Glenora Wine Cellars is one of the finest wineries in New York's Finger Lakes region. The winery is located overlooking the lake, and the view here is nothing short of spectacular.

The "tour" of the winery is pretty weak: it is little more than a short film which describes the wine-making process. While it is certainly nice to be able to see the actual process which goes into making the wines, the film they show here is not much better than what you might see on a PBS special. Ideally, when you visit a winery, you want to be able to tour the facility in person. (It is possible to actually go through the facility at Glenora; you have to join the Coopers' Guild. You purchase a barrel ($650) and, in addition to many other freebies, you are allowed to
visit your barrel in the winery.)

The tasting room / shop is the main attraction at Glenora. The room is fairly large, with displays of Glenora's products for you to peruse. The room is very comfortable to spend some time in, with nicely done wood trim and a pleasant color scheme. The east wall of the room is filled with giant windows, which look out over the panoramic view of Seneca Lake.

An especially good time to go (or to visit the Finger Lakes region in general) is during the autumn, when the leaves are changing colors. During the summer, you can enjoy a picnic out on the lawn overlooking the lake (and the vines) or enjoy a meal at the winery's gourmet restaurant any time of year. (There's also a related Inn, supposedly very nice, just next door, although I've never stayed there myself.) A small stage out on the lawn allows them to host small concerts and events here over the summer.

Glenora's wines are among the best in the Finger Lakes region. They bottle a wide variety of table and sparkling wines, and bottle sparkling wines for some of the surrounding wineries, as well. (The Blanc de Blancs is one of my favourites, and no particularly expensive, either.) In addition, they "import" grapes from Long Island, N.Y. in order to expand the variety of wines which they can provide. This breadth insures that whatever the occasion, whatever your tastes, Glenora has a bottle of wine that's just right for you.

The staff here are especially nice and helpful. They seem to have some crossover of staff from the tasting room to the restaurant, which means that while many of the staff and salespeople here have food and beverage service experience, but generally don't work in the wine production process. That means that they might have trouble really explaining why wines made from Long Island grapes should taste different than wines made with Finger Lake grapes, but they'll certainly be able to recommend a bottle of wine that will go well with your dinner tonight.



Recommended: Yes