Well over 3,000 acres on Long Island’s beautiful East End have been planted with European wine grape varieties over the last three decades, and the vineyards are widely credited with keeping this beautiful landscape-officially designated one of the Last Great Places by The Nature Conservancy-green and growing. Add to that the recent praise for wine producers like Bedell Cellars, The Lenz Winery, and Wolffer Estate Vineyards (among numerous others) from sources like the New York Times, Wine Spectator, and Wine Advocate, and it’s not difficult to see why the New York Times, in an article on Long Island wines, captioned a photo with the words, Who needs Bordeaux? A tasting of wines from the East End.
Like a fine wine, the time is ripe for Long Island Wine Country. Written by the editor of Long Island Wine Press magazine-with a foreword by Louisa Thomas Hargrave, cofounder of Long Island’s first vineyard, and sumptuously illustrated by an award-winning photographer-this book takes readers to each of the area’s more than forty producers, telling the colorful stories of the wines and the people who make them. Included are profiles of the owners and winemakers, notes on the wines, and essential details for visitors, such as contact information. Interspersed throughout are delicious recipes from the chefs who use the bounty of the region to prepare delicious dishes to pair with these wines, as well as lush color photographs of the natural beauty of the East End and its winemakers, wines, and wineries.