One Newt Two Newt Red Newt Blue Newt

Last summer Kyle and I took a trip up to the finger lakes in New York. For his birthday I got us tickets to see the Barenaked Ladies up in Canandaigua, and we formed an end of the summer/ pre-leaving for basic training trip around it. We stayed in one of these Rustic Log Cabins in Hector, NY, complete with the Leidenfrost Winery on site. The winery and cabins were run by a pleasant brother/sister duo; I received a holiday card from them in the mail last winter. On a map you can find the winery further to the South on Seneca Lake, a little ways up past Watkins Glen.

It was a great little trip. The area suited us well: meandering roads lined with wineries and good food, all with grass, trees, and views of the lake in the distance. We never ended up making it down to the water, but we did go on a little wine tour one of the days. We stopped at maybe 5 or 6 places including one distillery, and didn't have to travel more than a mile, which is good because we were very eager to try what each winery had to offer. For a few dollars we could sample a couple different wines at each location. The wineries and restaurants all had memorable names: Stonecat Cafe, Hazlitt Red Cat, and Tickle Hill to name some of the places we stopped.

Our favorite place was the Red Newt Cellars. We tried three or four wines and enjoyed them all, from a peppery red to a sweet, crisp white, and a dark dessert wine accompanied by a piece of chocolate. After sampling we ate lunch at the restaurant, also delicious. Never have newts looked so cute as on their bottles and stuffed animals lounging about the store. We brought back three or four bottles alone from Red Newt, probably about eight bottles total from the various stops we made.

The concert was a lot of fun as well! We got dinner in town then made our way to the CMAC (Constellation Brands Performing Arts Center). We sat in the grass and enjoyed some tunes. 

After Kyle and I got back to State College, we wanted to share the tasty wines with our families, so we made dinner and had them over to my house to eat and sample some drinks we brought back in the backyard. Yum. 

-From the desk of Mrs. Sarah McPherson