TERROIR OF THE FINGER LAKES REGION OF NEW YORK STATE

Wine making in the Finger Lakes dates back to 1829 and the region contains the first winery in the United States, US Bonded Winery #1, now called Great Western. The Finger Lakes was granted American Viticulture Area (AVA) status in 1987, encompasses roughly 940,000 hectares (2.3 million acres), and is named for the 11 Finger Lakes (Conesus, Hemlock, Canadice, Honeoye, Canandaigua, Keuka, Seneca, Cayuga, Owasco, Skaneateles, and Otisco Lakes, from west to east).

The lakes not only give the Finger Lakes AVA its name but also play an important role in the region's climate. The mean temperature of much of central New York is too low for vinifera wine production with several areas below 1000 growing-degree days (°C). Most of the vineyards in the Finger Lakes AVA are located close to the lakes, particularly the deeper ones such as Seneca Lake, because of their moderating effect on temperature and precipitation, known informally as the "lake effect." The effect is twofold, causing warmer minimum temperatures (~3°C warmer) in winter and cooler maximum temperatures (~2°C cooler) in summer.

The rocks exposed in the Finger Lakes region are dominantly Late Devonian clastic lithologies including gray to black shale, mudstone, and siltstone with several thin but widespread clay-rich limestone beds. The Valley Heads Moraine (~14.4-14.9 ka 14 C yr BP) dams each Finger Lake at its southern margin. The modern Finger Lakes formed as a result of the combination of glacial scoring and the action of high-pressure sub-glacial meltwater. In Seneca Lake, the depth to bedrock is up to 306 m below sea level.

Paleodeltas formed at higher lake levels and are now present as hanging deltas exposed on hillsides adjacent to the modern lakes. Paleodeltas have a different grain size distribution than adjacent glacial till and thus cause dramatic changes in vineyard soil characteristics with locally sharp boundaries. The proglacial clay distal fringes of these deltas can cause problems with vineyard drainage. Highest quality grapes appear to be associated with substrates that limit nutrients and moisture so as to avoid excessive vine vigor. The coarse-grained and consequently well-drained proximal parts of fluvial paleodeltas appear to be particularly amenable to controlling vine vigor in combination with controlled application of supplemental irrigation.