Channing Daughter’s Rocky • Photo by Lindsay Morris
Sometimes, they greet you with a wiggling body and wagging tail in a vineyard tasting room, other times they’ll be roaming the vines or you’ll spot them snoozing in the wine cellar. Long Island’s vineyard dogs are often hard at work or (relaxing) helping to charm guests and protect the grapes from critters and pests. Here are 16 vineyard dogs that you should give a good pat to the next time you’re swirling, sniffing, and sipping your way around the vineyards.
Bedell’s Finbarr
Finbarr at Bedell Cellars
Winery dog, Finbarr, an 11-year-old golden retriever, loves to nap in the winery office in between greeting visitors in the Tasting Room, of course, and taking vineyard walks with his owner Molly Deegan, the EVP of Marketing and Sales Development.
Smooch at Raphael Vineyards
You probably won’t spot 7-year-old lab, Smooch, at Raphael Vineyards. She tends to be busy overseeing the work happening in the winery office.
Neala and Remi at Macari Wines
Quick question. Do you think border terrier Neala and yellow lab Remi ever steal a slice or two of the pizza from Avelino the Macari-based food truck known for its authentic authentic neapolitan pies?
Mako at Lenz Winery
Mako, a 7-year-old Staffordshire Bull Terrier started going to work with his owner, Lenz Winery winemaker Thomas Spotteck when he was just 8-weeks-old. He loves hanging out around the winery, but if you don’t spot him on your weekend it’s likely cause he’s fishing or walking the beaches of Shelter Island.
Dune and Lola at Mattebella Vineyards
Betcha you can’t name a better place to be a pup than Mattebella Vineyards. Dune, 14-months-old, and Lola, 5-months, are slowly getting their paws used to winery life. You’ll often find the two golden retrievers on a leash (they can be a bit rowdy), but they love saying hello to people, bunnies and the occasional wild turkey. If you don’t spot them, they may be running up and down the rows of grapes or they may be snoozing (read anxiously awaiting the return of vinter Mark Tobin so they can resume exploring) in the farm office.
Chase at Harmony Vineyards
Make sure you tell 3-year-old border collie, Chase, congrats next time you see him. He was recently promoted to EVP, Wildlife Control after he did such a good job chasing deer and geese from Harmony Vineyards. When he’s not patrolling the vineyard blocks, you’ll find in the tasting room.
Jersey at Lieb Cellars
Go ahead and give the sweetheart of Lieb Cellars, Jersey, a 10-year-old golden retriever, a hug. The mellow, quiet dog rarely barks and is usually found sleeping under the desk of her human, General Manager Ami Opisso or talking walks in the vineyards and hunting for sticks. We hear she likes treats.
Zoro, Steve, Morgan and Otto Pellegrini Vineyards
Visit Pellegrini Vineyards on the right day and you might meet not one, not two but four vineyard dogs. Zoro, a standard poodle likes to hang out in the winery and Morgan, a bernese mountain dog is often traveling around the vineyard in one of the trucks but Steve, a yellow lab and Otto a German Shorthaired Pointer can often be found in tasting room waiting for guests to give them a pat.
Shinn Estate’s Felipe
Felipe and Coda at Shinn Estate Vineyards
Felipe and Coda aren’t your typical vineyard dogs. They’re small. Coda is a 3-year-old Pomeranian and Felipe is a 10-year-old Yorkshire Terrier but their big personalities make up for their size and they eagerly await guests to visit them in the tasting room.
Rocky at Channing Daughters Winery
If you happen to stumble upon a bone or a treat in the tasting room at Channing Daughters it’s Rocky’s. The 5-month old Australian Cattle dog/Lab mix likes to hide his cookies in the tasting room. You’ll find him running around the wine case storage area or hanging out with winemaker Christopher Tracy.
