The Finger Lakes

Wine Country

The Seneca Lake Wine Trail

More than 35 wineries ring both shores of Seneca Lake — the highest concentration of any Finger Lake. The east shore (Route 414, running north from Watkins Glen through Burdett, Hector, and Lodi) is the most celebrated stretch, home to estate producers including Forge Cellars, Boundary Breaks, Red Newt Cellars, Wagner Vineyards, and Hazlitt 1852. The region is internationally recognized for dry Riesling, Cabernet Franc, and Gewurztraminer grown on the glacially carved hillsides above the lake.

Harvest season (September–October) is the most active time on the trail — crush events, harvest tastings, and winemaker dinners run nearly every weekend. Summer is peak visitor season; spring and winter offer quieter tastings with shorter waits.

Outdoors

On and Around the Lake

The lake itself is the primary outdoor attraction — kayaking, paddleboarding, swimming from private docks, and fishing for lake trout, landlocked salmon, and yellow perch are all accessible from the property. Eight minutes south, Watkins Glen State Park offers 19 waterfalls in 1.5 miles of carved gorge trail — one of the most dramatic natural landscapes in the eastern United States.

The Finger Lakes National Forest — the only national forest in New York State, at 16,000 acres — sits 10 minutes east of the property in Hector. The Interloken Trail provides access to lake overlooks that most visitors never find.

Dining

Eating on Seneca Lake

Watkins Glen anchors the dining scene — Seneca Harbor Station and Pier 42 serve waterfront meals overlooking the marina, while Rooster Fish Brewing and Scalehouse Brewery offer solid pub food and local craft beer. For a longer afternoon, Red Newt Bistro in Hector pairs a seasonal farm-to-table menu with serious wine. Castel Grisch Winery offers German-influenced outdoor dining overlooking the vineyard. Saturday mornings are best spent at the Windmill Farm and Craft Market in Penn Yan (30 minutes), one of the largest outdoor markets in the Northeast.

Deeper Reading

The Opinionated Winery List

Our hosts have written a detailed, opinionated guide to Seneca Lake wineries — not a directory of everyone on the trail, but a curated list of the wineries worth your actual time: the first five for a single wine day, the deeper picks for repeat visitors, and a frank note on which ones to skip. It covers Hermann J. Wiemer, Ravines, Lamoreaux Landing, Forge Cellars, Boundary Breaks, Red Newt, and more.