Five Reasons You Can Feel Good Drinking Silver Thread Wines

In addition to great taste and quality, wine drinkers are increasingly looking for wines produced with minimal intervention from sustainably farmed vineyards. Here are five reasons our wines fit the bill for the conscientious consumer.

  1. Grower-Winemakers. Our winemakers tend the vines and make the wine. They employ biointensive and regenerative agricultural practices to grow clean, healthy fruit naturally. Whether pruning vines, thinning clusters or hand-harvesting fruit, they are making decisions that directly impact the quality of our wines. This holistic view of the process ensures the wines fully reflect the winemakers’ intention.
  2. No Added Sugar. We don’t believe in adjusting the fruit after harvest—levels of sugar, acid and tannin are always natural and unadulterated. Our wine is made first and foremost in the vineyard: control over the style of the wine is best achieved by practices during the growing season, picking date, and sorting of grapes during harvest. We don’t chaptalize (the addition of sugar to juice before fermentation to achieve higher alcohol levels). We also don’t back-sweeten; any residual sweetness found in our wines is achieved naturally by arrested fermentations.
  3. Naturally Low Alcohol. Thanks to the cool Finger Lakes climate, our grapes are naturally lower in sugar than those grown in warmer regions. Therefore, the yeast produces lower levels of alcohol from the conversion of sugar during fermentation. Our wines typically range from 9-12% alcohol by volume. Low alcohol doesn’t mean less complexity or flavor, but it may prevent side effects like headaches.
  4. Small Batch Winemaking. Each batch of wine gets the same handcrafted attention to detail. Most of our finished wines are blends of multiple fermentations to increase complexity and allow the vineyard to express itself in myriad ways.  Winemaking techniques include the use of neutral barrels and stainless steel tanks, malolactic fermentation, skin contact, whole-cluster pressing, native and non-saccharomyces yeast, and lees aging. Barrel aging (when used) occurs in old barrels so that oak flavors are minimal and vineyard characteristics are not lost.
  5. Low-Impact Production. We generate 100% of the energy used in wine production on-site with solar panels. No animal products are used at any stage in the winemaking process, so our wines are vegan. After fermentation, wines are minimally filtered to ensure stability. Sulfites are added at the lowest level possible while ensuring long-term stability of the wines. Natural cork, a renewable resource, and lightweight glass bottles are used to reduce the environmental impact of our packaging.

 

Wine is the vineyard’s memory of a vintage, which varies year to year based on the weather.  Our approach is grapes first, healthy fermentation second and nothing after, to best allow the vineyard to speak through the wine. Ultimately, the best wine is the wine you like best. We sincerely hope you’ll enjoy exploring our unique expression of Finger Lakes terroir. Visit our on-line wine shop for a listing and descriptions of currently-available wines.