Castello di Borghese Vineyard

1973, and why that date matters on the North Fork

Every vineyard wedding on the North Fork descends from this piece of ground. Alex and Louisa Hargrave planted the region's first commercial vines here in 1973, on land nobody at the time believed would grow wine grapes. The rest of the North Fork wine trade followed over the next two decades, and today it is the reason couples drive past Riverhead at all.

So the oldest vines in the region are on this property, and that is a genuine and checkable distinction rather than a marketing line. If the age of the place is what draws you here, it is the strongest claim any Long Island vineyard can make and this is the address that owns it.

Marco and Ann Marie Borghese bought the vineyard in 1999 and renamed it. The winery's own site describes the 2026 season as the twenty seventh under Borghese ownership, which is a first party statement with a countable number in it and dates the transition without ambiguity.

The 2022 sale of 66 acres, and what stayed

In 2022 Giovanni Borghese sold 66 acres on the south side of the property. That is a significant transaction for a vineyard of this size and it was reported at the time by Behind The Hedges. It did not end the business.

What stayed is the 18 acre north parcel, which carries the tasting room, and the wine operation itself. The sold vines were leased back, so the fruit keeps flowing to the same winery. The tasting room was open with published hours when we checked on 10 September 2026, and the site was carrying current 2026 season language.

For a couple booking eighteen months out, this is the fact to hold onto rather than to panic about. The winery is operating and there is no evidence of closure. But a property that has already sold two thirds of its acreage is one where the map can change again. The ceremony site you fall for on a tour should sit on land the winery still controls. Ask that question plainly and ask it about your specific spot.

An art gallery inside the tasting room

The events page names three kinds of space: outdoor vineyard areas, tent options, and an art gallery inside the tasting room. That third one is the unusual item and it is the reason this venue reads differently from its neighbours.

A gallery is a finished interior with wall hung work, controlled light and a floor meant for people standing and looking. As a cocktail hour space that is a real asset, particularly on the North Fork where the indoor alternative at most wineries is a tasting bar with stools around it. It also gives you somewhere with walls when the wind comes off the Sound in October.

No capacity is published for the gallery, or for the vineyard areas, or for any tent configuration. No square footage, no floor plan, no seated against standing split. So the space exists and its size is unknown, which is the recurring problem with this record.

The winery builds the package around your vendors

The Book an Event page states that the winery works with local florists, caterers and event planners to build custom packages. That is the whole of the published vendor policy, and it leaves the important question open: is that an approved list you must choose from, or an open field where the winery simply knows people.

The difference is worth money. An approved list constrains your caterer to a handful of businesses that already know the site, which usually means smoother logistics and less negotiating room. An open policy means you can bring the caterer you want and then spend your own time solving power, kitchen access and waste removal on a working farm.

No outside vendor fee is published either way. Nor is there any statement about who supplies tents, tables, chairs, restrooms or lighting. On a venue with no fixed package, every one of those is a line somebody has to own, and you should establish which of them the winery handles before you compare this address to a catering hall's single number.

Zero published numbers, and what to ask instead

This is the emptiest pricing record in this batch. There is no per person rate, no rental fee, no minimum, no capacity, no end time and no rain plan on the winery's own site. The marketplace listings do not rescue it either: the WeddingWire, Cvent and PartySlate entries carry no figures at all.

That is unusual. Most venues that publish nothing themselves have at least been given a starting price by a listing service. Here even the platforms have nothing to work with, which suggests a venue that handles events by conversation rather than by rate card.

So go in with a written list and refuse to leave without answers to it. What is the site fee and what does it cover. How many people fit, seated, in the space you are proposing. Who supplies the tent and at whose cost. What time does music stop. Is the ceremony site on the 18 acre parcel the winery still owns. Is more than one event held per day.

Tasting room hours are published, which tells you the place is trading normally, and the winery lists no seasonal closure for events. The absence of numbers here is a disclosure problem rather than an operating one.