Okay, okay, it’s not France. It’s not Italy… It’s Long Island… and we too have vineyards! As a matter of fact, our vineyards are located on the North Fork of Long Island.
Every year or so, I take a drive out the North Fork to check out the wineries. I always find it a lot of fun. Each winery has something different to offer. In addition to the (not free) tastings, some have bands or a guitar player and others have interesting things to buy.
The other day, I talked my husband into going to the vineyards. He wasn’t thrilled with it since he is an amateur wine connoisseur but since I insisted he decided to go.
The drive out to exit 70 wasn’t bad. It took about an hour. But once we got off the exit, it took at least an hour or more before we got to the first vineyard. There was so much traffic on the one lane road that it seemed as if everyone was going five miles an hour. I can see that my husband was getting frustrated with the traffic.
When we finally got to the first vineyard it was 3:45 pm. The vineyards all close at 5 pm, so we had to go to the first two vineyards we found.
We tasted four different wines at the first one. To be honest, one was worse than the next. They all had a metallicy taste and a bitter aftertaste. The setting was lovely though. I asked my husband if he wanted to purchase a glass of wine and sit on the porch and check out the vineyards. He said “no” and we moved on.
The next vineyard had a beautiful wide open setting in the back with a reggae band playing. We tasted about six different wines. At first, they tasted like the first winery we went to and then there was a difference. I wasn’t sure if it was because we were starting to feel the effects of the alcohol or if the wine was actually tasting any better.
We decided to purchase a glass of wine, get some cheese and crackers and sit on the lawn to listen to the music. It was very relaxing.
We left after we finished the wine and went to a local farmer’s market to pick up some fresh vegetables and fruits. After that, we walked around the Tanger’s Outlet in Riverhead. I even got to use my $25 gift certificate that was given to me by Tanger’s corporate because of my experience in Deer Park earlier in the summer. (Thanks Tanger Outlet!)
It was a really nice day and I thought the trip was worth the trek. But, if you ask my husband, he may tell you a different story….
