Saving Money at William Heritage Winery and Elsewhere

Between inflation, tariffs, and the need for most of us to tighten the budgetary belt, I’d like to offer a few suggestions. Some are more obvious than others and many of you are doubtless already doing some of these things. For those of you who are not, I hope to change your ways. The first, and perhaps best move, is to find a winery or wineries that you really like and enjoy their wines. If you can afford to purchase at least a case of their wine over the year, consider becoming a member. Most offer some significant perks. Today I want to highlight a few of the perks that I have recently taken advantage of at William Heritage Winery at their Mullica Hill site. They also have a tasting room in Haddonfield. William Heritage perks are more generous than most.

William Heritage

This past Friday, we took advantage of another great sale for all patrons (not just members). It was their Flatbread Friday specials going on for the month of September. Buy a flatbread (they are great) and get a bottle of wine of your choice for 50% off. So I got a mushroom truffle flatbread (which I wanted anyway) and bought a bottle of their signature red wine, BDX, for only $25 (regularly $50).

Their quarterly allotments offer a significant discount off pre-selected groups of three wines offered four times a year. You can switch out a bottle of equal or lesser cost, if you don’t like all of the choices. Fairly typical so far. Now add these: With every allotment comes a gift card entitling you to two free flights of wine and another card giving you two free glasses of wine of your choice. For more information about their membership, go to their website here: https://heritagewinenj.com

We enjoyed our flights today with an order of their artichoke dip, chips, and apple slices. We’ll come back for our free glasses of wine. You have roughly three months to use these gifts (before the next allotment).

Another bonus promotion was a flyer in our allotment saying they are offering four bottles to go with 20% off. This sale is good until October 31. We shall return before then!

Over the summer, William Heritage Winery offers a Member Appreciation Special (which varies from year to year). This summer they offered a free bottle of their wine and a coupon toward food.

Our highlights from our two flights at William Heritage

• 2023 Proprietor’s Red Blend-A delicious estate grown blend of Chambourcin, Cab, Cab Franc, and Petit Verdot, with notes of blackberry, coffee, and chocolate on the palate.
• 2023 Syrah-A very good estate grown version with medium body and black cherry notes and a smooth finish.
• 2022 Norman’s Cab Franc-a wonderful full-bodied, estate grown version. It was named after the vineyard that William Heritage purchased and has managed since. Possibly the best oaked Cab Franc in the state.
• 2023 Pinot Blanc (a bonus taste served by our thoughtful server)-This is a terrific white wine with tasty notes of apple and pear. We liked it enough to purchase a bottle of it on the way out.

Other Tips for Saving Money, while Enjoying Our Wineries

1. Don’t buy a glass or glasses of wine. There are roughly five glasses of wine in a typical (750 ml) bottle. Glasses of wine are much more expensive per ounce than buying by the bottle. Concerned you don’t want to drink that much? Cork it. I always try to bring a cork or two that go in the bottle deeper and easier than trying to re-cork with the original cork. Don’t want to buy a bottle of a wine you have not tried before? Instead of trying by the glass, tell the server you’re considering buying a bottle, but not sure and ask if you could have a taste first.
2. Most wineries offer a free glass (one for you and one for your guest) of wine if you pick up your allotment the same week the allotment is available for pickup. I try to call and find out, if I haven’t seen an email about this.
3. Sign up for winery newsletters. You will get information about their sales and events before others, sometimes with coupons or special offers.
4. Take advantage of the local live music offered by our wineries. Most of them are free and so many are very talented and often play at venues where there is a cover charge. Some of my favorites are: John Rossi, Bo Rains, The Grouser Girls, and Camille Peruto.

Coming Attractions

• Bellview Winery September ’25
• Plagido Winery September ’25
• Unionville Vineyards Fall ’25

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