The Poetics of Cool Climate Viticulture
Bloomer Creek Vineyard is the project of Kim Engle and Debra Bermingham — a vigneron and an artist who have spent over three decades crafting some of the most distinctive, natural wines in North America from the Finger Lakes of New York. [^251^] [^260^] Established in 1999 from 10 acres on the west side of Cayuga Lake, with two vineyard designations — Auten Vineyard and Morehouse Road — Bloomer Creek has always carved its own path. [^251^] [^254^] In 2012, they added Barrow Vineyard on the east side of Seneca Lake, an abandoned site cleared of 30 years of brush and trees, where four acres of Riesling were planted in 2013. [^251^] The wines are meticulously farmed using organic methods — no herbicides, no irrigation, hand-harvested, native yeast fermentation, often with whole clusters, extended lees aging, and no temperature control. [^254^] [^256^] The result is wines that are incredibly distinctive, age-worthy, and expressive of place — "the single most unique, and compelling voice in town," according to Bowler Wine. [^254^]
From Cornell Leave to Alto Adige Epiphany
Kim Engle's wine story began in 1978, when as a young student on leave from Cornell University, he found himself pruning grapes on a vineyard overlooking Cayuga Lake. [^251^] The hard work, outside all day in frosty temperatures, suited him. In the evening, standing by an outdoor grill with venison roasting and a glass of homemade wine in his hand, Kim realised he had found his life's passion. This passion would only intensify a year later, following an extended stay in the Alto Adige region of Northern Italy. Eat, drink, and be merry — Kim decided to become a vigneron. [^251^]
After returning to Cornell to complete his studies — including a stint at CSU Fresno for viticulture and enology, not yet available at Cornell — Kim began to pursue his dream: buying land, planting grapes, and practicing the nuanced poetics needed to tend them. [^251^] He met Debra Bermingham, then a fellow Cornell student, through a friend. Although an accomplished artist, Debra decided to make wine together with Kim from the beginning. [^256^]
Debra's life as artist/vigneronne has been defined by her connection to the natural world. A graduate of Cornell University (BFA) and the University of Washington (MFA), she spent many years teaching painting as a Visiting Assistant Professor at Cornell and Ithaca College. [^251^] Her artistic career, which includes national and international solo and group exhibitions, began in 1978 and continues to this day. From 1987 to 2013, she was represented by DC Moore Gallery in New York, who placed her work in collections including The Art Institute of Chicago, The Brooklyn Museum of Art, and Smith College Museum of Art. [^251^]
Bloomer Creek Vineyard was established in 1999 from 10 acres with two different vineyard designations — Auten Vineyard and Morehouse Road — planted on the west side of Cayuga Lake. [^251^] In 2012, a new vineyard was added when Kim and Debra purchased an abandoned site on the east side of Seneca Lake, one mile from their production cellar in Hector. The vineyard had been abandoned for over 30 years and needed to be cleared of brush, trees, posts and rusted trellis wire. [^251^] In spring of 2013, four acres of Riesling was planted. "Barrow Vineyard" — Old Norse for high, rocky hill and burial mound — links the past to the future. One lone cedar tree was left in the field among the vines as a testament to all who have gone before and to all who will follow. [^251^]
"The Hermit lives on the mountain. He is plain and joyful. A handful of rice and water from the spring suffice him. Still he has kept his wine cup."
— Li Po, quoted by Debra Bermingham
Three Vineyards, Two Lakes & The Struggle for Ripeness
The Finger Lakes is a cool-climate region where winemakers struggle for grapes to ripen — a challenge that, when everything works out, produces wines with a freshness and earthiness that the Bloomer Creek team loves. [^257^] Unlike California, where winemakers often have to jump through hoops to keep alcohols within reasonable levels, in the Finger Lakes the battle is against the cold, the humidity, and the rain. [^257^] "Nearly everyone I met said that it is impossible to be organic or make natural wine in the Finger Lakes," wrote Pamela Busch of The Vinguard. "However, Debra Bermingham and Kim Engle of Bloomer Creek Vineyard doth protest." [^265^]
From the beginning, distinctions — like "personality" — became apparent in fermentations made from different parts of the vineyard. Even with vintage variation, wine made from what is now called "Auten Vineyard" differed stylistically from the site now called "Morehouse Road." [^257^] In 2008 these two sites were bottled separately and have been ever since. The Auten Vineyard Riesling is a marvel — "a lindy hop" of a wine, with a stony core glazed with layers of flavours that seem to change by the moment. [^257^] The Morehouse Road is "a handshake that evolves into a graceful waltz" — starting slow, building, unveiling its complexity with more subtlety. [^257^]
Kim and Debra farm meticulously using organic methods — employing no herbicides or irrigation in the vineyard. [^254^] The fruit is hand-harvested, and only native yeasts are used for fermentation, often utilizing whole clusters, extended lees aging, and allowing fermentations to progress at their own rate without using temperature control. [^254^] Kim converted a number of rows to a labor-intensive trellis system that separates the vines and allows for greater air circulation, helping grapes dry faster in wet conditions. [^256^]
Kim's winemaking had a definitive turning point in 2008, when a customer brought him a few bottles of natural wine from the Loire Valley. He had an epiphany, astounded at how fresh and alive the wines tasted; this led to a complete overhaul of their approach. [^256^] By 2010, he stopped using cultured yeasts; white wines saw some skin contact; he experimented with adding stems; and finished wines saw very little filtering or fining. [^256^] "There was a time, going back 20 years, when I worked at another winery, and we were all happy just winning medals and 'making' wine — highly processed, technical, safe wines," Kim reflects. "Rather than take risks, it's easier to start with a flavorless, boring base wine then add in the parts — the tannin, the acid." [^256^]
On the west side of Cayuga Lake. The 2009 Auten Vineyard 1st Harvest Riesling is "a marvel, a Riesling that evokes the Lopez de Heredia white wines. No two tasters will list the same aromatics. Chamomile, white flowers, lime? Sure. Brioche, caramel apple, peaches, crushed rock? That works too." [^257^] A wine of astonishing complexity and stony core.
