Finger Lakes Wine Country, New York, is home to more than 100 wineries, breweries and distilleries around Keuka, Seneca and Cayuga Lakes. In addition, many of the beverage producers are also members of their respective wine and beer trails that host weekend wine and food events throughout the year. Relax in the evening with a drink in hand while enjoying the Finger Lake music scene at one of the many local venues in the area. Less than a five-hour drive northwest of Manhattan is New York's Finger Lakes, a bucolic wine region that has yet to be fully recognized.
Local produce and meat vendors abound, as well as a wide selection of artisanal bakeries, local food vendors, wineries and cider houses. The Finger Lakes embraces its wine culture and gives everyone (well, everyone 21 and older) the opportunity to experience and learn about wine. The Finger Lakes region is also home to some of the most spectacular sparkling wine productions outside of France's Champagne region. Finger Lakes wineries attract travelers from all over the world to sample wine and sample rural hospitality.
While the Finger Lakes wineries are one of the area's top attractions, it's certainly not the only reason to visit this charming romantic getaway destination. The Catawba vineyards reached the 5,000 square mile region of Finger Lakes with the arrival in 1829 of Reverend William Bostwick in Hammondsport, at the southern end of the unusual Y-shaped Lake Keuka. Between 1860 and 1880, dozens of wineries came and went around Lake Keuka, and in 1880, when the Taylor family established what was would become the successful Taylor Wine Company, the lake had become the center of New York State's wine industry, holding that position for more than 100 years, with Catawba among the most successful grape varieties. Local wineries produce many wines, but the cold-climate grape, Riesling, has become the signature Finger Lakes varietal wine known around the world.
Boundary Breaks uses labor-intensive vineyard practices, looking for the region's major wineries to help produce small batches of Riesling from a single vineyard. Unlike California, Finger Lakes winemakers couldn't grow Vitis vinifera in harsh winters. In addition, some wineries offer excellent meals in their own restaurants and a winery operates a premium inn in their location. Riesling, one of the most important commercial wine grape varieties grown in Germany, is also one of the most successful grape varieties grown in the Finger Lakes AVA.
It has more than half of the area's wineries and is dotted with countless food options that focus on local abundance. The comfortable and luxurious suites at The Inn at Gothic Eves are the perfect place to relax and unwind after a day of wine tasting or exploring the Finger Lakes region.
