MILLBROOK, NY (WCBS 880) - The economy may be in dire straights, but there is one industry in New York that is growing by leaps and bounds.

WCBS 880′s Deborah Rodriguez In Dutchess County

David Bova at Millbrook Vineyards says it took a good 25 years, but New York state wines are finally catching on. 

“This year is a little flat. Last year, we grew by 18 percent and the year before it was double digits,” he says. “New York state wines have had a sort of sullied past and the winemaking has gotten a lot better, I would say, over the last decade.”

GUIDE: New York Area Vineyards

Part of the demand is coming from restaurants and chefs in places like Brooklyn on the cutting edge of modern cuisine.

“They call them the local-vores, the people who want to serve local foods. That has really caught on and we’ve been swept up in that also,” he tells WCBS 880′s Deborah Rodriguez. “New York City is probably one of the most competitive wine markets in the world. Everybody wants to be there because all the best chefs are there.”

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But the bulk of business at Millbrook comes from visitors who walk the breathtaking 115 acres of vineyards, take a tasting tour, and then buy a bottle or two to take home.

“We’re in such a pretty place here in Dutchess Dounty, that I think you can forget you’re an hour and a half north of New York City because we’re really in God’s country up here,” he says.

LINK: Millbrook Vineyards & Winery