What About the Rieslings?

By Randy Agness
How does this one question have so many answers? Why does it gain the interest for so many people? It’s all about Riesling in the Finger Lakes, but the answer really depends on the point of view. The Riesling grape is probably the most versatile of the vinifena wine varietals as it can be produced in a range from bone dry to ice wine. “The grape can be picked early in the season with high acid and low Brix or left on the vine to dehydrate concentrating the sugars”, state Paul Brock of Silver Thread. So why is “Brix” important to the Finger Lakes wineries? As grapes mature, the natural acidity in the grapes converts to an increasing sugar level. “In winemaking, the alcohol concentration of a finished wine can be estimated by multiplying the “Brix” by 0.55, so 21 Brix (sugar concentration) translate to roughly 11.5 % potential alcohol by volume,” explained Elizabeth Leidenfrost – Winemaker Leidenfrost Vineyards.
Knowing when, the exact date of harvest for Riesling varies dramatically around the Finger Lakes. As the most appealing characteristic enhancing the wine’s refreshing, crisp qualities, the acidity of the grapes enabling wines to be complementarily paired with a vast variety of foods.
Winemaker Steve Shaw of Shaw Vineyard will holds out longer before hand picking the Riesling. He’s in the vineyard daily to sample grapes in different rows around the fruiting zone and different locations on the cluster to find the perfect taste balance. “I know that grapes right now will produce a very nice wine, but I’m willing to lose a ½ ton per acre to gain an even higher taste.” Other vineyards have made the decision to bring in the crop now.
“After the first frost, the vines begin to shutdown and hibernate for the long winter, so the Riesling grapes were picked right where expected to be in terms of Acidity and “Brix”, commented Red Tail Ridge Co-owner Michael Schnelle (Vineyard Manager),”our Riesling vines suffered from the brutal winter so the bunch sizes are smaller and more secondary clusters.” A few weeks ago, the rows of stainless steel tanks all across the region waited patiently, and as predicted everything became ready and all at the same time.
“I have been working eighteen hour days in order to transform a massive volume of grapes into wine juice”, explained Red Tail Ridge Co-owner Nancy Irelan (Winemaker) “the tanks are filling up fast and it’s time to do my work.”
This has been one of the more difficult weather years for the Finger Lakes vineyards. “Winemaker’s skills will be challenged with the 2014 harvest,” explained Brock “as during Veraison, (in July and August) the days were colder and wetter than over the past few years which delayed sugar development in the grapes, only a period of warmth and sunshine in September provided the opportunity for full maturity.” With micro-climate difference around the Finger Lakes, the flavors of the Riesling wine produced will also vary more than in the previous two years. “With location of our vineyards so close to the southeastern shores of Seneca Lake, the grapevines were somehow completely spared,” commented Leidenfrost. The one constant is that the yields among the Finger Lake vineyards will be lower as much as 25% off and significantly less than the bumper crop of 2013.
Tom Prejean – Prejean Winery stated, “Ultimately, the flavor of the Riesling grapes is the key to a successful vintage. Yes, the yields are off, but the energy of the vines has been focused on fewer and smaller clusters.”
So the low yields may end up as a positive? “Only if the winemaker understands how to manage Rieslings with a wide range of properties,” cited Steve Shaw. In 2012 and 2013, the wine grapes produced in the Finger Lakes were more forgiving with a ideal mid-range of properties, whereas the higher acidity means the winemakers will have to go to the toolbox to find the right solution to produce an excellent Dry Riesling for this vintage,” reminded Brock. At Anthony Road, the last of the Riesling were harvested on this past Saturday. The press pad was full of bins waiting their turn in-line to be lift and twisted, then dropped passing through the crusher/de-stemmer and onto pressing. Peter Martini, owner of Anthony Road commented, “Once the degrees Brix began to rise and flavor profile met our requirements, the picking started.”
During the change of season to the wonderful autumn colors, by the thousands, visitors to the Finger Lakes venture up and down the wine trails flocking to sample, to discover their new favorite wines. The get-away drive alone remains a truly great experience. But to the small army picking the ripened vineyard harvest, those loading the bins on trucks and winery workers in anticipation, the workdays are very long, yet there are no complaints as it’s a good tire feeling – a sense of accomplishment and pride.
Good Harvest – the next vintage has officially started, the excitement as fresh wine juice begins to pour out of the grape skins is occurring in the Finger Lakes almost simultaneously just as it has happened over many decades.