I wrote in the opening sentence of my 2022 Finger Lakes blog that “The Finger Lakes is a region I can continually return to.” Well, 2 years later, I was back for my 3^rd trip.

For this trip, I was the ‘tour guide’ to a group of 4 friends, none of whom had visited the area. The entire trip was 5 days, including a travel day of travel to get there, 3 full ‘winery days’, and departing the morning of the 5^th day. We ended up visiting places on Days #1 and #5 as well.

To give my group their best bang-for-your-buck, I created an itinerary that mixed-in what I considered the Finger Lakes ‘greatest hits’ and added a few places that I hadn’t been to before. A total of 16 locations were visited.

Day 1: Keuka Lake

Living Roots Finger Lakes: Since this was our travel day, we only had time to visit Living Roots on our way to our Air B&B. This was someplace I’d wanted to visit, plus it didn’t close until 6 PM.

Living Roots easily had one of the prettiest tasting rooms of the trip, with a fantastic view of Keuka Lake. It also had more of modernistic aesthetic, as opposed to the rustic barns that most other wineries had.

They also had the greatest meet-cute story I heard on the entire trip. The owners had this parcel of land overlooking Keuka but no long-term plans on what to do with it. While their daughter was in Australia she met up with a local guy, fell in love, and they eventually got married.

The property turned out to be a great place for vines. They turned it into a winery, with their new son-in-law as their winemaker. They also import some wine from Australia, a nod to his heritage.

The wines were uniformly good, with my favorite was their pet-nat riesling. I sat back to enjoy gazing at the lake with a glass of it, plus got a bottle to go.

Day 2: South-West Seneca/Keuka

Stop #1: Herman J Wiemer

As one of the Finger Lake’s most famous wineries, Herman J shouldn’t require any explanation. It was one of my favorite wineries during my previous trip, and I wanted my group to likewise enjoy a visit.

Reservations are definitely recommended, but not necessarily required. Since we didn’t have reservations we sat in their open-aired barn with a space heater. It was OK for the early fall but not something I’d want on a cool day.

Herman J’s tastings are actually self-guided flights where you pick the wine and they are served in mini flight bottles. Since we had a large group this turned out to be a good deal, as we were able to pick out a bunch of wines and share them.

My favorites were the Magdalena Cabernet Franc and Magdalena Riesling. The former had all the traditional cab franc notes, with nice fruit and earthiness. The riesling was smooth, lemony, and had a great mouthfeel.

We also tried their Grüner, Reserve Riesling, Dry Riesling, Semi-Dry Riesling, and an Extra Brut sparkling.

Stop #2: Kemmeter Wines

One of the few stops I absolutely insisted on. Owner/winemaker Johannes Rienhardt did a great lineup against a backdrop of classical German music. One of the top visits of the entire trip.

Visits to Kemmeter aren’t just about wine tastings; they are about education. Johannes even will avoid tasting notes during a tasting because he doesn’t want to bias your opinion what to expect. Johannes also told us he was planning to start using cork for his wines in the future, since they preserved his wine more effectively.

He also took us through an impromptu comparison of two rosés; one of which had been opened for 24 hours and another he just opened. The consensus was most people enjoyed the one that had been opened longer, because the oxidation brought out a different flavor profile.

We tasted 4 wines; a rosé (0.2% sugar but didn’t taste like it), his “2014 Vines” riesling (more on the savory side), his “2016 vines” (off dry, more fruit-forward), and a pinot blanc (amazing color, felt even drier than it was because of its thickness). The cab franc and blau will likely be non-vintage blends, so he can get the best fruit from each year.

Turns out he’s also planting zweigelt, cab franc, and blaufränkisch in the future, and he was long sold-out of his limited pinot noir. I left with a bottle of rosé and one of the rieslings.

Make sure to order the Sans dumplings in advance!

Stop #3: Weis Vineyards

Weis was another high-priority stop. The winery was really busy, but we waited on the balcony until we were able to get a spot in the tasting room. Reservations definitely recommended!

