Best Long Island Wineries to Visit
The best Long Island wineries to visit feature gorgeous tasting rooms, special events like live music, and plenty of perfect picnic spots. Vineyards have dotted the north and south forks since 1973, when Louisa and Alex Hargrave founded their eponymous winery, which would become Castello di Borghese. Today, the region is home to large producers with multiple locations as well as promising upstarts that make excellent wines in small quantities. — Richard Nalley
Baiting Hollow Farm Vineyard
The Kelly family’s well-appointed tasting room in a 19th-century farmhouse in Calverton draws visitors to a variety of attractions, including wines like the Red Velvet Bordeaux–style blend and live music on the weekends. Reservations are recommended; BHFV tasting flights start at $21. baitinghollowfarmvineyard.com
Bedell
Film (Lord of the Rings) producer Michael Lynne and his wife, Ninah, purchased this pioneering Cutchogue winery in 2000 and led it to new heights. His contemporary art collection (including pieces commissioned for the Artist Label series) graces the walls of the beautiful white-frame tasting room, which offers various flights (from $15) and by-the-glass ($6) tasting options. Most famous are the Merlots, but don’t miss the Viogniers and Gallery Whites. Reservations not accepted. bedellcellars.com
Castello di Borghese
There is no actual “castle” here, but the Borghese family who owns it claims Italian noble roots. Their stylish, welcoming tasting room in an antique potato barn in Cutchogue features impressive rotating art exhibits and special events, like the fall Saturday oyster and Sauvignon Blanc pairings. Be sure to try the Reserve-level reds, and call ahead for daily private tours. castellodiborghese.com
Channing Daughters
A benchmark winery for Long Island, and a relatively rare vinous outpost amid the high-priced South Fork acres of Bridgehampton, Channing’s home vineyards date to 1982. Visitors to the spruce, terra cotta–floored tasting room have the chance to sip five wines (for $28), a surprisingly tough choice given that the winery produces bottlings from more than two dozen varieties, including notable outliers like Tocai Friulano and Blaufränkisch. channingdaughters.com
Duck Walk
This is a substantial, well-funded operation from the Damianos family that also owns Pindar and Jason’s Vineyard. Duck Walk has two locations, the flagship (and winery) in Water Mill and a tasting room in Southold. Both offer live music on the weekends, and numerous special events (including wine country bicycle tours from Water Mill). Best known for its Merlots and Chardonnays, Duck Walk also produces a rare blueberry port. duckwalk.com
Jamesport
This high-quality small winery founded by the father-son team of Ron Goerler Sr. and Jr. is a destination both for its fine Merlots, Syrahs, and Rieslings, and for the laid-back atmosphere of its back-lawn tasting area in good weather and indoors in the 165-year-old barn. Flights start at $25; check the website for events and tours. jamesportwines.com
Lenz
An all-estate-produced winery, Lenz boasts some of the oldest vines on Long Island and one of the North Fork’s top reputations, in no small thanks to now-retired longtime winemaker Eric Fry’s touch with wines ranging from Cabernet to sparkling. Its Peconic tasting room offers multiple tasting flights (starting at $25), including a premium level with sips of old vine bottlings otherwise available only to Lenz members. lenzwine.com
Lieb Cellars
One of the region’s premier wineries, Lieb offers visitors an array of choices, including two tasting rooms: the “rustic chic” stop at the Lieb facility in Cutchogue and the other, more “urban chic,” in Mattituck, devoted to Lieb’s more affordable Bridge Lane line. Both host a plethora of events, including frequent live music and private tastings by appointment. Be sure to check out Lieb’s Reserve bottlings, including the Pinot Blanc and Meritage red. liebcellars.com
Macari
The Macari family has owned their 500 acres of Mattituck waterfront for over half a century, and its vineyard rows share the farm with Texas longhorns, Sicilian donkeys, and a menagerie of other animals. Visitors to the tasting room can choose from a number of flights or wines by the glass and can accompany them with artisanal cheese and charcuterie (reservations required). The top-end red blends like the Bergen Road have developed a following. macariwines.com
McCall
This boutique family operation in Cutchogue has been producing wine only since 2007, but it’s made its mark with one of the wine world’s most elusive grapes: Pinot Noir. French winemaker Gilles Martin and California cult icon Bob Cabral produce Pinots unlike any others on Long Island, and notable Bordeaux-style reds as well. The bucolic but stylish tasting room is in a former horse stable. mccallwines.com
