For quite a while, I’ve been telling anyone who will listen that the best cool-climate white wines in the U.S. come from New York’s Finger Lakes. By now, most wine lovers (at least in the northeast) are acquainted with how good Finger Lakes Riesling can be, particularly the dry Riesling from more ambitious producers such as Forge Cellars, Nathan Kendall, Bloomer Creek, Ravines, Herman Weimer, or Dr. Konstantin Frank. That’s been a solid story for at least a decade. But things in the Finger Lakes are changing. First of all, the roster of ambitious producers keeps expanding, now with younger winemakers, most of them working with minimal intervention and even natural-leaning.

“Even in just the past five years that we’ve been here, we’ve seen such an influx of young energy,” says Alex Alvarez-Perez of Usonia, one of those new-wave producers. Along with others such as Apollo’s Praise, Osmote,  Vagabond, Barbichette, Entelecheia, and Ria’s Wine, they’re pushing the region forward with different styles and techniques—as well as a focus on different grapes.

“I think the region went too hard on Riesling,” says Alvarez-Perez. “There’s too much of it.” I would amend that statement slightly to say that the Finger Lakes has gone too hard on off-dry Riesling, but Alvarez-Perez’s point is well taken. In my recent visits and tastings, some of the most exciting wines in the region are not Riesling.

Osmote’s 2023 Chardonnay, Vagabond’s 2023 Blaufränkisch, Forge Cellars’s 2023 Tango Oak Pinot Noir, and the 2023 Grüner Veltliner from Apollo’s Praise all were memorable standouts. Then there are the wines from hybrid grapes, such as Chëpíka, the popular collaboration between Nathan Kendall and Pascaline Lepeltier, made from grapes such as Catawba, Concord, and Delaware. Even the Riesling from new-wave producers—such as Entelecheia’s 2020 Sekt, a sparkling wine aged 35 months on the lees—doesn’t follow the typical Finger Lakes Riesling playbook.

In fact, what is happening right now is a growing divide between wineries with ambition and others who mostly cater to tourists, many of whom bring a sweeter tooth. Kelby Russell of Apollo’s Praise calls the current state of things “the bifurcation of the Finger Lakes,” and says that wineries now need to ask themselves: “Are we going to be a serious winery, or are we going to be a tourist winery?”

Rick Rainey at Forge Cellars puts it more bluntly: “At some point, you have to hold your neighbors to account over quality.”

The pandemic, when people could not travel abroad, became an inflection point for the Finger Lakes. That’s when a new type of wine tourist began discovering the region. “People who normally went to Europe came here,” says Russell. “People who had a very different wine sensibility.”

Yet, for me, the biggest shift in the Finger Lakes—both now and over the next decade—is the continuing evolution from a white wine to a red wine region. The star red grape is obvious: Cabernet Franc. And, given the popularity of Cabernet Franc wines from the Loire Valley, and consumer demand for more savory, drinkable, and less oaky wines, what a perfect time for Finger Lakes Cab Franc to be coming into its own.

I’ve been writing about the emergence of Finger Lakes Cabernet Franc for at least five years. I can remember, in 2019, tasting a stunning mini-vertical of Cabernet Franc dating back to 2006 with Steve Shaw of Shaw Vineyard. Even then, almost every top producer had a solid-to-very-good Cabernet Franc. Five years later, I can find more than a dozen extraordinary examples.

“Cabernet Franc feels like a nice parallel to Riesling,” says Russell, who worked for many years at Finger Lakes stalwart Red Newt before launching Apollo’s Praise. “With Cabernet Franc, you can make very different wines from different sites.” 

Underscoring the terroir-driven nature of Cabernet Franc, numerous producers are releasing multiple bottlings, with the higher-end offerings from single vineyards. Forge Cellars has three site-specific 2023 bottlings.

“For me, Cabernet Franc is the future. The texture, the aromas, the minerality. It brings you a sense of place, as well as a savory quality that goes with food,” says Léana Godard, winemaker at Forge Cellars.

In the past, an issue with the region’s Cabernet Franc was the impulse to steer away from the more herbaceous, or “greener” notes that are typical of the variety, which result from prevalent methoxypyrazine compounds. The solution in the Finger Lakes, too often, was to over-oak Cabernet Franc, rendering it indistinguishable from other reds.

Obviously, too much green character is a problem, but this fresh, savory element is something that enthusiasts of Cabernet Franc from the Loire enjoy. As I always tell Cab Franc skeptics: “black olive” and “cherry tomato”—often tasting notes in Cab Franc—are just as much fruits as plum and blackberry. These days, there’s much more appreciation for these flavors and aromas among consumers, and winemakers are less inclined to shy away from them.