We tried six wines, but my favorite were the very full and lush “Special K” and their Terroir Riesling “Limestone”. I also liked their 2023 Perele sparkling, which for $22 was a great buy.

Stops 4 and 5: Keuka Lake Vineyard and Dr Frank

Not a lot of notes here. I insisted on a stop to Keuka Lake Vineyard because I really wanted their vignoles pet-nat and their 2021 Riesling. Extra Points for being dog friendly.

By the time we made it to Dr Frank, it was too late to do a tasting so we just got a glass.

Dinner: Glenora Wine Cellars/Veraisons

A little on the expensive side but it was our 2^nd night in town, so we decided to treat ourselves.

The Aurora Borealis also showed up this evening!

Day 3/Saturday: Eastern Seneca and West Cayuga

We started with a morning hike at Watkins Glen State Park, which is a must-visit for anyone. You can go as far as you want, or make it a short trip. An hour was good enough for us.

Stop #1: Boundary Breaks

This was easily one of the prettiest visits of the trip, since it had a great view of the lake. It helped they had a food truck that served lobster rolls, which we dined on while drinking sparkling and lounging on Adirondack chairs with a view of the lake. 55 acres of vines planted.

No one wine spoke to me, but we enjoyed several. They had a Bordeaux blend that was on the softer side and a dry gewürztraminer that I liked.

But the highlight were their three sparklings, with the “356” dry sparkling riesling being my favorite.

Stop #2: Forge Cellars

This was easily one of the top 3 visits of the trip, with a strong argument for the #1 spot for overall quality of wine. Definitely had the best reisling selection of the trip.

The main tasting room was being used for harvest, but we still were able to hang out at the ‘salon’. While it’s not on the lake, the views still impressed. Loved the laid-back vibe.

The assortment of vineyard-specific options here is impressive. There are too many to taste on your own, so bring friends to share! On top of that they also do a lot of club-only wines, a few of which I was fortunate to sample.

My favorites:

1. Willow Riesling: At first I thought it had some tropical notes, but those faded fast
2. Caywood Chardonnay: Herbal notes; just ok
3. Tango Oaks Riesling: Very fruit driven, citrusy. Bought a bottle
4. Breakneak Riesling: Salty and minerally; really good. I think this was a club bottle but snagged a taste. Bought a bottle.
5. Liedenfrost Pinot: On the young side, lots of red fruit
6. Tout Nu: A red wine brought in from the Rhône. Notes of graphite and earth, with a long finish.

Stop #3: Standing Stone Vineyards

We originally tried visiting here before Forge but it was so busy we had to get a later reservation. Fortunately our table was ready for us when we were done with Forge.

Julian was our server, and the dude was awesome. He gave us a great deal of education, including bringing out refractometer and some grapes in the later stages of noble rot. Julian also explained how Herman J now owns the winery, purchased in large part because their vineyard is on a warmer spot that is especially good for reds.

We kicked things off with sparkling, including a sparkling rosés and a Blanc de blanc made in the traditional-style. The later was excellent; with the lees giving it some weight.

For reds, we tried a cab franc and their saparavi. The later had great color; earthy but soft. The chardonnay was OK.

We also had a few dessert wines. Nice late harvest; like a lighter Sauternes. We also enjoyed a very rich port-style.

The favorite here was the Timeline Riesling. Very complex and weighty.

Stop #4: Silver Thread Winery

A smaller winery that we tried since it was close by. 10 acres planted but they purchase more fruit. They make 3000 cases/year.

I liked the vibe a lot. They really lean into sustainability, and their owner/winemaker was our server.

My favorite was their Blanc de Blanc riesling, that I got a bottle of to enjoy that evening. I also thought their estate riesling was good.

Day 4/Sunday: NE Cayuga and NW Seneca

Stop #1 Hearts and Hands Wine Company

Another highlight of the trip, so much so I wrote a separate blog about them rather than make them one of many entries in this trip report. One of my Top 3 visits of the entire trip, top place for service, and had the best blanc to blanc out of 16 places visited.

