Finger Lakes - Cayuga Lake Wine trail

Map of New York's Finger Lakes

Just a short drive from Kayuta is one of the nation's top tourist destination- the Finger Lakes. More than a hundred thousand years ago, ice sheets flowed southward from Canada gouging enormous holes in this region.  When the final glaciers receded, they left incredible gorges, waterfalls and lakes. The 11 lakes, which lay nearly parallel to each other within about a 75 miles long span roughly from Syracuse to the east and Rochester in the west and extending to Elmira-Corning in the south, appear like splayed out fingers (the imprint of the Creator's hand, per a Native American lore) leading to the name. They range in length from a mere 3 miles (Canadice) to 40 miles (Cayuga) and a depth of 30 ft (Honeoye) to 618 ft (Seneca). Although not one of the 11, Oneida Lake at the region's easternmost boundary, is sometimes considered the "thumb".

The Finger Lakes region is considered by many wine magazines as the most important wine region in the eastern United States.  The region's wine making history started with the first vineyard in 1829 and the first commercial winery in 1839.  Dozens of wineries came and went until 1880 when the highly successful Taylor Wine Company made the region the center of New York's wine industry. In the 1960's Dr. Konstantin Frank and Charles Fournier started growing European varieties which skeptics thought would not thrive in the East and produce world class wines, their success leading to the "vinefera revolution". Now with over 100 wineries spread in 7 of the 11 lakes, the region produces 90% of New York wines,  many award winners that can stand alongside California's best - Pinot Noir, Cabernet Franc, Chardonnay and Gewurztraminer and others.

Cayuga Lake's Scenic Byway Map

At the center of the region is Cayuga Lake, the longest and second deepest of the Finger lakes at 38.2 miles long and 435 feet deep at its deepest point. Reaching 53 feet below sea level, it is among the deepest lakes in North America, along with Seneca Lake (618 ft, maximum depth).  Having an altitude lower than that of the other Finger Lakes, Cayuga has the longest growing season (190 -205 days), a definite advantage for the production of vinifera varieties.  There are 26 wineries along the lake of which 16 are members of the  Cayuga Lake Wine Trail, the first organized (1983) and longest running wine trail in the United States, which also include 1 cidery, 1 meadery and 4 distilleries.

And so, we chose to visit Cayuga Lake, not just for their wineries but for the other attractions which will be covered at another time.

 Several companies offer tours to the wineries.  We decided to do it on our own so we can choose where we go.  At the Goose Watch Winery, we first enjoyed a picnic lunch on their grounds overlooking scenic Cayuga Lake. Then for a fee of $3, my husband got to taste 6 different wines.  Being the designated driver, I could only watch and occasionally take a little sip. 

 











Some places like our next stop, the Cayuga Ridge Estate Winery offer winery tours, but we wanted to do some more sightseeing so we just did the wine tasting.  We had planned to hit at least 4 wineries but after tasting 12 wines, my husband has had enough alcohol for the day.  Although spitting is allowed, he did not want to waste any of the good wine he was tasting.

Having jotted down the names of the wines we would pick up on our way home the next day, we ended our very short wine tour hoping to come back another time for more.