Rolling hills, lush greenery, sprawling land - it's the scene that comes to mind when you envision a weekend at a vineyard. Wine Country, though, is about to get some new competition, and in an unexpected place: Brooklyn.
So how do you bring a vineyard to New York City's second-largest borough? You look up.
The idea for a rooftop vineyard struck Devin Shoemaker in 2013, as Business Insider reports, back when he was in school for viticulture and wine technologies at the Finger Lakes Community College in upstate New York - an area that continues to gain notoriety for its wine. With rooftop gardens and farms soaring in popularity, it was a logical progression for the oenologist.
After joining forces with fellow winemaker, Chris Papalia, Shomaker set out to test whether sustaining a rooftop vineyard in the city was even viable. Taking over the roof of his brother's Brooklyn apartment building, he planted his first test vines - which survived two harsh East Coast winters.
From there, Shomaker knew his dream was just shy of becoming a reality. And now, over two years since inspiration struck, the project is about to go public.
Located atop the Brooklyn Navy Yard, a 14,000-square-foot space, Rooftop Reds will be the world's first-ever commercial rooftop vineyard. There are already over 400 vines planted, which have been happily growing since 2014.
Shomaker expects to open to the public in mid-to-late September, offering "Hammock Happy Hour" Wednesday through Friday, tours of the sprawling rooftop, and a variety of special dinners, wine tastings, and other events.
For now, wine will be sourced from partners in the Finger Lakes region, but the rooftop-grown grapes will be mature enough to harvest in October of 2016. And by fall of 2017, we'll all be able to sip on New York City's one and only urban vintage.
We'll raise a glass to that!
h/tBusiness Insider
