Chateau Dusseau — Attraction in Town of Locke

My bf and I had planned a 4-day trip to the Finger Lakes area to hit up hiking spots and wineries. It is our last day, and we planned to stop by Skaneateles on our way home (a pretty cute town by the lake). Needless to say, we visited quite a few wineries along the Seneca Lake - Chateau Dusseau was an incidental find which turned out to be our favorite.

There is essentially no competition in the winery industry in Skaneateles. The first thing that came up in our search was Anyela's at which we had quite a disappointing and underwhelming experience. Therefore, we looked for another one to save the day; luckily, we found Chateau Dusseau. This is honestly a highlight during our trip to have met the wonderful people who own the business and experienced such a lively, humble, lowkey, local winery. Its lackluster in appearance but shines in the quality of their products and offers a unique atmosphere unlike other more advertised and haughty competitors. We learned that this is a tight knit business founded by father, son, and uncle who are all honest and welcoming people.

Due to COVID, they only have wine by the glass options for $5 a glass which is definitely a steal. Oh and did I mention those are some GENEROUS pours. We are red wine people so we tried all their red selections. My bf especially loved the Cabernet Franc. We both absolutely loved Chambourcin which is on the dryer side. The Red Jack is sweet and a delight. I also asked Levi about their Seyval blanc because of the great reviews I've read. Unfortunately they just sold out their 2018 selection and are about to bottle their 2019 products. But Levi did bring us some barrel samples of this wonderful white he saved for his friends and man it was sooo good. They also sell honey from local and locally brewed beer. We had a stout from Cortland Co.; and we are definitely looking them up online to get their products. The stout is chocolate-y and super smooth. I ended up getting 2 jars of honey for my parents to support the local business because I am sure they're fantastic products as well.

Definitely do NOT miss this place on the way because they're absolutely amazing and deserve a ton more recognition for their great work. They have an awesome spacious space appropriate for social distancing with games such as bags and bocce ball. There were a family of 4 and a pup who arrived after us; and the father specifically set up a croquet game for them. It was super sweet!!! Friends of the establishment also came over shortly after with their guitars and organically produced an unexpected concert in the yard. This place offers their personality and offers a comprehensive experience for their customers.

Thank you the Dusseau family for a...

My wife and I stopped at Chateau Dusseau for the first time this past Friday. Wow! What a find this place is! It's a small place and very unassuming but the family that owns and runs the place were awesome. So friendly and genuine! And Levi provides live music that is wonderful to hear in the small indoor setting. He heard us talking about Neil Young's Harvest Moon so he just started playing it....and he sounded just like Neil Young! And the Cabernet Franc they have was one of the best red wines I've ever had....seriously! Who said they can't make a good red wine in the Finger Lakes! We took home a bottle but should have bought a case...so we're going back soon. Really...

I was here several years ago, and the owner was kind enough to open for us to just do a short wine tasting. I loved the experience, it was my first ever wine tasting, and he even showed us the processing area with explanation. We bought several bottles which we enjoyed at...