About a billion years ago I said that I would blog about our recent trip to some wineries on the Shawangunk Wine Trail in upstate New York. If you take a gorgeous fall day, add a designated driver (thanks Steph!) and some cheese, you’d have the makings of a perfect Shawangunk Wine Trail day.

We made our first stop at Brotherhood Winery (which, by the way, happens to be the oldest winery in the country. This is because Brotherhood managed to stay open during prohibition to provide wine for the churches in the area. Ah, a loophole!).

It was the first time that I had actually been to Brotherhood, but I would definitely recommend it for future vineyard-goers.

Our next stop was Brimstone Hill Vineyard and Winery which, while, while pretty (and only $2 to taste!), was totally forgettable, nonetheless. I’d vote to skip this one if you’re in the area, since there are tons of other prettier ones to see.

After Brimstone we hit up Whitecliff, which has by far the most spectacular view. Although Chris and I had already been to Whitecliff over the summer, we knew it was worth a second visit.

After spending about an hour sipping the Whitecliff wine special, chowing down on some local cheese and taking in the views, Steph, Chris and I headed out to our last stop— Baldwin Vineyards, where we met up with my mom and stepdad, as well. Baldwin just happened to have their wine and dessert festival going on during our trip, so we paid a $15 fee to match up seven different wines with about four or five different homemade desserts.

And so lastly, after a long day of vineyard hopping, we stopped for dinner at a fabulous little brewery in New Paltz called The Gilded Otter, where I had my first taste of pumpkin beer (delicious).

And so the sun set on Chris’s birthday, and on our first attempt to take on multiple Shawangunk Wine Trail vineyards. All in all, very successful, if I do say so myself.

Bis bald, friends! I’m back in Brooklyn this weekend dog sitting, so I’ll be sure to report on any fun things I find.