Seneca Lake
On November 14, 2019 after an unexpected coldsnap, the small post-harvest team picked the Vidal Blanc grapes that were left on the vine and bucketed them into the press by hand to make a late harvest style wine. After settling, juice was moved into used calvados barrels for fermentation and aging. Fermentation was long and slow, using indigenous yeasts and lasting about 6 months. After an additional few months of aging, the barrels were blended in August and bottled in early September of 2020.
Apple desserts like cobbler
Foie gras
Chocolate chip cookies
Fruit pies
2019 was late in terms of bloom in the spring (two weeks late on most varieties) after a cool, wet spring and both véraison and harvest were later than normal. Summer saw slightly below average temperatures which led to what would normally be a late start date for harvest (October 1) but in recent years has become the norm. Sunshine and warm temperatures arrived in September, a welcome change from conditions in 2018. Cooler nights with lower humidity, plus sunshine and some very warm days in September and early October, permitted the grapes to ripen to maturity.
Grown on the Budd Farm, and estate of Sawmill Creek Vineyards but separate from the main farm. This block was planted in 1985, and is the furthest vineyard from the lake. Vidal by its very nature is slow to ripen, therefore it is very conductive to a dessert style wine. Grown on Howard gravelly silt loam over a base of shale and limestone.
Composition
100% Vidal Blanc
Alcohol
13.3%
Harvest Brix
21.7
Total Acidity
7.4 g/L
Residual Sugar
70.8 g/L (7.8%)
pH
3.1
Cased Produced
286 (500ml bottles)
Retail Price
$25
Dietary notes
Vegan, Gluten Free
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