Shinn Estate Vineyards

i really like the shinn wines - i think this is the best vineyard on the north fork.

I have spent my summers in Mattituck since I was a child and have seen the birth of the North Fork wine country. I love Oregon Road and was thrilled when Shinn Estates opened with their bio dynamic farming and nice wine. This past weekend, I hosted a birthday party for myself-- and choose Shinn Estates to showcase Long Island wineries to my guests. We were about 25 people in all, many arriving on bikes. Our spirits were deflated when greeted by the owner Barbara-- although we were a big group we are low maintenance (wanting to put down some blankets and buy many bottles of wine and have a cheese tasting organized by one of the guests)-- I would have called ahead for a reservation if we wanted anything special or a tour. I could have easily explained this to the owner if she had greeted us with anything other than despise that we were visiting her winery. I understand that wineries don't want large buses of bacholorette parties converging on their space, but we were a group of demographically awesome, respectful, customers arriving on vintage bikes for heaven sake! When finally settled on the grass behind the parking lot, we were given only 2 glasses per bottle of wine we purchased- not even welcoming as we gave over our money $$$. The Wild Boar Doe is a good wine, but I would recommend buying it at a wine shop-- and skip the rude awkwardness that is Shinn. and I think their NYC restaurant is quite a disappointment too! I will not go back!

My date just emailed me with her review of our weekend at Shinn. I just wanted to chime in and say that this place really rocks!

I spent the weekend at Shinn Estate Farmhouse and Vineyard and had a glorious time. David's breakfasts, Barbara's vineyard, Anthony's wines - all divine. I will be going back often and sending all of my friends and family.

This past weekend was my first time to the North Fork Vineyards and since Shinn Estate got the best reviews with great pictures on their website, I decided to check it out. As soon as we walked in, we were treated with a very cold welcome, almost like we were disturbing them! This site might be a review for wine quality but when you're treated with rudeness, unfriendliness and a very bad attitude, it doesn't set anybody up for wine tasting! And unfortunately, this is what we received at this "Almost" 5 star rating vineyard. We decided to try another one- Laurel Lake Vineyard. Our experience was the opposite- even though it was simple, the staff was very friendly, informative and very welcoming. It was a very enjoyable experience for both of us there.