Did You Know?
In 1973, Alex and Louisa Hargrave planted more than ten thousand vines on a former farm in Cutchogue. It was the first commercial planting of European wine grapes on Long Island, and the region’s wine industry grew from there. Each fall harvest out here is the region marking another year since those first vines went into the ground.
The East End wine harvest runs from late summer into fall, and it is the one season when a vineyard visit can go well past a wine taqsting. You can stomp grapes at a harvest party, pick fruit alongside a vineyard crew, and pour a glass a few steps from the tanks where the new vintage is working. Most of it happens on the North Fork, with Riverhead at the western gate and a few South Fork estates growing grapes not far from the ocean.
Harvest is also when the vineyards are at their busiest. Picking bins stack up at the ends of the rows, tractors pull loaded trailers toward the crush pad, and the air around the winery smells faintly of fermenting fruit. The tasting rooms stay open through all of it, and the people pouring your wine have usually been out in the vines since morning.
Start with the kind of harvest day you want.
Grape stomps and harvest parties – ticketed afternoons of crushing, music, and long lunches at Bedell Cellars, Wölffer Estate, and RG|NY.
Picking with the crew – a harvest day in Riverhead that puts visitors in the rows with clippers and bins.
Tastings close to the crush – easygoing fall visits at working farms in Cutchogue and Bridgehampton.
Sleeping among the vines – a bed and breakfast on a working North Fork vineyard, so the day ends where it began.
Jump to a Region
The guide runs west to east, the way most people arrive. Shelter Island and Montauk come in through the routes in Make a Day of It, since the vines themselves grow on the two forks.
- Riverhead – a hands-on picking day and the start of the wine road
- North Fork – grape stomps, farm tastings, and a vineyard bed and breakfast
- South Fork – a harvest party option and an adventurous estate near the ocean
- Make a Day of It, or Stay the Night – three harvest routes with somewhere to end up
- Before You Go – tickets, reservations, drivers, and field shoes
- Harvest Questions, Answered – quick answers for planning your trip
Riverhead
Riverhead is where the wine road begins. Sound Avenue runs east from here past farm stands and orchards, and the first vineyards appear before you have really left town.
Can you help pick grapes during harvest on Long Island?
Yes. RG|NY in Riverhead holds a harvest day each fall where guests hand-pick grapes for the new vintage, learn how the vineyard is farmed, and finish with wine and something to eat. Dates and tickets are posted on RG|NY’s website, and space is limited.
RG|NY, Riverhead – A family vineyard on Sound Avenue with Mexican roots and a harvest season built around them. Beyond the picking day, the Harvest Series runs to a grape stomp with live salsa music and closes with a Día de los Muertos evening of music, ceremonial fire, and wine. The series runs through the fall, so there is more than one way to join in.
Local Tip: Sound Avenue is farm stand country in the fall. Leave room in the car for apples, cider, and whatever pumpkin you did not plan on buying.
North Fork
Two roads, Route 25 and County Road 48, run the length of the fork, and between them the vineyards come one after another, broken up by farm fields and stands, and old barns turned into tasting rooms.
Where can you stomp grapes on the North Fork?
Bedell Cellars in Cutchogue hosts a Harvest Stomp Party each fall, with grape crushing, lunch, and live music afterward. RG|NY in Riverhead holds its own stomp as part of its Harvest Series. Both are ticketed with limited seating, so check the vineyard websites well ahead.
Bedell Cellars, Cutchogue – A winery since 1980, pouring in a converted potato barn with a mahogany pavilion looking out over the vines. The Harvest Stomp Party brings grape crushing, wine, lunch from Lombardi’s Love Lane in Mattituck, and live music on the pavilion. On other days, a behind-the-scenes cellar tour walks you through how the wine gets made, glass in hand.
What is a North Fork vineyard like during harvest?
Busy, but welcoming. Crews are picking and hauling fruit while the tasting rooms keep pouring, so a fall visit often means watching harvest happen from your table. At smaller, farm-style vineyards, the working side of the season is often right in view.
McCall Wines, Cutchogue – A family vineyard and cattle ranch where you taste in what used to be horse stalls, looking out over the vines and the pasture. The grapes are picked by hand, and the vineyard is known for its Pinot Noir. Burger nights are made with beef from the farm’s own Charolais cattle, so check McCall’s website for the current schedule.
Can you stay overnight at a North Fork vineyard?
Yes. Sannino Vineyard Bed & Breakfast in Cutchogue puts you on a working vineyard, with breakfast brought to your room and a tasting at the winery included with your stay. A harvest day there rolls straight into a harvest weekend, with no drive at the end of it.
Sannino Vineyard Bed & Breakfast, Cutchogue – A small, family-run inn on the Sannino vineyard, with suites that have private entrances and views across the vineyard. Breakfast arrives at your door each morning, and a tasting with a cheese platter at the family’s tasting house on the property is part of the stay. Book directly through Sannino’s website.
Local Tip: Harvest weekends draw a crowd on Route 25. County Road 48 runs parallel to the north as another way east, and a weekday visit leaves more time to talk with the people pouring.
South Fork
The South Fork grows fewer grapes than the North Fork, but the vineyards here have their own character. Ocean air cools the vines, the fields sit between the villages and the dunes, and a harvest afternoon can end with a walk on the beach.
