The Nantucket Wine Festival is New England’s premiere wine tasting event. This five day affair is jam packed with grand tastings, luxurious wine dinners, seminars, and parties. Not to mention all the other fantastic sights and experiences available on this tiny island. It’s a whole lot to take in, even for a seasoned NWF goer. But fear not! We’re here to help you make the most of your weekend, so read on for our top 5 things to do during NWF weekend:
1. Drink Some Wine
We’re stating the obvious, but you’re here for the wine aren’t you? Good. The upside to NWF’s enormous lineup of tastings and seminars is there is something for everyone. Want to learn about pairing food with wine? Pick any cuisine from sushi to cheese to BBQ and they have a tasting for it. Want to go in-depth on a specific wine region, vineyard or growing style? Maybe the Organic Napa Valley wine seminar or the Think Pink rosé seminar will suit your fancy. Of course, if you want to try it all the Grand Tastings are the place to be. We will be at all three Grand Tasting sessions pouring your favorite 90+ Cellars lots (as well as our new Cabernet Sauvignon brand Ironside Cellars!), giving away stickers and sunglasses, previewing this year's Weekender, and handing out special offers for wine club membership. We hope to see you there!
2. Rent A Bike
A long weekend of wining and dining takes endurance, and if you try and do it all on Friday night you may literally be sick of wine come Saturday morning (before the Grand Tasting has even begun!). If you’re in it for the long haul you’re going to need some balance in your life. Thankfully Nantucket is beautiful and bike friendly, meaning you can combine working out and sight seeing if you rent a bike and go for a ride. You’ll get to explore the island beyond Main Street, burn some calories, and come back ready for round 2!
3. Restaurants
Not going to make it to any of the NWF wine dinners? No worries. There are so many fantastic dining options on Nantucket you won’t feel like you’re missing out. Get your day started with a cup of coffee from The Bean (a cute, local coffee shop located on Centre street) then grab a tasty sandwich from Fresh on Salem Street between afternoon tastings. For an unforgettable dinner of Italian cuisine with a local twist try the cozy yet elegant Ventuno on Federal Street. And last but not least, Cru is the place to be if an afternoon of oysters and patio drinking is on your agenda. And if run into our Founder Kevin there ask him to buy you a Hugo…he gets more and more generous as the day goes on.
4. Chicken Box
Nantucket is not all about fine dining and wine tastings…sometimes you just need to cut loose, listen to loud music, and drink cheap beer out of a plastic cup. That’s why at the end of the night you’ll find us at The Chicken Box. Complete with ping pong, pool, darts and an eclectic rotation of live music, this down to earth bar is an essential (not to mention super fun) part of the Nantucket experience.
5. Beaches
Sunday afternoon. You’ve got a few hours to kill before it’s time to get on the ferry and quite frankly you’re all boozed out from the weekend’s festivities. Wind down with a long walk on one of Nantucket’s many beautiful beaches. Dig your feet into the sand, smell the salty air, and pick out your dream beach house as you mosey along. We can’t think of a better place than the beach to reflect on an incredible weekend like this.
Now that we’ve shared our favorite things to do during the Nantucket Wine Festival. we want to hear from you! What are you most looking forward to? What else is on your must-do list? Let us know in the comments!
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