Wine Country
50 Years Later…
Finger Lakes Vinifera Thrives
By Rochelle Bilow
A
half-century ago, the established wine world largely
viewed the Finger Lakes as
a tag-a-long kid sister: certainly present, but not talented enough to add
anything worthwhile to the conversation. Ask anyone in the wine industry
now and they’ll concede that the kid
sister is blossoming into a vibrant personality all her own.
Mention the words “Finger Lakes
vinifera,” and the name Dr. Konstantin
Frank won’t be far behind. The Keuka
Lake winery has been gaining fame for
its collection of exclusively Europe-
36 FOOD TRAVELER | SUMMER 2013
an species of grapes since 1962 – the
words Riesling and Gewürztraminer
also quickly come to mind – and as it
rounds out 50 years in the business,
the surrounding region is feeling more
than a little reflective and nostalgic.
Much homage has been paid to Dr.
Frank, the winery’s original owner,
who didn’t just want to create worldclass wine. He aimed to pave the way
for all Finger Lakes wineries cultivating European grapes into wine with a
distinctly New York style.
It might seem now that vinifera
is favored in the Finger Lakes, with
vines spreading over just about every
gently rolling hill in the region. But
in the early 1950s, when Konstantin
Frank arrived with a Ph.D. in viticulture and a fervent belief that vinifera
could succeed here, European grapes
were all but unheard of. They were
considered by established growers
as impossible to deal with and unfit
for the chilly winters. Dr. Frank knew
better, and began planting dozens of
varietals. Some never made it into
commercial bottling, but a handful
thrived just as well as they do in their
native soils.
By now it’s no secret that Riesling
has become the poster child for the
best of wh Bf