Over the weekend Natali Vineyards held their first annual Winestock music and wine festival. They had some incredible wine slushies and sangria on tap for everyone to sip down while some local musicians, young and old, entertained the crowd.

Kevin Celli of Natali Vineyards has been bringing his love for music and wine together all summer with Wine It Down Wednesdays. But with Winestock, he took that basic idea and turned it into a two day festival with local vendors, all different types of wines, and eight bands competing for a $1000 prize. The winner was determined by the votes of wine sipping spectators enjoying the sights and sounds of the vineyard.

A mandatory evacuation occurred on Thursday before the arrival of Hurricane Irene. Cars piled onto the parkway and back roads to escape what everyone was told was the biggest threat to the shore in years. However, there were quite a few who stayed behind. What they saw was the shore areas transformed into a series of Ghost Towns in the middle of August.

Take a look.

Our next Watermark Session is with a unique artist originally from South Jersey who frequents the area often. Chris Hasenauer is a talented singer/songwriter that plays in the band The Visions Of. He utilizes complicated guitar patterns and tempo changes that weave in and out of beautiful melodies. More of his music can be found at www.soundcloud.com/the-haz-mat