i've got some friends. some friends who like wine. mix those friends with said grape "juice" and the shawagunk wine trail and a good time will be had. this past weekend, 16 of us loaded into a party bus, threw on some christmas tunes (mariah carey, this is the ONLY time of the year i will listen to you) and made our way up to the hudson valley.

initially, we were scheduled to make our way to six of the wineries and well...we made it to half. not to say they were not delicious, but one may want to allow for more time since they close at 6pm.

especially charming on the tour was a fellow named howard - our guide to the chilean wines we tasted at the first stop, the brotherhood winery. he poured a bit loosely we will say, but that is okay because i learned a thing or two from him. next up was palaia - a hippy atmosphere with a live band and free meatball subs (goes perfectly with that pinot noir, right?). our last stop was warwick - probably a favorite of mine with the hard cider that was offered on tap.

the excursion was a great day trip out of city - something you need every now and then when you live in ny.