By Aliza Alperin-Sheriff
Area vineyards tempt visitors with more than just vino
At Hopewell Valley Vineyards’ Music and Merlot evenings, you can sip a glass of wine, nibble a slice of pizza and listen to a live band play music near the copper-plated bar.
Another local vineyard that offers live music is Old York Cellars, in Ringoes. Every Friday night from Memorial Day until Labor Day, Old York Cellars has Wine and Music Under the Stars from 6 to 9 p.m.
Unionville Vineyards, also in Ringoes, offers a variety of events including live music, a lobster bake, a pig roast, mushroom tasting and wine dinners at local restaurants throughout the year.
And at Working Dog Winery, in Robbinsville, you can get married at a gazebo while being surrounded by fields full of vines lush with grapes.
All of those diversions and more are how local vineyards hope to captivate people and bring patrons into their tasting rooms. Another local winemaking operation is at Terhune Orchards in Lawrence, well-known for its fall apples and pumpkins. When you stop by the farm to pick apples or go on a hayride, you can also stop by the winery tasting room or pick up a bottle in the farm store.
The overall effect at Hopewell Valley’s Music and Merlot nights might make you feel as if you’ve been transported out of Central Jersey and into the Tuscan countryside. On a recent Saturday night, people filled the rustic tasting room and many got up to to dance to the music of Acoustic Memories. Several more families, particularly with those young children, sat out on the patio, enjoying evening and a view of the farm.
The twice weekly Music and Merlot events originated because the vineyard’s owner and master vintner, Sergio Neri, is an accomplished jazz pianist. Neri’s baby grand piano is located in the vineyard’s cantina, and occasionally he or other musicians would play it during tastings.
“We started it as a wonderful thing to offer guests—a glass of fine wine and fine music,” said Neri’s wife and vineyard co-owner, Violetta. “Eventually, it became a regular activity.”
Later, the Neris got permission from the Mercer County Agricultural Development Council to serve made-to-order brick oven pizza and other light fare. Violetta said that even though the facility isn’t a restaurant, serving food with wine is “the most logical and appropriate thing to do.”
Now the vineyard hosts Music and Merlot every Friday and Saturday night and, because of Neri’s passion for jazz, an event called Jazzy Sundays every Sunday afternoon.
Although the Neris view their enterprise primarily as a farm and consider making quality wine to be their top priority, they understand the value of holding public events like Music and Merlot and Jazzy Sundays, in addition to hosting private events. “In America, wineries are a destination,” Violetta said.
Hopewell Valley Vineyards isn’t the only winery to offer live music, but Violetta says they were the first in the region to do so.
“We started that pretty much, but it’s something the entire industry can benefit from. You offer wine, you offer some music—it’s a wonderful blend,” she said.
Wine and Music Under the Stars, at Old York Cellars, features an eclectic, changing group of musicians. The event costs $7.50 at the door and guests are welcome to bring their own food.
Old York Cellars also has Yoga and Wine classes at 11 a.m. on the second Saturday of every month that cost $30.
“Yoga pairs naturally with wine,” said Laurin Dorman, manager of Old York Cellars. “It’s relaxing. Afterwards, our guests hang out on the patio have a glass of wine, and enjoy the outdoors.”
The vineyard also hosts festivals like the upcoming Fall Harvest Festival on Sept. 27 and 28 from noon to 5 p.m. The festival will feature music, food, tours, hayrides and farm animals. Admission is $15.
Dorman said that these events are important because they draw people to the winery.
“Ninety-five percent of our wines are being sold out of our tasting room, which is true for most wineries in the state. The tasting room is the lifeline of our business. I don’t know a winery in New Jersey that opens without the intention of bringing people in as a destination,” she said.
Unionville Vineyards has an upcoming Fall Harvest Festival as well. The festival, which will take place on Oct. 11 from noon to 6 p.m., is family-friendly and will offer food and wine as well as music, activities like grape stomping and talks by local speakers including Paul Lawler, the cheesemaker at Cherry Grove Farm in Lawrenceville.
Suzanne Moran, the event planner at Unionville, said that events are a great way to bring people into the winery.
“People say they’ve lived 15 minutes away for the last 10 years and didn’t know we existed. Events get people to see how beautiful the vineyards are and taste our wines,” she said.
In 2012, Unionville built a patio with a semi-permanent tent and lighting as a facility for outdoor events.
