We spent our last day visiting three wineries on Keuka Lake—one unknown, one celebrated, and one disappointment. Keuka boasts the smallest wine trail, with just eight wineries spread across a very narrow, but pristine, lake.  Since we wanted to get home by bedtime, we limited our visit to Ravines Wine Cellars, McGregor Vineyard and Winery, and Dr. Konstantin Frank Wines.

We’ll dispense with our first stop right away. McGregor was the disappointment. People rave about the Black Russian Red and the civilized tasting room, where you lounge at lakefront picnic tables and the wine comes to you. While the tasting does indeed get a big thumbs up, our notes tell a different story: “harsh”; “kind of bland”; and “I don’t like this,” for the Black Russian Red.  The setting was so lovely, the staff so knowledgeable, and the complimentary snacks so tasty we wanted to love McGregor. And then we tasted Thistle Blush.  Success! A semi-sweet blend of Rosette and a touch of Ives (huh?) it oozed strawberry jam: fresh, fruity, clean, and not too sweet.  Relieved, we bought a bottle and left happy.

Moving on to the unknown Ravines, we found a winery where the quality of the wines matched the classic beauty of the tasting room. Winemaker Morten Hallgren is a French transplant whose family owned Domaine de Castel Roubine in Provence.  Before opening Ravines in 2003, Hallgren was chief winemaker for Dr. Konstantin Frank Wines.
                                                                                                                                                                                           
Greeted by Hallgren’s brother-in-law in the cool, modern tasting room we were told—almost apologetically—that Ravines specialized in dry wines in the European style. When we told him that’s why we were there, he grinned, explaining that many Finger Lakes visitors prefer the local sweet stuff.  We began with a vertical tasting of three Rieslings, moved steadily through the whites (pausing to admire the 07 Chard and dismiss the 07 Sauvignon Blanc) and lingered over several reds, particularly the Pinot and a classic Bordeaux Meritage.  The last pour was the best—the 07 Cabernet Franc, not yet released but sneak-peaked for VinoDuo. We bought:

•  2006 Meritage – Big, bold fruit and just the right amount of pepper and spice; probably should cellar a year or so
• 2007 Cabernet Franc – Spicy nose, cherry flavors and some white pepper

We went to the celebrated Dr. Frank’s fully expecting to hate it.  It was the most established, well-known winery in the region with a list of nearly 2 dozen wines for tasting. Visitors can’t simply walk into the tasting room; there’s literally a rope line where you wait to be let in. They say it’s so every tasting can be personalized, but it’s very off-putting. And then there’s the cult of personality around Dr. Frank. Every other word out of the staff’s mouth was “Dr. Frank did this, Dr. Frank did that, and then Dr. Frank blahblahblah.”  It reminded Lisa of the Coppola worship at his Napa vineyard.

                                

But you know, we wound up liking Dr. Frank’s. Not any of the value-priced Salmon Run plonk but the premier label and the Chateau Frank Champagne were quite good and reasonably priced.  Add in the drop-dead gorgeous view of the lake and this is one tasting experience you shouldn't miss. We walked out with half a case:

• 2007 Dr. Frank Chardonnay —Crisp citrus aroma; lime flavors too; little butter some oak
• 2007 Dr. Frank Dry Riesling — Floral and citrus nose; delicious spicy pear and grapefruit flavors
• Chateau Frank Celebre — An outstanding sparkling Riesling; apple and spice and a hint of honey sweetness
• 2002 Chateau Frank Blanc de Noirs –-Elegant and delicious

And so after five days of tromping around this lovely rural paradise, we packed up our four cases of Finger Lakes wine, left behind the endless cornfields and two-lane country roads, and roared onto the New York Thruway towards home.