Along with dining out, I do a fair amount of “wining out” while staying in Rhinebeck. The Hudson Valley has a wealth of small vineyards and wineries — 19 in all — that offer tastings and tours. I’m partial to the champagne and rural atmosphere of Clinton Vineyards in Clinton Corners but I have also ventured out to visit others on the Hudson Valley Wine Trail, including Allison Wines and Vineyards in Red Hook and Royal Kedem Winery in Milton.
In addition to the wineries I have gotten my wine fix at the two wine and spirits shops in downtown Rhinebeck. For a more temperate time I browse the aisles of Hudson Valley Footwear, Rhinebeck Department Store, Home Remedies gifts and furnishings, Hammertown home furnishings, Oblong Books and Music, Cabin Fever Outfitters and Paper Trail stationery store. Reminiscent of an old five and dime, A.L. Stickel Variety Store on East Market is always a must-stop shop.
Along with traditional retail stores Rhinebeck boasts of several antiques dealers located within walking distance of one another. Behind the Beekman Arms sits a red barn housing the two-story Beekman Antique Market. Across from the Inn on Mill Street Asher House Antiques specializes in imported antiques. Opposite the Beekman on West Market Street Portly Pug Antiques carries art, jewelry, china and other antiquities.
Sick of shopping, I often opt for an afternoon of mansion hopping. Within a 25-mile radius I can tour the Vanderbilt Mansion in Hyde Park, landscape painter Frederick Edwin Church’s Persian-style Olana near Hudson, the Greek Revival Mills Mansion in Staatsburgh and the 19th century Montgomery Place, adjacent to Bard College in Annandale-on-the-Hudson. I can also just stay in Rhinebeck and walk around Wilderstein, a Queen Anne-style estate owned by the cousin and confidant of Franklin D. Roosevelt, Margaret Suckley.
When I’m in Rhinebeck, I’m in the middle of Roosevelt country. Eleanor Roosevelt’s retreat and permanent home after her husband’s death, Val-Kill, is located in Hyde Park as are FDR’s home of Springwood and the FDR Presidential Museum and Library. Top Cottage, where Roosevelt entertained world leaders, can also be found here.
The fun doesn’t end with the Roosevelts. In Hyde Park the Culinary Institute of America gives year-round cooking classes to food enthusiasts. In warmer months the Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome in Rhinebeck offers air shows, biplane rides and a museum filled with antique cars and planes. At Upstate Films art and independent movies reign. So many fun activities. Is it any wonder why I love Rhinebeck and the surrounding region?