About Us

One of the questions we are asked most frequently is "where did the name Prejean originate and how is the name pronounced?" Prejean, a surname of French origin, is the founding family's name. Prejean Winery was founded by James and Elizabeth (Jim & Libby) Prejean. Jim Prejean was born in Carencro, Louisiana which is part of the French-speaking area of Louisiana.  Prejean is a French Cajun name that is most common in southwest Louisiana, but more unusual elsewhere in the United States. The name has a French pronunciation and the closest phonetic spelling is PRAY-zhahn (The second syllable is the French word for John).  Prejean means John's meadow in French. We hope this helps!

As often happens with a winery, someone starts with a dream, and for James and Elizabeth Prejean that dream began in California... 

Jim Prejean was born in Carencro, LA and ended up in California the hard way, wounded in a hospital at the tender age of 20. Jim was in the Navy in WWII, assigned to the USS Cushing. The Cushing was sunk in the Naval Battle of Guadalcanal, during which Jim was severely wounded. After recovering from his injuries and graduating from college, Jim began his career in labor relations working for American Can Company.

Jim Prejean and Elizabeth (Libby) Purcell met on an airplane where Libby worked as a flight attendant and Jim was traveling for business. They married not long after and the newly married Prejeans took up residence in San Francisco, CA. Frequent short rides from San Francisco to California Wine Country kindled Jim's dream of starting his own winery. Jim’s career with American Can Company involved travel throughout the United States, as well as a number of relocations which took Jim and Libby and their growing family far away from wine country to Illinois, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Louisiana and eventually to Danbury, Connecticut in 1974.

Jim discovered the Finger Lakes wine industry during business trips to the Finger Lakes (American Can Company had facilities in both Geneva, NY and Fairport, NY) and his winery dream was rekindled. Jim and Libby decided to “retire” to a winery. In 1978, they purchased 53 acres of bare land and planted their first 13 acres of vineyards in 1979. Traveling from Connecticut on the weekends, Jim, Libby and their youngest son, Tom, worked the vineyards for 6 years until, in 1985, Jim and Libby took up permanent residence in Penn Yan and built the winery. Prejean Winery opened officially in 1986.

Sadly, Jim died suddenly in 1989, but he was fortunate enough to see his dream realized. He was quite proud of Prejean Winery's accomplishments, and even though he only lived for three years after the Winery’s opening, he touched many people.  

Tom Prejean joined Libby in 1989 to work full-time at Prejean Winery, and Tom and Libby continued to work tirelessly, to run Prejean Winery and continue to realize Jim's dream. Libby worked at the winery well into her 80s. In between her travels, Libby popped into the winery often until she passed away on May 23, 2022 at the age of 93.

Tom Prejean, Tom's wife Amy, their daughter Cassidy and our friendly, knowledgeable Tasting Room staff are running the winery today, maintaining the Prejean Family tradition. 

Our Vineyards

Prejean Winery currently has approximately 30 acres of active vineyards in which we grow thirteen varieties of grapes. Vinifera grown include Riesling, Gewürztraminer, Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Merlot. Hybrid varieties grown include Traminette, Vignoles, Cayuga, Valvin Muscat, Marechal Foch, Noiret and Corot Noir.

All Prejean Wines are estate grown and produced.

Our Wines

We believe that you "grow" wine, meaning that the most important aspect of wine production is tending to the vineyards to optimize the quality of the fruit from the start. All Prejean wines are made from our own estate-grown grapes. This gives us control over the most important part of the process. While no one can control the weather, there are many decisions that can be made during the growing and harvest seasons that help to maximize fruit quality.

All Prejean Wines are estate produced. Our wine varieties include dry reds, dry whites, rosé, sparkling wine, semi-dry to sweet whites, semi-sweet blush and reds, and dessert wines including late harvest and ports. In addition to our Prejean Winery label, we have a special label series called Goldfinch Vineyards. All Goldfinch Vineyards Wines are estate grown and produced by Prejean Winery, as well.

Since we produce small-batch vintages, the specific wines that are available at any time vary somewhat. Please feel free to call us at 315-536-7524 to check on the availability of specific wines. Our wineshop, accessed through the menu above, provides a description of each of the wines available online.

Dog Friendly Winery

At Prejean Winery we are not only dog friendly, but also dog-enthusiastic! We all love dogs and your well-behaved, on-leash dogs are welcome in the Tasting Room and on our winery grounds. Our own winery dog, Scrappy (pictured here), is often at the Winery with us. Your dogs will be offered treats (with your OK), a drink of cold water and lots of attention!