HUDSON VALLEY WEDDINGS AT
HUDSON-CHATHAM WINERY

The Hudson-Chatham Winery is the dream of Carlo and Dominique DeVito, both publishing professionals who have long shared a love of wine. This exciting new winery, which specializes in small hand-made batches of wine, is dedicated to the richness of the Hudson River Valley, particularly its wine, agriculture, literature, art, history, and many other attractions that make it a rich and special region. The Hudson-Chatham Winery, located between the historic towns of Hudson and Chatham, is the first winery in Columbia County. The widely acclaimed winery has also be a featured wine at the Culinary Institute of America and in Kevin Zraly’s American Wine Guide 2009.

As well as creating fine artisanal wines, the DeVito family (including two dogs), and many valued friends, have worked hard restoring the winery's grounds and its prestigious circa 1780 farmhouse. The winery will feature hand-crafted wines, cheeses and desserts, and will include vineyard tours and a gazebo with scenic views.

While we can accommodate larger weddings, we specialize and welcome small wedding parties (less than 100 guests).

The Hudson-Chatham Winery features:
* Views of the Catskill and Berkshire Mountains
* Great fall foliage views
* We can handle weddings of any size
* We specialize in small weddings
* Great space for bridal showers and rehearsal dinners
* Offer Bridal Suite in 1790s farmhouse during event
* Pet friendly property
* All events feature New York State wines
* Discounts for weddings held Monday through Friday
* Offers complete list of vendors for all your wedding needs

WINERY FEES
Site Fees (all site fees are due in advance and are not refundable)
1. Weddings requiring a tent (approx 100+ people - not including cost of tent - 6 hours)
2. Weddings of 60 or less people in the tasting room facilities (not including food & wine 5 hours)
3. Rehearsal dinners in tasting room - (room fee only - other services not included - 3 hours)
4. Mon-Fri weddings - we offer reduced fees for weekday events
Bridal Suite (3 room suite and bathroom)
1. Day rate - same times as event
2. Stay Over Rate (includes light breakfast)
Services
1. Corking fee (wine servers)
2. Personalized small bottles for guests
3. Hudson Valley Artisnal Bread and Cheese Plates available upon request (price to be quoted)
Wine Charges
15% off on pre-ordered mixed case quantities
10% off on all bottles to guests who wish to buy wine

LOCAL SERVICE PROVIDERS:

Tent & Party Rentals:
Aviator Tent Rentals
(518) 828-7681

Cantele Tent Rentals
(518) 672 7227
http://canteletentrentals.com/

Columbia Tent Rentals
(518) 851-9460

Florists:
Chatham Flowers & Gifts Florists
(518)392-6414
http://www.chathamflowersandgifts.com/

Crazy Daisy Florist
(518) 822-0977
http://www.crazydaisyflorist.com/

Gibson Girl Gardens
518-392-7372

N. Scali Nursery & Florist
(518) 828-4910
http://www.nscli.com/

Bakery:
Chatham Village Cake Shoppe Food Markets/Food Products
Mr. Robert Harvey
33 Hudson Avenue Chatham, NY 12037
p. (518) 392-9866

Well Dressed Cake
(518) 392-6974

Caterers:

Bezalel Gables Fine Catering and Events Catering/Event Planning
Chef David Robinson
P.O. Box 152 Chatham, NY 12037
p. (518) 392-0474 f. (518) 392-0471
http://www.bezalelgables.com/

Carlucci Catering Catering/Event Planning
Mr. Thomas J. Carlucci
43 Kinderhook Street Chatham, NY 12037
p. (518) 392-3663

Georgia Ray's Kitchen Catering/Event Planning
Mr. Danyell C. Ray
149 Joslen Blvd. Hudson, NY 12534
p. (518) 828-3245 f. (518) 828-8695
http://www.georgiarays.com/

Random Harvest
1785 State Route 23
Craryville, NY 12521
(518) 325-5103

Hotels & B&Bs:
Columbia County Lodging Association
http://www.columbiacountylodging.com/

Limo Services:

