Date Of The Month: Vino Veritas

You don’t need to travel 45 minutes east to Lake County for a romantic winery experience. Vino Veritas, which moved in 2016 from Little Italy to a 2 1/2-acre urban oasis in Old Brooklyn, serves up a stemmed glass full of Old World delights such as house-made cheese boards, bocce and, of course, wine. “I immediately fell in love with the neighborhood’s old brick sidewalks, community garden — all that,” says owner Anthony Nunes Insana. The patio’s charmingly unkempt vibe — complete with gravel grounds, string lights, picnic tables with tree stump seating and a fire pit — makes this date as comfortable as a backyard nightcap. Snag a private stump away from the winery’s red barn and wood HQ for a five-wine tasting ($5). Start with a palate-teasing white wine before progressing to the Sicilian Stallion red, Insana’s best-selling wine, and the sweet Cougar Juice, a dessert wine made with organic cherries. 4103 Memphis Ave., Cleveland, 216-650-9877, vinoveritascellarscle.com

Before: Just down the road, Old Brooklyn Cheese Co. sets up the wine-and-cheese ethos with its Wino Red ($11.50 per half-pound), a cave-aged semi-hard cheese matured in a red wine barrel for 90 days. 4138 Pearl Road, Cleveland, 216-860-4000, oldbrooklyncheesecompany.com