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On New York's Shawangunk Wine Trail: Applewood Orchards and Winery

June 12, 2012 at 4:01 PM | by | Comments (0)

Within easy driving distance of NYC sits the Shanwangunk Wine Trail, a collection of 11 wineries that regularly offer tours and affordable tastings to the public. We managed to hit three in one day and, this week, will share them with you as summer means primetime for making the same road trip.

First stop: Applewood Orchards and Winery in Warwick, NY

It was just an idea shared by three friends. "Hey, we should wine tasting some weekend." Turning that idea into reality only took one friend to get serious enough to book the rental car. And then there was a hotel booking. And then there was a loose plan for which vineyards to actually hit. Soon we were driving down a tiny road to Applewood Orchards, the southernmost of our chosen stops.

Applewood is a collection of wood and stone buildings that not only produce their own wines from the surrounding acreage, but also churn out apple cider and apple cider donuts in the fall. We'll be returning for the latter. For now, our focus was on their $5 tasting and live music.

Gallery: Shawangunk Wine Trail: Applewood Winery

The tasting process is simple and straightforward at Applewood, which made it an ideal first stop for us amateur tasters (not to mention we were slightly hungover following an epic meal at Blue Hill at Stone Barns the previous evening). Choose 5 of their 21 wines to taste, and, since all three of us chose differently, we ended up sampling 15 of those 21. There is a 22nd option: hard cider.

One of Applewood's smiling staff will pour each, from white to red to dessert wines, allowing you all the time needed to savor and share any high-falutin' observations on such things as the aroma, body and finish.

If there's one or two you particularly enjoy, a simple tick mark on your tasting sheet is all it takes to signal you'd like to purchase a bottle. Prices range from $12 for the Apple Blossom Blush to $19 for the Merlot. We opted for the $13.60 deep red OBR and an additional plate of fruit and cheese and adjourned to the neighboring music barn, for a little pre-lunch snacking to the beat.

Best time of the year to visit: August on a sunny day for some of their Summer Fields wine or October, for the cider donuts.

Hours:
July and August: Saturdays 11am-6pm and Friday and Sunday from 11am-5pm
March and April: Saturday & Sunday from 11am-5pm
May-June and September-December: Friday thru Sunday from 11am-5pm.
January and February: CLOSED.

[Photos: Jaunted]

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