Niagara Landing Wine Cellars has been making 100% New York State wine in Lockport since 1998, tucked beneath the Niagara Escarpment among vineyards dating to the late 1800s. The Smith family has cultivated those vines for three generations, while winemaker Domenic Carisetti—at Niagara Landing since 2005—brings decades of commercial winemaking experience to the cellar. The winery’s distinctive Rosebud line offers lighter, fruitier wines, alongside a range that runs from very dry to very sweet and includes its unusual hot pepper wine.
Ventosa VineyardsOpened in 2005 by Lenny and Meg Cecere, Ventosa Vineyards makes 100% estate-grown, produced, and bottled wines from its vineyard overlooking Seneca Lake. The Cecere family’s Italian winemaking roots reach back to Lenny’s grandfather, while the Geneva winery carries that heritage into older-vintage, dry, Old World-style reds and the uncommon New York planting of Tocai Friulano. Alongside its hand-painted Tuscan tasting room, Ventosa operates Café Toscana and a destination wedding venue on the estate.GENEVA, NY
Wagner Vineyards Estate WineryFounded by Bill Wagner in 1979 as the first winery on Seneca Lake’s eastern shore, Wagner Vineyards Estate Winery makes 100% estate-grown Finger Lakes wines in Lodi, New York. Five generations of Wagner grape growers now tend 250 acres and produce about 50,000 cases annually, with the estate especially recognized for its Rieslings, from dry styles through ice wine. The family-owned winery also combines tastings and lake views with an on-site brewery and the Ginny Lee Cafe.LODI, NY
Johnson Estate WineryFounded in 1961 on a century-old fruit farm, Johnson Estate Winery makes estate-grown wines along Lake Erie in Westfield, New York. New York’s oldest continuously operating estate winery remains family-owned across four generations, with 115 acres of vineyards and a historic tasting room housed in a former 1920 apple cold-storage building. Its roots run especially deep in the region’s French-American hybrids and heritage grapes, while its traditional ice wines have been produced since 1995.WESTFIELD, NY
Long Cliff Vineyard & Winery, IncLong Cliff Vineyard & Winery makes estate-grown wines from a 5.5-acre vineyard on New York’s Niagara Escarpment. Established in 2011 as part of the three-generation DeMaison family farm, the winery remains farmer-first, with grapes cultivated on land the family has worked for nearly 50 years. Its tasting room also hosts vineyard tours and a monthly book club, giving the Sanborn farm a distinctly neighborly feel.SANBORN, NY