Also on Cayuga Lake, but with its own distinct personality. "If the Auten is a lindy hop, the Morehouse is a handshake that evolves into a graceful waltz. Starting slow, the wine builds and unveils its complexity with more subtlety." [^257^] Equally distinctive, equally a Finger Lakes Riesling — but with little precedent for wine of this profile.
On the east side of Seneca Lake, purchased in 2012, abandoned for 30+ years. Four acres of Riesling planted in 2013. "Barrow" — Old Norse for high, rocky hill and burial mound — links past to future. One lone cedar tree stands among the vines as testament to all who have gone before. [^251^] The newest and most exciting site.
No herbicides, no irrigation, hand-harvested, native yeast only, whole clusters, extended lees aging, no temperature control. [^254^] [^256^] Kim converted rows to a labor-intensive trellis system for greater air circulation. These are not marketing points — they are the daily reality of farming in a humid, cool climate without chemical shortcuts.
The Loire Epiphany & Minimal Intervention
Kim Engle's winemaking philosophy was transformed by a single taste of Loire Valley natural wine in 2008. "They took a minimalist approach to winemaking, and with a lot less rushing of the process overall," he says. [^256^] By 2010, he had stopped using cultured yeasts entirely. White wines began to see skin contact. He experimented with adding stems. Finished wines saw very little filtering or fining. The wines became less "precise and neat" — rather, they began to unfurl in waves of flavour like a blooming tea flower. [^256^]
The results are wines that taste and feel different in the mouth — less controlled, more alive. "His wines taste and feel a bit different in the mouth: less precise and neat, rather, unfurling in waves of flavor like a blooming tea flower," wrote Chasing the Vine in 2014. [^256^] Amazingly, the wines trade around $20 a bottle — "for wine lovers, that's a lot of potential upside for such a minor investment." [^256^]
Kim is particularly proud of his Cabernet Franc — a variety he and Debra find to be the most compelling red in the Finger Lakes. [^263^] Depending on the vintage, they make it in two styles: in good ripening years, partially de-stemmed, crushed, fermented with whole clusters in open-top fermenters for two to three weeks, then aged 10–11 months on gross lees in 12-year-old (and older) French oak barrels. [^257^] In cooler years, they make "Vin d'été" — a lighter, carbonic-maceration style using a high percentage of whole clusters, not aged in oak, brambly and bright, best drunk lightly chilled. [^257^]
The White Horse — a Cabernet Franc/Merlot blend named as a spoof on Cheval Blanc — is perhaps their most celebrated wine. "While White Horse is a spoof on Cheval Blanc, a legendary Bordeaux, the wine has much more in common with Loire reds," wrote Crush Wine. "White Horse is an energetic, spicy blend of Cabernet Franc and Merlot. There's just enough fleshiness to keep the wine from becoming austere." [^257^] Eric Asimov of The New York Times called it "deep, rich and structured, generous and well shaped with flavors of earthy red fruit. Great value from the terrific husband-and-wife team." [^257^]
2009 Auten Vineyard 1st Harvest Riesling — "A Marvel"
"The 2009 Auten Vineyard 1st Harvest Riesling is a marvel, a Riesling that evokes the Lopez de Heredia white wines that have earned a devoted following around the world. No two tasters will list the same aromatics. Chamomile, white flowers, lime? Sure. Brioche, caramel apple, peaches, crushed rock? That works too. But this wine is even more enthralling in the mouth. Its stony core, a hallmark of the vintage, is glazed with layers of flavors that seem to change by the moment." [^257^] — Evan Dawson, NY Cork Report. This is Bloomer Creek at its most profound: a wine that defies easy description, that changes with every sip, that carries the imprint of a specific place and a specific season. It is not a technical wine — it is a poetic one. And at around $20, it is one of the greatest values in American wine.