All Occasion Limousine Service
(518) 479-LIMO
http://www.allocclimo.com/

Allure Limousine Services
165 Merwin Rd
Valatie, NY 12184
(518) 392-8989

J Pulver, Inc.
15 Union Turnpike
Hudson, NY 12534

Today’s Limousine
(518) 452-4242
http://www.todayslimo.com/

Bus Services
Amrod Enterprises
1-800-354-1807
http://www.amrodbus.com/
Cramden Coach
518 537 5083

Music - DJs Bands Quartets and Trios:
Bill Dustin The Central New York Showcase

Booking Line: 315.427.3199

http://www.thecnyshowcase.com/

Karaoke Craig DJ Services Inc
521 Willowbrook Rd
Surprise, NY 12176
(518) 966-5444

Sound Control DJs
19 Wisconsin Avenue
Rensselaer, NY 12144
518 479-7257
http://www.soundcontroldiscjockeys.com/aboutus.htm

Melinda Gardiner Music
22 West End Road
Hillsdale, NY 12529
p. (518) 325-5546 f. (518) 325-3089
http://www.mhtp.org/

Gig Masters - Book A Star Tonite - Duos, Combos, Jazz and Classical
http://www.gigmasters.com/

Hudson Valley Live Music Duos, Ensembles, Orchestras
http://www.hudsonvalleyweddings.com/goods/live.htm

New York Wedding Bands and Entertainment
http://www.weddingreportsny.com/bands.cfm

Salute to Spring

April 5, 2008

11 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Hudson-Chatham Winery

1900 Route 66

Ghent, NY 12075

518 392 WINE

The Hudson-Chatham Winery is reopening for the season on Saturday, April 5, 2008. To kick off the season, the winery is hosting a culinary Salute to Spring. In addition to a regular tasting offerings, there will be a selection of complementary savory and sweet spring foods that pair beautifully with wine.

HUDSON-CHATHAM WINERY FEATURED AT CULINARY INSTITUTE OF AMERICA


John Nihoff, a renowned professor, and Rena Paterno, President of the Bacchus Wine Club at the Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY, invited us to discuss New York State wines and the industry and do a tasting of our wines in the Wine Spectator lecture hall on Wednesday, March 12, 2008. We were delighted when over 60 students packed the auditorium. They advertised the event with this fun poster:


Attentive and courteous students handled all the details of the event, from providing a placemat with spots for seven individual glasses for the tasting, to uncorking and pouring the wines, to serving bread and cheese dishes, and cleaning up afterward. What a delight for us!

Carlo started off the evening by taking a picture of the class, which drew a few hoots, but we were off and running after that. Dominique and Carlo took turns addressing the class and discussing not only our wines and how to taste them, but all aspects of wine and winemaking in across NY, from the Finger Lakes to Lake Erie to Long Island and of course, our home, the Hudson Valley. The students were interested and lively. There were many questions about winemaking, grape choices, and stylistic choices as well.


"Carlo and I want to thank John and Rena for the wonderful opportunity they provided us to share our wines and our story with the CIA students," said Dominique. "We were delighted with the number of students who came to the event, and we hope they all gained a greater appreciation for New York State wines. Hopefully they will want to venture out and see some of the wineries that are so close to the CIA."

We also want to thank the students who not only attended the class, but helped pour the tastings and helped set up and clean up. Thank all of you for a wonderful visit.

“It’s the best culinary school in the world,” said Paul Bocuse, world-renowned French chef said of the stunning campus and culinary program. He should know, he's a graduate. At the Culinary Institute of America, in Hyde Park, New York, they have the most Certified Master Chefs of any culinary college on their faculty staff. A CIA bachelor’s or associate degree in culinary arts or baking and pastry arts is an unmatched credential that will open doors to an endless number of exciting career opportunities for future chefs. This is the college of Anthon Bourdain and Todd English among many other stars.

Professor John Nihoff was most gracious to us. An accomplished individual (a former Navy Seal and a judge on Iron Chef television show), he regaled us with stories of his travels and culinary experiences over an exquisitie dinner at Escoffier, the French restaurant run by students on the grounds.

