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Finger Lakes

Wine & Cheese Trails

 

tours-map-finger-lakes

(2 Days)

DAY 1

Start your tour along the Cayuga Lake Scenic Byway. Take Rte 90 into King Ferry and try two unique cheese makers: Keeley's Cheese Company (for their signature cheese, Across The Pond, which is a semi-soft washed rind cheese, made from raw milk, aged for a minimum of two months), and then Finger Lakes Dexter Creamery (for handcrafted artisanal, farmstead raw milk kefir cheese from their pastured Irish Dexter cows). 

Get back on Route 90 and head up the Cayuga Lake into the charming village of Aurora for a stop at Bet the Farm Winery & Gourmet Market. Aside from the selection of Finger Lakes wines, there are several regional foods available at this charming storefront on Main Street. Be sure to try the hummus! Next stop, drive North on 90 to Heart & Hands Winery, in Union Springs, and be sure to try their Pinot Noir. 

Continue up Rte 90 to the top of Cayuga Lake and hop on Rtes 5 & 20 West to drive by Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge. You might want to swing in for a quick nature walk to make room for your next taste-testing stops! If not be sure to note the osprey nests on the on the huge high-tension towers across from the park entrance. Continue to the intersection of Rtes 5 & 20 and Rte 89 for a stop at Montezuma Winery & Hidden Marsh Distillery and try their variety of fruit wines and liqueurs. 

Next, come down the other side of the Cayuga Lake Scenic Byway on Route 89 and head down to Eleven Lakes Winery just outside of Seneca Falls in the village of Canoga. Try their signature wines, from the dry Long Lake Reserve Cabernet Franc to the fun, semi-sweet party wine, Moonglorious, and you'll get a little Finger Lakes history with each tasting.

By now you'll probably be exhausted, so head back up Rte 89 and into Seneca Falls. Here you can sit down to a fabulous, regional dinner at The Kitchen at the The Gould where you may also want to book a room. Other places to stay in Seneca Falls include the Barrister's Bed & Breakfast and Van Cleef Homestead.

DAY 2

Grapesin the Fingerlakes Region.Start your day at Muranda Cheese Co. In their beautiful tasting room on Rte 96 in Waterloo, Muranda offers a variety of wonderful cheddar-based cheeses and sells little snack packs too, so stock up for the day! Continue down 96 and take a right on Rte 336, then north on Rte 96A until you see signs for Three Brothers Wineries and Estates on Lerch Road in Geneva. This is the theme park of wineries with three wineries and one microbrewery, all on one estate! After making the rounds there, continue across Lerch Road until you reach East Lake Road. You'll see Zugibe Vineyards off to your left, a must stop for their Pinot Noir and Gewürztraminer. Enjoy a tasting out on their deck overlooking Seneca Lake. 

Then head back out onto Rte 96A South until it becomes Rte 414 where you'll come across Cowlick Farm & Micro-Creamery. You'll recognize it by the miniature ponies in the fields. From there, continue down 414 where you'll come across a cluster of Seneca Lake Wine Trail Wineries including Lamoreaux Landing Wine Cellars lakeside for their Chardonnay and quaint King's Garden Vineyards on your right. Then head down to Wagner Vineyards, Brewery & Ginny Lee Café on the lake side for a beer or wine tasting and lunch. Continuing down 414, try Standing Stone Vineyards for their Iced wines. Finish your day with a tasting and an amazing regional dinner at Red Newt Cellars Winery and Bistro in Hector. Spend the night on the Lake at Watkins Glen Harbor Hotel.

APPROXIMATE MILEAGE: 120 miles

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