James Beard House, RAW WINE & The Art of the Label
Bloomer Creek's reputation extends far beyond the Finger Lakes. In May 2016, Kim and Debra were invited to the James Beard House in New York City for a "Sip and Savor the Finger Lakes" wine dinner — a five-course menu from the kitchen at the Farm on Adderley, paired with Bloomer Creek wines. [^265^] The event brought together natural winemakers from New York State, shedding light on the process and world of natural winemaking in a region still fighting for recognition.
In 2016 and 2017, Isabelle Legeron MW — founder of RAW WINE and author of "Natural Wine" — invited Bloomer Creek to pour at her natural wine fair in Bushwick, Brooklyn. [^265^] Bloomer Creek's Barrow Vineyard Riesling was featured on page 158 of Legeron's book "Natural Wine: an introduction to organic and biodynamic wines made naturally" (Fall 2017). [^265^] The wines have also appeared on the prestigious wine list at The NoMad Hotel, curated by Thomas Pastuszak, and at Appellation Wine and Spirits in Chelsea, where Scott Pactor declared their Rieslings "some of the best in New York if not the entire U.S." [^256^]
The art on Bloomer Creek's labels is as distinctive as the wine inside. The Tanzen Dame label — used on Riesling and Gewürztraminer bottlings since 2008 — features a watercolor by Jimmy Wright from his series "Lost Women," heavily influenced by the German Expressionist era. [^257^] Wright, a friend and fellow wine lover, was "easily persuaded to allow the reproduction of his 'Lost Women' on Bloomer Creek's new Tanzen Dame label in exchange for a case of wine or two." [^257^] The name Tanzen Dame roughly means "Dance, Lady?" in German — an homage to the great wines of Germany, Austria, and Alsace. [^257^]
Debra continues to exhibit her paintings nationally and internationally. Her work was recently featured in exhibitions at the Brattleboro Museum and Art Center, Argazzi Art, and the Delaware Art Museum. [^265^] Her artistic vision — moody, atmospheric, deeply connected to the natural world — permeates every aspect of Bloomer Creek, from the labels to the tasting room to the very philosophy of the winery. For Kim and Debra, wine is a form of artistic expression capable of concentrating experience and memory — "haze over melting snow; freshly turned earth" — and they make every effort to savour the poetic nuance inherent in every season. [^253^]
"As winegrowers in a cool climate, our best advice came from a wilderness guide I knew long ago. Tap Tapley said: 'I knew I could outlast the situation even if I had to walk. You need to plan on taking up where you left off — where you can't do something any more. You have to keep inching along and you will finish.' There have been many times in a season of growing grapes in the Finger Lakes where we just put 'one foot in front of the other' until we are finished and wine is in the bottle."
— Debra Bermingham
The Bloomer Creek Range
Bloomer Creek Vineyard produces a focused portfolio of natural, organic wines from its three Finger Lakes vineyards. The range centres on Riesling — dry, off-dry, and late-harvest expressions from Auten Vineyard, Morehouse Road, and Barrow Vineyard — alongside Cabernet Franc, Pinot Noir, Gewürztraminer, Chardonnay, and the Edelzwicker blend. [^257^] All wines are hand-harvested, fermented with native yeast, minimally processed, and bottled with little to no filtering or fining. [^254^] Most wines trade around $20 — extraordinary value for wines of this complexity and authenticity. [^256^] Prices are approximate and in USD.
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Bloomer Creek Vineyard
Bloomer Creek Vineyard is a natural wine producer located in the Finger Lakes region of New York. It is owned and operated by Kim Engle and Deb Bermingham.
Address: 5301 NY-414, Hector, NY 14841
Public Access: The winery's website does not list regular tasting room hours. It is best to contact them directly for information on tastings or purchases.
Retailers & Distributors
Due to their focus on small-scale, non-interventionist winemaking, Bloomer Creek's wines are primarily found at specialized wine merchants.
New York City
East Village Wines & Spirits: https://eastvillagewines.com/
Harlem Wine and Spirits: https://btlharlem.com/
Bowler Wine: https://www.bowlerwine.com/producer/bloomer-creek (Distributor)
Astor Wines & Spirits: https://www.astorwines.com/
Other Locations
Noble Root Wine & Spirits: https://nobleroot716.com/
Saratoga Wine: https://www.saratogawine.com/
White Horse Wine and Spirits: https://www.whitehorsewine.com/