We discovered Franklin Hill Vineyards very early in our winetasting days and it has always been one of our favorite wineries to visit. Back then we were all about sweet and fruit wines and Franklin Hill had plenty of both. It has been some time since we visited our old haunt and I was a little worried; now that our palates have matured and moved on to more semi-dry fare, how would Franklin Hill’s wines hold up? There was only one way to find out – road trip! Two hours later, our car was climbing the sloping gravel driveway up to Franklin Hill tasting room and yup, it was as pretty as I remembered. The surrounding farm land soon gave way to acres of sumptuous green vines, before finally terminating at Franklin Hill’s merry little tasting room.
Even though I’m not a fan of oaked Chardonnay, I took a chance and tasted the White Jade and was pleasantly surprised to find it to be mild and very drinkable. Next up came my new favorite Franklin Hill wine – the Vidal Blanc, which was slightly citrusy semi-sweet perfection. I was a little nervous about tasting the Katies Creek as it previously had always been on my must-buy list. And guess what? It still is! A refreshing blend of Vidal and Cayuga grapes, Katies Creek is on the sweeter side but doesn’t overdose you with sugar. As we ventured into the realm of the fruit wines, we found most of them to be a little too sweet yet still enjoyable. By now the temperature had reached well into the nineties and Franklin Hill had the perfect antidote – slushies! Not just a slushy but a whole dang flight of ‘em and boy did they hit the spot!
After our slushy fix we ventured out into the picnic grove where we were greeted by a gorgeous peacock. That’s another thing I always loved about Franklin Hill – their commitment to preserving the natural beauty of their surroundings from their solar-powered production facilities to their electric vehicles. While you won’t find live music or food trucks here, what you do get is a romantic, dog-friendly tranquil setting paired with superb wines and honestly, who needs anything else?
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