With picnic blankets spreading across rocky hillsides and tasting rooms pouring small-lot bottles, the Catskills’ latest visitor trend is taking root: vineyard-hopping and sipping locally made, natural wines. At dear native grapes outside Walton - where husband-and-wife vintners Alfie Alcántara and Deanna Urciuoli revive heritage varieties like Delaware alongside hardy new hybrids - weekenders and neighbors are sampling sparkling and still pours, channeling fresh agritourism dollars into the region’s economy.
dear native grapes is eight minutes outside Walton’s village center where rows of young vines reach into the sky. The winery is part experiment, part love letter to America’s lost viticultural history.
The couple opened their tasting room at 17 Crawford Road in Walton in July, welcoming guests every Saturday from noon to 7 p.m. Already, the mix of locals and weekend visitors have begun spreading picnic blankets on the grass and sampling the vineyard’s first sparkling and still wines.
“This has been a dream in the making for years,” Alcántara said in an interview. “We fell in love with natural wine because it tasted alive, expressive. And when we learned the history of American grapes — how so many varieties were lost after Prohibition — we felt called to try to bring some of them back.”
Natural wine, as the pair explain it, is wine made from organically or sustainably farmed grapes, produced with minimal intervention. For Alcántara and Urciuoli, that commitment dovetails with their focus on heritage grapes once grown widely across New York.
Among them is Delaware, a variety that in the 1800s was heralded as the jewel of American grapes but is now nearly forgotten. They grow an acre of it, alongside rarities like Wine King and Empire State. Their plantings also include newer hybrids from Cornell University and the University of Minnesota, such as Petite Pearl and Frontenac — grapes bred to withstand the Catskills’ short growing season and harsh winters.
“It’s a big experiment,” Alcántara said. “We’re trying to see which varieties can thrive here with organic and biodynamic farming. Some of these newer crosses are bulletproof, while the heritage grapes connect us back to a much older story.”
The land itself has tested them. The vineyard sits on shallow bedrock, where each row of vines had to be carved into rocky soil by hand. Late frosts in spring and early cold snaps in fall are constant threats.
“Establishing the vineyard definitely shaved a few years off our lives,” Alcántara said with a laugh. “But with the help of friends and family, we did it. And seeing the vines adapt, finding their way through the rock, has been one of the most rewarding things.”
What surprised them most was not the climate, but the community. Longtime farmers have offered advice; new agricultural projects in the county provided inspiration. “We had no idea we’d find such a supportive and knowledgeable community here,” Alcántara said.
This year’s release features three wines. A sparkling white from Delaware grapes co-fermented with honey from a neighboring farm; a sparkling rosé made from Steuben, a Cornell variety developed in the 1920s; and a still amber-hued wine from Catawba, once the backbone of New York’s sparkling wine industry.
The rosé has quickly become a favorite for its strawberry nose and crisp minerality. The Delaware sparkler, tropical and juicy, carries faint honey aromatics from its fermentation. The Catawba, with citrus notes and a grapefruit edge, is, Alcántara said, “our more adventurous wine.”
Each bottle bears the imprint of their mission. “dear native grapes is our love letter to America’s long-forgotten varieties,” Alcántara said. “It’s about honoring these underappreciated grapes and showing what’s possible here in Delaware County.”
The winery has also become a gathering place. Every Saturday features a different food pop-up - empanadas one week, other local fare the next - along with workshops that invite guests to linger.
“We want this to be a community space as much as a winery,” Alcántara said. “A place where people can learn a craft, meet their neighbors, or just spend the afternoon with a book and a glass of wine.”
Alcántara and Urciuoli hope their success will encourage others to plant grapes, expanding possibilities for a micro–wine-growing region in the Catskills. “There’s not much wine being grown in Delaware County,” Alcántara said. “If we can prove it can be done, maybe others will try too.”
For now, their focus is simple: tending vines, making wine, and welcoming the community into their experiment.
More information, including upcoming pop-ups and events, is available at dearnativegrapes.com
Explore local wineries across five scenic counties—each offering unique flavors and beautiful views.
Whitecliff Vineyard & Winery
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whitecliffwine.com | 845-255-4613
Stoutridge Vineyard & Distillery
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stoutridge.com | 845-236-7620
Bashakill Vineyards
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bashakillvineyards.com | 845-888-5858
Rustic Ridge Winery
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rusticridgewine.com | 607-965-0626
1 acre : Current vineyard under cultivation.
7 grape varieties: Planted, including Delaware, Catawba, Steuben, Wine King, Empire State, Petite Pearl, and Frontenac.
12 to 18 months: Time it typically takes vines to establish in shallow bedrock before bearing usable fruit.
3 wines: Released in the debut lineup: a Delaware sparkling, a Steuben rosé, and a Catawba amber wine.
