Bad weather didn't ruin NY's grape harvest after all

A snowy Finger Lakes grape harvest (Rochester D&C photo)

• From the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle 

The persistent drought and heat of the summer made for a worrisome growing season for Finger Lakes area grape growers, but in the end, wine drinkers will likely enjoy some delicious wines made from 2016 grapes.

Now that nearly all of the grapes have been harvested, crushed and pressed, most winemakers are excited about what they have fermenting in barrels and tanks. During the summer and fall, most of New York experienced the state’s worst drought since the U.S. Drought Monitor began weekly reporting in January 2000. In addition, it was the second-warmest season since Cornell started keeping records in the 1970s ... .

In the end, the harvest varied significantly from place to place. "What happens on one site can be very different from what happens on another site," said Chris Gerling, extension association for enology at Cornell University. Each winery was impacted by whether the area had a well-timed, pop-up thunderstorm and whether the soil in that area retained moisture. Other factors included how the site had been managed, and any accumulated effects from the previous years' weather.

Go here for the full story and a video of late harvesting in the snow.

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