While Hopewell Valley Vineyards, Old York Cellars and Unionville Vineyards all host private events in addition to their public ones, Working Dog Winery in Robbinsville makes private events the focus of their business. Unlike the other wineries, the Working Dog tasting room is only open Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, not seven days a week, leaving less time overall for holding events.
One of five partners who own Working Dog Winery, Brian Carduner said the winery hosts a private event like a baby shower or a wedding the majority of weekends. But it still hosts public events from time to time.
“We have five or six guys that play for us,” Carduner said. “If there’s an opening because there’s no private event, we call those guys up.”
Working Dog has several possible locations for private events, including the vineyard, the patio and the private party room. Renting out the vineyard lawns to hold an event costs $10 a person. Patrons need to supply their own tents, tables, chairs, food, dishes, linens and decor.
Events of up to 75 people can be held on the covered patio. The rental fee is $250, and Working Dog provides tables and chairs. Indoor events can be held in the private party room, which looks out onto the vineyard. The space holds up to 50 people and also costs $250, with table and chairs provided. Working Dog Wine is the only alcoholic beverage allowed to be served on the property.
Even though Working Dog doesn’t hold many public events, the owners still make sure to provide a welcoming environment to the public. Carduner said private events are limited to 75 guests.
“The back porch is over 3,000 square feet. Private parties take half of that, walk-in customers take the other half. We never shut down to the public,” he said.
When vineyards bring guests into their tasting rooms, part of the motivation is to showcase New Jersey wines.
The New Jersey winemaking industry has grown in recent years, but New Jersey wines often still carry a stigma. Moran said that while people don’t start out thinking highly of New Jersey wines, the tasting room at Unionville can provide a great introduction to what the state really offers.
Violetta Neri said prejudice toward New Jersey wines is mere snobbery. “You can find good wines or mediocre wines no matter where you go. People have such a blind eye to New Jersey,” she said.
The Neris should certainly know that wines everywhere can vary in quality, as they both come from winemaking European families. Sergio comes from northern Italy, where his family owned a vineyard called Val di Suga, in the Brunello region in Tuscany. However, Sergio and his father were both engineers and, in fact, Sergio came to America to represent his father’s engineering company here.
Violetta comes from northwestern Greece, where her grandmother had two wine casks—one for making red and one for making rosé.
“My grandmother taught my mother how to make wine, but I was not given that knowledge. We moved to the big city, I went to law school and that was that,” she reflected.
She later moved to America, and met Sergio in Princeton. The Neris got into winemaking after Sergio’s father sold his engineering company. The idea of starting a tiny vineyard as a hobby crossed his mind.
“Famous last words,” said Violetta. “The vines took root, and took over from there.”
Music and Merlot has attracted a crowd of regulars and has even snagged repeat out-of-state visitors.
“It’s really such a wonderful endorsement that people come and spend the night in a local hotel to come and spend time with us,” said Violetta.
Just as the “Merlot” in the event’s name is a stand-in for the more than 20 varieties of wine that Hopewell Valley Vineyards serves, mostly grown or fermented on the property, the music is eclectic and ranges from classic rock to jazz and acoustic guitar. Violetta said that in terms of both music and wine, “chances are that you will find something that will please your palate. We have enough variety to cater to everybody’s taste.”
Musicians seek the Neris out for an opportunity to play at Music and Merlot, not the other way around. Sergio performs at Music and Merlot with the Hopewell Valley Vineyard Jazz Ensemble on the last Friday of every month.
The environment is relaxed and there is no cover charge. Children are welcome as long as they are well behaved. Dogs are welcome as long as they are well-behaved, on a leash, and outside, although Violetta mentioned that last restriction is only because the health code ordinance requires it.
Hopewell Valley Vineyards is located at 46 Yard Road in Pennington. Phone: (609) 737-4465. hopewellvalleyvineyards.com.
Old York Cellars is located at 80 Old York Road in Ringoes. Phone: (908) 284-9463. oldyorkcellars.com.
Unionville Vineyards is located at 9 Rocktown Road in Ringoes. Phone: (908)788-0400. unionvillevineyards.com.
Working Dog Winery is located at 610 Windsor Perrineville Road in Robbinsville. Phone: (609) 371-6000. workingdogwinerynj.com.
Working Dog Winery is one area vineyard to offer events.,
