East End Business Notebook: Smoking Fish, Harvesting Hops & More

WESTHAMPTON-HAMPTON BAYS

Bike Shop Video Blog Gets Recognition from YouTube

With nearly 600 video blogs to date on YouTube, Westhampton Beach's Bike N' Kite was excited to learn that its YouTube channel, BikemanforU has gained recognition, being named one YouTube's world's best how-to channels.

The BikemanforU channel was one of 15 to receive the honor that was announced on Jan. 28.

NORTH FORK

North Fork Smoked Fish Co. Seeking Bigger Facility on the North Fork

Lifelong fisherman and boat captain Phil Karlin began the North Fork Smoked Fish Company about two years ago, working to smoke everything from locally caught bluefish and striped bass to fresh Atlantic salmon and swordfish using discard vines from local wineries. He works out of a space at Pe & Dd Seafood on Middle Road in Riverhead, but he said that business has grown so much in the past year especially in the New York City markets that he’s outgrown the Riverhead facility.

And coming from a North Fork fishing family — his father still fishes out of the Mattituck Inlet — Karlin, a 50-year-old who lives with his family in Cutchogue, said he’s looking for a bigger production facility closer to home.

RIVERHEAD

Hop Farmer Turns to Kickstarter to Boost Local Craft Beer Industry

Riverhead and the North Fork – and Long Island as a whole – have seen craft beer explode over the past couple of years: earlier this week Patch reported about a new brewery opening up in town, while another on West Main Street is working toward opening its doors. 

But local brews are really old news to New York, as John Condzella will tell you. The 27-year-old, fourth-generation farmer from Wading River is just trying to truly bring them back.

Condzella kicked off a kickstarter campaign – an online fundraiser, in short – on Tuesday, attempting to purchase a $27,000 hop processor which would help hop farmers process their hop plants much faster than they can currently by hand, helping to feed at least a small part of a burgeoning microbrew industry on Long Island.

SOUTHAMPTON

Cabin Fever Music Festival Comes to Publick House

Helping to bring some life to the area's winter bar scene, several local residents have again organized the annual Cabin Fever Music Festival, which kicked off Feb. 1 and comes to the Southampton Publick House on Feb. 23.

The Feb. 23 show includes Satchel Boogie and Easy Money.

EAST HAMPTON

Account Manager Makes Partner at Wordhampton

Wordhampton Public Relations has a new partner.

Lindsey Myers, who has been an account manager at the Springs-based firm for seven years, has been made a partner, the company announced on Tuesday.

Myers joined Wordhampton in 2005 as an intern, and has since gained expertise in the field of public relations and social media.