Kontokosta Winery: North Fork Long Island

On a recent trip to the North Fork region of Long Island, I was invited to a tasting and reception at Kontokosta Winery. Kontokosta is an exquisite winery with property that stretches out to the water and a gorgeous tasting room. Of course, the setting cannot overshadow the wines, so I’m happy to say that the wines live up to their surroundings. Kontokosta Winery is situated on sixty-two acres, with over a quarter-mile of waterfront, the vineyard consists of cabernet sauvignon, cabernet franc, riesling, syrah, merlot, and viognier varietals. While the region is the same, so the grape varieties being grown are similar each of the neighbouring wineries’ wines such as Bedell Cellars has their own distinct characteristics.

Kontokosta’s wines had an incredible brightness, perhaps because the grapes are grown so close to the beach, whereas the wines we tasted at Bedell Cellars had a slightly more “roundedness”. Enough about these words that might mean nothing to you (it’s hard to describe wines when I’m not trained at all in the vocabulary of it all), I suggest you just pop in to a few vineyards and tasting rooms in the region and see what you like.

The tasting room is designed to meet the LEED Gold certification level. Even though the space is eco-friendly and gorgeous, the one thing that really stood out for me visiting Kontokosta’s Winery was not just the beauty of the space, and the quality of the wines, but how friendly, approachable, and passionate the owners and wine makers were. Michael Kontokosta was easy to talk to and happy to answer questions as we learned about the vineyard and the wines, and as we tasted samples from various stages of the wine making process.