The Old Field
They do mean old — this land in Southold was farmed for hundreds of years by Native Americans, then by European settlers, before coming under the proprietorship of the family of current owner Christian Baiz three generations back. The sparkling blanc de noirs is a big draw here at the cozy tasting barn (check the web for seasonal hours), as are the Chardonnays and Pinots. Book ahead for the summer tastings by the bay ($30), when Baiz leads small, seated tastings on weekends. theoldfield.com
Osprey’s Dominion
One of Long Island’s most laid-back tasting experiences — and one of the few wineries to still allow visitors to bring picnics — Osprey’s Dominion features a large, generous indoor tasting room, and a lawn party in the summer with an outdoor wine bar and games. There's live music most weekends, too. Check for seasonal hours. One specialty: Alsatian-style wines like Edelzwicker, Pinot Gris, and Gewürztraminer. ospreysdominion.com
Palmer
Riverhead’s Palmer is a pillar of the North Fork wine establishment. It boasts a handsome, buttoned-down tasting facility and a well-earned reputation for fine wine in an array of styles, but the place is anything but stodgy. There's live music on the weekends, hay rides in the fall, and Friday nights with wine and oysters. The tasting room offers wine by the glass or in flights. palmervineyards.com
Paumanok
Paumanok — a Native American word for “Long Island” — was founded by the Massoud family back in 1983 and has become something of a wine critics’ darling, including winning New York Winery of the Year for 2015 at the NY Wine & Food Classic. The Aquebogue tasting room is open all year, offering flights of wine from $20, and a slate of guided tours ranging up to a VIP tour ($55) and tasting with a Massoud family member. paumanok.com
Pellegrini
Surely one of the most manicured wineries and vineyards in New York, Pellegrini was founded by a graphic designer, whose touch is evident everywhere from the showplace Hamptons shingle-style winery to the grounds. The Cutchogue tasting room offers tastings year-round, and while the top bottlings are expensive by Long Island standards, there are plenty of selections under $30 to purchase as well. pellegrinivineyards.com
Pindar
Long Island’s largest winery has grown from the Damianos family’s backyard project in the early 1980s to over 500 acres of vines and more than two dozen wines (not to mention the family’s other wine projects). The impressive tasting room at the wind turbine–powered main winery in Peconic and the Port Jefferson location are sources for some of the state’s best sparkling wines and high-end red blends, among much else. pindar.net
Pugliese
The third generation is at work in this homey winery now, but cofounder Pat Pugliese is still in the tasting room on many days, and still decorating the trademark hand-painted wine glasses for sale in the well-stocked Cutchogue tasting room. There are unusual — for the North Fork — wines to try, including Niagara and Zinfandel, but sparkling wines are a specialty here. pugliesevineyards.com
Raphael
This ambitious, well-funded winery is a familiar sight to Peconic wine tourists, with its impressive, white and terra cotta, Mediterranean-style building. Its large, comfortable tasting facilities offer a variety of cheese and charcuterie accompaniments, a strong schedule of events, and plenty of seating — an often-overlooked amenity. But fans come for the quality wines, including the highly regarded red Bordeaux blends. raphaelwine.com
Rose Hill Vineyards
Founders Barbara Shinn and David Page came out of the farm-to-table movement, and this alternatively powered, biodynamically farmed winery has garnered a following among drinkers who appreciate natural winemaking and the sensibility that surrounds it. Originally Shinn Estate, Randy Frankel purchased the property in 2017 and changed its name to Rose Hill Vineyards in 2021, though he remains dedicated to sustainable winemaking in the style of his predecessors. The winery’s Farmhouse Inn is one of the region’s top B&Bs. rosehill-vineyards.com
Wölffer Estate
This is arguably the most Hamptons-y of Long Island’s wineries, not just because of its Sagaponack location, but because of its chic, terra cotta–tiled tasting room, manicured thoroughbreds, and European-referencing style. Though its rosé is ubiquitous on the East End, winemaker Roman Roth’s reds and sparkling wines (not to mention ciders) are well worth sampling, too. In the warm months, the outdoor Wine Stand is a fine sunset-watching spot on weekends, often with live music — bring your own blanket. wolffer.com