The quick version is since they are on east side of Cayuga, Heart and Hand is less crowded. The downside is a visit needs to be planned out, since they are further away.

Heart and Hands Wine Company

The name “Hearts and Hands” is a reference to a Claddagh ring, which is an Irish symbol of love. Co-owner Susan Higgins did our tasting, and was kind enough to open a little early since we were trying to make the most of our day.

What makes H&H’s growing location so great is their vineyard is on a limestone slab, which gives them somewhat different growing conditions. They make lots of sparkling, including a blanc de blanc which was one of the best wines of my trip.

That said, picking a favorite of ANYTHING was tough since everything was exceptional. My crew took maybe 2 cases worth of wine. I suspect this visit resulted in the single biggest haul of the trip.

Stop #2: Quarry Ridge Winery

Quarry Ridge wasn’t on our original itinerary, but since it was next to Heart & Hands we figured it was worth a shot.

It’s a shame that we visited when it was pouring rain, because the tasting room had a fantastic view of Cayuga Lake. On a nicer day, I’d have happily stayed longer on one of the Adirondack chairs and just enjoy the scenery. It helped that the tasting room was stunning as well.

Owner Gary Cuthbert saw my group come in and he came over to say ‘hi’ and tell us about his property. Turns out, the name was inspired by the limestone soil the vineyard is planted on, just like nearby H&H. Such soil is somewhat of a rarity in the Finger Lakes and is great for making high-quality fruit. They have 28 acres of vines are planted.

Several flights were available, but since we had a big group we were able to order all of them and share. All told, we shared samples of 9 wines.

I thought their dry Riesling was good, and the 2022 “11S” Pinot was nicely balanced and fruit-forward. But I thought the real standout was his cask Riesling, which was very dry yet ‘full’, with notes of mango.

Stop #3 Ravines Wine Cellars (Barracks Road)

This place was busy! We had to wait for a table to open up but eventually got one. Reservations are definitely recommended. Even so, those tables were pretty small for the number of people they are supposed to accommodate.

I thought their 17 Brut had a great brioche nose, and their ‘regular’ Riesling was really good. Kudos also to the Maximilian red blend and the very earthy Cab Franc.

The tastings and food were not cheap, but wine was good. Reservations definitely recommended.

Stop #4: Fox Run Vineyards

Too tired for notes at this point!

Day 5: Red Tail Ridge Winery

I had wanted to visit here earlier, but timing didn’t allow. Fortunately I was able to convince my driver to swing by on the way home. Red Tail does reservations, but this early it was unnecessary.

Kristin Evans did our tasting and gave us a lot of great info in a short time. I’d say Red Tail had the widest and best overall selection of sparkling of the entire trip, although the dry wines were both good and interesting. We also got to meet their winemaker, Nancy Irelan.

A number of flights were available, including one of ‘Innovative’ wines. I leaned into the sparkling options. Fortunately, with multiple members of my group available, we were able to get a wide selection and share.

Many in my group put this visit in their Top 3 of the 5-day/16 winery trip. Personally, I say they were tied for #3, maybe just below Forge and Heart & Hands, but tied with Kemmeter.

1. 2019 Sekt (Traditional Method): Very nice, bright; orange notes
2. “Perpetual Change” NV Sparkling (Traditional Method): Interesting, but in a great way
3. 2019 Blanc de Blanc (Traditional Method): Bought a bottle home! Lots of brioche notes
4. 2018 Blanc de Noir (Traditional Method): Tarter, also had lots of brioche.
5. 2021 Miscreant. An interesting gewürztraminer blend/orange wine
6. 2018 Sparkling Rosés’: Fruity and refreshing
7. Riesling Pet-Nat: Pineapple notes; not lee-sy at all.
8. Pinot Noir Pet-Nat: Juicy
9. 2023 Pinot Noir: Young
10. 2020 Langrine: Lots of depth and tannin

Next time I’ll have to try Once Finger wine bar, and revisit Heron Hill.