Sip into Summer Wine Festival

Sip into Summer Wine Festival has traditionally been held at Washington Lake Park in Sewell. This year it was held in Mullica Hill at the Fairgrounds. For the second consecutive festival the weather could not have been any better. There were 12 wineries represented this year. They were: Auburn Road Vineyards, Autumn Lake Winery, Cedar Rose Vineyards, Chestnut Run Farm, DiMatteo Vineyards, Plagido’s Winery, Terra Nonno Winery, Tomasello Winery, Valenzano Winery, Villari Vineyards, Wagonhouse Winery, and White Horse Winery.

The newest entry, in this group is Terra Nonno Winery. They are located in Rosenhayn, though their mailing address is in Millville. This is the newest winery in the Garden State. Based upon their offerings here, they look like they will be around to stay. Like several other wineries, their white wines would have benefited from a bit more chilling (but it was a warm day). They appear to specialize in red wine, as only two white wines were available out of the nine offered. I found lots to like about their wines. My personal favorites were their Chambourcin and the Godfather Blend (a smooth, rich red blend). They do not offer tastings at their winery yet, but are doing a lot of festivals and you can buy their wines from their website.

For those who are fairly new to wine festivals or this blog, I highly recommend the following strategies for these events:

1. Arrive early. Late arrivers have to contend with longer lines and fewer choices.
2. Start with wineries you are not familiar with or are farthest from your home.
3. Scope out the food trucks early (even if you are not yet hungry).
4. Decide on a wine that you’d like to open (and perhaps pair with a predetermined food).
5. Sit and enjoy the music, wine and food while the eager crowds are hovering around the wineries you have either already visited or strategically eliminated (at least for the time being).

Several food trucks offered a vast array of eclectic choices. I opted for the Pie Guy’s Spinach and Feta Cheese Pie (a tasty pie for one). Many of the other options looked very tempting as well. I chose a bottle of Autumn Lake’s wonderful Barrel Reserve Albarino to pair with our pies. Turned out to be two great choices!

Stealing Savannah, provided the live music. They are a terrific “Cover Band” we had heard at the Tropicana a couple of years ago. I really enjoyed their music which ran the gamut from Rock to Country to Hip Hop and everything in between.

My highlights

• Getting to try wines from our newest winery, Terra Nonno (a fairly impressive first impression)
• Autumn Lake Barrel Reserve Albarino (liked it so much, we brought home an additional bottle. The oak aging adds another dimension, without taking away that great acidity and ability to pair with so many foods.
• Auburn Road-Sole (a very good Vidal Blanc); Eidelon (excellent, dry red blend, named after a poem by Walt Whitman); and Gaia (another super dry red blend) all enjoyed on successive nights!
• Cedar Rose Vineyard Kindling – Definitely one of the best bargains at this event!
• Stealing Savanah – Another glass of wine and I might have caved and danced, as my wife had been urging me.

Cheers!

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Coming Attractions

• Villari Vineyards Satellite Wine Tasting
• Wine Competitions
• New Jersey Pinot Grigio and Sauvignon Blanc

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