Wine and Spirits Travel

It was a cloudy and cool morning, but it was nice to wake up to the sounds of the ocean from my condo at the Surf Club in Montauk. I threw some sweats on and took a walk to town, stopping at the Continental Deli for a fresh piece of guavaberry bread and some coffee. After getting a bit of work done, I drove to Wolffer Estate Winery in Sagaponack. I wanted to see the place and taste their wines, but I also wanted to hear about the newly formed Hamptons Wine Trail. My daughter Sam met me for a day and we sat down with Winemaker Roman Roth to talk about the nearly five years it took for him – along with the Long Island Wine Council – to have this declared a wine region. He explained how the richer soil than the North Folk holds the water better, making for more elegant wines here. Wolffer grows 50 acres of grapes on the 170 acre Hampton estate. Roth grows a selection of varietals by being honest about what works in this region. I was impressed with the just bottled

The best thing about my gig writing twice weekly for Hamptons Magazine is the opportunity to go explore this area I spent a good part of my teenage years in. Of course, many things have changed since that time, but some things will forever remain the same. I was on my own for day one so I decided to take a ride all the way to “The End.” Montauk is the end of Long Island, the approx. 100 mile piece of land where the sound is to the north and the ocean is to the south. At the Montauk Light House the island comes to a peak and it’s quite the sight. Unfortunately, the day was a bit gloomy, but I decided to venture out to the lighthouse and walk on the beach anyway. It had been too many years since I’d been at this spot. I walked the rocky path down to the beach and watched the waves for a while. I have to say that’s one of the things I have missed in the Midwest, not being able to stroll on the beach. My one bedroom duplex at the Surf Club was just perfect for me. It

New York appears to have been on the receiving end of some of the worst weather this year and my friend Lynn and I felt some of that on day two in the Hamptons, but it didn’t put a damper on the spirits we needed to sample.   We met Andrea from the Hamptons Visitors Council at the Golden Pear in East Hampton. It was one of four locations for this bakery/deli/coffee shop which seemed to have quite the selection.  I settled on a blueberry scone and we talked a bit about the Hamptons, which encompass quite an area that includes towns such as East Quogue, Hampton Bay and Sag Harbor. As she said, each hamlet has its own personality and it’s one of the few areas in the world where celebrities often mingle with locals because they consider themselves locals here. Lynn and I drove around a bit before our lunch at Indian Wells Tavern in Amagansett. I have to admit that I thought it was just a local pub, but I was very impressed with the food and drink selection. We star

As a teenager growing up on Eastern Long Island, I spent my share of time in the Hamptons . I even did the summer weekends as a young adult for a while. As the years went by, I wasn’t out there as much as I’d like, so when the opportunity came up to write for Hamptons Magazine on a weekly basis this summer, I figured it was a great excuse to get back in the habit of going out there. Trip number one was with my friend Lynn. Wordhampton , a public relations firm that specializes on Long Island, set up an incredible schedule that would allow us to taste my way around the east end for three days. I don’t suggest a non-professional attempt this. Instead, make plans to visit these places (all great) when you have a chance to spend more time at them. Stop one was at Little Red in Southampton and we were scheduled for a full lunch.  This is a cute little place in town, just off the water. They serve lots of seafood and Paninis, as well as salads and main dishes.  We sipped a fe