Hudson Valley Beer, Wine, Spirits and Cider Summit

Distilling geeks can trek to Hyde Park for this free seminar that demystifies the drier side of booze production (finance, mechanics), while still wetting the whistles with gratis tastings. Mingle with new and upcoming spirits makers before getting schooled at nitty-gritty breakout sessions, which include a tour of the recently unveiled Brooklyn Brewery outpost on the Culinary Institute of America campus. Wrap up the day with CIA’s demonstration of brainy, hand-carved ice spheres and liquid nitrogen cocktails before sampling 17 craft pours from operations including Peekskill Brewery, Docs Hard Cider and Prohibition Distillery. Learning goes down easier when sipping the competition.