Palate
Fresh and unctuous with delicate apricots, lemon oil, yellow pears, and ginger. It's luscious and refined with cherry blossom marked with toasty sweet spice.
Growing Conditions
Pinot Gris was first brought to the Finger Lakes by our founder. Our current plots on our Keuka vineyard were planted in 1997, 1999, and 2002 on 18-15 rootstocks. Vineyards on our Keuka estate are shallow, shale-based soils which adds minerality, acidity, and elegance. Pinot Gris was planted in 2012 on our Seneca estate vineyard located in Hector, New York, in the warmest mesoclimate in the Finger Lakes known as the ‘Banana Belt’. Temperatures here are a few degrees warmer than Keuka thus providing riper fruit notes. Soils on Seneca are characterized by deep honeoye silt loam.
A small portion of the grapes come from Eric Volz Vineyard, just north across the road from Dr. Konstantin Frank’s plantings on Keuka Lake. Pinot Gris was planted in 1990.This vineyard is managed by Eric Volz, current Vineyard Manager for the winery, who worked alongside his father Walter and grandfather, Dr. Konstantin Frank.
Harvest
“We began 2021 with a milder winter resulting in fewer buds damaged from the cold. This produced a larger grape crop which is allowing us to get back in stock on many of our wines. The growing season in 2021 was more typical for the region with cooler temperatures and adequate rainfall. The wines from this vintage will have crisp acidity balanced by delicate fruit flavors providing great structure. The Reds and Whites should age well as evidenced by our wine library going back to the 1962 vintage.”
-Frederick Frank
Winemaking
VINIFICATION
De-Stemmed. Direct Press.
VESSEL
Stainless Steel & 500l French Puncheons.
FERMENTATION
50% Barrel Fermented in 500l French Puncheons.
ÉLEVAGE
17% in 500l French Puncheons for 3 Months.
Food Pairing
Antipasto, Goat Cheeses, Pasta with Seafood or Shellfish, Light Seafood Dishes, White Fishes, Mussels, Citrus Salads, Grilled Pork, Sausages.
