Growing up in Liverpool, NY, just outside Syracuse, I didn’t realize how spoiled I was…
Long before Wine Enthusiast crowned the Finger Lakes as the best wine region in the U.S., it was just where we went to celebrate birthdays, graduations, and random Friday afternoons.
Sitting on a deck, glass in hand, watching the sun slip behind rolling vineyards…that was the sense of quiet ceremony that always felt world-class.
What started during my (legal) Ithaca College years in the area around 2018, wine touring after that was practically a rite of passage.
A few hours in any direction could land you in a tasting room where Riesling wasn’t just “white wine,” but electric, textured, and alive.
Now that the region has over 140 wineries, more than 10,000 acres under vine, and national recognition for its bold innovation, I can say with confidence: the Finger Lakes didn’t just make wine—they made my 20s.
Six Mile Creek Vineyard — My Ithaca College escape
A few minutes from campus, Six Mile Creek feels like a secret you stumble into, even if everyone else knows about it.
I’d sneak up after class with my friends, order a tasting flight that slid effortlessly from semi-dry whites and reds into house-made grape spirits, and haul our glasses onto the deck overlooking a small pond and rolling hills.
On winter afternoons, when snow piled outside, we’d huddle inside the farmhouse-style tasting room, sipping local Riesling instead of braving a campus bar — and on graduation day, my family and I even headed here for a celebratory toast.
It was here I first learned the difference between “just wine” and wine you could actually geek out over.
Dr. Konstantin Frank Winery — The original Finger Lakes flex
If Six Mile Creek taught me casual appreciation, Doc Frank taught me reverence.
From the porch, rows of vines spill toward Keuka Lake like a green carpet, and the weight of history is impossible to ignore.
This is where European vinifera grapes survived cold New York winters, igniting the Vinifera Revolution that defines the region today.
I remember standing there, tasting a dry Riesling that felt electric, and realizing this wasn’t just any old “upstate wine”—this was world-class, sit-back-and-appreciate wine.
Guided tastings often veer off-menu for curious tasters, and for good reason: these bottles have stories that demand to be told. And we of course had to it each time, it felt like a ritual.
Three Brothers Wineries & Estates — The wine theme park I dragged friends to
And if Dr. Frank is the scholar, Three Brothers is the life of the party.
The estate is a sprawling playground: three wineries, a brewery, a café, all walkable with a tasting passport in hand.
Sparkling at one bar, slushies at the next, cider somewhere in between—we’d spend the whole day hopping around, laughing too loud, and leaving with everything from six-packs of beer to bottles of Riesling.
We’d always go the last week of the spring semester and even after graduating, its chaotic fun, made for a country-best experience, I agree.
Hermann J. Wiemer Vineyard — The quiet Riesling temple
Wiemer is a study in precision and walking through the tasting room, you hear staff speak about individual vineyard blocks like they’re characters in a novel.
Their Dry Rieslings capture the region’s terroir in a single glass: lime, slate, a hint of lake breeze.
It’s serene, serious, and endlessly satisfying, something that I remember being difficult to replicate.
I’d come here when I wanted to slow down, reset, and remember that wine isn’t just a drink—it’s a story of climate, soil, and craft distilled into liquid form.
Fox Run Vineyards — Lakeside food-and-wine hangout
Fox Run is where I finally learned to linger. A spot I’d always bring out of town friends and family and brag that I’m the coolest tour guide ever.
The converted dairy barn houses a bright tasting room, and their Food & Wine Experience pairs seven dishes with seven wines, including dessert.
Sitting at a picnic table overlooking Seneca Lake, glass in hand, the world quiets down—everyone slows, everyone tastes, everyone notices.
To this day I’ll never forget my first glass of their offering,The Tierce, a collaborative dry Riesling which literally tastes like Finger Lakes community distilled into a bottle.
Living Roots Wine & Co — Finger Lakes meets Australia
Rochester gets a nod here, too. Especially with loads of my high school friends going to college and moving there after, it’s worth a shout.
Living Roots, a warehouse-style urban winery, merges Finger Lakes and Adelaide Hills wines under one roof and it lowkey makes me want to screaming Oy Oy Oy.
Here my friends and I would often sip vintages, debate Riesling versus Australian whites, and share snacks in the candle-lit space. Oooooo….the good ‘ol days.
Apparently they’ve also since opened up a Finger Lakes winery in 2023, one I haven’t yet been to — but it’s on my itinerary next time I head back Upstate.
- Honorable Mentions: Ravines Wine Cellars, Wagner Vineyards Estate Winery, Lamoreaux Landing.
Growing up in the Finger Lakes the wine world now calls American Wine Region of the Year, I didn’t know I was witnessing something extraordinary.
Back then, it really was just Saturday afternoons, friends piled into a car, and a bottle uncorked, as a young 20-something.
Now, Wine Enthusiast, the state of New York, and every visitor who passes through know: the Finger Lakes isn’t just underrated—it’s the real deal.
And these six spots? They’re where I’d send any friend from NYC to understand why.