New York Wine & Grape Foundation

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Author: New York Wine & Grape Foundation

The mission of the New York Wine & Grape Foundation is to promote the world-class image of New York grapes and wines from our diverse regions to responsibly benefit farmers, producers and consumers through innovative marketing, research, communication, and advocacy.

NYWGF Issues RFP for a Domestic Marketing Consultant

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE  Contact: Valerie Venezia-RossPhone: 1 (518) 229-3765Email: valerieross@nywgf.org December 6th, 2023 – Penn Yan, NY — The New York Wine & Grape Foundation is now seeking proposals for a consultant […]

Legends of the Chautauqua-Erie Grape Belt

NEWS RELEASE, November 28, 2023Contact:  Doug DeCroix, WNY Heritage, ddecroix@wnyheritage.orgPhil Baideme, Grape Discovery Center, pbaideme@roadrunner.com John Thomas Slater, grapebelthistory@aol.com Three Achievements in the Chautauqua-Erie Grape Belt: “Celebrate the past and look […]

2024 Unity Award Nominations Process Announced

unity awards presented by the new york wine and grape foundation

Awardees Honored at B.E.V. NY Conference, Donations Made on Winners’ Behalf to New York Nonprofits NYWGF is pleased to provide our community with the opportunity to recognize the champions among […]

A Holiday Roundup Featuring New York Wines

Wine Pairing Suggestions for Holidays and Every Day! With a world of choices for your holiday (and every day) table, why would someone choose a New York State wine over […]

August is Finger Lakes Wine Month!

finger lakes wine month logo

The Finger Lakes Wine Alliance, in partnership with the Wine Trails of Keuka, Seneca and Cayuga Lakes, Finger Lakes Wine Country, and the New York Wine and Grape Foundation, invite […]

Billsboro Winery Celebrates 15th Anniversary

Billsboro Winery is celebrating its 15th anniversary under the ownership of Kim and Vinny Aliperti. The Aliperti’s purchased the property in 2007 from Bob and Jennifer Pool, who founded Billsboro […]

Fox Run Vineyards Welcomes New Head Winemaker

craig hosbach

Fox Run Vineyards, one of the most prominent wineries in the Finger Lakes, has announced the appointment of Craig Hosbach as its new head winemaker effective September 1. Hosbach, 44, […]

Lakewood Vineyards Releases Sidekick Session Spritz

Just in time for summer Lakewood Vineyards is releasing its first-ever session wine, Sidekick. Taking a page out of the session beer playbook, easy-drinking session wines have been gaining popularity […]

New York Wine & Grape Foundation Unity Awards Announced, Winners to be Honored at B.E.V. NY Conference

John Martini

The New York Wine & Grape Foundation (NYWGF) is pleased to announce the winners of the prestigious 2022 Unity Awards. The Unity Awards were created in 1990 as a way for the community to recognize, encourage, and celebrate cooperation among grape growers, wineries, researchers, retailers, and others to advance the entire industry.  Honoring the longstanding and bold spirit of our community members and their numerous achievements, NYWGF is proud to continue the 30-year tradition of celebrating industry leaders and champions. 

VineBalance 2022: Version 2 Released

The NYWGF is pleased to announce the release of Version 2 of VineBalance 2022 as the latest edition of New York’s statewide code of sustainable winegrowing. “I am humbled by […]

NYWGF Releases Revised Global Messaging RFP

The New York Wine & Grape Foundation would like to thank those who showed interest in this important project! In response to the myriad of questions and proposals that were […]

New York Wine & Grape Foundation Partners with Crush Wine Experiences on B.E.V. NY Conference and New York Wine Classic Awards Events

crush wine exp logo

The New York Wine & Grape Foundation (NYWGF) is pleased to announce a new partnership with Crush Wine Experiences to elevate the B.E.V. NY Conference and New York Wine Classic Awards Ceremony in 2022. To accomplish its mission and meet industry need, NYWGF leads important educational and promotional events each year. Scheduled to take place from March 29th, 2022, through March 31st, 2022, B.E.V. NY is the annual grape and wine conference presented by NYWGF, Cornell’s Finger Lakes Grape Program and the Enology Extension Laboratory. B.E.V. NY will be a hybrid event, with March 29th being held in-person (Rochester, NY) and virtually, and the subsequent days being held virtually. 

New York Wine & Grape Foundation issues RFP for 2022 Grape and Wine Research

For 35 years, NYWGF has annually distributed funds to projects that provide the New York State wine and grape industry with short-term solutions and long-term strategic directions. Click here to explore previously funded projects.

The Research Committee of the Board of Directors now welcomes new proposals for 2022. Proposals will be due by January 24th, 2022.

