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Posts Tagged ‘Garden State Wine Growers Association’

“More than two hundred years ago, London’s Royal Society of the Arts recognized two New Jersey vintners for their success in producing the first bottles of quality wine derived from colonial agriculture. Today New Jersey’s wineries continue the tradition of producing high quality wines.”  Garden State Wine Growers Association

The Jersey Fresh Food & Wine Festival sponsored by the Garden State Wine Growers Association (GSWGA) will be taking place on Saturday and Sunday, August 14th and 15th, from Noon to 5 p.m. at Heritage Vineyards in Mullica Hill, NJ.  With an abundance of New Jersey wineries on hand, this event will feature hundreds of award-winning New Jersey produced wines.  This year’s Jersey Fresh Food & Wine Festival will also have an array of gourmet food and fresh produce available – all made in the Garden State.

This year’s festival also features live entertainment on both Saturday and Sunday. On Saturday, the festival will feature Eryn Shewell. This young and talented singer-songwriter has performed in venues such as the legendary Stone Pony, The Saint, The Cutting Room, Bluebird Café, Café Coco as well as popular clubs throughout New Jersey, New York City, New Orleans and Nashville. 

On Sunday, the festival will feature Swampadelica.  This unique group blends and bends lead vocalist’s Nadïne LaFond’s native language, Haïtian Kreyol, with English and then mixes it with electric guitar and a modified and mutated American jazz & rock staple, the Hammond B3. 

Sound Good?  Wanna Go? 
 
Here’s how:
All you have to do to win the complimentary passes is make a guess on the total number of screw cap wine closures that I’ve got stashed in my WineLife365 “Estimation Station” shown below.  That’s it!
 
The first person to guess without going over wins all 4 tickets!

Approximate dimensions of the container: 15 x 11 in. at the opening and 9 in. tall

 
To Enter:

• The contest starts now and is open to anyone! 
• Place your guess in the Comment area of this post or the WineLife365 Facebook Page.  Please limit to 2 guesses.
• This contest will close at 8pm ET on Wednesday, August 11^st.

I will announce the correct number and the lucky winner shortly after the contest closes.  
Good luck and happy guessing!

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Like wine?  Like The Blues?  Why not enjoy both this Memorial Day Weekend! 
 
The Garden State Wine Growers Association is celebrating its annual Blues & Wine Weekend on Saturday and Sunday, May 29 and 30 at Natirar Park in the scenic hills of Somerset County, New Jersey.  Thanks to our nice Jersey friends, WineLife365 is giving you and your three closest buddies an opportunity to taste some Garden State vino, and a chance to kick back and enjoy a little Blues!  
 
This year’s festival will bring together a weekend celebration of 23 New Jersey wineries, hundreds of award winning wines, live Blues music, artisan vendors, gourmet food and activities for the kids.
 
On Saturday, the Billy Hector Band will be performing.  Hector has twice received the Best Guitarist Award from music critic Bob Makin of the East Coast Rocker, and he recently took home 3 Asbury Park Music Awards for “Best Guitarist”, “Best Blues Band”, and the “Living Legend Award”.  Billy and his band have also shared the stage with Bonnie Raitt at The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s “Tribute to Muddy Waters”. 
 
On Sunday, The Tom Larsen Band will be taking the stage.  Larsen has been a major player on the East Coast music scene for the last twenty-five years.  Originally a solo performer, Larsen specialized in the acoustic blues of the 1920’s and 1930’s covering such artists as Robert Johnson and Blind Willie McTell.  Tom’s expanding love of blues music soon moved him to add the electric styling of Muddy Waters, Guitar Slim and B.B. King.
 
Wanna Go? 
 
Here’s how:
All you have to do to win the complimentary passes is make a guess on the total number of wine closures that I’ve got stashed in my WineLife365 “Estimation Station” shown below.  That’s it!
 
The closest person to guess without going over wins all 4 tickets!
 
To Enter:

 
I will announce the correct number and the lucky winner on May 22nd.  
Good luck and happy guessing!

Container is 19 in. tall with a 5 in. diameter opening.

Please note:  Travel arrangements are not included.

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Over the past year, I’ve gained a tremendous amount of insight and appreciation for New Jersey state wines.  Surprisingly, many people (including myself) are shocked when they learn that the Garden State is among the oldest wine producing states in the country.  Wine production in New Jersey actually dates back to the mid-18^th century.

A few weeks ago, my wife and I had the pleasure of visiting New Jersey’s first commercial winery and were fortunate enough to receive a tour of the facility with head winemaker, Mr. Marco Bucchi.

