Upstate New York In The Fall

(AP Photo)

Would somebody do me a favor and head to Geneva, New York to bug my old friend, Derek Wilber? He's the winemaker at the new White Springs Winery, and right about now he'll be tearing his hair out trying to get all of the grapes picked and crushed for this year's vintage. But I'm sure he'll stop what he's doing and say hello if you tell him that you were sent by the Guru.

It's a great time to visit upstate New York. Actually, it's a great time to visit practically any part of the country that has a winemaking industry. There's something magical about those full, ripe, bunches of grapes hanging from vines on terraced hillsides. In the case of New York state, the hillsides all face one of the Finger Lakes – Seneca, Keuka, Canandaigua, Cayuga – and it's lovely to drive down country roads with vineyards in the foreground and the lakes in the distance. It's one of the prettiest parts of the country, and you have about eight weeks, starting now, to enjoy it before it turns to sleet and ice.

It's also lovely to stop at the wineries, purchase a bottle or six of Riesling or cabernet franc or any of the dozens of other varietals that guys like Derek blend and bottle, and then sit down at a picnic table somewhere and drink them. Designate one of your kids to be the driver in order to be safe about it. Stop by my old friend Jim Long's bookstore in Penn Yan, NY and say hello for me, pick some ripe apples off the trees, and find some cream in a bucket and churn it into cheese. It's wine-making season, and the possibilities are endless.

[la_lefty]

You can''t beat a white hot and a glass of Lake Niagara, ok, maybe not at the same time!

[travelguru1-2009]

Yeah, the wines are seldom sensational, but they''re for the most drinkable and inexpensive. Lots of bottles out there for under ten bucks. The rieslings seem to do the best in wine tastings, but I''ve always found rieslings to be too sweet. Just drove through there the other day and the leaves are starting to turn and it was gorgeous.

[carolmarieth]

I may not share your enthusiasm for New York State wine -- sure, some of the bottlings are good, but for the same money you could do better with wines from other regions -- but you''re absolutely right about the beauty of this area. Not to mention the need to see it before the roads ice up. Red, yellow and orange foliage? It was invented here.

[carolmarieth]

I may not share your enthusiasm for New York State wine -- sure, some of the bottlings are good, but for the same money you could do better with wines from other regions -- but you''re absolutely right about the beauty of this area. Not to mention the need to see it before the roads ice up. Red, yellow and orange foliage? It was invented here.

[pinetopslim]

Holy jumpin'' catfish!! Penn Yan, NY!! I''ve picked grapes in Penn Yan, NY on beautiful Keuka Lake. It''s still lovely there, especially in the fall as the leaves change color. Check it out!