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Genesee Valley Publications | gvpennysaver.com Visit Naples NY | naplesvalleyny.com 3Naples Grape Festival p. 44 Services Guide
September 25 & 26, 2021
10:00am-5:00pm 137 N. Main St., Naples, NY
Naples Grape Festival
The Naples Grape Festival is without a doubt one of the most well-known—and tasty—events of the Finger Lakes Region. Every year in September, festival goers fill the picturesque Village of Naples to overflowing, and this idyllic Finger Lakes town of 2,500 becomes one of more than 30,000 for two days straight.
That’s over 1,200%! What’s the draw? There is so much to see and enjoy at the Naples Grape Festival which is proudly presented by the Naples Rotary Club and the Naples Historical Society. The festival is a celebration of everything “grape,” from traditional jams and jellies to unusual items like cotton candy, fudge, ice cream, cookies, and grilled grapes! Wine and wine slushies, local cuisine, Finger Lakes art and craft items, and local, regional, and even national, original music acts are some of the event’s highlights. Grape pie, a Naples specialty, is front and center during the festival, and bakers sell 60,000-70,000 grape pies annually. From the World’s Greatest Grape Pie Contest to the myriad of pie makers throughout the town, Concord grape pie is an icon in Naples, “the Grape Pie Capitol of the World.”
Holy grapes, Naples becomes one big festival?
Yes and no. The festival is enjoyed throughout Naples, and visitors are encouraged to explore the village and experience all it has to offer. However, only vendors on the Naples High School grounds and across from Naples Memorial Town Hall are a part of the official festival. Proceeds from these vendors benefit the Naples Rotary Club and the Naples Historical Society. These two organizations take pride in the festival, carefully vetting their vendors.
This sounds like a long-standing tradition! It is! The festival originated in 1961 as a way to celebrate the bountiful grape harvests of the Naples Valley. Held annually, funds from the Grape Festival provide crucial support for both the Naples Historical Society and the Naples Rotary. The Naples Grape Festival went on hiatus in the early 1980s but soon returned in the 1990s. Today, it only continues to grow and thrive, featuring one-of-a-kind music and cuisine, talented artisans, and area wine makers.
Did somebody say wine? For almost a decade, the Naples Grape Festival has hosted its extraordinarily popular wine tasting area, typically featuring 10-12 wineries and perhaps a brewery. The muchanticipated 2021 return of the Brahme-Moore Craft Beverage Area is slated to include many returning vintners as well as new wineries, breweries, and a local distillery or two. ID is required, and guests pay an admission fee to experience all available tastings.
Naples Grape Festival officials point out that, while they are hopeful the festival will take place, it may look different this year on account of health and safety protocols. Even so, the Naples Grape Festival will continue to successfully combine regional art and creators with locally sourced food and drinks to create a Finger Lakes experience must-have. Stop by and discover the fun for yourself!
Sustainably GROWN Locall y PRODUCED PROD U C E D
Visit us today!
& OTHER FRESH BAKED GOODS
137 S. MAIN ST. NAPLES, NY (585) 374-2460
Small town service with a large selection
Mon-Sat 9-8 • Sun. 12-5
Monica's Pies
Pies & Grape Goodies
If you have been to Naples (and even if you haven’t!), you have probably heard of Monica’s Pies. For nearly 40 years, Monica’s Pies has been a staple—and fan favorite— of visitors to Naples, the “grape pie capitol of the world.” Already locally in demand, Monica’s Pies gained national recognition when it was featured in a New York Times article (Nov. 7, 2004), Better Homes and Gardens (June 2005) and Country Discoveries (Sept/Oct 2002).
Today, Monica’s Pies bakes 25 varieties of pies year-round, including a very popular Chicken Pot Pie and a Three Cheese Spinach Quiche. It also offers an impressive variety of homemade jams, jellies, local fruit conserves, and other seasonal specialties. Nestled between Bristol Hills just four miles south of Canandaigua Lake and a mile and half north of the village of Naples, Monica’s Pies is definitely worth a stop and a slice…or two!