No one will soon forget a visit to the Culinary Institute of America. It is a very special place.

WINERIES UNLIMITED, TOO

Well, here we were on day two of Wineries Unlimited. We started off the day by checking out the very valuable seminar on vineyard irrigation. We’ve worked with several people who’ve told us that to make the jump we need to make this year, we need better and more consistent irrigation. We have an electrically powered well on our vineyard, and this year our vineyard will be better irrigated.

They had other seminars on winemaking, winery book keeping and business management, vineyard management, insect infestations, plant necrosis, and other issues important to wineries.

From there we went shopping out on the trade show floor. Here there is everything the fledgling winery owner needs (and doesn’t need) to start his or her own winery. Everything from vineyard equipment to winery equipment to tasting room merchandise, can be found here.
Our first stop was to Waterloo Container to see the folks there. We’re a small operation and can’t fulfill the minimums required by the large manufacturers. Waterloo Container is a one stop shop for small wineries who need bottles, corks, caps, carboys, and other container issues. We spent time with them discussing some new bottle options and new enclosures. We also discussed with them the idea of moving over to real cork for our Merlot and Cabernet Franc.

From there we went around looking at trellising equipment. We are establishing our trellis this year, and we were examining the different options - wood posts, metal posts, or fiberglass posts (which apple growers use quite often). We discussed with vendors which would wear better, cost efficiencies, life expectancies, and replacement costs.

The we went to see some one equipment. I needed to order more floor corkers, as we’ve worn out one this year alone. The automatic machines are a little to expensive for us, and our winery output is such that it’s not cost effective yet. However, we’re at a stage where we might have to live with the idea of having to replace one of our three corking machines every year until we move up to the next level.

We ran into many people in the seminars and saw people like Steve Osborn, Art Hunt, Richard Olsen-Harbich, Dr. Tim Martinson, Wayne Wilcox, and many others.

From there we wandered around. Dominique found some winery jazz CDs she liked very much, and we found some wine bottle corks for the store we thought were fun, and colorful, and which might move well in the tasting room.

From there we went to Naylor packaging. Dick Naylor is a legend in the east coast winery game. He is the owner of Naylor Vineyards in Pennsylvania, a well-established and prosperous Pennsylvania winery. They’ve won many awards and created some wonderful wines. He is also the president and owner of Naylor Packaging. Naylor supplies many of the small and medium sized east coast wineries with packaging options. Need a cardboard carrier for two, three, or six bottles? Naylor’s got it! Need shippers in small supply? Naylor’s got ’em! We ordered six different packages and shippers, and moved on.

The very nice ladies of the TTB had a both there as well. We’ve been having a tough time getting a series of new labels through. I went and bothered them regarding the wording of my labels, and asked why they might have been rejected. We then talked to them about several other questions we had.

We stopped at several other booths. And wandered around some more, before heading to a very important seminar on Hosting Musical Events at Your Winery. This was a great seminar about booking talent, standard operating procedures for having bands, and how to manage parking, concessions, etc.

It was a wonderful visit. We conducted business face-to-face with many vendors, explored new options for our vineyard and winery, and found new products to sell in our tastingroom. We look forward to going again next year!

HUDSON-CHATHAM WINERY REPRESENTED AT WINERIES UNLIMITED BYOB

We're at Wineries Unlimited, which is the biggest industry trade show for winemakers east of the Rockies. Especially for rookies like Dominique and myself, attendance is a must.

The grand ballroom is ringed by large tables full of wine from as far as Maine to the Carolinas, from Ontario to Missouri, Ohio, and Tennessee. Of course, there was a New York table. And we proudly (and nervously) set down our two offerings.




It really is an amazing experince. You're elbowing your way to the growded tasting bars with everyone from the industry, from bottle and barrel suppliers, to famous winemakers. It's kind of sureal. Everyone's in a good mood, chatting, gossiping, laughing, and most of all, tasting. It's very fun! We were very proud of our offerings, but I was thrilled to go and taste other folks wines as well.



OK. After some asprin, and some strong coffee, I am ready to hit the trade show floor.