Take a Summer Road Trip With CoolVines

Feel like getting out of town for a day and visiting a winery? Let be your designated driver as well as your tour guide.

The wine shop, committed to offering "best of their breed" wines that represent great value, is hosting a one-day winery excursion on Sunday, Aug. 19.

Hop on a party bus at either of CoolVines' locations—127 Central Ave., Westfield or 21 Spring St., Princeton, and travel to Brooklyn's Red Hook Winery for a tour, a private tasting and lunch.

The winery, located at Pier 41, sources all of the grapes used to make its wine from the North Fork of Long Island, except Riesling grapes, which they acquire from the Finger Lakes.

Red Hook owner Mark Snyder is on a mission to expand New York's locally-grown wine selection. A native New Yorker, Snyder, who grew up in Gerritsen Beach, developed a passion for wine while touring the country as a concert technician for Peter Frampton and Billy Joel. When it came time to grow his own wine empire, Snyder stayed true to his home turf.

Wanting to share the potential he saw, Snyder invited his Napa Winemaker friends Abe Schoener (Scholium Project) and Robert Foley (Robert Foley Vineyards) to tour the region’s vineyards and see for themselves. Both Schoener and Foley were so impressed by Snyder’s vision that they now regularly fly in from California to act as Executive Winemakers for the Red Hook Winery.

The cost of the excursion is $80 per person and includes transportation to and from the winery, a tour, a private tasting and lunch provided by local artisans. Buses depart the Westfield and Princeton shops at 10:30 a.m. for an anticipated noon arrival. Attendees will leave the winery at 3 p.m. and return to CoolVines.

Availability is limited. Click here to RSVP or for more information, call the Westfield location at 908-232-5050 or the Princeton store at 609-924-0039.