Finger Lakes Winery Tasting Reservations and Visiting Tips - Updated 6/28/23

We have been asked to update this post to reflect post-pandemic conditions. The original post was written at the height of the pandemic, so obviously much of it does not apply anymore. Masks are no longer required, food purchase is no longer required, and seating lmits are no longer in place at wineries, but some of the original post still applies. Here are our current tips for visiting Finger Lakes wineries:

1. Planning Your Trip: It is still wise to plan your Finger Lakes trip and tastings at least several weeks in advance. There are hundreds of wineries in the Finger Lakes, as well as scores of breweries and distilleries now. To taste wine, beer and spirits that fit your specific palate, and not be wasting time at places that don't fit your palate in your limited vacation time, you will need to do a little research before your trip. But this can be simply done by Googling what you are interested in such as Best Finger Lakes Dry Rieslings, Best Finger Lakes Belgian Beers, etc.

2. Reservations: Many wineries have still kept their online or phone-in Reservation systems from the pandemic, so it's still a good idea to check the Reservation policy for the places you are interested in visiting by visiting their website or calling them. But most places, even if they have a Reservation policy will take walk-ins now. But during the height of tourism season in the Fall, you may have to wait as a walk-in, so it's still a good idea to make Reservations, if required, especially at the more popular places and on the weekends. And this Tip still applies: Visit walk-in wineries in the morning when they first open and beat the crowds. Many Finger Lakes wineries open at 10am, so you will have to get over your no drinking before noon edict. Breakfast wine is considered proper etiquette in the Finger Lakes.

3. Timing Your Tasting Visits: Because of the mix of "reservations required" and walk-in only tastings, it is more dfficult to just drive from one winery to the next and be able to make the best use of your limited visiting time. Also, driving times are deceiving in the Finger Lakes. Though you'll rarely run into traffic jams or delays, except possibly in the larger towns (Watkins Glen, Geneva) during a parade or event, getting from one side of a lake to the other takes some time. There are no bridges across the lakes, so factor in appropriate driving time. It's best to focus on one side of a lake per day. Tastings seem to be taking longer also, as wineries try to spend more time with visitors to establish a relationship and get you to buy more, so factor at least a half hour for each tasting, and possibly up to an hour at some places.

My tasting strategy has been to group the places that I want to visit into a daily schedule by area and then call for their tasting policies. Because you can't be sure of how long you will have to wait at walk-in only places, it is best to plan your schedule around the Reservation only places that you want to visit. For example, in your group of wineries that you want to visit on a certain day, let's say that you have 11am and 1pm reservations. This means that you could probably slip a 10am walk-in winery into the schedule if the walk-in winery is fairly near to the 11am Reservation winery. It has become a little more complex to plan your visits these days, but with a little planning a few weeks ahead of time, you can still maximize your tasting time at many places. Depending on your tolerance for alcohol, I recommend limiting your daily tasting schedule to 3-5 places, because palate fatigue will set in. Alternating a brewery or distillery tasting in between wineries can be a good way to balance your palate.

4. Cost of Tasting: All of the Finger Lakes wineries increased their tasting fees during the pandemic to compensate for limited seating requirements during the pandemic, but guess what. Now that the pandemic has eased, the tasting fees have not come back down. So expect to pay about double the tasting fees from before the pandemic. For most wineries, a $5 tasting fee before the pandemic is now a $10 fee, but many wineries are also including an extra wine or two in each tasting, or are pouring larger pours. But the increased tasting fees can be a shock to your vaction budget. For a couple tasting at 5 wineries a day, that can add up to $100 or more in tasting fees. One tip to stretch your tasting budget is to split tastings and do one tasting for both of you. So make sure to budget for the increased tasting fees.

5. Events: All of the events that were canceled during the pandemic are all back now, so Google 'Finger Lakes events' to see what events are happening during your visit. There is more live music than ever happening at wineries, breweries, and distilleries, so it's not hard to find live music happening. But keep in mind that most of the wineries close at 5pm or 6pm, and there is not a lot of night life, except in the larger towns. The Finger Lakes is a basically rural area so things close down fairly early. The best Finger Lakes night life is just enjoying sitting by a fire with your family and friends.

6. Restaurants: The Finger Lakes has a limited number of restaurants, especially in the smaller towns and rural areas, so it is wise to make dinner reservations, if they take reservations. Many restaurants are first come, first serve, and can get quite crowded, especially on the weekends, so be prepared to wait for a table. One tip is to plan to eat dinner either early (before 6pm) or later (after 8pm) to avoid the crowds. For lunch, you will want to find something quick and easy, in order to maximize your tasting time. Since lunch options are limited in some areas of the Finger Lakes, I recommend packing a picnic lunch when you leave where you are staying in the morning and then eating it at one of the beautiful wineries that you are visiting. Most of the wineries have beautiful grounds with tables where you can sit and eat your picnic lunch.

7. Enjoy Your Finger Lakes Stay: My number 1 tip is to not try and do too much during your visit. Plan some simple relaxation time into your schedule, time to just sit and look at the lake. The Finger Lakes is one of the most beautiful places in the world, so plan a diverse schedule with many different types of things besides tastings, like hiking, boating, museums, etc. Please page through my posts here on the website as there are many good ideas for places to visit in my posts. And if you have any questions on visiting Finger Lakes wineries or on what wineries may fit with your specific wine palate, feel free to contact me using the Contact link here on the website.