WineLife365

This past Saturday, my wife and I took another trip over the Commodore Barry Bridge to taste what New Jersey had to offer in locally grown and produced wines.  The weekend long Jersey Fresh Wine & Food Festival was hosted by Heritage Vineyards located in Mullica Hill, NJ.  As we made our way through the entrance, we were surprised by the number of large white tents that lined the vineyard’s grounds.  There were a total of 28 wineries of the state’s 33 wineries on hand showcasing the best of the Garden State.

Although I am rather ashamed to admit this, being in a neighboring state to New Jersey, prior to attending this year’s festival I actually had no idea that so many wineries even existed in New Jersey.  But that was then, and now I know better!  Another interesting fact that I learned is that the state’s 33 wineries produce the sixth largest amount of wine among US states, according to a 2008 Wine Industry Report .  What’s even more impressive about these production numbers is the rather large number of different types of wine that is being produced in New Jersey.  Because of its climate and geological diversity, there are more than 40 different varieties of grapes being grown here – ranging from Pinot Noir and Riesling in North Jersey and Italian varieties, such as Sangiovese and Barbera, in Southern Jersey.  At the festival, my wife and I were formally introduced to two new wine grapes that we had personally never tried before:  Vidal Blanc (a white grape) and Chambourcin (a red grape).  Both are native French grapes and both are widely planted by different New Jersey Wine Growers.  We were particularly impressed by Ventimiglia Vineyard’s 2007 Vidal Blanc and the 2007 Chambourcin, and we also enjoyed Hopewell Valley Vineyard’s 2006 Chambourcin as well.

Besides the excitement of trying two new types of wine, we also did our very best to navigate our way through more than 200 New Jersey wines without having to be hauled out by wheelbarrow or the large farm tractor that was being used as a shuttle bus.  Somehow though, we did manage to get through it and wound up discovering many new wineries and found a few wines that were downright delicious! 

The first winery that we really took a liking to was Alba Vineyard located in Milford, NJ.  The Garden State Wine Growers Association recently named Alba Vineyard the 2009 Winery of the Year.  After tasting their full line-up, we can certainly see why they received this prestigious award.  Nearly every wine that we sampled hit the mark.  One red wine in particular that we enjoyed was called “Old Mill Red”.  This was a blended wine, and at $10 bucks a bottle it was mighty good!  We also found it quite refreshing that our pourer knew a great deal about the wines and showed a genuine passion for them.

The next Jersey winery at this event that we really took a liking to was the Laurita Winery.  There were several reasons why we enjoyed our time with Laurita.  First, they were the only winery at the festival that took the time to set up a “mock tasting room”.  When you walked into their tent area, they had a real tasting table set up with bread and olive oil that gave one the feeling as if they were walking into their actual tasting room.  They also brought in some nice artwork and added they’re own music under the tent to enhance the tasting experience.  In addition, I can’t say enough nice things about our pourer and the other folks working the tasting table.  They were very enthusiastic about the wine and treated guests like new friends.  Besides the charming ambiance that they created, we found all of their white and red wines to be pretty damn good, especially on a hot Saturday afternoon.  All of the winery’s white wines showcased good acidity and citrus flavors and they also offered several very good chilled red wines like “Tailgate Red” and “Relaxing Red”, which were absolutely perfect on a sunny day like this one.  Kudos to the folks at Laurita Winery for providing such a nice and relaxing tasting experience, along with great wines to sample!

There was however, one winery at the event that made me go back for seconds and then thirds.  That winery was Amalthea Cellars.  Mr. Louis Caracciolo is the mastermind behind this New Jersey winery.  He has spent many moons in Bordeaux, France learning how to make exceptional First-Growth red wines, and is also very well versed in California winemaking techniques as well.  Mr. Caracciolo spends most of his time these days making remarkable Bordeaux-style blends in Atco, NJ.  The Amalthea Cellars wines that beat my taste buds like a drum were the 2006 Europa 4 and the 2007 Europa 7. 

Finally, one of the highlights of this year’s festival for me was the opportunity to meet and talk a little wine with Mr. George M. Taber, author of “Judgment of Paris” and “To Cork or Not to Cork”.  I also had the pleasure of meeting and discussing wine with a Professional International Wine Judge, Mr. Michael A. Schaefer of the Society of Wine Educators.  Mr. Schaefer hosted a seminar at the event, providing folks with information on how to properly evaluate a wine.

While in between tastings, I had an opportunity to speak with Mr. Taber about his experience on that historic day in Paris in 1976.  However, we spent more time talking about the present, like the New Jersey wines that we were sampling and his most recent wine project.  Unfortunately, Mr. Taber bound me to secrecy about his upcoming book entitled “In Search of Bacchus – Wanderings in the Wonderful World of Wine Tourism”, but what I can tell you about his upcoming book is that he’s still welcome in Bordeaux, France and that a Denis Dubourdieu white Bordeaux will put a grin on his face from ear to ear.   So be on the lookout for his new book – it sounds like it will be a terrific read!

Thank you to the Garden State Wine Growers Association (GSWGA) for a wonderful festival.  I would also like to personally thank Mr. Richard Small for his kind generosity, and Judge Michael Schaefer and Mr. George Taber for sharing their time and insight with me!

Cheers!

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