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

<p>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.</p> <p><img style= "display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src= "https://assets.libsyn.com/secure/show/45638/Updated_AVA_Region_map._2019.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="232" /></p> <p>This week Casey Erdmann and Matt Spacarelli of <a href= "http://www.fjordvineyards.com" target="_blank" rel= "noopener">Fjord Vineyards</a> join to talk about the Hudson River Region and the innovative things they are doing there. </p> <p><img style= "display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" src= "https://assets.libsyn.com/secure/show/45638/CaseyandMatt.jpg" alt= "" width="270" height="180" /></p> <p>To start the show, MC Ice and I give a quick overview of the area:</p> <ul> <li>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.</li> <li>We discuss the continental climate, and the challenges that come with heat and humidity (hint: grape vine diseases) </li> <li>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. <ul> <li>It is 224,000 acres, but just 450 acres are planted to wine grapes</li> </ul> </li> <li>We discuss common grapes here: <ul> <li><strong>Vitis labrusca (native):</strong> Concord, Delaware, Niagara</li> <li><strong>French-American Hybrids</strong>: Seyval Blanc, Vidal Blanc,  Baco Noir (among others)</li> <li><strong>Vitis vinifera that is cold tolerant:</strong> Riesling, Chardonnay, Cabernet Franc </li> </ul> </li> </ul> <p>Then I discuss the region with Casey and Matt. Matt grew up in the region and his family owns the historic <a href= "https://www.benmarl.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Benmarl Winery</a> where he is the head winemaker and GM. He gives us great insight and detail around the region -- its hist