a month’s rent. Some
of the highest-profile
celebrities have homes
here and a drive down
its tony lanes can evoke
nauseatingly intense real
estate envy. However,
it’s worth swallowing
your pride and trying
to glimpse what are
undoubtedly some of the
priciest properties in
the country. Examples
of fabulous residential
architecture (as well
as cookie-cutter
gaudy McMansions)
are concealed behind
towering hedgerows and
gates. For a chance to
rub shoulders with the
locals, you can catchreadings, theater and
art exhibits at Guild
Hall (%631-324-0806; http://www.
guildhall.org; 158 Main St).5 p55
The Drive » Join the parade of
cars leaving town on Montauk
Hwy, which becomes hilly and
more beautiful the further east
you go on this 25-mile drive.7 Montauk
Once a sleepy and
humble stepsister to
the Hamptons – though
more working-class
Jersey, less Cote
d’Azur royalty – these
days Montauk, at thefar-eastern end of Long
Island, continues to draw
a fashionable, younger
crowd and even a hipster
subset to its beautiful
beaches. Longtime
residents, fishermen and
territorial surfers round
out a motley mix that
makes the dining and
bar scene louder and a
little more democratic
compared to other
Hamptons villages.
At the very eastern,
wind-whipped tip of the
South Fork is Montauk
Point State Park, with its
impressive, 1796 Montauk
Point Lighthouse
(%631-668-2544; http://www.
montauklighthouse.com;TRIP HIGHLIGHTMost people associate Long Island wineries with the North Fork but the South
Fork has a handful of good ones as well. You’ll know you’ve arrived at Duck Walk
Vineyards (%631-726-7555; http://www.duckwalk.com; 231 Montauk Hwy, Water Mill), the first stop
on this mini tour, when you spot a reddish-brick, Normandy-style château, fronted
by spiky blue spruce trees and backed by row upon row of neatly clipped grapevine
shoots clinging tightly to the sandy soil. Explore the 130 acres of the Damiano family
estate and you’ll get an up-close look at the startling variety of libations produced
here: Merlot, Sauvignon, a late-harvest Gewurztraminer, Pinot Grigio, blush wines,
two kinds of port and even boysenberry wine.
Just down the road are the 30 acres of vine trellises and grape plants of
Channing Daughters Vineyard (%631-537-7224; http://www.channingdaughters.com; 1927
Scuttlehole Rd, Bridgehampton). Step across the wide stone patio dotted with plush
chaise lounges that look out on the property, and keep your eyes peeled for the
Alice-in-Wonderland-like sculptures of owner Walter Channing – his works pop up
everywhere, staring down at you from the end posts of vineyard rows and emerging
in the shape of towering inverted trees against the horizon.
Further east, past the village of Bridgehampton, is the graceful Tuscan-villa-
style tasting room of Wolffer Estates (%631-537-5106; http://www.wolffer.com; 139 Sagg
Rd, Sagaponack). Sun-faded ochre walls, bright Grecian-blue window shutters and
massive wooden beams set the scene for sampling the crisp whites and earthy
reds Wolffer is renowned for. Experiment with some of the vineyard’s more unusual
offerings, including an apple wine, rose wines and sweet dessert drinks.SOUTH FORK VINEYARDS
LOCAL KNOWLEDGE:
NEW.YORK.TRIPS2
(^) LONG ISLAND