This is not to say that Finger Lakes Cabernet Franc is an imitation of the Loire Valley. Not at all. As Godard, who’s worked in France, insists: “The potential for Finger Lakes Cabernet Franc is huge. It needs to be put on the wine map—but put on the map properly.” This new terroir-driven approach, which you can see emerging, feels like the way to go. 

Finger Lakes Cabernet Franc Tasting Notes

2023 Forge Cellars ‘Caywood’ Cabernet Franc ($34)

Bright, with fresh, lively acidity. Black cherry and wild raspberry on the nose, with juicy cranberry balanced by dried herbs on the palate, with an underlying dark minerality. Rambunctious now, but this one has a lot of aging potential. 

2023 Forge Cellars ‘Railroad’ Cabernet Franc ($34)

This elegant example can stand next to those from the Loire Valley. Savory green pepper and forest notes are balanced by notes of red berries and a core of dark minerality, with that Loire-like pencil shavings note on the finish.

2023 Forge Cellars ‘Willow’ Cabernet Franc ($34)

In Forge’s trio of Cabernet Francs, this one leans more “Chinon.” Nimble and lively; a  nose of black and green pepper with hints of evergreen and jalapeño, balanced by fresh plum and red fruit on the palate, and a savory, peppery finish. 

2022 Nathan K Cabernet Franc Primeur ($35)

From a single vineyard, this is a grand Cabernet Franc that’s reminiscent of Bourgueil or Saumur. It’s got it all: Rich, dense, intense, lush, velvety.

2021 Nathan K Cabernet Franc ($32)

Aged 10 months in French oak, and 25 percent whole cluster. This light pale cab franc is bright. delicate, and fresh and bursting with red fruit. Would be great—and oh-so-popular—as a chilled red.

2014 Hickory Hollow Wine Cellars Cabernet Franc ($45)

It’s rare to find such an aged Cabernet Franc in the Finger Lakes, and doubly rare to find one so good. Redolent of tomato leaf, olive, fresh cherry tomato, and so mineral-driven on the palate, with jolts of graphite and asphalt. Deep, dark, brooding, but still fresh. Incredible find from Hickory Hollow’s library.

2014 Shaw Vineyard Cabernet Franc ($35)

Steve Shaw is renowned in the Finger Lakes for long aging in both barrel and bottle, releasing vintages sometimes up to a decade behind the harvest year. He’s also been focused on reds like Cabernet Franc long before they were trendy. This one, with aromas of black pepper and blackberry, is juicy and meaty on the palate, with flavors of cherry tomato, olive, and a dark mineral finish.

2023 Apollo’s Praise ‘Nutt Road Vineyard’ Cabernet Franc ($22)

Aged in stainless steel, fresh but also deep and earthy. Notes of ripe plum and blackberry, dark minerality, and underlying meatiness. “This is meant to be a bistro red,” says winemaker Kelby Russell. I agree, as it will pair with many different dishes.

2023 Apollo’s Praise ‘Lahoma Vineyard’ Cabernet Franc ($26)

Aged 10 months in large French oak vats. Pale red, with a savory, peppery nose and flavors of black olive and fresh dark fruit on the palate, with an underlying brininess. Gorgeous Cab Franc and a great value.

2023 Usonia Cabernet Franc ($28)

Super drinkable, with a nose full of black and green pepper and rose. In the mouth, it turns even more savory and earthy, with wild berries and root vegetables and hints of graphite. A really attractive wine at a good price.

2022 Usonia ‘New Suns” Cabernet Franc ($32)

From a single vineyard, aged one year in newer barrels, this is a big-boned Cabernet Franc, with serious tannins and seriously peppery, framing juicy notes of black cherry and plum. This one has great aging potential.

2022 Barbichette ‘Tête Bêche’ Cabernet Franc ($40)

Brooklyn-based César Vega and Louisiane Remy’s natural wines from the Finger Lakes have been a hit on buzzy New York lists over the past couple of years, where they’re helping to change the image of the region. Their ruby Cabernet Franc has great energy, by turns airy and precise, with lots of juicy cherry, cranberry, black pepper, mint, and graphite. 

2022 Bloomer Creek ‘Vin D'Ete’ Cabernet Franc ($21)

Bloomer Creek is an OG natural wine producer in the Finger Lakes, including one of the first committed to a contemporary style of Cabernet Franc. Though they’ve slowed production somewhat since the pandemic, their wines are still a benchmark for the region. This unoaked, predominantly whole-cluster rendition, bright and brambly, is glou glou in the best sense.

2023 Ria’s Cabernet Franc ($25)

Ria D’Aversa and Michael Penn, who were working in Napa Valley, came to the Finger Lakes only recently. They launched this winery last year, and it’s one to watch. This wine, from 30-year-old vines, is a bigger, oakier, open rendition of Cabernet Franc, full of red fruit and a pleasant note of amaro on the finish.