Finger Lakes Winery Publishes Groundbreaking History of Region, Winery

Dundee, NY, January 30, 2014 --(PR.com)-- Villa Bellangelo Winery is proud to announce the publication of the second edition of "A Sense of Place: A Discovery of Finger Lakes Wine History and Villa Bellangelo Winery." "A Sense of Place" is a first-of-its-kind narrative history and biography, and Villa Bellangelo is believed to be the first winery in the world to publish a history of its wine region and winery, as a tool to deepen the customer relationship with its premium wine brand. Currently, the first edition of "A Sense of Place" is available as an audiobook through Audible, and the second expanded edition, set for release on February 1, 2014, will be available in both soft-cover on Amazon.com and other online retailers, and for Kindle.

Media and bloggers are entitled to a review copy of the book – pdf or soft cover. If you are interested, please contact the author at chrismissick@bellangelo.com.

The buzz around the Finger Lakes continues to grow as vintners from around the world are discovering the secret that the Finger Lakes is the premiere cold climate wine growing region in the United States. With the addition of Paul Hobbs and Johannes Selbach, and their Riesling venture on Seneca Lake, the eyes of the world are turning toward the region and finding that the Finger Lakes is producing world-class authentic and expressive wines that are crisp in acidity, and rich in flavor.

In the midst of these exciting times in the Finger Lakes, Villa Bellangelo Winery is proud to announce the publication of the second edition of A Sense of Place: A Discovery of Finger Lakes Wine History and Villa Bellangelo Winery.

"A Sense of Place" details the exciting history of the early sparkling wine houses established in the 19th century, the growth of the region thanks to pioneers like Charles Fournier and Dr. Konstantin Frank, and the seminal political battles that ushered in the Farm Winery Act of 1976, and opened up the state for boutique wineries and fine wine production.

Author and co-owner of Villa Bellangelo, Christopher Missick states, "When my wife and I moved to the Finger Lakes from California several years ago, I searched desperately for a book that outlined the history of the development of the Finger Lakes wine industry. There were many excellent resources for examining different eras in the region's development, but there wasn't a single treatise to take the reader from the first cultivation of grapes in 1797, to the passage of the Farm Winery Act of 1976."

"I set out to craft a narrative that shared the fascinating history of the Finger Lakes as a wine producing region. Few people realize that the Finger Lakes was a producer of world class wines as early as 1870. My goal was to set the record straight and fill the historical gap, providing a single accessible guide for anybody seeking to learn more about the Finger Lakes wine industry. Based on feedback from the first edition, that's exactly what I did," Missick adds. The second edition deepens its instruction on wine tasting, and adds sections on two wine grape growers that Bellangelo works with.

A Sense of Place isn't just a history book though, it's a deeply personal conversation with its readers about the family, the growers, and the dreams that the Missick family has for wines made at Villa Bellangelo. The book documents the history of grape cultivation that began on the property in 1866 at the hands of Dr. Byron Spence. It tells the personal tales of Jeff Morris, John Tuller, Marty Gibson, and Jim, Eric and Tina Hazlitt, all renown growers of super premium wine grapes on the sloping shores of Seneca Lake.

Finally, the book offers a simple introduction to wine tasting in a format that instructs the reader how to properly use the tasting journal included in the back of the text.

Innovations in the book include QR codes that let readers delve deeper into the topic being discussed. The audiobook for the second edition should be avilable in the summer of 2014.

Villa Bellangelo is a premium Finger Lakes winery located on the sloping hillsides of Seneca Lake, and is a member of the Seneca Lake Wine Trail. A producer of fine Riesling, Gewurztraminer, Chardonnay, Cabernet Franc, and Pinot Noir, the winery is situated at the base of the oldest remaining vineyard in Yates County, planted in 1866. The winery is located at 150 Poplar Point Rd., Dundee, NY 14837, and can be found on the web at http://www.Bellangelo.com. Its newly renovated tasting room offers sweeping views of Seneca Lake, and is open every day from 10:00 am.