Born and raised in Naples, pie maker Monica Schenk and her mother, Katherine Clark, started making grape pies, still Monica’s signature pie, from plenteous local Concord grapes. Mrs. Clark’s pies were already much sought after, and Monica’s Pies quickly took off, becoming increasingly popular and soon outgrowing its roadside stand and Mrs. Clark’s kitchen. After moving
FRESH BAKED PIES YEARROUND Cindy’s Grape Pies
5 Academy St., Naples, NY
(585) 374-6122 www.CindysGrape.com
to and renovating their four-story “pie barn” on Route 21, Monica and her mother, the “crust expert,” soon received a call from The Food Network’s Food Finds Show looking to do a feature on their famous grape pies. An incredibly successful business, Monica’s Pies keeps Monica and her crew of very talented and dedicated friends busy producing her signature pies and fillings.
“My mother was a wonderful cook and always made me welcome and comfortable in her kitchen,” said Monica whose mother sadly passed away in 2014.The culinary skills her mother taught her would change her life. “Making pies allowed me to stay home with my young family. The pandemic has been difficult, but we are going to keep making our pies!”
Monica’s Pies
7599 Route 21 Naples, NY 14512 585-374-2139
Call us for our hours www.monicaspies.com
Grape Pies available year ‘round.
Cindy’s Pies
Serving famous Naples Grape Pies and other delicious scratch made baked goods
Just off Main Street in the Village of Naples visitors will spy area favorite, Cindy’s Pies. This popular pie go-to first opened its iconic Dutch door in 1978 and has been selling a growing variety of fruit pies for more than 40 years. Cindy’s is most famous for its mouthwatering grape pie, a local phenomenon made from Concord grapes in Naples, “the grape capitol of the world.” Satisfying both sides of the grape pie divide, Cindy’s carries both traditional and crumble-top pie crusts. Delicious tarts, cookies, and other fruit and seasonal pies made with fruits from area farms are also available throughout the year. Local favorites include Cindy’s luscious chocolate chip cookies and its winter specialty salted maple tart with locally sourced maple syrup from Wohlschlegels Naples Maple Farm.
“We do all we can to support the community as much as they support us,” said Lisa Drumheller and her husband, Matt Cadrette, current owners of Cindy’s Pies. The couple took the helm of the bustling business just before the Naples Grape Festival in the fall of 2019. Now, in their second year, they proudly continue to carry on Cindy’s legacy. “We usually see a line around the corner for the entire weekend!” said Matt and Lisa.
Cindy’s Pies is open year-round, weekends only during the winter. Matt and Lisa are always experimenting and looking for new flavors to keep customers excited with some fresh possibilities this summer season. “Looking for a flavor that is not on their menu? Give Cindy’s Pies a call or send them a message!” encouraged Lisa and Matt. “We are happy to see what we can make fresh, just for you!
Red Cat Cellars
Situated on West Avenue overlooking North Main Street, Hazlitt’s Red Cat Cellars, one of the Finger Lakes’ premier wineries, stands among picturesque vineyards. Hazlitt 1852 Vineyards was founded in 1985 by 5th generation couple, Jerry and Elaine Hazlitt. Red Cat transcended to become an award-winning brand recognized beyond the Finger Lakes Region.
Cats? I thought we were talking about wine!
“Cat” is short for Catawba, a robust, very historically prevalent, Native American grape. “During harvest, growers would say, ‘It’s time to go pick the Cats!’” explained Brad Phillips, Director of Sales & Business Development at Hazlitt 1852 Vineyards. “Jerry Hazlitt decided he wanted to create a red Catawba, and Red Cat was born.”
Red Cat, an award-winning sweet red wine made from native Catawba and red hybrid grapes, was a near instant success and the first in a family of “Cat” wines which includes White Cat and Pink Cat. In 1985, the Hazlitts made a sweet Catawba wine they christened Pink Cat. In 1989, the wine was renamed Cabin Fever in honor of one of the oldest buildings on Seneca Lake, a structure said to be built by a six times greatgrandfather of the Hazlitts. In 2020, the original name was restored, although the wine remains the same.
Why did fruit growers become vintners?
Although the commercial winemaking is a recent venture for the Hazlitt family, viticulture has been their lifeblood for just shy of 170 years. In its 5th generation and after over a century of grape growing, the Hazlitt family was faced with a drastic drop in crop prices. The family had to make a choice of selling the land and getting out of the business or finding another solution. True to their pioneering spirits, Jerry, an ardent home winemaker, and his wife, Elaine, created their own alternative and founded Hazlitt 1852 Vineyards.
Having outgrown its Hector, New York property and discovering that the historic Widmer Winery in Naples was on the market, Hazlitt entered into discussions with seller Constellation and the Town of Naples. “As a fellow local family, the Hazlitts wanted to continue the tradition of Finger Lakes winemaking in Naples,” shared Phillips. Hazlitt purchased Widmer Winery and opened the doors to its Red Cat Cellars in 2011, renovating the winery and making it the shining star of the Finger Lakes wine industry.
