Amalthea Cellars
Amalthea Cellars is located in Atco. They have a unique, rustic and inviting tasting room (actually two different areas inside) plus many tables, chairs, and fire pits to warm you while you enjoy a bottle outside. I’ve been wanting to re-visit Amalthea Cellars for a few weeks now. Their Cantina Mas Fall blend is available and three new interesting wines are now available (2018 Buffalo Trace Barbera, Red Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon and 2018 Buffalo Trace Mourvèdre ). We also decided to do a tasting. My wife tasted the whites and I tasted the reds (sharing, as always).
Tasting
White Wines
- Green Dragon* Fume Blanc-Utilizing grapes from outside of New Jersey, this is a nice, lightly oaked Sauvignon Blanc.
- Elara-Sometimes called their “Baby Chard”, this is a tasty blend of Chardonnay, Riesling, and Rayon d’Or.
- Dream Barrel** Chardonnay-Made from California grapes, this is a very good Chardonnay with lively acidity.
- Vidal Blanc Reserve-A medium to full-bodied, oaked version with an interesting and complex aroma.
- Leda-Dry Rose-A super, Tavel-style Rose. Hard to beat for the price ($16.99)
- Orange Wine-This wine was not on the menu and I did not make a note as to the name or the grape used to make it. However, it was different than a few other orange wines I have had-dry, but smoother (not bitter, as some bone dry versions can be).
Red Wines
- 2019 Cabernet Franc-A good, light version
- 2019 Merlot Reserve-A very smooth, medium-bodied Merlot
- Melange-A medium-bodied red blend
- Europa I***-One of my favorite red wine blends. It is a wonderful full-bodied blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (75%); Merlot (20%); and Cab Franc (5%).
- 2019 Europa V***-A very good Bordeaux-style red blend with a greater emphasis on Merlot.
- Cantina Mas-a perennial favorite, it is a seasonal draft blend-their Fall blend consists of Barbera, Zinfandel, and Petit Sirah.
- Dream Barrel Red Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon-A bonus, last minute taste. This is a rich, full-bodied, luscious Cab made from Washington State grapes and reinforcing my decision to take one home.
*Green Dragon wines are sourced from fine grape growing regions in this country (mostly California, but not exclusively).
**Dream Barrel wines are those made from fine grape growing regions around the world.
***Amalthea’s Europa Series wine is made with only estate grown grapes and is the winemaker’s (Lou Carraciola) attempt to replicate the various blends of specific chateaux in the Bordeaux Region in France. If Lou didn’t make any other wines, these wines would be more than enough to cement his reputation as a classic New Jersey winemaker.
We always have a good experience at Amalthea Cellars, with a knowledgable server leading the tasting and excellent wines. We decided to add three wines to our Cantina Mas jug: Dream Barrel Red Mountain Cab; 2018 Buffalo Trace Mourvèdre (NJ grapes); and 2018 Buffalo Trace Barbera (NJ grapes). These are pictured at the top of this post.
Book Recommendations
1. The Concise Guide To Wine & Blind Tasting by Neil Burton-A great book about wine for those who want to learn much more about wine in all of its facets. The photo below is of the newly revised Volume 1. Volume 2 is also available. It covers different wine growing regions than the first volume. The cost for the Paperback is $14.99 for each. The cost for the Kindle version is $9.99 for each volume.
2. New Jersey Uncorked: A Snob-Free Taste of NJ Wine by David Mullen-My book about NJ wine. While some things are always changing, if you’re reading this post you know what is going on and what’s new since my book was published. Right now you can get my ebook for ONLY $8.99 by using the discount code Fall23. It is only available at Apple iBooks (not on the Kindle).
Coming Attractions
- Cedar Rose Vineyards
- Va La Vineyards
- Laurita Winery
- Working Dog Winery
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