From the editor…….

Welcome to our fourth season and seventh publication of the Finger Lakes Libations!

As always we strive to bring you the latest news and highlights in our industries, and to feature the amazing businesses that you visit and products you taste.

One of our jobs is to share with you what the beverage industry owners and operators are thinking about at this point in time? A few years ago, it was the early spring freeze and crop damage. This spring, there seems to be one thing on almost everyone’s mind: what will happen next month, even next week? I’m referring to economy. The tariff wars are a reality and have us all on edge day by day. Canada and New York are deeply connected in product, taste and travel. What will it mean for the season? (It has even effected this product.) We had prepared some input for these pages, but as things change quickly it would not have been relevant by print time.  We do plan to follow up in August with as in depth a report as possible for the next issue, so please reach out to us with insights and experiences. And of course, support our vendors this summer.

Meanwhile, it’s spring! And so we celebrate. We celebrate slogging through an unusually cold winter and coming out the other side and mourn one who didn’t make it, beloved Ruth Lucas of Lucas VIneyards. And we especially celebrate the men and women who make our wines, our brew, our craft ciders and spirits. New writer Phil Carstens zooms in on “two Ians” whom we should all be aware of: Ian Barry, unique winemaker of Barry Family Wine and Six Eighty Cellars and Ian Boni brewer and owner of Twisted Rail Brewing. We celebrate more unique winemakers like Nancy Irelan of Red Tail Ridge Winery. We celebrate the resilience and recognition of our craft breweries and the expansion of two distilleries (Hidden Marsh and FL Distilling) from another new staff writer, Christian J. Mercado Acevedo; also, profiles on Sheldrake Point Winery and Grisamore Cider Works. We check up on the dreaded Spotted Lanternfly. We take a look at ice wines and Cabernet Francs. Our municipality spotlight is on Geneva and its History. And of course, you will read up on all the latest news around the wineries and brew trail from our excellent writers.

Please enjoy and if you are visiting from elsewhere, be sure to go to fingerlakeslibations.com and subscribe so that you can stay up to date on the magic that happens here, in the Finger Lakes. Thanks for coming!

Denice