Auburn Road is a very interesting winery with much to offer. When you go, you may need your GPS. Persevere, it’s worth the ride. The tasting room is intimate with a European feel. The room itself is large enough for hosting live music with more than a dozen tables for patrons. In addition, they have a sizable patio overlooking their vineyards and several tables on the grassy area between the vineyards and the patio. Since opening in 2007, they have developed quite a following – with good reason. Not only do they continue to make very good wines, they have a bistro offering panini, salads, cheese plates, etc. and on Fridays offer Italian-themed, five course wine-paired dinners. They also have frequent live musical events and many other activities. Check their website as there is almost always something interesting going on here.
Auburn Road’s wines recently won a Double Gold Medal at the 2016 Finger Lakes International Wine Competition for their Vidal Blanc NV Sole and Silver Medals for their 2013 Cab Franc Gaia; Red Blend Vinifera 2013 Classico and Red Blend Vinifera + Non-vinifera 2012 Eidolon. At the 2015 New Jersey Wine Competition they took a Silver Medal for their 2012 Eidolon Red Blend and Bronze Medals for their 2012 Classico Red Blend; 2014 Roxanne Red Blend; 2014 Rosalie Rose and 2014 Kind of Blue Blueberry Wine.
Auburn Road makes several dry white wines: The White Bottle (shades of the Beatles album in evidence on the label), a lightly oaked Chardonnay, a Pinot Grigio and their Sole (pronounced So-lay, made from Vidal Blanc grapes and a personal favorite). They also make a Dry Rose.
Their dry reds nicely accompany their pasta and pizza nights and include: Good Karma (Sangiovese/ Merlot blend), Classico, a blend of Sangiovese, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chambourcin aged 23 months in oak; Rustica, a medium bodied blend of Cab Franc and Cab Sauvignon with a little Chambourcin mixed in and Gaia (a blend of Cab Franc and Merlot, aged in Oak for two years). They also make an unfiltered Couer d’Est blend called Eidolon, named for a Walt Whitman poem. In case you haven’t noticed, Auburn Road’s wines are cleverly named with a nod to literary and musical icons. Their most recent dry red is called American Red (actually the grapes are grown in California and the wine is made there (by Auburn Road’s winemaker), bottled there and shipped to New Jersey. So technically it is not a New Jersey wine, but it is a very good medium-bodied red.
For those who lean toward the sweeter side, Auburn Road offers Rosalita, a blush wine with a sweet apple taste; Give Peach a Chance, made with fresh peaches (and quite tasty); Mad Anthony’s Chase, a spiced apple wine; Kind of Blue, a sweet blueberry wine made with Jersey Berries; Dulcinea, a honey-colored sweet wine made with the Niagra grape and Blessington, a sweet blend of red Concord grapes.
The tasting room is open Sunday through Wednesday from 12-5 PM and Thursday through Saturday from 12-9 PM. Tastings are $5 per person for up to 8 wines.
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Cheers!
Friends of mine have attended events there and have really enjoyed it. Glad to see your report on it.
Thanks for your comment. You should check it out for yourself soon. Good wine, good food and good entertainment. TK and the Howlers have played there. A couple of Auburn Road owners are talented musicians and sometimes play there, too.