Renault Winery was opened in 1864 and is the second oldest continuously-operated winery in the United States.  The founder and original owner of this Egg Harbor Township landmark was French immigrant, Louis Nicholas Renault.  Mr. Renault was the son and grandson of French barrel makers for the Champagne trade.  With his in-depth knowledge of the French Champagne trade, he quickly earned success for making, distributing and selling “American Champagne”, as he called it, in the United States.  While touring the facility with Marco Bucchi, it was interesting to get a glimpse at the hand-driven wine presses, massive wine barrels and other equipment that were once used.  As you might imagine, nearly all of the work years ago was done manually.  A lot of hard labor even went into the packaging, including hand–illustrated and hand-applied labels that once read, “Blueberry Duck”, “Cold Duck” or even “Gourmet American Champagne.”  All of which, by the way, were naturally fermented, bulk processed, and bottled in the state of New Jersey.

Another interesting thing that caught our attention during the tour was one of the safety precautions once used by the workers who rotated the sparkling wine bottles.  Bottle handlers wore a special mask made out of steel mesh that looks a lot like a “fencing” helmet to protect their face when “racking” wine.  Before seeing that, it had never really crossed my mind that you’re actually dealing with a liquid that could decide to blow at anytime.  Another interesting fact that we learned while touring the facility with Marco, was that the winery continued to operate even during Prohibition.  Renault Winery was one of only a few wineries that remained open.  They were marketing geniuses of their time, labeling the contents of their bottles as a “health tonic” rather than wine.  The winery actually repositioned itself during this period as a producer of a “potion” that could make you feel better and live longer.  Distribution of the winery’s “heath tonic” (wine) soon showed up on pharmacy shelves everywhere, touting its many health benefits.

In 1977, the winery was purchased by the Milza family.  Since acquiring the historical site, they’ve added an 18–hole golf course, two gourmet restaurants, banquet / ballroom facilities and a hotel called the Tuscany House.  In addition to this, one of the things that my wife and I absolutely loved seeing during our tour was Renault’s “Glassware Exhibit” room.  It houses one of the most amazing collections of wine related glass pieces that you’ll ever have the opportunity of seeing outside of a museum.

These wine glasses were created for the Dedication of the Eiffel Tower during the Paris Exposition of 1898.

Finally, our tour ended with a private tasting with Mr. Marco Bucchi.  There was a lot to like and many different wines to fit each individual palate from dry to sweet, to sparkling, and even dessert wines.  However, there were a few in this line-up that crushed it for their uniqueness, “localness”, and downright tasty goodness.

The first wine that perked our interest was the “Fleur De Blanc” – think the fullness of a Chardonnay without the wood.  The element that really makes this white wine so interesting is the 8% splash of cream sherry that Marco decided to put in it.  You can actually taste the nutty-sweet flavors in the wine.  Overall, just a really unique white wine.

Our other favorites, were two fantastic red wines.

The first was the 2007 Merlot.  If you’re of the mindset that a great Merlot for less than $20 is a complete oxymoron, then you, my friend, need to make contact with a glass of this New Jersey produced and bottled Merlot.  It’s an outstanding effort and I still can’t believe that it came from my backyard.

The second was a 2007 Cynthiana.  Prior to this visit, I had never heard, seen or tasted a grape called Cynthiana, which is also referred to as Norton.  Marco shared with us that it’s a grape that grows very well along the east coast in states like New Jersey and also in the Midwest.  All I can tell you about Marco’s 2007 Cynthiana creation is that it’s local and lip-smacking good!  If you wanna try something that will dispel any preconceived notions that you might have about wines made in New Jersey; this red wine will lay those thoughts to rest – I promise you that!  This red has the “Wow” factor!

If you’d like to learn more about the Renault Winery or plan to visit, checkout their website.

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Warm, sunny, beautiful autumn weather along with great wine, food, and entertainment for the entire family are in store for folks that make their way this weekend to the charming beach town of Cape May, New Jersey.

The annual Cape May Wine Festival will be taking place on October 10^th and 11^th, from 12-5 p.m. at the Cape May-Lewes Ferry Terminal, overlooking the Cape May Canal and Delaware Bay.

More than 20 New Jersey wineries will be on hand to offer guests some of the finest locally produced Chardonnay, Chambourcin, Syrah, Marechal Foch, Viognier, Traminette, Merlot, and Cabernet Sauvignon. There will also be a large array of fruit wines such as raspberry, cherry, and blueberry to satisfy sweet wine lovers.

In addition to wine sampling, festival goers will be treated to live music, various types of vendors, and a “Kids Zone” for those who are bringing the whole family.  Festival attendees can also take advantage of “Victorian Week” which will be running through the end of Sunday.

  
Anyone interested in learning more about this particular festival can call The Garden State Wine Growers Association at 609-588-0085 or visit their website. 

With the weather in the Northeast being nearly perfect, this should be a truly relaxing and enjoyable event.  

Cheers!

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