The Finger Lakes region of New York State has secured its reputation for outstanding Riesling. For the third year running, the cool-climate region has produced the State's best wine.
The 2001 dry Riesling, from boutique winery Hosmer, defeated a record 497 wines in the 16th New York Wine and Food Classic, the definitive competition for State produced wines.
Riesling-based sparkling and dessert wines aside, 64
Rieslings were submitted. Of these, 12 reached the finals – dry and semi-dry.
Hosmer is an 8,400-case-a-year winery on the western shore of Cayuga Lake, about five hours’ drive northwest of
Manhattan. It’s in the heart of New York’s cool-climate lake district known as Finger Lakes. Its US$10 (€10.14) a bottle Riesling is made solely from estate-grown grapes.
Only 214 cases of the winning wine were made, of which just 60 cases remain unsold, the winery said yesterday.
In four of the last five Classic competitions, a Finger Lakes Riesling has been voted best wine. Virtually every bottle of Riesling from the region is sold locally, and producers say they can’t keep up with demand.
The 20 judges voted the 2000 Cabernet Franc from Wölffer Estate, in the affluent South Fork Hamptons region, the State’s best red wine.
Written by Howard G Goldberg in New York14 August 2002
