For an afternoon of wine sips, delectable bites and puppy love, one charming tasting room in Peconic promises to meet all of those comfort needs. When one hears the word studio, images of a smock-clad artist poised in front of a canvas, paintbrush in hand, surface to mind. The Winemaker Studio highlights the creativity and skill of another art form, one that rewards with a presentation to the palate rather than from the palette.
Opened in July of 2011, The Winemaker Studio is owned and operated by winemaker Anthony Nappa and his wife, Sarah. The goal of this venture was to offer winemakers from area vineyards the opportunity to showcase their own label creations. These are the winemakers who are responsible for the portfolios of such venues as Clovis Point, Castello di Borghese and Osprey’s Dominion Vineyards. Once the winemakers produce a new creation for bottling under their own label in limited quantities, The Winemaker Studio provides the platform to promote and sell their wines. For example, Anthony is the present winemaker for Raphael, also located in Peconic. Using their facilities, he also conjures his own line of wines that he bottles under his Anthony Nappa Wines label, which he established in 2007.
Born and raised in Massachusetts, Anthony earned his undergraduate degree in botany at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst. Two years later, he obtained his formal education in viticulture at Lincoln University in New Zealand. Upon completion of his studies, Anthony moved on to embark on winemaking in southern Italy, Massachusetts and California before settling on Long Island in 2007, at which time he began serving as the winemaker for Shinn Estate Vineyards as well as starting his own portfolio. Anthony remained at Shinn Estate Vineyards until 2011, when he opened The Winemaker Studio. His premiere release was 200 cases of his pinot noir, dubbed Nemesis.
Anthony and Sarah are both very cordial and charming, but when customers approach the storefront door of The Winemaker Studio, it is a welcoming committee of the canine kind that happily approaches to greet their guests. If food is ordered, however, their noses guide them away to where the action is: in Sarah’s kitchen. Sarah, who formerly served as sous chef at the North Fork Table and Inn, cooks a tantalizing menu of pressed sandwiches and small bites, such crostini with Gorgonzola dolce and imported fig spread. As the order is brought to the awaiting table, Beckett and Smooch are sure to follow. The furry hosts will keep guests company until their sous chef services are required once again.
Anthony’s wines are highly praised, with three of them earning scores of 90 in Wine Enthusiast ratings. One of them is a unique white pinot noir, aptly named Anomaly. The North Fork’s highest scoring red wine ever by Wine Enthusiast also comes from Anthony’s lineup. That honorable score of 91 goes to a 2012 red blend called, fittingly, Dodici. There are several future releases that will soon expand the impressive selection of Anthony Nappa Wines, including a Malbec.
Adjacent to the tasting room is Provisions and Ingredients, the studio’s epicurean market that stocks edibles from Italy and from all over New York State, including cheeses, dry sausages, condiments, pastas and other Mediterranean delicacies.
The Winemaker Studio is located at 2882 Peconic Lane in Peconic. You can also peruse the wine selections, order wines online and check for directions and hours of operation at www.anthonynappawines.com
Opened in July of 2011, The Winemaker Studio is owned and operated by winemaker Anthony Nappa and his wife, Sarah. The goal of this venture was to offer winemakers from area vineyards the opportunity to showcase their own label creations. These are the winemakers who are responsible for the portfolios of such venues as Clovis Point, Castello di Borghese and Osprey’s Dominion Vineyards. Once the winemakers produce a new creation for bottling under their own label in limited quantities, The Winemaker Studio provides the platform to promote and sell their wines. For example, Anthony is the present winemaker for Raphael, also located in Peconic. Using their facilities, he also conjures his own line of wines that he bottles under his Anthony Nappa Wines label, which he established in 2007.
Born and raised in Massachusetts, Anthony earned his undergraduate degree in botany at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst. Two years later, he obtained his formal education in viticulture at Lincoln University in New Zealand. Upon completion of his studies, Anthony moved on to embark on winemaking in southern Italy, Massachusetts and California before settling on Long Island in 2007, at which time he began serving as the winemaker for Shinn Estate Vineyards as well as starting his own portfolio. Anthony remained at Shinn Estate Vineyards until 2011, when he opened The Winemaker Studio. His premiere release was 200 cases of his pinot noir, dubbed Nemesis.
Anthony and Sarah are both very cordial and charming, but when customers approach the storefront door of The Winemaker Studio, it is a welcoming committee of the canine kind that happily approaches to greet their guests. If food is ordered, however, their noses guide them away to where the action is: in Sarah’s kitchen. Sarah, who formerly served as sous chef at the North Fork Table and Inn, cooks a tantalizing menu of pressed sandwiches and small bites, such crostini with Gorgonzola dolce and imported fig spread. As the order is brought to the awaiting table, Beckett and Smooch are sure to follow. The furry hosts will keep guests company until their sous chef services are required once again.
Anthony’s wines are highly praised, with three of them earning scores of 90 in Wine Enthusiast ratings. One of them is a unique white pinot noir, aptly named Anomaly. The North Fork’s highest scoring red wine ever by Wine Enthusiast also comes from Anthony’s lineup. That honorable score of 91 goes to a 2012 red blend called, fittingly, Dodici. There are several future releases that will soon expand the impressive selection of Anthony Nappa Wines, including a Malbec.
Adjacent to the tasting room is Provisions and Ingredients, the studio’s epicurean market that stocks edibles from Italy and from all over New York State, including cheeses, dry sausages, condiments, pastas and other Mediterranean delicacies.
The Winemaker Studio is located at 2882 Peconic Lane in Peconic. You can also peruse the wine selections, order wines online and check for directions and hours of operation at www.anthonynappawines.com