Introduction to New York Viticulture I
Tim Martinson

The Finger Lakes and New York wine industry is and always has been diverse. We grow more kinds of grapes derived from a broader range of germplasm in our 10,000 acres than is found in all of California, and possibly any other grape growing region in the world. These grapes make their way into a bewildering array of wines - from dry to sweet, foxy to delicate, bulk wines to premium wines. Why are there so many kinds, and how did they get here?

The answer lies in the region's history. The wine industry has existed since the 1850s, and has reinvented itself several times as prohibition became law, new varieties were introduced, and consumer tastes in wine changed.

The result is that today we have at least 42 different wine grape varieties grown in the Finger Lakes. These represent three major classes of grapes: Native American or Labrusca-type grapes, grown since the 1830s; Interspecific hybrids, including 'French Hybrids' which made their debut in the early 1950s and locally produced hybrid varieties by the mid '60s; and Vitis vinifera classic wine varieties starting in the late '50s.

Whether Native, Hybrid or V. vinifera, the curious fact is that all of these grapes depend on germplasm (genetic material) from both Europe and North America. None of the 'Native American' cultivars existed before European colonists brought V. vinifera grapes over to try to grow them here. European V. vinifera cultivars, on the other hand, are nearly totally dependent upon rootstocks derived from wild American species of grapes.

Today I'll describe the origin of these different types of grapes and the decision making that went into getting them here (or inventing them).

Climate and Grape Phylloxera.

Two overriding factors have influenced decisions about what to grow in the Finger Lakes and in the rest of the Northeast.

The first factor is our climate. Our winters are cold, and grapevines are sensitive to winter injury. Although our summer climate is comparable to that of grape-growing regions in Europe, our winters are much colder. The lakes - and their moderating influence on climate - are a major factor in the Finger Lakes' success as a grape growing region. These large (Lake Ontario) and smaller (Finger Lakes) bodies of water that never freeze buffer extremes in temperature, preventing winter injury and spring/fall frosts that plague other cool-climate areas.

The other major determinant was a small aphid-like insect called Grape Phylloxera, Daktulosphaira vitifoliae, which feeds on roots and kills V. vinifera vines. This insect (along with diseases powdery mildew and downy mildew) was responsible for two centuries of failed experiments in growing V. vinifera in eastern North America.

Early Grape Growing Experiments.

European immigrants were familiar with V. vinifera and were pleased to find several native Vitis species growing wild here. They were anxious to produce wine for export, and tried vinifying grapes from native species. Many did not like the unfamiliar 'foxy' flavor. Consequently, settlers (including Thomas Jefferson) attempted repeatedly to bring in V. vinifera from Europe and grow them here. The vines would grow well for a few years, then inexplicably (to them) die.

A side effect of these experiments, however, was the emergence in the early 1800s of many Native American cultivars - many of which appeared spontaneously around this time. Although no one knows for sure, it is reasonable to assume that many of the new varieties resulted from chance hybridization between native Vitis species and the V. vinifera grapes that settlers tried to grow in Virginia, Long Island, and other locations.

Perfect flowers vs. Male and Female grapevines.

One reason to suppose that the flush of Native varieties that appeared were actually hybrids of American Vitis (Mostly V. Labrusca) and V. vinifera is that cultivated vines have perfect flowers with functional stamens and pistils/ovaries, while wild vines invariably have either male (staminate) or female (pistillate) flowers. The cultivated V. vinifera parent, by this line of reasoning, would have conferred the 'perfect flower' trait to the Native/Hybrid offspring. If you are growing grapes, having all grapevines produce fruit (rather than 1/2 male vines) would be an enormous advantage, and also a rare event in nature.

Native Varieties.

The Native Labrusca type grapes that emerged around this time became the foundation for the NY wine industry that emerged on Keuka Lake in the 1850s. Isabella and Catawba were the first varieties planted in the 1830s, and soon became the basis for a thriving table grape industry - it was the main supplier of table grapes to NY city. These varieties, along with Delaware, Concord (1850s) and later Niagara (1868) were the basis for the wine industry that emerged in the 1860s. These Labrusca type varieties are cold-hardy and less susceptible to diseases than other wine varieties. The Finger Lakes became America's center for sparkling wine production. Labrusca varieties were well-suited for this task, because of their naturally high acid levels and the fact that most were made with higher levels of residual sugars - which masked the 'foxy' flavors to some extent. Still wines, fortified wines, and sherries were also produced, and the Finger Lakes was producing 10 million gallons of wine by 1900.

Prohibition crippled the wine industry, and a few producers survived by selling unfermented grapes to home winemakers. Taylor's Wine Company re-invented itself as Taylor's Juice Company. Prohibition was repealed in the 1930s, but the industry didn't really recover until after World War II.

Hybrids.

The large wineries in the Finger Lakes and Canada were looking for new varieties after the war. They wanted to produce drier wines to expand their product lines and compete with California jug wines. This was particularly important for the Canadians, who couldn't import grapes or bulk wines from outside Ontario. They found the solution in French Hybrid varieties.

French Hybrids, or 'hybrid direct producers', were one response to the phylloxera crisis in France. Several private grape breeders crossed V. vinifera varieties with Native American Vitis spp. Their goal was to combine the wine qualities preferred in Europe with phylloxera resistance from the American species. They were successful, and by the 1950s one third of France's grapes were 'French Hybrids'.

