winery

This winery had a kind of split personality. Upstairs, the wine-pourers were terse and unfriendly, describing the wines as if reading from a script. However, downstairs we enjoyed the company of an enthusiastic and knowledgeable sommelier. He was honest enough to point out that the Cabernet Sauvignon was good, but only if you forget how good the California Cabs can be. He also introduced another new grape to us, Lemberger, which flourishes in the cooler climates of Alsace, Oregon, and New York.

Knapp Vineyards

It may be because it was our last stop and everything tasted good by this time, but this was still our favorite winery of the day. We enjoyed a wide variety of wines including a port, grappa, and a grappa/lemon liqueur that would make a delicious mixer for margaritas or martinis.

Overall, the winter seems to have been especially kind to the red varietals of the 2001 and 2002 vintages. The Pinot Noirs and Cabernet Francs were consistently good, although still not on par with anything coming out of California or Chile. As usual, the Rieslings (especially the Dry Rieslings) are world-class and the Chardonnays are gaining ground on other regions. The Finger Lakes wine growers are beginning to get the hang of oaking their wines, something that was apparent in many of the reserve wines that we tasted.

Oh, and if you're ever in Ithaca and you're looking for a fun bar-and-grill kind of place with a great menu, you couldn't do much better than the BoatYard Grill.