Mar 25 2010
Spring Lake Winery and the Vineyard Express Railroad
What do you get when you mix several generations of wine making experience, an old gravel pit that you convert into a lovely lake, perfectly good unused farm land, a local passenger railroad terminal and a hard working family? You get the Varallo family’s “Spring Lake Winery” located near Lockport, New York.
The story of this relatively new winery is told in a brochure available from the company titled, “Gravel to Grapes: The Story of Spring Lake Winery!” The Niagara Escarpment is famous for its late season Rieslings and Spring Lake has an award winning vintage already.
Santa Rosa, California held the 2010 annual U.S. Professional Wine Buyers Competition™, last January. Spring Lake Winery competed against nearly 2000 wines entered from a total of 467 wineries from 30 states and 10 foreign nations and was awarded a bronze medal, described as; “BRONZE, VARALLO RIESLING, ESTATE SELECT LATE HARVEST 2008; SMOOTH, FULL BODIED AND SWEET WITH HINTS OF CITRUS.”
The medal announcement continues, “Spring Lake Winery has earned the right to a place in the 2010 Buyers’ Guide, the only guide in the industry specifically created by pro wine buyers to single out and recommend wines that professional wine buyers should choose for their retail shelves and fine wine lists.”
To be awarded such an honor by the judges that tasted 400 wines means that great things are in store for this company.
You easily may drive there by car, but a much more exciting way to visit Spring Lake is to take the passenger excursion train ride that leaves from Lockport and goes to the Medina Railroad Museum in Orleans County. This will make a very exciting day trip for anyone in central or western New York and for all you tourists that also Love New York. Just remember the ride is named “The Vineyard Express” and will be a great way to spend an afternoon of fun with a glass of wine and live entertainment.
Contact the winery for specific details. Spring Lake Winery is located at 7373 Rochester Road in Lockport, NY, and online at www.springlakewinery.com.