Many of these varieties (most denoted by numbers) were imported into the US by a newspaper editor from Baltimore named Phillip Wagner. His idea was simple: These varieties, though bred for phylloxera resistance, might also be more cold-hardy than their V. vinifera parents, and thus might be suitably adapted to Eastern production areas. They would also allow wine producers in the Northeast to make dry red table wines, which they had not previously been able to do.

About 15 to 20 of these hybrid varieties were planted in the Finger Lakes, and 3000 acres were in production by the early 70s. The major wine companies viewed wines made from these varieties as 'blenders' they could use to produce the fruity, semisweet jug wines that were selling so well in those days. The idea was that their winemakers would be able to blend several flavors to come up with a consistent product year after year. They weren't looking to produce varietal wines. The most widely planted whites were Aurore - a very early white variety, harvested in August, and Seyval blanc (Seyve-Villard 5376), a higher quality white variety. The two most common reds were Baco noir (Baco #1) and Dechaunac. Many of the numbered hybrids were named by the New York Wine Grape Growers Association.

Cornell's breeding program also produced hybrid wine varieties. The first of these, Cayuga White, was released in the 70s, and the first commercial wines became available in 1977. Since its early release, this variety has become a favorite of Finger Lakes winemakers, known for its versatility both as a varietal and as a blending wine. It is also a grape that growers love, because it is disease resistant, consistently produces 6 to 8 tons per acre, and sells at a good price ($450 to 600/ton). Cayuga White is the offspring of Seyval blanc and 'Schuyler' - one of whose parents was 'Zinfandel'. A more recent introduction is Traminette, the offspring of GewŸrztraminer and a numbered French hybrid. It produces a distinctive spicy wine with a floral aroma similar to its parent, but is easier to grow than GewŸrztraminer (more cold-hardy and disease resistant). Three numbered red varieties are currently being released and planted in the Finger Lakes.

Vitis vinifera

At the same time hybrids were being introduced, new efforts were made to grow V. vinifera varieties. The effort was championed by two immigrants - Konstantin Frank, from Ukraine, and Charles Fournier, president of Gold Seal, who started his career in Champagne, France.

The obstacles they had to overcome were cold winters that killed vines, the greater disease susceptibility of V. vinifera cultivars, and the short growing season on Keuka Lake. More importantly, they had to overcome great skepticism in the industry after three centuries of failed attempts to grow V. vinifera here.

Their solutions were careful rootstock evaluation, choice of earlier varieties from Champagne, Burgundy, Germany, and Russia, burying the canes in winter, and new fungicides that became available. Finally, the produced wines, thumbing their noses at the researchers from Geneva who said it couldn't be done. The first wines were released by Gold Seal in 1960, to great success and acclaim. It would take another 30 years for V. vinifera wines to enter the mainstream of Finger Lakes viticulture.

Of the varieties they produced, White Riesling has become the signature wine of the Finger Lakes, whose quality is comparable to classic German wines of the Mosel and Rheingau. Chardonnay also became a success, because of its relative cold hardiness and early harvest. It is still the most widely planted V. vinifera cultivar in the Finger Lakes. Pinot noir was less successful, due to its extreme sensitivity to botrytis bunch rot. This characteristic meant that growers often had to harvest it long before it was ripe, or risk losing it to rot. More recently, Cabernet Franc has had significant plantings in the Finger Lakes. Many wineries are producing a dry, Bordeaux style red wine with it.

Structural Changes in the Industry

Following great success and expansion in the '60s and '70s, the wine industry went through hard times in the 1980s. Major wineries consolidated, then went out of business. Of the five major wineries in existence in the late '70s, only Canandaigua Wine Company remained by 1991. It is still the major market for many of the wine grapes grown in the Finger Lakes.

Growers, after planting grapes in the 70s, found themselves with no market in the 80s. Prices plummeted and grape acreage shrank by one third from 1985 to 1990. Some of the growers started wineries following passage of the Farm Winery Act in 1977 - principally as a means of marketing the grapes they produced.

The industry has seen a revival in the 1990s, but with a major structural change in markets for grapes. The industry has shifted from reliance on a few large producers like Canandaigua to a more diversified mix of bulk wine production and small wineries, now numbering over 70 in the Finger Lakes. Wines, once marketed nationally through distributors, are increasingly sold regionally or locally in tasting rooms. The business is increasingly driven by tourism.

Through the 90s, small wineries have seen their sales grow by 10 to 20 percent a year, and many attract 60 to 80,000 visitors a year.

Back in the old days, winemaking was a mysterious process done by a few experts somewhere in the dim recesses of the Taylor facility in Hammondsport. While many started out fermenting their wine in blue plastic barrels (with variable results), most have steadily upgraded their skills and production facilities as they have grown.

Wineries in the Finger Lakes still produce an eclectic blend of wines made from Native American, Hybrid, and V. vinifera grapes. While some see this bewildering diversity as a problem for our reputation in the larger world of wine, I see it as a great strength that allows wineries to offer customers a wide range of products for differing tastes and pocketbooks. With an abundance of good wine available from all over the world, I admit that this strategy is most effective when you sell most of your production retail at your own tasting room. Widening the market for Finger Lakes wines beyond the 100 mile radius from which most tourists visit is the next challenge for the small winery segment.

A generation ago, grape growers in the Finger Lakes were content to grow their grapes and haul them down to Hammondsport every year for an exceptionally good price. Now, many of these same growers have been transformed into winemakers and winery owners. They have become the true innovators and are leading the reinvention of the Finger Lakes wine industry.