With inflation still stubbornly higher than we’d like, there are some ways you can save money when visiting wineries and buying wines. You can become a member, visit during happy hour (for those offering them), buy wine “futures”, and look for sales. Today, I wanted to highlight a couple of recent examples. Hawk Haven Membership Hawk Haven Vineyards is located in Rio Grande. I have written about this winery often and even fairly recently. Therefore, I hadn’t planned on writing about my recent Barrel Tasting Futures event at Hawk Haven Vineyards. I also decided that I could take a break from t ..read more

I have been reading about Va La Vineyards for some time, with many of my fellow wine lovers sharing their visits on social media. We had planned a visit last year, but had to cancel. While I primarily write about New Jersey wineries, breweries, and distilleries, it’s fun to explore and occasionally write about what’s going on in neighboring states. My wife and I arrived a little early, but we were enthusiastically greeted by Jane, our hostess and server, and welcomed to come in and have a seat at the bar. Jane gave us a brief history of Va La Vineyards, shared our options of wines to try, and ..read more

  Last Sunday we finally had a sunny, beautiful day. My wife and I decided to spend a few hours in the fresh air and sunshine. Bellview Winery, located in Landisville, happened to be offering their Spring Fling celebration-just what the doctor ordered. They had live music, three food trucks, and several craft vendors. Needless to say, we also chose a couple bottles of wine to help celebrate. These days, when everyone is complaining about inflation, I want to share a few observations about prices at Bellview Winery. They have nine dry white, red, and rose wines for sale for under $20 and ..read more

On Thursday, my wife and I visited New Jersey’s newest winery, Saddlehill Cellars. Located in Voorhees, the owners have clearly spared no expense to make this a beautiful venue and offer a first class experience. There is quite a history to this property, as well. A very brief history is given on the back of their wine bottles. George Washington gave this land to his loyal guard, Lt. John Stafford. The Staffords grew mostly potatoes and corn until the 20th century, when they shifted to growing hay and began horse harness racing. In 2003, the Stafford legacy of farming was preserved by the Lan ..read more

My wife and I were a little hesitant to make the trip up Route 130 after several days of heavy rain and threats of flooding in numerous areas nearby. But we were so glad we drove there and we did not have any issues with the water. My wife and I have lived in South Jersey our whole lives, but never explored the town of Merchantville. I only recently discovered that they have had a wonderful brewery for over seven years. There are a couple of lovely streets with several inviting restaurants and shops. My wife and I decided we will come back and see what else Merchantville has to offer. More on ..read more

Terra Nonno is located in Rosenhayn. I have been meaning to revisit Terra Nonno for some time and finally got the chance this past week. I love how they have expanded their tasting room, adding to their attractive indoor space with an expansion of their large covered patio. They are currently only open on the weekends (Fridays and Saturdays from 1-7 and Sundays from 1-6). However, they seem to have something going on each of those days. On Friday, they had a very good food truck (Got Pizza?) and live music (Britney Ewan). They also had a food truck on Saturday and Sunday and Live music on Sat ..read more

William Heritage Winery William Heritage is a well-known stop on Route 322 in Mullica Hill. Long before they started their winery they hosted a great farm market. Today they are one of the best wineries in the state and members of the Winemakers Co-Op. This organization consists of six great New Jersey wineries; William Heritage Winery, Unionville Vineyards, Beneduce Vineyards, Working Dog Winery, Hawk Haven Vineyards, and Auburn Road Vineyards. I have written about William Heritage many times in the past seven or eight years. They have consistently been one of the best in the state and one ..read more

I am sorry I was unable to publish this post until today. I have been dealing with many issues related to my role as executor of the estate of a very close friend. I hope to be able to get back to my usual Sunday (or no later than Monday post soon). I have been wanting to visit Mudhen Brewing for quite some time. It is located in Wildwood. When I realized it was only a ten minute drive from Hawk Haven Vineyards, I figured we could do this when we picked up our allotment there. We decided to do so while doing a preview tasting (more about that later). The brewery has a large indoor and (weathe ..read more

Kennedy Cellars I had only visited Kennedy Cellars once before and it was a few years ago. Though they source most of their grapes from outside of the state of New Jersey, the wines are made on premises and are quite good. The grapes utilized for a couple of their wines are sourced locally, like their Chambourcin (from Monroeville). Besides offering some varietals you won’t be able to find at any New Jersey wineries (such as Grenache) and others that you will find, but they are also sourced outside of the state (such as Pinotage). Kennedy Cellars also has a new winemaker since I last visited ..read more

Happy U.S. National Drink Wine Day! Tomasello Winery I wanted to revisit Tomasello Winery for a number of reasons. While their Palmaris label brought the winery to an another level, they also offer some wines that you may not see anywhere else. For instance, they are the only winery in the state that I know of, that offers a Rkatsiteli and an Aromella. I’ll elaborate on both of these below. I have previously tasted and enjoyed their Rkatsiteli, but it has been quite awhile. I have never had an Aromella prior to our tasting last week. Tomasello Winery has fairly recently entered the hard cider ..read more