Courtesy Adirondack Winery LLC
Adirondack Winery LLC has opened a second tasting room, at 4971 Lake Shore Drive, Suite 2, in Bolton Landing.
The tasting room has been in “soft opening” phase since June 9, said owners Michael and Sasha Pardy. A grand opening was held July 26.
The new tasting room is across the street from Tops Market, between Palazzo’s Pizzeria and Bob’s Ice Cream. The building is owned by Robert and Dawn O’Keefe, owners of the Huddle Kitchen restaurant and bar on Lake Shore Drive.
Headquartered in Queensbury, the company’s other tasting room is on Canada Street in Lake George.
“We were intrigued immediately when we saw this space for rent on Lake Shore Drive last fall,” said Pardy. “We had been looking for space in Bolton Landing since late 2015 and when we saw this spot, the perfect size for us, located right in the heart of Bolton Landing and so close to the base of the Sagamore Resort entrance. I knew this spot had a lot of potential.”
“They’re an attraction that draws visitors and have a great reputation and wine, so we’re happy to have them,” said O’Keefe.
Pardy said Adirondack Winery has grown year after year, from a 1,000 case micro-winery in 2008 to a 13,000-case winery now with over 500 club members, shipping to 35 states and selling wines at nearly 400 liquor stores and restaurants across upstate New York.
“We’ve always wanted to have a second tasting room. We just had to find the right time and the right location. As we have become more familiar with the Lake George tourism economy over the years, we recognized that Bolton Landing would be a great spot to open. The business owners in Bolton Landing are all very supportive of each other and the visitors and residents have a deep love for this little town,” she said.
Michael Consuelo, executive director for the Lake George Regional Chamber of Commerce & CVB, said having the tasting room in Lake George has provided a great option for visitors and benefitted the year-round economy.
Elaine Chiovarou-Brown of the Bolton Landing Chamber of Commerce said the tasting room “is a wonderful addition to Bolton Landing’s Lakeshore Drive.”
The new space’s interior features a tasting bar with rustic wood facing and cabinetry hand-crafted by Square Nail Rustics in Queensbury; a bar top made from crushed glass wine bottles; natural wood and oak wine barrel tables hand-crafted by Martin’s Lumber in Warrensburg; a full-wall chalkboard with art completed by their in-house calligraphic artist, Nicole Carte and Graphic Design Specialist Rob Rezin; a cork wall, and a wine bottle chandelier that casts the winery logo onto the ceiling.
“We had so much fun designing this space and now that we’ve been doing this for so many years, we were able to design it to be optimally functional and have a great flow,” said Pardy.
“We have decided to do what we do best and offer the same wine tasting experiences as we do at the Lake George Tasting Room in Bolton. At this point, we are going with the flow, listening to feedback from Bolton Landing customers and will adjust along the way,” she said.
Ava Dally, who has been the manager of the Lake George tasting room for three years, is now the tasting room manager for both locations, with support from two assistant managers and a staff of about 20 part-time tasting room associates.
Adirondack Winery opened in Lake George 2008 as the region’s first winery. Winemaker/CEO, Michael Pardy, creates the winery’s wide selection of wines, which have won more than 150 medals at competitions to date, according to the company.
The new room is open 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily.