A Visit in History
1962 - 2022
Our most in-depth experience, the 1886 Food & Wine Experience caters to those with a deeper interest in the history, grape growing, and winemaking at Dr. Konstantin Frank.
Back to our Roots
In the early days of our winery, Dr. Konstantin Frank won the hearts of wine consumers not just for his incredible viticulture innovations but for the one-on-one personal tasting experiences he provided. When our winery didn’t have a formal tasting room, Konstantin would invite visitors onto the front porch of his home overlooking Keuka Lake, where they would spend time savoring his wines enjoying conversation and most importantly, learning. Often times those visits included Eugenia’s culinary treats to pair with the wines.
60 year later these visitors still remember the personal wine tasting experiences that they had with Konstantin and his wife Eugenia. Our 1886 Food & Wine Experience brings us back to our roots. Back to the days when every tasting was intimate and personal. When guests could take their time, learn, savor our wines, and experience the Dr. Frank legacy firsthand.
1886 Food & Wine Experience
Offered May 19th through October 30th
The 1886 Food & Wine Experience is located within the beautiful historic Chateau Frank and features original fieldstone walls and wood beam ceilings combined with modern and contemporary decor.
Each day features a unique vineyard or winemaking experience paired with wines. Afterward, guests return to the 1886 Reserve Room for a seated flight of wines paired with creative and seasonal small bites.
Each reservation will be seated at individual tables.
$75 per person. $55 for club members.
Please email us at least one week ahead of time if you have any food allergies or dietary restrictions.
Thursdays: Vineyard Experience
Fridays: Sparkling Experience
Saturdays: Vineyard Experience
Sundays: Barrel Experience
Two Seatings Each Day: 11AM & 2PM
Availability
Limited to 6 total tables, 4 guests maximum per table.
Restrictions
Sorry, no pets or guests under 21 years of age.
Book your table here:
Vineyard Experience
Every Thursday and Saturday 11AM & 2PM
An in-the-vineyard exploration of the rich history of grape growing at Dr. Konstantin Frank.
A wine educator will lead you through several vineyard sites where you will learn about grafting, the parts of the vine, the current growth cycle of the vine, and other vineyard practices. Wines will be sampled in the vineyard.
At the conclusion of the tour, a seated flights of wines from the Dr. Konstantin Frank portfolio are paired with chef’s seasonal bites
Sparkling Experience
Every Friday 11AM & 2PM
A behind-the-scenes exploration of the rich history of traditional method sparkling wine.
The tour will begin with an explaination of our estate vineyards focusing of the classic Champagne grapes Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Pinot Meunier. The tour continues underground to our historic cellar built in 1886. Here you will learn the process of Methode Champenoise while tasting samples of our current releases.
At the conclusion of the tour, a seated flights of wines from the entire Dr. Konstantin Frank portfolio are paired with chef’s seasonal bites
Barrel Experience
Every Sunday 11AM & 2PM
A behind-the-scenes exploration of our underground barrel cellar.
After a warm welcome at our 1886 Reserve Room, we head to the Dr. Frank barrel cellar where you will learn the process of barrel production, the different types of oak and where they originate from, and alternatives to barrel aging with exotic vessels. We will taste examples of wines aging in barrels.
At the conclusion of the tour, a seated flights of wines from the Dr. Konstantin Frank portfolio are paired with chef’s seasonal bites
VENUE:
Chateau Frank
Built in 1886 by Philip Argus, a German immigrant, the building was once the Western New York Wine Company. Like many Hammondsport wineries, the Western New York Wine Company went out of business during prohibition.
In 1980, Willy Frank, son of Dr. Konstantin Frank, purchased the property with the intention of producing the region’s first Méthode champenoise sparkling wine from traditional grapes like Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Pinot Meunier.
We released our first Brut sparkling wine in 1985.
Today, the original historic underground cellar is home to our sparkling wine aging program. These wines will age in perfect natural conditions up to 5 years before release. The building is an architectural gem on Keuka Lake with its natural fieldstone walls and is listed on the National Registry of Historical Sites.
