Grape Belt Earns State Designation

The Lake Erie Grape Belt has become New York state's first agricultural heritage area.

The designation was signed recently by Gov. George Pataki.

"This is significant because there is a group in the region, the Concord Grapebelt Heritage Association, that was formed a couple years ago to promote this area as the largest Concord grape growing region in the country, maybe the world," said James Trezise, president of the Canandaigua-based New York Wine & Grape Foundation.

"This is truly a new idea and something they can hang their hat on. Kind of like a wine trail designation, it is a specific name that has the official state sanction behind it that will give them a promotional advantage. I think it will catch on in other parts of the state," he said.

The Grape Belt is a 50-mile long, three- to five-mile wide swath of vineyards running down the east side of Lake Erie from southern Erie County, through Chautauqua County and into Pennsylvania.

Much of the Concord grape crop in the region is processed into grape juice, and jam and jelly. The Grape Belt is credited with giving birth to Welch's Grape Juice and is home to the largest grape cooperatives and manufacturers of grape juice and Kosher wine in the world.

"About 100,000 tons of grapes a year are crushed in Chautauqua County and that represents more than half of the grape crush in the state," said Assemblyman William Parment, D-North Harmony, who co-sponsored the bill in the Assembly.

"This heritage area designation will provide opportunities to create a plan for promoting the area, the economic value of the grapes grown in this region, and to receive state and federal grants to aid that promotion," he said.

Other recently approved state legislation expands identification of the Niagara Wine Trail by allowing installation of additional signs along Rt. 18 (Lake Road) in the Niagara County towns of Wilson, Newfane and Somerset.

The legislation allows three signs to be placed on Route 18 (Lake Road) at the Niagara/Orleans county line, in Olcott on Route 18, and on Route 18 in Wilson.

There are seven wineries on the wine trail and an eighth is expected to join by the end of this year.

"Next year, we expect there to be 11 or 12," said Margo Bittner, president of The Winery at Marjim Manor, Appleton. "We are looking to expand the Niagara Wine Trail into Orleans County where a couple of wineries are planning to open."