Hazy blue skies were being bossed around by dark black storm clouds making it difficult to orchestrate any Sunday plan other than sit at home and watch an old movie or study for my advanced WSET wine exam in October. I had already gone to the Farmer’s Market and did not want to stay indoors, so I called my friend Jim (fellow WSET classmate and wine Geek) to ask if he wanted to go on a wine class field trip for his 48th birthday. He accepted and we were on Route 23 heading to the northwestern corner of New Jersey by 11 a.m. . I had no real game plan but had been in touch with the winemaker from Ventimigilia Vineyards a few weeks ago, hoping he would show me some vines, canes, shoots and stalks, to help me understand the viticultural portion of my wine class. Not having made an appointment, I decided to show up unannounced and explore on my own.We arrived at Ventimiglia Vineyards and Tasting Room in Wantage, NJ at noon on the dot, and Gene happily greeted his first two guests of the day. Gene, the winemaker, remembered me and immediately took us up into the vineyard behind his house. He pointed out the VSP pruning method he used, the way he removed grape leaves to allow more sunlight to enrich the grapes, and also showed us some of the varietals which went into his wines including Chambourcin, a French hybrid grape which does very well in NJ, some standard Cabs, Pinots and Cab Francs , Carignane, Cayuga , and several Eastern European varietals , and even an interesting new cold climate hybrid grape from Minnesota called Marquette . As we walked up and down the rows of vines, he answered our questions, directed our attention to the ravages of frost, and even showed us one isolated example of Phylloxera, a wine disease, which could wreak havoc on a vineyard if no action is taken. My text book came to life during this insightful and exhilarating walk through Gene’s vineyard.Gene then grabbed three glasses and led us into his wine cellar and winemaking room, where our next chapter on viniculture came to life. We experienced our first barrel tasting as Gene extracted fresh wine from various steel and Hungarian oak vats and let us taste the fresh crisp cold weather wine he was producing. I found it interesting when he squirted some vodka on the nozzles of the barrel to prevent any bacteria from touching the wine. We tasted fresh crisp Cayuga, some hearty fruit forward Cab Franc, and even a Sangiovese wine ready for bottling. Our tasting knowledge allowed us to experience the vanilla and nutty flavors from the Hungarian Oak, the sublime berry and smoky earth notes of a young Cab Franc, and then the amazing transformation a wine undergoes when blended with only a few drops of merlot or a cabernet sauvignon. After that, Gene showed us his wine press, the bottling and cork machines he used and some other pieces of equipment, which are used throughout the wine making process. A final highlight on our way out of the cellar was a glance at a series of young vines with omega grafts and how the buds and new plants were taking root. Everything we had studied, upfront, hands on, and personal. Sooooooo COOL! Wine school was already paying off for both of us!We ended the visit with an extensive wine tasting of the wines of Ventimiglia and put into practice our 10 step tasting process (appearance, nose, taste, quality, etc) which we must master for our final WSET exam in October. Gene then suggested a few other wineries in the area and we moved on to our second stop, the Cava Winery in Vernon, NJ.The Cava Winery in Vernon reminded me of the standard wine tasting operation in Napa Valley. It had a wine tasting room, a small gift shop, a small wine tasting menu, some light food choices, and the opportunity to pair our wine selections with food outside by the vineyard in comfortable lawn chairs next to rustic slate slabs mounted on oak tree trunks . The skies were rumbling around us. The mountains turned forest green and even a tired grayish blue while blue clear skies haloed us overhead. We sat and listened to the growling thunder and tasted the dark purple Sangiovese based wines, while munching on two delicious flat bread pizzas created by a young chef, who could not have been over 20 years old. Our first pizza was topped with fresh eggplant, mozzarella, caramelized onions and a light basil tomato sauce; the second with roasted figs, a fig based spread, some gorgonzola cheese and chopped walnuts. Both pizzas were extraordinary. Jim and I ate alternating slices from each and sipped our red wine flights