How It All Started….
This story isn’t about coffee.
It’s also not about fishing, although that’s where our tale begins.
It’s about wine – some of the best wines in New York State, in fact.
While out with friends on a small boat fishing off Orient Point, winemaker Adam Suprenant had an epiphany. After many years of crafting wines for others, he wanted to make wines that reflected his own winemaking philosophy. As the sun faded over the Long Island Sound, he gazed at the lighthouse they passed, nicknamed the ‘Coffee Pot’. Bathed in the golden light of a late summer sunset, he realized then and there that he wanted to capture the spirit of North Fork for all to enjoy. And so in 2008, Coffee Pot Cellars was born.
Our Focus….
Rather than trying to do it all, Coffee Pot Cellars has focused on Long Island’s top-performing grape varieties Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay to showcase the unparalleled quality of our region – the North Fork of Long Island appellation. Boasting a latitude similar to Bordeaux but with a somewhat cooler maritime climate, Long Island grapes benefit from an extended growing season in the fall due to their proximity to the relatively warm Atlantic Ocean.
As the warmest growing region in New York State, the North Fork of Long Island is perfectly situated to produce ripe grapes essential for great wine. The appellation is also recognized as the sunniest in the state, making Coffee Pot Cellars a special place that creates wine from a unique terroir.
A Winemaking Philosophy Rooted In Tradition
The New York Times once wrote that Adam has “a knack for reds.” Undoubtedly, his passion for work on the red side of the wine spectrum has been imbued for many years. While earning his Masters in Winemaking from UC Davis in California, Adam crossed the pond to gain invaluable experience at the First Growth winery in the Médoc region of Bordeaux: Château Lafite Rothschild. Here, his “knack for reds” truly burgeoned, with Adam working exclusively with Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Petit Verdot to make his reds.
Upon returning home to the US and working at Franciscan Estate Winery in Napa Valley, Adam continued to refine his winemaking philosophy. Rooted in a traditional, minimalist approach to winemaking, he uses techniques that would be familiar to winemakers a century ago while utilizing his scientific background to ensure quality production.
Adam sources 100% of his fruit from the North Fork of Long Island AVA. With over 30 years of winemaking experience to his name, including 25 years on the North Fork, Adam is an industry insider and has established relationships with some of the best grape growers in the area. For Adam, the key to crafting remarkable wines lies in the quality of the grapes themselves. He works closely with every vineyard from which he sources grapes and takes a rigorous, uncompromising approach to ensure their quality. As a minimalist winemaker, he does not rely on additives, otherwise known as the winemaker’s bag of tricks, to achieve his goal of producing top-quality wine. Instead, he focuses his energy on getting it right in the vineyard.
Adam has earned numerous accolades, including being named the ‘Best Merlot Producer’ in New York State four times, ‘Best NY Red Wine Producer’ for his Cabernet Franc and was designated one of Wine Enthusiast Magazine’s Top 100 Wines of the Year in 2021
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