Eminence Road 'No, really, it's dry." Gewürztraminer Finger Lakes 2023

We've gushed a lot about Andrew and Jennifer from Eminence Road Farm Winery over the years because they keep producing wines of quality and intrigue that don't burn the wallet. Not only that, but their wines lend credence to the overall rising quality of New York State wines. Based in a converted cow barn in the mountain valley of Long Eddy, NY, on the western edge of the Catskills, Eminence Road is, in a way, a Finger Lakes winery. All of their wines are made from sustainably grown Finger Lakes grapes, fermented with native yeast, and bottled by hand, unfined and unfiltered with the only addition being a minimal amount of sulfur for stability. This dry gewürztraminer comes from fruit harvested from the Leidenfrost Vineyards on the steep, west-facing slope of Seneca Lake. Eminence Road usually only produces gewürztraminer as a sparkling wine but 2023 was such an exceptional vintage they decided to vinify it as a still wine. Grapes were crushed, destemmed, and macerated for 48 hours, then the pressed, settled juice was fermented in stainless steel, including full malolactic fermentation, before being racked off its lees and bottled without fining or filtration. Aromas of orange blossom, lychee, and rose petal open the show before a dry (did we mention it was dry?) palate unfurls layers of citrus and chalk. Sustainably grown, vegan.