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Monday, December 30, 2019
North Fork Wine Weekend
And it's Monday morning and almost New Year already. Time is definitely flying. Had a nice Christmas. Christmas Eve we saw "Bombshell" and went
to Outback for dinner. And on Christmas Day we opened our gifts with family in the morning (didn't go crazy with gifts this year but did receive some nice things, tea, scented candle, a coloring book, wine glasses and a bottle of wine etc) and then went to see "Little Women". After that we hung out at home and watched a Christmas movie (Noelle) and then some more recorded stuff we had on our DVR.
And this past weekend we were away on the North Fork on Long Island visiting our favorite wineries. As always it was a great weekend and we mostly lucked out with the weather too. It was relatively mild and sunny for most of the trip. It did start raining as we were getting ready to leave on Sunday so that made the drive home not that much fun but all in all it was good.
We left home Saturday morning, stopped at Starbucks and got to our first winery, Macari, around 11.10am. Macari is always a lot of fun even though it is one of the bigger wineries. Had a glass there and then continued on to Osprey's Dominion. Been there plenty of times as well. Usually when we go in the off-season, like this weekend, it's quiet and relaxing. When we went in July it was crazy how big of a change it was. But anyway this time it was quiet and we ended up getting a bottle of wine and sat outside where they had a fire going. It was cold but in the sun and near the fire it was actually pretty nice. Then from there we continued on to lunch at a place in Greenport called "First and South". We had never been there before but it was a really good find. I had a bowl of chowder which was absolutely delicious and we also had some bread and shared a burger. All really yummy. From there we continued on to Sparkling Pointe as we wanted to pick up a bottle of sparkling wine for New Year's. Actually ended up with 2 bottles since they had an offer to receive the tasting for free when you buy two bottles. :) And from there we went to Sannino to check out their new building/tasting room. When we went there the last time, probably a year ago, they were still in a really small space but had shown us their blue prints for the new tasting room they were going to open so that was neat to check out. And well from there we continued on to our last stop at One Woman WInery. We had never been there before and it really was a fun find. Very small tasting room but they do have some outdoor space for the nicer months as well. They had a Gruener Veltliner (the only winery on the North Fork to offer one apparently) and the people there were fun to talk to. So yeah, definitely a good find.
After all the wineries we headed to our hotel (Indigo) in Riverhead. This time I had booked through Snaptravel which proved a little challenging with them finding our reservation but they did locate it and all was well in the end. The rate we received was great ($109 incl. breakfast) so it was worth the little hassle. :) Anyway freshened up in our room and then went downstairs and hung out at the bar for a bit. They also had live music which was pretty fun. A nice way to end the night.
Then yesterday, Sunday, we had breakfast. Their breakfast buffet really isn't anything great and I wouldn't pay for it but with it being included it worked out to get a little something in our stomachs before heading out to more wineries. Our first stop of the day was Paumanok. They have a really pretty rustic wooden deck area outside overlooking the vines and even though it was a bit chilly we decided to sit outside in the sun for a bit anyway. From there we continued on to Clovis Point. They also have an outdoor area but they must heat it during the winter (it's semi enclosed) so it was nice and cozy. After that we headed to Lenz. When we pulled in I knew we had been there before but sometimes it's hard to keep track of all the different wineries and which one is which. The last time we had been there it was during the winter when it had just snowed and the whole place looked like a winter wonderland with a covered bridge type entrance and a cute courtyard. Anyway the plan originally was to get come cheese as a snack for lunch but they actually had sold out of their cheese. So we just had some wine and then ended up going to lunch at a place nearby called Red Rooster. What a great accidental find. Mike had shrimp dumplings and I ordered a ham, brie and tomato sandwich and both were absolutely delicious. It being off season it was very quiet as well. From there we headed to our last and final stop - Coffeepot Cellars. Definitely our favorite winery - partly because of the cute pug Beasly and also the sweet people running the place. It's a small winery but always fun to hang out. So many stories and always fun to catch up.
Like I said the ride home wasn't too great due to the rain but we made it back a little before 7pm so really not so bad. Stopped at Two Steps and met our friend John there for a bit before heading home. And well here we are, it's Monday again. Really not looking forward to work but hey what can you do right? Tomorrow for New Year's Eve we just half a day and then off for New Year's Day so that will break up the week again. While I am looking forward to some more time off I do have to say that the holidays in the middle of the week are totally messing with my inner system and schedule. It's hard to keep track what day it actually is. Well anyway, I guess better get on with it and face the week. Right?
Letter/Mail Update: I received a letter from/owe a reply to: Nina/WA.
Posted by Hanna at 07:39 AM in Wine | Permalink