Don't you dare call my wine LOCAL.
Right now there is much nervousness in the wine industry. Tourism is down. Consumption is seemingly down. And there are many other competitors to deal with (seltzers, NA choices, CBD, etc.). But I think the future of East Coast wine is bright. The East Coast has reached a turning point.
When I first started tasting wines in the late 1990s and the early 2000s, there were much fewer wineries. These were not the glory days. The remnants of the 50s and 60s seemed to linger on. Some of the newest wineries were started by retired teachers or financial wizards. If you were lucky they were farmers, but even that did not guarantee quality of any kind. There was some real plonk out there. But there was also good wine.
In the last 25 years that has changed dramatically. Outside investment, via talent and money, have made a huge impact. We've seen winemakers from California and Europe come through. We've seen investment from around the world, France, Italy, and California, as well as elsewhere. The regions are littered with winemakers from more mature regions. The university and information exchange is vast and fully up-to-speed versus other major regions - we have universities like Cornell and Niagara and Virginia Tech. We have huge conferences such as NY Bev and Eastern Wineries Exposition. It's a fully mature world. The amateurs are falling away (in some cases, very sad), as the industry has move professionally forward.
We've seen quality winemaking grow exponentially. Riesling. Cabernet Franc. Blaufrankisch. Pinot Noir. Albarino. All of those and many more, making an immense impact.
I don't want to know which small region is the next new Napa Valley, or Bordeaux, or Burgundy. I get the comparisons. They were valuable for a time. But they are demeaning now, like a small child trying to justifying themselves by comparing themselves to a much older sibling. The concept immediately admits that the region is "less than." East Coast wine can stand on its own two feet. It can proudly brag on its own accomplishments. The question should be - what's the next East Coast?!
The East Coast, roughly the size of California, offers a wide range of regions and styles. New England. The Finger Lakes. The Hudson Valley and the Niagara Escarpment. Long Island. The Mid-Atlantic. Virginia.
In each region they are making some absolutely fantastic wines. Wines that command good prices. Restaurant placement. Collectability.
The concept of LOCAL wine was a convenient marketing tool when Farm-to-Table became a thing in the first quarter of the 21st century. Wineries jumped on the band wagon. But it actually continued the long tradition of belittling east coast wine. LOCAL was a nice way of saying, here's some wine. It's not as good as others, but it's LOCAL. You could feel good about supporting your LOCAL farmer. It undermined a fundamental attempt by real winemakers in the region to produce fine, high quality, reliable wines worthy of cellaring. Worthy of the wider marketplace.
The east coast, in the last 25 years, has gone from LOCAL wine to a glittering wine region. In fact, I suggest the idea of LOCAL wine passe' as if calling it LOCAL wine gave the wineries and winemakers a pass for making "less than" wines, but were noble in effort, because they were made locally. It's a back-handed compliment. I declare LOCAL wine dead.
Stop calling it LOCAL wine!
It is time to promote the virtues, the great wines, of the region. Not as a rented mule or a red headed stepchild, the bastard child - or whatever old cliché' you can add to that list.
The east coast as a wine region has arrived. Stop back handing it. Be proud. Pair it with food. Celebrate with it. Place it in your cellar with confidence.
But for heaven's sake - put the term LOCAL away in 2026!
Don't you dare call my wine LOCAL. It's great damn wine!