‘Long Island Sustainable Winegrowing’ Gets Certified

First sustainable vineyard certification program in the eastern U.S. takes shape.

For winemakers like Richard Olsen-Harbich, sustainable practices in local grape production are an essential part of creating quality Long Island vintages and in keeping the area eco-friendly. Which is why he and other local vintners have partnered to create Long Island Sustainable Wine Growing, Inc., a not-for-profit organization that “provides education and certification for sustainable farming practices in growing premium wine grapes on the East End,” according to a recent press release. “We are eager to strengthen the ecological leadership and social responsibility of the Long Island wine region,” said Olsen-Harbich, winemaker at Bedell Cellars. “This effort has been an important process for Long Island wineries to demonstrate they are …

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Early Bud Break Means an Early Harvest for Vintners

The vines are starting to bloom and local winemakers are feeling the pressure to prepare early for a fast harvest.

With only about 6 inches of rainfall in January, February and March combined, plenty of sunshine and a very warm and dry ground, local vintners are experiencing an early bud break, similar to those in 2010 and 2007. To Richard Olsen-Harbich, winemaker at Bedell Cellars in Cutchogue, getting an early start to the season is always a good thing. “It gives us more time during the summer for the grapes to ripen and take advantage of warm sunny days, and it also gives the fruit more time to mature before the cooler temperatures and unpredictable weather of late October and early November rolls in,” he said. Jamesport Vineyards winemaker Ron Goerler said that though an early bud break means feeling more pressure to get everything ready for the …

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WATCH: NBC 4 Features North Fork, Hamptons 'Staycationing'

NBC 4 New York put spotlight on East End 'staycationing' getaways for the spring and summer.

New York's NBC 4 featured Bedell Cellars in Cutchogue, the Montauk Yacht Club and the Children's Museum of the East End in Bridgehampton as a few of the best places to plan a "staycation" this spring and summer. The segment aired Sunday and Monday on NBC 4 with Gotham Magazine's editor-in-chief Samantha Yanks giving the East End rundown, saying that now is the time to start booking your staycations. Though the segment is titled "Staycation in the Hamptons," Yanks talks up the North Fork near the end, giving props to Bedell Cellars and the Rolling in Dough pizza truck, which often parks on winery grounds.  "You get to eat delicious wood-cooked pizza and sip perfect wines," she said. Watch the full NBC 4 segment here.

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WATCH: How Bedell Bottles its 2011 Rosé

Here's a nice reminder that the new rosé releases are just around the corner.

Who doesn't like a good assembly line video? It's always fun to see how the things we love are made and packaged for us. That goes double when it's local wine. Cutchogue's Bedell Cellars just posted this YouTube video of the bottling process for its 2011 Taste Rosé, which it plans to release this upcoming weekend at the winery. Rosé season, here we come.

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Vintners: Mild Winter OK, But Sudden Freeze a Worry

Local winemakers say that the spring-like weather probably won’t disrupt the 2012 growing season — but a sudden deep freeze could damage the vines.

With recent temperatures in the 50s in the middle of January, grapevines, like the rest of us, think it feels like spring. That means the sap in the vines, instead of spending most of its time underground, is still flowing through the upper portion of the vine, which could mean an early bud break, according to local vintners like Ann Marie Borghese of Castello di Borghese in Cutchogue. Borghese said that in her 13 years of winemaking on the North Fork, she’s never experienced a January as warm as this. But with the warmth comes with a major danger: If sudden deep freeze hits, the sap will expand and the vines might break. “If they freeze and crack, that would be a problem,” she said. “That happened at a vineyard up the island a few years …

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5 Things You Need to Know Today

Meet Five North Fork Patch Bloggers

These bloggers have informed and entertained you for months — now you should blog too!

If you have an event or business to promote, poetry to write or a message to get across to the community, there's really no better way to do it than to sign up as a North Fork Patch blogger. Blogs are only lightly edited — we want your own unique voice and style to come through — and can serve as free advertising and great exposure if you're in business or government. If you have an opinion you want to express, blogs can be more effective than letters to the editor — they are posted as they come in and can sit on the home page of the site for quite some time. And if a blog is really well-written and timely, we'll even feature it in the top spot. Blogs get promoted on Facebook and Twitter like any other news piece and can receive thousands …

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Five Weekend Must-Do's: Charity Road Races, 'Harvey' Opens, Kevin Zraly

It's another great weekend on the North Fork with community theater, 5K and 10K races and an appearance by a famous wine guru.

Take your pick (after you pick your pumpkin if you haven't yet) of things to do this weekend, from running for good causes to the opening of a community play: 1. Run a race for good causes on Shelter Island or in Riverhead this Saturday. Help raise money for a cure for breast cancer at the Shelter Island 5K run/walk at 10 a.m. beginning at Crescent Beach, or help support the Jamesport Fire Department and various other charities at the Sound to Bay 10K, which begins at Iron Pier Beach and ends at the bay in Jamesport. That race, which was rescheduled from an August date due to Tropical Storm Irene, starts at 9 a.m. 2. "Harvey," the classic comedy about a man who has an imaginary rabbit companion, opens at 8 p.m. at the North Fork Community …

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'Windows on the World' Wine Writer to Speak at Bedell

Famed NYC-based wine expert Kevin Zraly will host a workshop at Cutchogue winery on Sunday.

Kevin Zraly, founder of the Windows on the World Wine School that operated out of the World Trade Center for years, will make an appearance on Sunday at 2 p.m. at Bedell Cellars in Cutchogue, Edible East End reports. Zraly is one of several famous wine educators to visit Bedell. Writer Mark Oldman spoke in May and wine personality Oz Clarke gave a presentation last October. Read the full blog on Edible East End here. To Bedell winemaker Richard Olsen-Harbich, Zraly is probably the most preeminent wine educators in the U.S. "In our lifetime, he is clearly the most recognized," he said. "He has a very casual style of communicating. He demystified wine and made it accessible to the general public, and we're very glad he's coming here." …

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New York Times: Cheese Plates Are Evolving in LI Wine County

New York Times explores how cheese plates enhance the tasting experience at North Fork wineries.

Certain wines stand on their own, but a good plate of cheese, pickles and breads sure enhances the tasting room experience, says a new report from the New York Times. A reporter came out to the North Fork to see what and how people were tasting at Bedell Cellars in Cutchogue and found that food pairings have become more elaborate in Wine Country Read more about it on the New York Times' website.

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5 Things You Need to Know Today

Aug. 8: Tell Us How 9/11 Changed Your Life

We want to know how the attacks of Sept. 11 changed your view of the world — 10 years later.

We want to commemorate 9/11 by hearing your stories this week. 1. Over the next few weeks, North Fork Patch will be compiling stories on the various ways the attacks of Sept. 11 have affected your life, even in the simplest of ways — please let us know how your view of the world has changed 10 years after the fact. Please email editor Erin Schultz at erins@patch.com. In local food and drink news: 2. It's Merlot Monday at Lieb Family Cellars, 35 Cox Neck Road in Mattituck from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Enjoy complimentary tastings of Bridge Lane Merlot Blanc and Bridge Lane Merlot. Call 631-298-1942. 3. Check out Live Music at A Lure Restaurant at 6 p.m. today at the Port of Egypt Marine, 62300 Route 25 in Southold. Call 631-876-5300. 4. Bedell …

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