VineBalance 2022 Virtual Workshop Series Announced

Join Chris Serra, a leading expert in sustainable winegrowing certification, as we workshop a selection of new objectives introduced in the VineBalance 2022 update. Growers are invited to practice scoring their […]

NYWGF Sustainability Program Offers Soil Health Scholarships

hands holding dirt

The NYWGF Sustainability Program is pleased to offer scholarships to the Advanced Soil Health Virtual Certificate Course offered by the Cornell University Soil Health Program. This online course will take place December 4th – 11th from 8am to 11:30am and will include live sessions with soil health experts on December […]

JamesSuckling.com Publishes Review of New York Wines

James Suckling

Penn Yan, NY, September 21st, 2021 – Over 30 wineries participating in the New York Wine & Grape Foundation (NYWGF) International Export Program were invited to submit wines for review by JamesSuckling.com last Spring. JamesSuckling.com is […]

NYWGF Issues RFP for Comprehensive New York Wine Course & Reference Guide Update

New York wines are now worldwide. They are increasingly available in the international markets of Canada, Europe, and Asia and information about the wines, and our grower community, is frequently sought after by global trade, media, and consumers wanting to learn more about our exciting, up-and-coming region. NYWGF is seeking a consultant to complete a comprehensive technical review and update of the guide, provide copy editing for tone and voice and, finally, core educational modules to serve global trade and consumer audiences.

The Triple Bottom Line of Vineyard Sustainability

picture of red grapes on the vine

How do we measure the sustainability of the New York wine and grape industry? In sustainable agriculture, performance is measured using the “triple bottom line” framework. In addition to financial […]

The Atlantic Seaboard Wine Association Announces 2021 Competition Winners

The Atlantic Seaboard Wine Association (ASWA) held its 16th annual wine competition on August 14 and 15 at the Marriott Tysons Corner, VA. This year’s Best of Show wine, Fox Run Vineyards 2019 Reserve Riesling, was selected from thirty Best of Category Winners. ASWA’s Wine Competition is the largest in the nation, focused exclusively on East Coast wines. This year our judges evaluated 484 diverse wines made in the eastern US.

The newest winery on Cayuga Lake, Six Eighty Cellars, now open!

Six Eighty Cellars, the newest winery on Cayuga Lake, has recently opened at 3050 Swick Road, Ovid.  The owners of nearby Buttonwood Grove Winery, Melissa and Dave Pittard of Skaneateles, were seeking to purchase additional vineyard acreage when the former Toro Run Winery became available for sale.  Attracted by the well maintained vines and wide array of classic grapes, as well as its proximity to their other facilities, they seized the opportunity to establish a second brand.

Future VineBalance Updates to Address Biodiversity and Social Equity

The first layer of this analysis evaluates the broader categories of sustainability addressed by each program to identify what all programs have in common, where VineBalance exceeds other programs, and where it falls short in addressing certain priorities. The categories of sustainability that all three programs share are soil health, water conservation, and pest management. One area where VineBalance goes deeper that other programs is pesticide management. For example, VineBalance includes questions about the security of pesticide storage, certified applicator supervision, and the recyclability of pesticide containers. Key areas where VineBalance falls short include management strategies for biodiversity and worker health and safety.

NYWGF Announces Sustainability Program Mission Statement and Objectives

photo of grape vine climbing against background of blue sky and clouds

The New York Wine & Grape Foundation is pleased to announce the release of a Mission Statement, Vision Statement and Objectives for our new statewide sustainability program. These guiding statements were collectively developed by our Grower Sustainability Advisory Committee and Sustainability Program Manager.

Experience! The Finger Lakes® Named As One Of The Top 5 Wine Tours In The Us

Experience! The Finger Lakes®, based out of Ithaca NY, in the heart of the Finger Lakes region, today announced that it has been recognized as the 4th Best Wine Tour in the United States. Nominees for the USA TODAY 10Best award for Best Wine Tour were chosen by a panel of wine and travel experts consisting of journalists, industry professionals, and broadcast personalities. Twenty nominees from around the country were presented to the public in July. Online public voting took place over 4 weeks, and winners were announced publicly on August 13st.

NYWGF Announces New Sustainability Committees

The New York Wine and Grape Foundation is pleased to announce the formation of our new Grower Sustainability Advisory Committee and Technical Review Committee. These two committees will work together with our Sustainability Program Manager to establish our statewide sustainable winegrowing certification program.  

Chris Serra to Lead VineBalance Update

This week marked the official start of our VineBalance update project, which was awarded to Chris Serra, Executive Director of LIVE. Chris is a great fit for this project with 14 years of experience leading an internationally recognized third-party certification in sustainable winegrowing for Oregon, Washington, and Idaho. Chris consulted on the development of Long Island Sustainable Winegrowing (LISW) and has been instrumental in providing guidance on other certification efforts, including one for the Great Lakes.

New York Wine & Grape Foundation Releases 2020-2021 Annual Report

Today, the New York Wine and Grape Foundation released their Annual Report for the 2020-2021 State Fiscal Year. The Annual Report provides a summary of the Foundation’s operations and accomplishments during the fiscal year. The report also includes information on the amount of funding designated for applied research and the types of research conducted; and the amount of funding designated for promotion, and the effectiveness of the promotional program.