Richie Pisacano brings an extremely valuable 38+ years of experience to Wölffer Estate. Long before the 55 acres were planted, Richie was the architect of many of the North Fork's best-known vineyards.
All our practices have proven to expose and accentuate our unique terroir at Roanoke Vineyards. In order to unleash terroir, you first have to identify it and believe in it. I was a skeptic for years about terroir, but once found, it has become intoxicating (pun intended). It's elusive and difficult to harness, but the gentler you are in the vineyard, and with the grapes, and the more you trust your intuition as to your decisions intended to present terroir, the more it will take hold and be expressed in your wines.
"It won't be easy or simple, but for the long-term economic and environmental viability of our winegrowing regions, we need to prioritize sustainability," says Sam Filler, executive director of the New York Wine & Grape Foundation (NYWGF). "But that doesn't just mean viticultural practices, although we do ultimately want to reduce our reliance on agrochemicals. It also means encouraging biodiversity around vineyards, creating environmentally responsible packaging, reducing energy output and thinking about the welfare of workers in the vineyard and the communities around our vineyards."
We want our community to think local and drink local, and for that, we need to do our part in keeping the area safe, beautiful, and healthy. All of these tactics for sustainability are anchored in the betterment of our crops, air, soil, and water. With that, we ask people to consider buying locally sourced sustainable products to do their part.
Sustainability makes us pay more attention to details both large and small. When you pay more attention to what you’re doing, you typically achieve better results. I believe that since we’ve been in the program our groundwater is cleaner, our vines are healthier, our workers are happier, and our wines are more delicious.
