Rooster Hill Vineyards

About Rooster Hill Vineyards

Rooster Hill Vineyards sits on the northeast shore of Keuka Lake just south of Penn Yan, its tasting room and terraces looking across the water from a hillside of vines. Amy and David, a marketing executive and a financial planner who left Southern California for the Finger Lakes, planted the first three-acre block in 2002 and added three more over the following decade, eleven acres in all, laid over thousands of feet of drainage tile so the vines never sit wet. The estate now belongs to the CK Cellars family, whose Torrey Ridge, Earle Estates and WortHog brands share a campus over the ridge on Seneca Lake.

The house line is that the wine is made in the vineyard, and the range reads like a cool-climate estate that thins its crop for ripeness. Riesling comes two ways, a delicate, mineral-driven estate bottling and a dry version with pear, lemongrass and a key-lime edge, alongside a grassy Sauvignon Blanc, a spiced Gewürztraminer and the hybrids Vidal Blanc and Traminette. The reds are the quiet strength: Cabernet Franc on its own and in a savory, clove-scented blend with Lemberger, a reserve Lemberger, and a light, cedar-edged estate Pinot Noir. Easy blends, a Prosecco-style Bubbly Bantam and a port round things out.

Tastings are informal: choose six wines at the bar, or in warmer months take a set flight of six out to the patio, terrace or lawn above the lake. Light refreshments are the only food, dogs are welcome if they behave, reservations matter only for larger groups, and Harvest Hosts members can overnight on the property. It is a relaxed, view-first stop that pairs easily with the other east-side Keuka wineries along Route 54.