Our Reviews
Read what others are saying
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There’s a reason they’ve been the best winery in the Fingerlakes. They make great products and have a wonderful team of employees to make your experience the best it can... read more be. I have yet to meet an employee there that isn’t passionate about what they do and it rubs off on the consumer. It doesn’t hurt that their facility is beautiful, the wines are good and the view is breathtaking
January 15, 2023Excellent wines, lake friendly farm. Bluebird boxes around the vineyards, and plenty of bluebirds and other birds frequenting the property. Also observed a Red-tailed Hawk hunting the vineyard. These are... read more much better choices for pest control than pesticides.
January 13, 2023Visited in November 2022, not a busy time in the Finger Lakes. We were doing the Seneca Lake Deck The Halls that we have been doing for decades. Our daughters... read more were able to join us this year for the first time. Although Dr Franks is not part of "Deck The Halls" we have been and wanted our daughters to visit. After about a 30min drive off the Seneca Event with 5 cars in their parking lot we were refused a wine tasting because we didn't have a reservation. It seems that the person who greeted us actually got great pleasure telling us we weren't able to do a tasting based on the obvious smirk that he had on his face. We have been going to Dr Franks for years, but this was our last trek off Seneca Lake to see them. Go to Bully Hill that is near by as they appreciate you coming and are very welcoming !!!
November 20, 2022We had been trying to get out to this winery for a few years - we have family in nearby Geneva. I must say the experience exceeded even our... read more inflated expectations.
We made reservations in advance, even though we didn't expect large crowds in late October. Those made the process simple when we arrived.
We tasted several wonderful wines & really enjoyed the view of Autumn colors around Keuka Lake. The roving guides were quite knowledgable and shared some very interesting stories about the history of Dr. Konstantin Frank. We all learned a lot.
Highly recommended & worth the drive.
November 17, 2022We had our wine tasting on the outdoor deck with beautiful views of Keuka Lake in Autumn. The staff was friendly and knowledgeable. The wines were excellent. ... read more Between the two of us we tasted 9 different wines, and really enjoyed all but one! We think Dr. Frank is the best of the FInger Lakes. Not to be missed!!
November 11, 2022Perfect in every way. Views,hospitality, great wine, service. We loved this visit. We will return. Genuine beautiful MY wines
November 10, 2022After many years of visits to the Finger Lakes, we finally made our way to Keuka Lake, specifically to visit Dr. Frank’s. Our only regret is that it took us... read more this long to make a reservation and drive over there.
We enjoyed a warm, sunny November afternoon with amazing views from the deck while tasting some fabulous wines. The whole experience was outstanding from the friendly and welcoming greeting upon arrival, our table and views of the vineyard, our wine educator, and of course, the wines. All were excellent. In particular, we enjoyed the Blanc de Blanc, Celebre Rose, Cab Franc and the Saperavi.
If you enjoy great wines and a professional yet welcoming tasting experience, be sure to visit here. We will certainly return to restock our wine racks.
November 9, 2022 -
We go to wine country for the wine selections. We select the winery visits for the experience . We were not in the least disappointed by the 1886... read more Food and Wine Experience.
We signed up ahead of time for the two hour "adventure". It was significantly more fun and educational than expected. The tour included a blind wine tasting (could not even see the color of the wine), a trip through the vineyards (grape picking and tasting allowed) and then a trip through the production facility including a cask tasting. We returned to the tasting room for four perfectly paired wine/food selections. Our guide, Alan, was fantastic. And the wines ... all enjoyable and worthy of purchase!
This was our first visit to the Dr. Konstantin Frank Winery and it will not be our last.
November 6, 2022We did a tasting flight on November 5th and loved Dr. Franks. We were met by Steve at the front counter, who is welcoming and got us excited for the... read more experience. Then, Sue, who is a part of the Dr. Franks family, sat us and got us a welcome wine. Ryan and Lauren served us and allowed us to have a wonderful experience- perfect balance between sharing knowledge while letting us enjoy our time. We each enjoyed 5 wines on a flight with an absolutely delicious and beautiful charcuterie board. Paige and Danielle were also great. Thanks to the whole Dr. Franks family for a wonderful afternoon. If you haven’t gone to this winery, you need to!
November 5, 2022We had a varied sampling of white wines, all of which were very good. The presenters are very knowledgeable and fun. We are looking forward to the wine pairing in... read more November.
