We know Audrey from years ago touring through the wine regions of New Zealand and Australia (specifically, Margaret River). After traveling for several years, Audrey returned to her roots in New York state to take the reigns of Winemaking on her family’s farm.
We enjoyed catching up with Audrey after several years and are excited for her label, JD Wine Cellars. If you’re in the New York state region, you’ll definitely want to book a tasting. For now, read on to learn about Audrey’s backstory and plans for the future.
Interview with Startup Winemaker, Audrey Allen
Wine Scribes: How did you find yourself working in the world of wine?
Audrey Allen: My parents started an agri-tourism farm in 1993 and opened up a winery in 2010 on property to supplement our farm experience and events, so I was around a winery in my later teen years and knew it could be an option for me.
After I graduated from college I worked for a bank for my first year to give the corporate world a shot (had to try to use my Economics & Spanish degree somehow!). I realized after a year that [the corporate life] wasn’t for me and moved back to Rochester where I helped my dad with harvest for the first time. After experiencing my first vintage, I realized this could be my way to come back to my family farm, but I knew I wasn’t ready to be living in Rochester full time yet since I wanted to travel and explore before settling down.
I applied to as many winery/harvest/tasting room jobs that I could find abroad for the upcoming southern hemisphere season, and got one response from a large production facility in New Zealand. So I bought a one-way ticket and off I went to learn and then continued my hands-on education in Australia’s Margaret River region for another two harvests.
So you had no formal training in Oenology or Viticulture?
I did not. My dad was a home brewer for a long time so he had a little bit of background knowledge that he’s passed on to me, otherwise I got hands-on experience doing three vintages abroad in New Zealand and Australia.
Where do you produce the wine?
We are a designated Farm Winery in Macedon, New York, just north of the Finger Lakes. Our production is in the back half of a quonset that was renovated in 2009 for our wine production. The facility is across the street from our tasting room.
JD Wine Cellars, Finger Lakes, New York
Vintages: 13 released
Cases produced: 850-1,000 per year
Varietals: Chardonnay, Riesling, Cabernet Franc, Cayuga, Traminette, Diamond and three 100% fruit wines.
Describe your goal or dream for this business over the next ten years?
I’d like to build the brand to where we are a destination; we are just far enough out from Rochester and north of the Finger Lakes where we don’t get as many built-in tourists. This dream conflicts with my wishes to remain small, as I don’t want to sell in liquor stores or export.
That said, becoming a household name in our area would be a pretty cool thing to achieve. And as a young female winemaker, I’d like to make a name for myself in our local wine industry.
Who has largest impact and/or influence on your style of winemaking?
My time in Australia was incredibly impactful. I had the opportunity to live and work in Margaret River where the biggest grape varietals are Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon. Because of my time there I now make an Aussie-style oaked Chardonnay with some virtual help from my winemaker friend in Australia, Peter Stanlake.
How can people get in contact, taste or purchase bottles?
We are located in Macedon, NY about 20 minutes east of Rochester. Due to our limited production, we do not export to other states or sell in liquor stores. Our tasting room is open seasonally from April 1-December 30th and we offer tastings and bottle sales daily.
Of course, if someone is visiting from out of town and would like to set up a tasting, we are open by private appointment! My email is audrey@jdwinecellars.com or they can call 315-986-4202.
Ok now for some fun ones….Favorite unique wine pairing?
Don’t judge, but we make a dry(!) 100% Blackberry wine that goes great with the kettle korn we make on the farm.
What’s the best bottle you’ve ever tasted?
A Muscat from an Alsatian winery called Domaine Bott-Geyl. Absolutely incredible. I recommend to anyone who loves wine to put the Alsace region on their schedule to visit. My fiance and I visited Alsace in February of 2021 and had the most incredible experience.
The location is incredibly beautiful and the wine is some of the best I have had. Their Muscats are dry (opposite from here) and we couldn’t get enough of them. I am also a sucker for any Willamette Valley Pinots.
Dang, we’ve yet to visit Alsace! Will definitely go there when we do. Changing gears, what do you view as one of the biggest challenges in the wine world?
I think just trying to get people to try new wines and new regions. It’s frustrating when people have their tried and true favorites and come to our tasting room expecting to have similar wines to California or Oregon; [our wines] are very different but just as good!
Is there a bright side to that challenge?
I love showing visitors that New York has a lot to offer to the wine world. The industry here has come a long way in the last 30-50 years, and is only improving. More and more wineries pop up every year and it’s become a huge destination for wine lovers.
There’s a lot of misconceptions about the type of wine we produce and it’s nice to prove them wrong! No, of course the reds aren’t going to be as big as California, but they have their space and once people open their minds up to the differences they are pretty surprised at the quality.
When not drinking wine, what’s your go-to beverage?
I am an equal opportunist! I’ll try anything once but I do love a good cocktail! Currently my favorite liqueur to sip on at home is Suze, a French aperitif. Deliciously bitter.
