New York: A Weekend in Wine Country (Part 1)

Just a four-hour-drive from New York City (four hours from Toronto, five hours from Pittsburgh and six hours from Boston) sits the “World’s Most Beautiful Wine Region” according to Budget Travel readers, a “Top Ten Value Destination for 2011” according to Sherman’s Travel, and a “perfect weekend getaway for NYC peeps who want to escape the craziness of the city, eat great food and drink, drink, drink delicious wine in a beautiful setting” according to Traveling IQ.

I’ve always liked wine.  In college, my roommate Josh and I kept a box of Franzia “pink wine” (as we called it) in the fridge because we thought it made us fancy.  And at the time it did.  Our college friends were very impressed; we were the kind of household that could offer wine with any meal.  That’s just how we rolled.  Out of orange juice?  Try a glass of Sunset Blush with your omelet.  As stated on their website, the “delicate pink hue with strawberry flavors” was always “easy to drink and very refreshing.”  Good morning.

I’d like to think I’ve evolved a bit since then; though in case of emergency a box of pink wine would probably do just fine.   Eager for a better understanding of wine and winemaking, and in need of a brief pause from the pace of city life, my boyfriend, Matt, and I packed our thirst into a rental car, and headed to the Finger Lakes Wine Country.

New York State is the country’s second largest producer of wine, after California.  And the area south of Lake Ontario—surrounding Lakes Cayuga, Seneca, Keuka and Canandaigua—creates a welcoming 9,000-acre home for the vineyards, wineries and tasting rooms that comprise the Finger Lakes Wine Country.  Though a producer of a wide variety of wines, Riesling is by far the region’s most popular, with almost every winery producing at least one Riesling brand.

Thirsty yet?  Revisit Traveling IQ tomorrow and join us on our tasting tour.