Ria's Riesling Aurora 2025
We have 19 in stock (Inventory is live and accurate)
The Land
Ria's Wines farms on Seneca Lake, but its Aurora Riesling comes from the next lake east. The fruit grows at Lake Road Vineyards on the eastern side of Cayuga Lake, the second largest of the Finger Lakes at about 38 miles long and up to 431 feet deep. That volume of water stays unfrozen through winter, softening cold snaps and buffering frost in spring and fall. The Cayuga Lake AVA averages a 165- to 170-day growing season, against roughly 145 days for much of the region, with deep, well-drained soils formed in high-lime glacial till over shale bedrock. Those conditions give Riesling from the Finger Lakes a little more time to ripen on the vine, which shows in this wine as riper stone fruit layered over the region's signature acidity.
The Wine
Despite the name, Aurora is not the Aurore hybrid grape. Ria's Riesling Aurora 2025 is 100% Riesling, a Finger Lakes white wine made in a dry style, with about 4 grams per liter of residual sugar and 13 percent alcohol. The house approach for whites is a touch of skin contact and long, gentle press cycles, then spontaneous fermentation, minimal new oak, and no fining. Skin contact and slow pressing pull extra texture from the fruit, which is why the mid-palate here carries more weight than its acidity would suggest. Expect ripe peach, nectarine, and wet stone on the nose, then tangerine and orange peel, bright acidity against a supple middle, and a ripe, lingering finish.
The People
Mike Penn fell for Riesling while working at Domaine Zind-Humbrecht in Alsace, after studying winemaking and viticulture in California and working harvests in France, New Zealand, Washington, and California. He met Ria D'Aversa in California; she holds degrees in botany and viticulture and has spent 15 years managing vineyards in California and New York. The couple moved their family to the Finger Lakes, founded Ria's Wines in 2022, and in 2024 bought the former Bagley's Poplar Ridge estate in Hector, whose vines Dave Bagley planted in 1980. Aurora reflects the other half of their model: partnering with growers they trust. Ryan Fessenden of Lake Road Vineyards, whom they call a friend and fellow grower, supplies the fruit, and Mike's cellar lets that Cayuga site speak.
Food Pairing
Dry, bright, and textured, this Riesling belongs with lake-country cooking. Pan-fried trout with lemon brown butter and toasted almonds lets the acidity slice through the butter while the citrus peel echoes the lemon. Thick pork chops seared with apples, sage, and a splash of cider vinegar match the wine's stone fruit and lift. Shrimp summer rolls with a peanut-lime dipping sauce use the wine's freshness against the rich sauce. A fresh goat cheese with local honey rounds it out. Keep a bottle in the fridge door for the nights when dinner is whatever the farmers market had.
We ship wine to most states with a $100 minimum order for shipping. We don't ship spirits nor beer.
Weather shipping advisory: Orders placed during times of extreme heat or extreme cold will be held for no charge until more favorable weather returns.
New York's top wine growing area, the Finger Lakes AVA sits on the shore of eleven deep, glacial lakes with Seneca and Cayuga being to two most famous. While the region has grown wine for nearly two centuries, it's most successful grape, Riesling, has only been commercially farmed since the 1970s. The cool climate with moderation from the lakes creates one of the best and most distinctive growing areas in North America with dry, minerally Rieslings and light, expressive reds.
New York - Finger Lakes
Riesling is a truly noble grape, known for its incredibly high acidity and a flavor profile that can range from bone dry to lusciously sweet. Germany is its heartland, and it's responsible for some of the world's most age-worthy examples, but Riesling also thrives in Austria, where it usually is dry. In Alsace, it takes on a slightly richer texture, while in parts of Australia, like the Clare and Eden Valleys, it displays a uniquely powerful and lime-tinged aromatic profile. This is a grape that has no problem showcasing its origins, and it's a fantastic example of how one variety can show many different expressions, each with its own unique appeal.
