Welcome! Winemaker's creativity expands on established restaurant

Winemaker Frederique Perrin is helping Belhurst Castle break new ground.

The Castle has been known for decades for providing an elegant dining experience. Recently, a brand new winery, tasting room and additional luxurious overnight accommodations were added to the venture just south of Geneva.

Frederique has come back to the Finger Lakes, bringing a world of experience with her. Born in France, she grew up with a grandfather who was a wine collector. While at agronomy (the science of crop production) school in France, she was forced to make a decision -- animal care or winemaking.

At the end of her second year, she chose winemaking, viticulture and marketing. She earned degrees in all three areas from Ecole Nationale Superieure Agronomique de Montpellier, France, known as one of the most prestigious winemaking schools in the world.

After earning her degrees, Frederique continued to learn while working as assistant winemaker at Domaine Michel Juillot Winery in the Burgundy region of France, as well as other wineries in Australia and New Zealand.

Sandwiched in between her Australia and New Zealand experiences, Frederique responded to an ad for an assistant winemaker at Dr. Frank's Vinifera Wine Cellars on Keuka Lake. She was there for 10 months in 2002, and during her time here, she made contacts which would eventually bring her back to the Finger Lakes.

Frederique remembers one of the early meetings she had with Belhurst owner Duane Reeder and White Springs Farm owner Carl Fribolin.

"They asked me 'What would your dream winery look like?' " she recalls.

As she started to sketch it out on a napkin, they told her to take her time to think about it, she says. Frederique says she had a lot of job offers, but this was such a unique opportunity -- to design a winery from the ground up -- that she couldn't refuse.

Her vision is coming to fruition at the winery, located on White Springs Farm property. Her drawings for the winery are taped on the wall of the large tank room. Already, there are 20 stainless steel tanks in place, ranging in volume from 500 to 3,000 gallons. They are accessible by using sturdy catwalks. Vance Metal of Geneva built the tanks and the catwalks, modifying regular designs to include Frederique's unique additions.

Many of her ideas, ranging from special floor drains to a special sorting table, are the result of what she's learned from working in different wineries throughout the world. Frederique has contracted with five New York growers to provide 120 tons of grapes to make wine this year.

Belhurst workers have already planted several different varieties of grapes on 30 acres of land with a goal of 60 acres of vineyards in the near future. When those grapes come into production Belhurst hopes to be able to offer several estate-grown and bottled wines.

Currently, they have several wines bottled under two labels. The Traditions label wines are individual varietals while the White Springs label wines are blends of different grape types. (See Tasting notes.)

Here's a toast to another sparkling new winery, off to a great start as we begin this year's harvest.

Tasting notes

2003 White Springs Blush: made from 100 percent pinot noir grapes; a delightful semi-dry white with a clean finish.

Traditions 2002 Cabernet Franc: my favorite wine of the tasting. A soft, mellow wine with the taste of plums and a hint of strawberry.

Jeff Richards' wine column appears each Thursday on the Twin Tiers Life Food Page. For comments or questions, he can be reached at 607/271-8279 or 800/836-8970, ext. 279, or e-mail: jrichards@stargazette.com.