while we discussed the tasting and pairing notes we were expected to memorize by October. At one point we were so preoccupied with the beauty of the moment , thunder clouds and looming storms, the four distinctly different red wines in the flight, the fresh, gourmet pizzas , even the vines and grapes just a few feet away , that we neglected to notice six or seven chickens and hens circling , begging to be fed. I thought I had escaped my always- hungry, food begging cat, Musher, but these chickens were all over us and it was all good! This was Jim’s birthday present and only added more life to the party. Wine tasting, a fig pizza, listening to thunder in the mountains around us, grapes, vines, and chickens! WOW! It was ten minutes to three and we were right on time for our third stop, just five minutes away, at the wine cellar of Crystal Springs, a luxury golf resort with a very famous wine cellar.Crystal Springs Resort is the ultimate NJ golf resort. Both Gene from Ventimiglia and John from the Cava Winery suggested we stop by for the three o’clock wine cellar tour. Gene Mulvihill , owner of Crystal Springs, has assembled 78,000 + bottles of wine , making it one of the largest and costliest wine cellars in the country, if not, the world. He is noted for housing 100 vintages of Chateau Latour from Bordeaux, several Californian cult wines, and a wide collection of high end and some very old wines from all around the world. As we entered the cellar, Joe, the sommelier, greeted us with a glass of New Zealand pinot noir. He talked about the extensive collection, the celebrated guests who had sat where we were standing (Martha Stewart and Emarld Legasse had just been there, tasting $2,000.00 bottles of Montrachet), the storage methods as well as the top prices some of these wines commanded. Joe led us down the dark curving path which cut through the cellar. We viewed bottle after bottle, magnum after magnum, and display after display of some of the best wines in the world. Petrus, Insignia, Chateau Latour , Mouton, Meraux, wines from Chateau Montelena , Screaming Eagle, and Harian. Namedroppers at best ! We then caught a glimpse of the only wine MRI machine in the world, which promised to scan a wine for defects, authenticity and guarantee the quality of every wine in the cellar. An MRI for wine! Who knew? We were also shown another wine mechanism which would guarantee the authenticity of every high end wine via molecular analysis, “a must- have in a wine world marred by counterfeit and fraudulent wines.” The intent was to WOW us, and, to some extent, it did. Still, I kept my opinions to myself, grateful for the experience itself and the opportunity to see another window into the vast world of wine. After the tour, I began to reflect on the day I had just had and the impact it had on my own relationship to wine, the WSET wine course I was taking in Montclair at Amanti Vino, and my passion to move away from Corporate America towards a rewarding future in grapes. The humble winemaker, Gene, producing excellent quality dry cold weather wines in New Jersey. This was a venture of love, passion, and fulfillment. The Cava Winery offering a hint of Napa to those who haven’t been, the traditional wine tasting experience --- for $5.00 a taste of four wines, some good food and on to the next winery. Crystal Springs allowing us to peek at the high end wine world. I saw a humble, friendly wine maker, proud of what he has created, happy, friendly, and able to humanize the experience. I experienced the drive-thru mentality of the wine tasting rooms common in Napa and the world , and lastly, I witnessed the excess, the unattainable arena of high priced wine for the wealthy, or those pretending to be wealthy for a day, a dinner, or even a tasting. I even got a laugh or two out of the day. The wine taster who said he never tried “Phylloxera” after I had mentioned I had seen some somewhere that day, a Sommelier wearing way too much cologne , and 1904 bottles of $90,000 Port, sweltering under a hot spotlight on display for all to see, and a magnum of Chateau d’Yquem Sauternes which would never be consumed. Good or bad, wine is fun and it should be. I know I fit somewhere into this world and my passion is my key to unlock the door. When the exam is over and I have passed it, my world will grow. Which window will be mine: the humble wine maker, the Napa drive through, the high- end wine Cellar? I have my ideas, my dreams and my own passion. I will find my own window, and this window will always be open!
