Keuka Lake has released their 2023 passport! Each passport is good for a tasting at five member wineries as well as discounts on wine and other gift shop items. The best part is they are valid from when you purchase until December 31st, 2023! As soon as you purchase, they are available right on your device so there is no waiting and can even be purchased as you are walking into your first stop. This can easily take all the guesswork out of figuring out which wineries to visit on your special day. Pair up your passports with one of our drivers in our clean, reliable vehicles and you will have yourself an awesome, fun-filled day along the beautiful Keuka Lake Wine Trail!

With the rising cost of gasoline, we need to make some changes to our pricing structure.

If you are staying on the lake you plan to tour, the cost is as quoted.

If you are visiting wineries and breweries on one lake while being picked up on another, there will be a gasoline surcharge added to your tour cost.

The best thing to do is book your lodging reservations near the lake you wish to visit.

Thank you for understanding.

Bonnie

Students and Travelers,

We are now offering weekday airport runs from Geneva to Rochester or Syracuse.  Give us a call to reserve your space in our clean, comfortable and reliable vehicles.

Opening in 2010, Two Goats Brewing is one of the many breweries along the East shore of Seneca Lake, but it isn’t one that you will want to miss. The view is breathtaking and it is even better accompanied with their beer and Beef on Weck sandwich! They currently offer New England Style IPA, Kolsch, Cream Ale, Red Ale, Hefeweizen and everything in between, though it does rotate seasonally.

On the weekends during the months of April to October, stop by Two Goats for an extra surprise of live bands and entertainment underneath their covered entertainment stage! As with all breweries, they are very dog friendly and the staff are all as friendly as can be. All you need to do is ask your driver to add Two Goats Brewing to your tour and check it out yourself, see you soon!

Hermann J. Wiemer is becoming a staple winery among the dry wine drinkers that visit the Finger Lakes wine region. Founded in 1979, they pride themselves in hand picking and hand sorting all 80 acres of their grapes! Though they specialize in Rieslings, they also offer some red, rose, bubbly and white wine selections. While Hermann J. Wiemer is on the west side of Seneca Lake, their sister winery, Standing Stone, is on the east side of Seneca Lake. Both wineries offer a nice variety of dry red wine selections as well. If you are a dry wine drinker, make sure to schedule an appointment so that your driver can bring you to visit either winery, we would be happy to take you there!

Sheldrake Point is a little off the main road, but definitely worth the extra few minutes! Or if you prefer, you can dock your boat at one of their eight slips on Cayuga Lake and walk along their beach to the tasting room across the street. Sheldrake Point offers dry red and white wines, as well as a nice selection of ice and dessert wines. This winery is a scenic stop among Cayuga Lake wineries so you can ask your driver if they could bring you there.

Like your bubbles? Located on the West side of Cayuga Lake is Buttonwood Grove Winery, and they have five different varietals to choose from! During the warmer months, their outdoor deck is the perfect place to enjoy a glass of wine and often music. Check their website. Besides bubbly, they also offer dry varietals of red and white wine. Whether you visit for the wine, the view, or to stay in one of their cabins, Buttonwood is a winery that you should have on your Finger Lakes bucket list. We would love to take you there for a tasting!

Belhurst is a uniquely beautiful lodging and winery destination on Seneca Lake in Geneva, New York, the heart of the Finger Lakes. You may try the classic wine tasting, which offers a variety of wines to suit every palate. They also offer beer and cider tastings.

A favorite with our guests is the Wine and Cheese pairing. Here you are offered five wines and five cheeses, all local. If you are looking for a more lavish experience, they offer a Food and Wine pairing dinner. This is a six course meal with locally sourced ingredients to create unique, seasonally inspired dishes paired with Belhurst Castle wines.

Your Grapevine Country Tours driver will be more than happy to make Belhurst Castle a stop on your customized wine tour.

There is information each day on what is going to happen once we are able to do wine tours again. Here are some items that were in the New York Wine and Grape Foundation newsletter from the Democrat and Chronicle Newspaper. We will keep you posted!

You will need to wear a mask
While tasting wines would be impossible with a mask on, you will likely need to wear a mask until you get to your designated tasting area.
Group sizes will be reduced
Hold off on planning those big bachelorette parties. Wineries will likely be limiting groups to six people, but groups of twos and fours will be encouraged. “Wineries are looking at this as an opportunity to make this experience exclusive, exciting and different,”
Tasting bars will be spaced out
Standing shoulder to shoulder at tasting bars will become a thing of the past   Some wineries are considering using Plexiglas dividers between groups.
Seated tastings will replace tasting bars
Rather than chatting with tasting room staff, visitors will be given a printed tasting sheet that will not be reused. Three Brothers and Boundary Breaks are considering seated tastings.

I started this business with an interest in wine and a bit of desperation after the tragedy of September 11 when the travel industry tanked.  It wasn’t easy to start from scratch, and there were times that people tried to discourage me from taking the risk, but I forged on.  There were difficult years for sure, but the industry welcomed me and I found friends at the wineries and in the tourism community.  It wasn’t until 2017 that someone encouraged me to apply as a woman owned business.  I already considered myself one!

The paperwork was immense, but I finally succeeded!  Now I am proud to say that my daughter-in-law, Nicole, has begun to work with me in this fantastic business.  Together we are a strong force!  We have a lot of fun in all that we do.  And I am thankful for all of the support that we get from our wine tour friends.

Bonnie Osborne