Is there a harvest party in the Hamptons?
Yes. Wölffer Estate Vineyard in Sagaponack throws an annual Harvest Party that is built for families, with food stations, games, grape stomping, and hayrides. It is ticketed and has sold out in past years, so watch Wölffer’s website as fall approaches.
Wölffer Estate Vineyard, Sagaponack – A family-owned estate whose annual Harvest Party marks the end of the season in Sagaponack. Expect international food stations, barrel-rolling, grape stomping, a wine-making relay race, and hayrides, with Wölffer wines and ciders poured throughout. Outside of the party, tastings run by reservation.
Where can you taste during harvest on the South Fork?
Channing Daughters Winery in Bridgehampton offers a quieter way into the season, with no ticketed event required. You taste in the middle of a working vineyard while the fall harvest comes in, and the tasting room welcomes both reservations and walk-ins.
Channing Daughters Winery, Bridgehampton – Twenty-eight acres of vines growing more than two dozen grape varieties, many of them rare on the East End. Every grape is picked by hand, and the red grapes are still stomped by foot and punched down by hand. Leave time to look around: carved-wood sculptures by the late Walter Channing, who planted the first vines here, still rise from the ends of the vineyard rows.
Local Tip: Taste in the afternoon, then head south to the ocean beaches for the last light on the sand.
Make a Day of It, or Stay the Night
Three routes that pair harvest with somewhere to eat and somewhere to end up.
The North Fork Harvest Weekend
Start Saturday in Riverhead with RG|NY or a stomp in Cutchogue. Spend the afternoon at a farm tasting like McCall, then settle in for the night in Greenport or on the vineyard at Sannino. Sunday is for the farm stands on the drive home.
The Ferry Crossing
Take the North Ferry from Greenport to Shelter Island, drive across the island, and catch the South Ferry to North Haven. By early afternoon you can be tasting in Bridgehampton, with dinner waiting in Sag Harbor. The crossing turns a two-fork day into one smooth loop.
The South Fork to Montauk Day
Taste at Channing Daughters or Wölffer while the light is still high over the vines. Then keep driving east to Montauk for sunset over the water and a night by the ocean.
All three routes fit an overnight. Harvest days run long, and staying close means nobody has to drive home after an afternoon of tastings.
Where to Stay: Find places to stay across the East End
Before You Go
- Harvest parties and picking days are ticketed and often sell out. Check each vineyard’s own website for dates and tickets.
- Reservation rules differ from one tasting room to the next. Some take reservations only, and others welcome walk-ins, so confirm before you drive out.
- Plan your driver before the first pour. A designated driver, a wine tour, or an overnight nearby keeps the day easy.
- Harvest is working season. Crews and equipment are in the rows, so stay on the paths unless a guide leads you in.
- Dress for the fields. Closed-toe shoes, a layer for cool afternoons, and clothes you do not mind getting a little purple.
- Policies on children and dogs vary by vineyard. Some welcome families, and some tasting rooms are adults only.
Harvest Questions, Answered
When is wine harvest on Long Island?
Harvest on Long Island runs from late summer into fall, depending on the grape variety and the weather that year. Each grape variety ripens on its own schedule, so picking can stretch over several weeks. Vineyards post their harvest events on their own websites, so check there for timing.
Where can you stomp grapes on Long Island?
Bedell Cellars in Cutchogue, RG|NY in Riverhead, and Wölffer Estate Vineyard in Sagaponack all include grape stomping in their fall harvest events. Each is a ticketed event with limited space. Check the vineyard websites for this season’s dates.
Can visitors help with the grape harvest?
Yes. RG|NY in Riverhead runs a harvest day where guests hand-pick grapes for the new vintage alongside the vineyard team. It is ticketed and includes wine and food afterward.
Do you need reservations for fall wine tastings on the East End?
It depends on the vineyard. Wölffer Estate takes reservations for tastings, Channing Daughters welcomes both reservations and walk-ins, and Bedell Cellars does not require reservations for smaller groups. Check each vineyard’s website before you go.
Are harvest events family-friendly?
Some are built for families. Wölffer Estate’s Harvest Party includes hayrides and games alongside the wine, and RG|NY sells child tickets for its Stomp Party. Tasting room policies on children vary, so confirm with each vineyard.
Where should you stay for a wine harvest weekend?
For the North Fork, look at Greenport and the hamlets along Route 25, or stay right on a vineyard at Sannino Vineyard Bed & Breakfast in Cutchogue. For the South Fork, Sag Harbor, Bridgehampton, and Montauk all put you within an easy drive of the vines. Browse places to stay across the East End on East End Getaway.
The Season in the Glass
Most of the year, a glass of East End wine tells you about a place you are sitting in. At harvest, you get to watch it being made. The fruit comes off the vines in the morning, the stomp happens in the afternoon, and the wine you taste that evening is last year’s version of the same story.
Come back next fall and the wine from this harvest will be in the bottle. That is its own reason to come back.
Making a whole fall farm day of it? Our apple picking guide covers orchards from Riverhead to Cutchogue, including Wickham’s Fruit Farm, a short drive from the Cutchogue tasting rooms.
Find Your East End.