November 2, 2022Servers are knowledgeable and friendly, and the wines are fantastic. We've been wine club members for years, and have never been disappointed. Congratulations on 60th anniversary!
November 1, 2022We did a wine tasting on a chilly rainy day in late September. We sat under an awning on the patio, managed to stay dry and take in breathtaking... read more views. The wines were very good, but the highlight of our experience was talking with James. He brought out the wines, described each one and talked to us about the history of the winery and his personal experience with Dr. Frank. A really nice guy with a wealth of information and made our experience there a truly memorable one.
October 29, 2022What a pleasant visit! 70 degrees on the patio overlooking keuka lake with the leaves in all the glory of autumn! great wines served by knowledgeable and friendly staff.... read more The wines od Dr frank are some of the best in FLX and highly recomennded1 Will definitely return on our next visit!
October 27, 2022Always top-notch wines and knowledgeable, friendly servers. My favorite! I visit often with friends!
Dr. Frank’s wines never disappoint. There is indoor and outdoor seating, which... read more is great on a sunny day. The events are terrific as well.
October 26, 2022My husband and i had a wonderful relaxed experience here today. The wines were fine and the weather and views were incrdeible. We will definitely be ack and highly... read more recommend. It was highly personalized!
October 24, 2022Great wine, well priced considering the quality, and an enjoyable tasting experience.
They have upgraded the tasting area, and the overall tasting experience is much more customer... read more friendly. There are other good wineries in the area, with some great wines, but the Dr. Frank wines are more consistent in terms of quality, in my opinion.
October 24, 2022 -
This has always been my favorite winery in the Finger Lakes. Today we tried their 1886 tasting experience. Wow! What a delightful afternoon! Alan gave us... read more a fascinating tour of the vineyards and barrel rooms. Then they offered us an amazing wine and tapas paring. Both the wine and food were wonderful. All in all, this was another great experience at this lovely winery.
October 23, 2022Beautiful outdoor seating and fabulous wine. Our pourer,lovely Graham, was attentive and knowledgeable. We were able to sample several wines of our choice and loved every one.
October 23, 2022The drive to the winery on Keuka Lake was a incredible combination of the mid-October Finger Lake leaves and an interesting drive from Penn Yan.
We got... read more a reservation the day before and we were told it was the last one. You had to guarantee it with a credit card. The winery seemed very busy but we had a very short wait. We sat outside on a deck overlooking Keuka Lake. The scenery is spectacular. I might argue, not being the wine connoisseur two of our group of four are, the scenery was the high spot. We were served by a wonderful lady from Northern Ohio, Lynne who was simply incredible in making us feel at home and understand her wine selection.
We started with a healthy pour of the dry Riesling. It is roughly in the middle of the offering menu. It was, I thought a nice start. We then selected 5 wines from the menu after being “educated” by Lynne on the selections.
The wine was served in a very interesting wine caddy. It looked like a spiral staircase with 5 holders for standard wine glass. The tastings seemed to be a strong pour from my point of view.
Not surprisingly, the afternoon with a medium breeze blowing in October and a sun that kept dodging in and out of the clouds would leave chilled to rather warm. Dressed in layers was the way to go.
I found the wines to be good and I found one of the desert ruby wines a real treat. Lynne was a great hostess and I think we wouldn’t hesitate to do it again.
October 18, 2022Used to be a humble destination to sample great wines and enjoy a beautiful setting. However, they have gotten very “bougie” for lack of a better term. Upon arrival... read more on a spare of the moment day trip I learned that must have a reservation for tastings for which you must pay, and must buy 4 bottles to have the cost waived. I used to be able to go sample a few wines complimentary to decide what I wanted to buy but unfortunately that has changed drastically.
October 17, 2022The tour guide was fabulous, very informative!! The wine and food pairing was exceptional, can’t wait to come back again.
October 14, 2022The "must" if headed to Keuka Lake area. Delicious and complex wines-- I gained a new respect for wines I hadn't experienced since Sonoma. Staff are super knowledgeable and... read more passionate about this place. No large crowds, you will want a reservation. One of the best views on the lake. A must every time you are in the area
October 12, 2022