“I was going to be a vocal jazz teacher,” says Kristen Curcie, general manager of Ev & Em Vineyards in Laurel and current president of the Long Island Wine Council. “That’s a fun fact that nobody knows.”
But life often takes us in curious directions, and Curcie found herself on an unexpected path to a career in the wine industry.
Originally from Miller Place, the C.W. Post graduate traded in the arts for arts management and worked in public relations in New York City for several years doing events for Fashion Week. In 2014 that led to a job at Guild Hall, the East Hampton arts hub, where she worked for seven years. Curcie started out as a part-time special events associate and ended up serving as the special events and corporate relations manager, planning and producing gala events and handling corporate sponsorships for the organization.
But the Sag Harbor resident felt the pull of the vines and took a weekend job at Wölffer Estate Vineyard in Sagaponack to immerse herself in Long Island wine. “I fell in love with it,” Curcie says. “I had wonderful leaders [who] taught me so much. I worked with Sue Ellen Tunney and Miles Bouckoms; they were both managers at Wölffer and they taught me a lot. I loved the education that I got there, and how much we were pushed to share that with our guests, and it ignited a passion I did not know I had.”
Curcie’s introduction to wine came after college, when she started sampling easy-going, pocket-friendly wines like Cupcake Red Velvet and the occasional glass of pinot grigio. “It was definitely a different style than what we’re used to out here,” she says. “When I went to Wölffer, I learned a lot about the things I didn’t like and why I didn’t like them, and I learned about how vast the wine world is.”
That enthusiasm for learning has enabled her to connect with wine-curious guests at Ev & Em. “I think one of the things I love about what I do now is meeting guests [who] have the same level of experience I had when I first started drinking wine,” says Curcie. “And I love to share everything that I’ve learned over the years that helped to evolve my palate and evolve my knowledge. But I did not know a thing before.”
Making the leap from event planning to managing the operations of a vineyard was challenging, but Curcie had a foundation from the skill set and work ethic she had honed in her former position.
At Guild Hall, she tackled a multitude of chores, from working in the box office to marketing tasks to database work. “I had my hands in everything because I feel it’s easier for me to understand how to do things if I understand every piece of it,” she says. “And here [at Ev & Em], what helped me is that trait.”
At Ev & Em, which has less than 20 employees, Curcie oversees everything from what’s happening at the Main Road winery to the tasting room to the wine club and events.
Hosting events — weddings and corporate meetings — is, of course, Curcie’s specialty, but she now views it from a different perspective. “From my position at Guild Hall, I was the buyer, picking the places, the caterers … now I’m on the opposite end; I’m the seller of the events now. I’m trying to showcase why Ev & Em is a perfect place to have your wedding,” she says.
The Laurel vineyard has just under 20 acres of vines with nine varieties of grapes; chardonnay, the first planting, went in the ground in 1984. Over the years the vineyard has added cabernet sauvignon, cabernet franc, sauvignon blanc, pinot noir, merlot, pinot gris and gewürztraminer, Curcie notes. “And we just planted malbec in 2022; we’ve gone through a replanting program after [the vineyard] was purchased in 2021, but a lot of the chardonnay is still the original [plantings].”
The winery, formerly called Laurel Lake Vineyards, was built in 1996 and bought by a group of Chilean and American investors in 1999. In 2021, it was purchased by television host, author and businessman Dan Abrams and named after his children, Everett and Emilia.
When Ev & Em joined Long Island Wine Country, the not-for-profit trade organization for Long Island wineries, Curcie began to get involved, and by 2024 was nominated to join the LIWC board. “I jumped in as treasurer and I dug deep into the organization to see how we could improve,” she says. “It was very exciting; I think there’s so much work that can be done for the region, and it’s exciting to be part of something so vast that can really build that.”
Curcie served as vice president in 2025 and took on the role of president when Beth Santosuosso stepped down that same year.
In November, LIWC hosted the Blanc & Franc Summit, which focused on sauvignon blanc and cabernet franc grape varieties and their increasing popularity on the North Fork. The event is slated to run annually as the two grapes continue to take root with consumers.
“In the past, merlot and chardonnay were the grapes that people knew from this area,” says Curcie. “Our climate and our terroir are very similar to areas like Bordeaux … but I think it’s evolving, and I think that a lot of that has to do with the climate as well.
November’s summit, which saw over 20 LIWC members pour their wines, was a success. “I’m excited to see the public coming out for some of these events,” says Curcie, “because that will build regional recognition.”
One challenge the industry must contend with is the fact that young adults are drinking less, with alcohol consumption rates falling from 59% in 2023 to 50% in 2025 — the lowest in 90 years, according to a recent Gallup poll. How does Curcie navigate the challenge of bringing younger wine drinkers to the region?
“I try to follow all the trends,” she says. “I have learned that the younger generations are a little bit more thoughtful with what they’re consuming and what they’re enjoying. I think it’s amazing that they’re putting that much thought into it, which is why I love that we do lean very heavily on education here.”