“The Naples community truly embraced our Red Cat Cellars,” Phillips said. “We love participating in the Naples Grape Festival each year, and we hope and trust that we have been good, responsible, and sustainable neighbors.” Hazlitt’s Red Cat Cellars also maintains a complimentary hiking trail for the enjoyment of visitors and community members alike.
Anything new as Red Cat Cellars celebrates its 10th anniversary in Naples?
Red Cat Cellars is excited to welcome a new microbrewery, Engine 14 Brewery, to its Naples property. At the same time, Hazlitt is celebrating the 10th anniversary of its business East Coast Crush & Co-Pack (EC3), a facility which bottles, packs, and ships fine wines from all over the world. “We like to say we our wine team takes these wines all the way from soil to shelf,” said Phillips. Additionally, Shannon Hazlitt Harts, daughter of 6th generation Doug Hazlitt and a Syracuse graduate, has launched a new podcast, Great Times Behind the Wines, interviewing a variety of experts from vineyard managers to winemakers to owners and offering a peek behind the wine industry curtain.
“We still have space in our amazingly huge Naples complex, so there is plenty of room for more creative thinking in the future,” Phillips stated. As ever, the Hazlitt family is committed to staying true to their original virtues and passion for heritage, fierce independence and creating the highest quality products and wine experience available today.
Get your Glow on with Naples Grapes
They are colorful, juicy, sweet and one of America’s favorite fruits. We’re talking about a Naples specialty: grapes. You probably already know they are good for your health with wide ranging benefits such as antiinflammatory effects and increasing blood flow to the brain. But did you know grapes are also beneficial for your skin? From grapes seeds to grape vines to grape skins, grapes are taking beauty to a whole new level. How do they do it? Antioxidants and resveratrol.
Grapes are overflowing with antioxidants and a wide range of phytonutrients. Concord grapes (a classic wine and pie-making grape popularly grown in Naples) and purple grapes have significantly higher total antioxidant activities than red or green grapes which were very similar, according to a study found on the National Center for Biotechnology Information. Resveratrol is a natural polyphenol. Blogger Viktoria of The Lifestyle Files adds that resveratrol has potent antioxidant effects and other health benefits, such as some protection from UV light, infections, and toxins. Here are just a few things grapes can do for your skin.
Improve suppleness: One of the ways grapes help give skin a more youthful glow is by improving blood circulation and skin elasticity. Full of vitamin E, grape seed oil improves the skin’s ability to retain moisture while working to gently exfoliate dead skin cells. Research has shown that grape seed oil improves skin’s moisture, softness, and its ability to bounce back. Cue those antioxidants again! Grapes’ antioxidant properties work to neutralize free radicals which damage collagen and lipids.
Soothe & Moisturize: Grapes have been found to soothe a wide variety of skin irritations from acne to sunburn while simultaneously helping skin retain moisture. Research shows grapes, full of resveratrol, may have therapeutic properties which include antiinflammatory and anti-redness effects. Resveratrol has also been found to improve and protect your skin’s surface while fighting to keep irritants and other environmental negatives at bay. Grape seed oil is also high in linoleic acid, one of the must abundant fatty acids in skin’s epidermis. Linoleic acid helps improve the condition and barrier strength of your skin. Consider using products with grape seed oil, with its protective qualities, to help protect skin from razor burns while shaving.
Support Anti-Aging: You may not be able to turn back time, but thanks to its powerful antioxidants, grapes may be able to help you look as though you did! Grape’s antioxidants can minimize wrinkles and fine lines while reducing the appearance of dark spots and hyperpigmentation. Not just for wrinkles, grapes are beneficial to skin of all ages. With its known antimicrobial properties, grapes have been used as an ally in the fight against acne. Thanks to their moisturizing properties, grape antioxidants can attack acne causing bacteria without drying the skin.
Smooth & Heal: It is said scars tell a story, but many of us wish our scars would whisper, rather than shout. Enter grapes! Studies have shown that grapes can minimize the appearance of existing scars and stretch marks while also helping to heal current wounds. Grapes encourage angiogenesis (the growth of new blood vessels) in wounds, creating a more favorable environment for new cell growth.
Visit Naples year-round for grape products and in autumn for freshly picked Concord grapes!
