'Winasaur,' A Dinosaur Made Of Corks, Wowing North Fork Crowds

CUTCHOGUE, NY — Ask visitors what their favorite must-see selfie spot on the North Fork is and odds are, along with the farm fields and sunflowers, lavender and pumpkins, there are scores who'll weigh in saying that a visit to the Winasaur can't be missed.

What, exactly, is a Winasaur? Well, according to Laura Klahre, who co-owns Coffee Pot Cellars, a small-production winery in Cutchogue, with her husband, winemaker Adam Suprenant, it all began with a dream she had in 2014.

She dreamt she had a Winasaur, a brontosaurus made out of wine corks, Klahre said. "And then the adventure began."

She found the company Topiary Zoo in Friant, California that makes topiary frames for arboretums and Disneyland.

"I called them up and said, 'Hi, my name is Laura, I am from New York, and I need an 18-foot long brontosaurus,'" she said. "Turns out that they had never welded a topiary frame for such a large brontosaurus so Joanie Finch closed her office, went down to the local toy store, bought a toy brontosaurus, measured the dimensions, and blew them up to life-size."

Months later, the frame was shipped in a large crate to the East Coast and the first corks to create the Winasaur’s “skin” were attached on October 14, 2014, Klahre said.

Klahre keeps a running tally of corks and dates of when they were added to her green sauropod. "We are currently at 6,258 corks and I bet it will take another 1,000 or more to see the Winasaur fully come to life," she said.

The Winasaur is 18-feet long, stands 7-feet tall, and was recently sponge-painted traffic light green, she said.

Beyond the adorable factor, the Winasaur holds great meaning.

"The Winasaur is made only from Coffee Pot Cellars wine corks," Klahre said. "People bring back their corks all signed, dated, and decorated and then I wrap each individual cork with copper wire to make a garland — and this is then wrapped around the frame. I love that the Winasaur is built from hours of good times and great conversations with friends and family, the essence of why life is so special."

With every wine purchase, a “Build the Winasaur” sticker is given out, to remind people to bring their Coffee Pot Cellars’ corks back, she said.

The Winasaur has grown in popularity: Singer Rorie Kelly even performed an acoustic cover of "I'm a Little Dinosaur" by Jonathan Richman with the words "I'm A Little Winasaur."

The Winasaur has been a labor of love, Klahre said. "The journey in life is just as important as the destination so we have been building this piece of public art for six-and-a-half years and counting. The Coffee Pot Cellars Winasaur is known as a local landmark. . . In fact, many have told us that a trip to the North Fork is not complete without a picture with the Winasaur."

The Winasaur, tasting room and shop for Coffee Pot Cellars are located at 31855 Main Road/Route 25 in Cutchogue.