Ep 322: The Hudson River Region of NY with Fjord Vineyards

Spanning a large portion of New York, just about an hour north of Manhattan, lies one of the oldest winemaking regions in the US: The Hudson River Region AVA. This week Casey Erdmann and Matt Spacarelli of Fjord Vineyards join to talk about the Hudson River Region and the innovative things they are doing there.  To start the show, MC Ice and I give a quick overview of the area: We go WAY back to the glaciers and talk about how this area came to have so many different soil types, a varied terrain, and the mighty Hudson River. We discuss the continental climate, and the challenges that come with heat and humidity (hint: grape vine diseases)  We talk about how large the region is. It encompasses all or part of big counties:  Columbia, Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Sullivan, Ulster, and Westchester. It is 224,000 acres, but just 450 acres are planted to wine grapes We discuss common grapes here: Vitis labrusca (native): Concord, Delaware, Niagara French-American Hybrids: Seyval Blanc, Vidal Blanc,  Baco Noir (among others) Vitis vinifera that is cold tolerant: Riesling, Chardonnay, Cabernet Franc  Then I discuss the region with Casey and Matt. Matt grew up in the region and his family owns the historic Benmarl Winery where he is the head winemaker and GM. He gives us great insight and detail around the region -- its history, its challenges, and its opportunities.  We have a lively discussion around French-American hybrids (we may or may not discuss how they taste like burnt hair), and what their role is for wine regions. Finally we discuss Fjord Vineyards which was founded in 2013 so the couple to make wines of Vitis vinifera from local parcels that express the terroir of the region. They make balanced, sustainable wines of Riesling, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Albariño, and Cabernet Franc that reflect where they are grown and are delicious!    Thanks to our sponsors this week: Thanks to YOU! The podcast supporters on Patreon, who are helping us to make the podcast possible and who we give goodies in return for their help! Check it out today: https://www.patreon.com/winefornormalpeople And to sign up for classes, please go to www.winefornormalpeople.com/classes!  Get your copy Wine For Normal People Book today!    Wine Access  Visit: www.wineaccess.com/normal and for a limited time get $20 off your first order of $50 or more!  I’m so excited to introduce Wine Access to you. Wine Access is a web site that has exclusive wines that overdeliver for the price (of which they have a range).  They offer top quality wines by selecting diverse, interesting, quality bottles you may not have access to at local shops. Wine Access provides extensive tasting notes, stories about the wine and a really cool bottle hanger with pairings, flavor profile, and serving temps. Wines are warehoused in perfect conditions and shipped in temperature safe packs. Satisfaction is guaranteed!  Check it out today! www.wineaccess.com/normal    Skylight Frame If you want the perfect Mother's Day gift, you have to get a Skylight Frame! It's a digital frame that finally works and will keep you connected with your friends and family, with ease. There are three easy steps: 1. Connect Skylight to a power source and it powers up. 2. Tap our touch screen to connect to Wi-Fi in Get the back catalog on Patreon! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.