Wines of the Week: Atwater Vineyard

Discover an entire new region to love!

Atwater Vineyard is one of the leading wineries of the Fingerlakes region, a five-hour drive from Fairfield county. This region earned recognition on the wine map through the efforts of a German winemaker, Dr. Frank, who introduced the German and French white varietals, Riesling and Gewurztraminer with great success. The climate, although much colder in winter than in Western Germany and Alsace, suits these grapes quite well.

Atwater wines are genuine, interesting, and inexpensive. No quest here for the biggest, boldest, oakiest, sweetest wine. No cult wine either; just great people trying to make wines of character. As always in wine production, quality in the bottle is a matter of love of the land, respect of the terroir, and patience for the wines to make their way into the marketplace without the resources for advertising and marketing available to big name brands. The Atwater Vineyard wines are great; please pass the word.

The Estate white is a delicious, fresh, and clean wine, perfect as a summer day aperitif. The Riesling will be great with a salmon on the gill. The Gewurztraminer will be fantastic with a chinese take out. The Iced Wine, Celsius is something of a local celebrity. All of these wines are worth tasting; you might discover an entire new region to love. 

The Wines:

Estate Wine 2006 - $14.50 This vintage of Estate White is a divine example of the vineyard's incredible white hybrids. An "Estate Wine" can only be labeled as such if the winery has total control and influence over the entire production from growth of the grape to bottling of the finished product. The Estate White a unique blend of Vidal Blanc, Villard and Cayuga.  This clean, dry wine was fermented in stainless steel tanks, thus preserving each variety's fruity character. Most blending occurs after fermentation, and is equivalent to an artist's rendering of color on a canvas. Perfectly balanced to go with a variety of foods ranging from oysters or chicken to vegetarian delights. Purchase this wine here »

Riesling 2006 - $23.00 One of the Finger Lakes most notable varieties, Atwater Estate Vineyard's 2006 Dry Riesling is made in the "Kabinett" style of the Rheingau region of Germany; referring to wines of "superior quality".  Engagingly aromatic, this wine's unique character is a union of the vineyard's slate soils, steep slopes and mature Riesling vines.  Revealing hints of honey, fresh herbs and lime, try this vintage with seafood and bold cheeses. Purchase this wine here »

Gewurztraminer 2006 - $21.00 A devil to pronounce, but a dream to recognize!  Not only does the distinctive pink coloring of a ripe gewürztraminer crop make it one of the easiest varieties to identify, the wine produced is also the most instantly recognizable.  The wine's distinctive aroma is so strong that it earned the grape the German prefix "gewürz" or "spiced".  The Alsace region of France is one of the most highly-renowned areas for Gewürztraminer's production. Atwater Estate's 2006 Gewürztraminer is made in the Alsatian-style - low in residual sugar, with a higher alcohol content.  Its unmistakable bouquet displays notes of tangerine,  rose petals, and grapefruit.  Our Gewürztraminer vines are situated on the southwest slope of our farm to maximize solar exposure, which produces a high natural sugar content and raises the alcohol during fermentation. Purchase this wine here »

Traveling the region: 

The Fingerlakes are about a five-hour drive from Fairfield County. For more tips on travel to this region, read our article here»

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