Fun Day: Ride Bikes, Sip Wines!

To be precise, you ride the bikes to and even through the vineyards, stopping to taste.

Pour & Pedal Bike Tours is based on a simple idea. Or 4 simple ideas. 1) Riding bikes is fun and good exercise. 2) Tasting good wine is fun and, in moderation, good for you. (Just ask the French!) 3) New Jersey wineries are located in scenic areas that make for lovely bike rides. 4) New Jersey wines are actually pretty darn good.

The people who put these four simple ideas together and created Pour & Pedal Bike Tours are Lou DeMartino of Hazlet and Jason Cohen of Long Island. Both 35, they have been riding bikes together since they were kids growing up in New Hyde Park, New York.

They currently offer two New Jersey wine country bicycle day trips. Each trip lasts about 4-5 hours:

–A 15-mile ride from Laurita Winery in the Central Jersey town of New Egypt to Cream Ridge Winery in Cream Ridge.

–A 10-mile jaunt between Unionville Vineyards and Old York Cellars, both in Ringoes.

They hope to make their next offering a tasting tour of Cape May.

“People are shocked to learn that there are nearly 40 vineyards in New Jersey,” says DeMartino. “There’s so much to explore.”

The tours are available every Saturday and Sunday from April through October and include the use of a 7-speed hybrid cruiser with a comfy memory foam seat and a basket big enough to hold a couple of bottles of wine. A helmet is included as well.

A support vehicle follows the group (of up to 20 riders, with two guides). It carries supplies to fix a flat or make other minor repairs and a couple replacement bikes if needed. It has room to carry larger wine purchases.

At any point along the way, particularly after some wine tasting, “people can ride in the support vehicle if they just find that they need a breather,” says DeMartino.

That raises an important point. About imbibing. Pour & Pedal advises against it. As they say on their website:

“We do not recommend drinking wine during our tour. We always suggest our clients to “See-Swirl-Sniff-Sip-Spit-and-Savor.” If you do happen to drink too much wine, please let one of our guides know. We always have a support vehicle close by, however you will not be able to partake in any of the remaining tour and will be at your own expense!”

Each tour lasts about five hours, includes snacks, water and a picnic lunch at one of the vineyards. The cost is $125 per person.

“At Laurita, you feel like you are in the Napa Valley,” DeMartino says. “They have a menu we provide our guests when they arrive. Everything from vegetarian dishes to a panini can be ordered.”

Pour & Pedal also offers packages for bachelorette parties, corporate and team-building events, birthday celebrations and just about any occasion that calls for fresh air, food and wine.

“It’s something fun and active to do while learning more about the state and wine,” DeMartino says.

Pour & Pedal also offers two Eastern Long Island bike tours, of the North Fork and of the Hamptons.

pourandpedal.com

 

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