A view of Cornell Universities campus
Photo courtesy of Cornell University
Let us toast Cornell University
As wine's popularity in the Finger Lakes region and around the world has
surged, Cornell University has been providing valuable research-based
technology and education to the Finger Lakes wineries over the past 30
years. Cornell researchers have been able to provide valuable insight into
what cultivars can be grown, how grapes should be managed to achieve
desired flavor maturity, and how consistent wine quality can be achieved.
With this type of partnership, New York State (NYS) wines have seen
tremendous growth in both local and international stature.
In continuing to fuel the growth for the NYS wineries Cornell University
has recently expanded their importance in the local and regional wine
community by offering world-renowned viticulture (grape growing) and
enology (wine making) degrees. Until recently, such world-class programs
were offered mainly on the western coast of the United States. This has
directly benefited the vintners of regions such as Napa and Sonoma who had
direct access to these graduates who were specifically trained for the
California region. With Cornell's expanded programs, the playing-field has
become much more leveled. Fred Frank, owner of Dr. Konstantin Frank wine
cellars says, "These programs will supply the future leaders in the wine
industry for the eastern seaboard and will continue to fuel expanded
growth for our wineries." It is only natural that in the near future our
regions wineries will reap the benefits with increased quality, brand
recognition, and reputation within the wine industry.
Valvin Muscat Grape
Photo courtesy of bunchgrape.com
With many factors affecting the process of grape growing and wine making,
it is vital to produce grapes that are able to withstand the local
micro-climate and are able to achieve the desired flavor maturity in that
particular region. That is exactly why Cornell University has been
researching and developing "new" grape varietals for our wineries to
produce. By linking plant physiology with flavor chemistry and grape
genomics, researchers have helped the wineries produce very high quality,
internationally competitive wines.
Having used many of the grapes developed by Cornell University, Swedish
Hill Winery on Cayuga Lake has seen much success from these wines. As Dave
Peterson, General Manager of Swedish Hill pointed out, "These grapes are
very well adapted to growing in our region and are the creme of the crop
for producing superior wines." This fact is very evident by the accolades
and medals won by their winery in utilizing these varietals. In addition,
Cornell's grape varietals have allowed Swedish Hill to either expand their
product offering or to replace varietals less adapted to growing in this
region.
It has become quite apparent how critically important Cornell University
has become to all of the wineries in the NYS region. When we first started
developing this article, we were really unaware of how far reaching and
meaningful Cornell's research and degree programs were to us as wine
drinkers. Their work and efforts have helped make our wines more
flavorful, tasteful and much more recognized for their superior qualities.
Here's a toast to Cornell!
Some Interesting NYS Wine Facts:
*NYS is currently the third largest wine producing state in the country,
trailing only Washington and California. There are eight distinct wine
regions in New York State, with over 200 wineries.
*Roughly 4 million visitors tour NYS wineries every year, generating a $6
billion economic stimulus.
*It is estimated that 36,000 people are employed in the grape, wine and
related industries.
*Cornell's grape breeding program has developed and released several wine
grapes that have been made exclusively for our temperate climate. For the
white varietals: Cayuga, Chardonel, Traminette, and Valvin Muscat, and for
the red varietals: Corot Noir and Noiret.
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