Anthony Road Wine Company

SENECA LAKE WINE TRAIL MEMBER

The vineyards, tasting room and production facilities of Anthony Road Wine Company are located in Yates county on the west side of Seneca Lake in the Finger Lakes region of New York state. Just 10 miles south of Geneva, 25 miles off the New York State Thruway, our winery is an easy drive from all of New York state's major population centers. Anthony Road Wine Company uses only grapes grown in the Finger Lakes region to create their wines. An array of wine is produced – from dry to dessert – with a range of tastes designed to please connoisseurs and casual aficionados alike.

About the Owners - Ann and John Martini:
Ann grew up in Rochester, New York and the New York City suburbs of New Jersey; John grew up in the same New Jersey suburbs. After working in teaching (Ann) and Peace Corps and business (John), they moved to Yates County in 1973 to grow grapes and raise their family on 100 acres overlooking Seneca Lake. Ann managed the vineyard and raised the children, while John worked for Cornell University at the Agricultural Experiment Station in Geneva, New York. The grapes from their vineyards were first sold to the Taylor Wine Company and eventually to wineries across New York State. In 1990, Ann and John Martini opened Anthony Road Wine Company with wines made from the 1989 crop. The first building was a renovated farm shop and the equipment was at best an eclectic collection of used and borrowed tanks and pumps and an old apple press. Their children, Peter, Sarah, Maeve and Elizabeth, have been involved in the vineyard and winery throughout their growing years and beyond. Peter now manages the vineyards and Elizabeth the tasting room. Sarah is the business manager and her husband Mike works as VP of Sales. The joy of growing grapes and producing fine wines still motivates and excites the Martini family…more than a quarter-century after the first vines took root.

About the Winemaker - Peter Becraft:
A chance encounter with winemaker Johannes Reinhardt in the Anthony Road tasting room on a slow day in May of 2006 led to a cellar visit. Peter attributes the special tour to his feisty chocolatier wife Cary who boldly asked Johannes what they had to do to get a barrel tasting. The afternoon was spent with talk of German and Austrian wines and free samples of CaryMo Chocolate. As Johannes was walking to the car with the couple he happened to mention that he is always looking for help during harvest. Cary jumped at the opportunity and volunteered her husband! Peter started that fall and stayed on splitting time between the vineyard and cellar. He moved into a full time assistant winemaking position in 2008. He worked closely with Johannes, learning from one of the top winemakers not only in this region but in the United States. As Johannes pursued his own winery, Peter became the head winemaker at Anthony Road in 2014.
"Finding my voice as a winemaker in a region that is coming into its own has been a privilege. My mission is to respect the quality of our fruit and make finished wines that speak of the vintage and our unique site. I feel that winemaking presents a lifetime of learning in that each vintage is so variable for year to year that there is never time for complacency. The opportunity to become Head Winemaker and continue to make the world class wines that Anthony Road and Johannes have established is a dream, so please don't wake me!"