Hemlock Lake wineries

The wineries nearest Hemlock Lake, on the map

Each pin sits on the winery's street address. The chips show only what a winery states on its own website, and they narrow the list below as well.

How Rochester's reservoir became the wildest of the Finger Lakes

Hemlock Lake is 7 miles long, about half a mile wide and 91 feet deep, 1,800 acres lying 905 feet above sea level. What set it apart was thirst. Rochester, 24 miles north, wanted clean water that would flow to the city without pumping, and Hemlock, high in its valley, could provide it. An act of 1872 authorised the works, the first Hemlock water reached the city on 24 January 1876, and it arrives by the same gravity conduit today.

Protecting the source meant owning it. From 1895 the city bought the shoreline of Hemlock and then of Canadice, and the hotels, cottages and farms on both were condemned and taken down. The forest grew back over the cottage lots, and in 2010 the state bought the watershed for $13.7 million as the 6,849-acre Hemlock-Canadice State Forest, where swimming, wading and camping remain unlawful and the water is still drawn for the city.

The wildlife came back with the trees. By 1972, the year DDT was banned, New York had a single breeding pair of bald eagles left, and they nested here; their eggs collapsed in the nest, the shells thinned by the pesticide, until biologists slipped captive-bred chicks under them. The male was found shot in 1980, but by then the restoration programme begun in 1976 was releasing young eagles, and one of them took up the Hemlock territory in 1981. Eagles still nest at the south end, and more than 400 acres of old-growth forest on the south-west shore were never cut.

The walk, the water, the roads and where to base

Everything public on Hemlock is reached from Route 15A, the ridge road on the east side. At the north end, Hemlock Lake Park has picnic tables, a gazebo and fishing from the bank, dogs on a short lead, no swimming. From the north end an old lake road, closed to cars, follows the east shore south for about three miles, level enough for cyclists: the walk to take before the tasting rooms open. Further south off 15A, the Nature Conservancy's Rob's Trail drops 1.5 miles through hardwoods to the shore and links over the ridge to Canadice.

Paddling shows the lake from the middle. Canoes and kayaks under 24 feet launch from gravel ramps at the north-east corner and the south-east corner, the quiet end where the eagles are; motorboats must be under 17 feet with 10 horsepower or less, the water north of the northern launch is closed to boats, and nobody may swim, wade or let a dog in. Fishing is allowed.

For a bed, there is nothing on the lake and no camping in the forest, so choose by direction: Livonia, Lakeville and Geneseo, west along 20A, have the hotels nearest Deer Run Winery and I-390; Honeoye, five miles east, is where the Naples road turns south; Springwater, to the south, is the quiet one; Naples and Canandaigua suit the eastern wineries. Each winery's page here lists places to stay nearby, and the trip-planning guide compares bases.

Making the most of a visit to Hemlock Lake

1. Walk or paddle first. The east-shore road is about three miles each way and level enough for a bicycle; Rob's Trail is a steeper 1.5 miles to the water. Most tasting rooms open between 10 and noon, Deer Run Winery not until noon most days, so there is no need to hurry.
2. Pick one direction, and let lunch decide it. West is one stop about 20 minutes away with a kitchen, the Tankroom Cafe at Deer Run Winery. East is Naples, about 40 minutes, with four tasting rooms within about ten minutes of each other and Brew and Brats at Arbor Hill Grapery & Winery for lunch. Doing both means driving back past the lake, so give each its own afternoon.
3. Taste for the contrast. Naples spans the Finger Lakes argument within a mile: sweet Red Cat and dry Grüner Veltliner at Hazlitt Red Cat Cellars, semi-dry Traminette at Arbor Hill Grapery & Winery, bone-dry Vermentino and Meritage at Hometown Wine Company. Wherever both are poured, taste a dry and a semi-dry Riesling side by side; the acidity that carries the sugar is the region's signature.
4. Check the day before you book anything. Hours are short and seasonal. Arbor Hill Grapery & Winery pours guided tastings Thursday to Sunday by reservation, with a self-guided flight whenever the shop is open; Hometown Wine Company takes no reservations and seats groups of up to eight; several small producers open one or two days a week. Each winery's page here carries its current hours.
5. Settle the driving and pick the season. Naples is 40 minutes from the lake and the Keuka wineries over an hour, so nominate a driver who is not tasting. Late September is the moment if you can choose: the harvest is in and the Naples Grape Festival fills the village on 26 and 27 September 2026.

Common questions

Are there any wineries on Hemlock Lake?

None with public hours. The shore has been Rochester's protected water supply since the 1890s and is now state forest. O-Neh-Da Vineyard, on the hills above the west shore, has made sacramental wine since 1872, but by its own calendar it has been open only for private parties since June 2025. The nearest tasting room with regular hours is Deer Run Winery on Conesus Lake, about 20 minutes west.

Why are there no vineyards on Hemlock Lake?

One reason is legal, one physical. The watershed is a public water supply, so the slopes cannot be cleared or farmed. And Hemlock would have been marginal anyway: at 91 feet deep and 1,800 acres it stores far less summer heat than Canandaigua or Seneca, so it does less to hold off frost, and its surface sits 905 feet above sea level, higher and cooler than the big wine lakes.

What are the wineries near Hemlock Lake known for?

West, Deer Run Winery makes a broad, approachable range from dry Riesling to the sweet red Max Black, plus a dry Marquette and Cabernet Franc. East, Naples is contrast itself: Hazlitt Red Cat Cellars pours the sweet Red Cat family beside dry Grüner Veltliner, Arbor Hill Grapery & Winery introduced Traminette and still makes it semi-dry, and Hometown Wine Company pours only dry wines, including traditional-method sparkling, from grapes grown far beyond the region.

When is the best time to visit Hemlock Lake and the wineries nearby?

Late September, if the harvest matters: the grapes come in and the Naples Grape Festival takes over the village on 26 and 27 September 2026. May and June are the quiet months on the lake, the woods at their greenest. Summer brings Thursday concerts at Deer Run Winery and Friday music at 20 Deep Winery. From November several tasting rooms cut back their days, so confirm hours first.

Do I need a reservation to taste near Hemlock Lake?

Mostly not. Arbor Hill Grapery & Winery runs guided tastings Thursday to Sunday by reservation, with a self-guided flight whenever the shop is open; Hometown Wine Company is walk-in only, adults only, for groups of up to eight; Raymor Estate Cellars opens on Saturdays and otherwise by appointment. The smallest producers keep one- or two-day weeks, so the hours matter more than the booking.

Where should I stay for a Hemlock Lake wine trip?

Not on the lake: the shore is protected watershed with no hotels, cottages or campsites. Livonia, Lakeville and Geneseo, nearest Deer Run Winery and I-390, serve the western day; Naples puts you on foot between Inspire Moore Winery & Vineyard and Hometown Wine Company, with inns in the village, and Canandaigua has the larger hotels. Rochester's southern suburbs are 35 minutes up 15A; each winery's page here lists places to stay nearby.