AURORA - Gary and Rosemary Barletta started Long Point Winery in 1999 with just one wine.

As a new member of the Cayuga Wine Trail and only the second winery on the Cayuga County side of Cayuga Lake, the Barlettas planted an acre and a half of Chardonnay while making their first wine, Ciera Rose, using Vidal Blanc and Grenache grapes they had purchased.

By the time Long Point officially opened its doors on the weekend of the Wine and Herb Festival in 2000, the Barlettas had produced just 3,000 gallons for about 1,300 cases of wine.

Nearly eight years later, the winery features 16 wines distributed to 70 stores and restaurants in 40 cities and towns from Buffalo to Cooperstown.

While Long Point Winery has expanded over the past nine years, the development of new wineries on the Cayuga County side of the lake has been, up until recently, rather stagnant compared to the growth the rest of the state has seen.

According to Jim Trezise, president of the New York Wine & Grape Foundation, approximately 75 new wineries opened their doors in the past decade, bringing the total number statewide to 236. The Finger Lakes have seen the most growth, he said, followed by Long Island.

But that growth didn't translate to the east side of Cayuga Lake, where King Ferry Winery and Long Point stood alone as compared to the 13 wineries on the lake's western shore.

As the Cayuga Wine Trail gears up for its 25th anniversary celebration next week, people in the wine industry wonder if Cayuga County will ever see the number of wineries on both sides of the lake even out.

“I project that - within the next 25 years - there's no reason why it shouldn't grow as big as the west side of Cayuga Lake and as big as the Seneca Wine Trail,” said Cathy Millspaugh, executive director of the Cayuga Wine Trail. “There certainly is great potential.”

Indeed, there are signs that show there is maybe more than just the potential for growth. King Ferry and Long Point may be the only wineries open currently, but in just two years the number of wineries is expected to double.

Bill Heary of Ledyard has been working on a winery to add to his established bed and breakfast, Dill's Run, for four years, and is now ready to open it to the public.

Dill's Run Winery, located at 3862 Route 90 in Aurora, will specialize in German wines, specifically

Riesling, gewurztraminer and chardonnay.

“I think my goals are sort of modest to begin with,” Heary said, who anticipates an opening sometime in the spring. “I don't anticipate producing a lot of wine. I'll just follow the business.”

Heary said he's going to start out this year with 1,000 cases of wine and go from there.

And Pumpkin Hill Bistro may too join the rush for wine.

Located in an old farmhouse at 2051 Route 90 in Aurora, Pumpkin Hill Bistro is currently planting grapes and building a structure for the winery with the hope of a grand opening in two years, Sous Chef Manager Fred Keenan said.

A greater number of wineries may mean greater tourism traffic, Keenan said. As tourists take a keener interest to the east side of the lake, so too may future wine entrepreneurs.

“(The east side of the lake) is just as beautiful as the other side, and there is always travel through it,” he said. “I see it every day, a lot of people coming through. People would stop if we had more wineries.”

Meg Vanek, executive director of the Cayuga County Office of Tourism, said that tourists tend to visit five or six wineries on a tour of the area, and it wouldn't be unreasonable to see at least that many over the next several years.

“I would hope in another 25 years the wineries on our side would at least double,” she said, “I don't think that's unrealistic at all.”

Nancy Tisch had an idea to sell wine and gourmet food in the same place. She did some investigating and discovered that the way she could do that is by establishing a farm winery.

And thus Bet the Farm was born.

Located at 381 Route 90 in Aurora, Tisch uses Bet the Farm as a retail outlet for her own wines she makes at Damiani Wine Cellers in Schyler County on Seneca Lake.

While Tisch sees herself as an apprentice winemaker, she has dreams of one day opening her own winery in Cayuga County.

“I'm still learning, she said. ”When I've learned enough I'll think about venturing out on my own.“

The growth of the wine industry in New York state reflects the elevating reputation of locally produced wines, Trezise said.

“The quality of the wines has gotten much better, the reputation has gotten much better and tourism has been growing,” he said. “It's been a really good time.”

But this trend is not limited to New York state. Trezise said people nationwide are taking a greater interest in libations.

“The wine industry nationwide is growing and Americans seem to be much more interested in wine and touring wineries than they used to be,” he said. “When you reach a certain critical mass, when you have a bunch of wineries, it becomes a wine trail, a destination, that really stimulates an interest in tourism.”

Chris Couch, tasting room manager at King Ferry Winery, noted that tourists are not the only ones interested in wines.

“I think one of the nice things about the area we're in is we have some wonderful colleges,” he said. “Colleges are now pushing wine education classes, and you're starting to see the younger generation come around and be more interested.”

Couch said that interest in wines and the development of wineries have a symbiotic relationship. As more people express an enthusiasm for wines and vineyards, there is greater possibility of new wineries coming to the area.

He pointed to viticulture studies at Cornell University as just one nearby incubator for future winemakers.

But he also said there is a downside to increased wineries in the region. A new winery would likely mean that a farm was no longer profitable and had to be sold. One nearby farm, he said, is the largest supplier for Bird's Eye corn.

“It's great we have that because of the business they produce,” he said. “We would love more wineries, but we don't want to take the agricultural business away from here.”

Staff writer Alyssa Sunkin can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 239 or alyssa.sunkin@lee.net.