In the summer of 2016, Todd Cavallo and Crystal Cornish packed up 30 combined years of city life and headed north to Pine Bush, a small town in Orange County at the edge of the Hudson Valley. They had no farming background to speak of, just a curiosity about fermentation and a belief that New York could produce wines worth drinking. What followed was Wild Arc Farm, a nine-and-a-half-acre experiment in regenerative viticulture that would inadvertently launch a national movement.
Backstory
Wild Arc produced 25 cases in its first year and scaled to over 1,200 cases as Cavallo moved to full-time winemaking. From the start, they sought out organic and transitioning growers across the Finger Lakes and Long Island rather than expand their own footprint. The operation now processes around 20 tons of fruit per year and produces roughly 24,000 bottles across wines, piquette, and cider annually.
The Region
The mid-Hudson Valley sits in the shadow of the Catskills, with a cooler continental climate that pushes winemakers toward lower-alcohol, higher-acid styles. Orange County winters can be brutal—Wild Arc lost 70 percent of its vines in back-to-back freezes—but the survivors, along with fruit from across the state, shape wines in the 10 to 12 percent ABV range that pair naturally with food.
Vineyards and Farming
Wild Arc maintains a single densely planted experimental acre with cold-hardy Cornell and University of Minnesota hybrids including Itasca, Aromella, Arandelle, and La Crescent. They source remaining grapes from certified organic or transitioning growers who share their values. Their philosophy centers on shifting farming conversations regionally rather than maximizing production on a single estate.
Winemaking
Fermentations rely on native yeast. Sulfur additions are minimal or absent. The portfolio spans vinifera, hybrid varieties, co-ferments, ciders, and spirits including nocino and arak. Wild Arc is most widely credited with kick-starting American piquette production, turning second-press grape pomace into a low-alcohol, naturally carbonated beverage that had previously been discarded as a byproduct.
The Wines
Key wines include Luca, a skin-contact Traminette named for Cavallo and Cornish's daughter, and a Riesling that spends 14 months in barrel. Their piquettes—made by rehydrating pomace with water and allowing refermentation—come in several formats, including canned versions. The range reflects a deliberate commitment to zero-waste production and honest pricing.
