Celebrate Fall, Harvest & Wine at These Events (NJWineWithMe Post)

Article by Ashley Rowe, Blogger of www.njwinewithme.com

Do you have plans to get outside in NJ this Fall? If you're looking for something different to do, November in NJ is packed with great autumnal wine events, all over the state. Here are some ideas of events to attend with friends, family, and the kids. There are events for both the active adventure seeker and the reserved wine aficionado.

October and November are filled with special Fall, harvest, food, and wine events beginning with Brook Hollow Winery's QCrew Pig Roast on October 4th. Keep in mind tickets must be purchased for this event in advance. Celebrate the rest of October with the Four Sisters Winery Family Harvest Weekend starting October 4th and 5th and continuing through the rest of the month. You can fully experience Fall with your friends and family during this celebration. Four Sisters Winery will feature apple and pumpkin picking, hayrides, corn maze, grilled foods, wine cellar tours, and wine tastings, of course. Also during the first weekend in October, the Garden State Wine Growers Association presents the Grand Harvest Wine Festival at Fosterfields Living Historical Farm in Morristown with over 300 NJ wines, live music, food, and artisan crafts. Sunday, October 5th, Renault Winery Resort & Golf presents a Grape Stomping Festival with the opportunity to eat German food and watch football. For a lower key kind of harvest event, check out The Opera Gala at Tomasello Winery on October 5th, 12th, or the 19th.

During the 2nd weekend in October, the 7th Annual Cape May Wine Festival will take place at the Cape May Winery & Vineyard. My husband and I discovered that this weekend is a good time to visit the Cape May wineries at their locations while everyone else is at the festival. The following weekend, October 18th and 19th, Bellview Winery is hosting an Italian Festival with a spread of Italian food, traditional music, cheeses, and wines. This same weekend are 2 more wine events. Autumn Wine Festival at RiverWinds and Southwind Vineyards Wine & Art Weekend . Closing out October are Cream Ridge Winery's Soles for the Harvest 5K and Toast Your Way into Fall Autumn Wine Festival at Jakes Branch County Park in Beachwood.

And that's just in October! November continues more autumnal events. November begins with the Harvest Food Truck & Wine Festival at Alba Vineyard's. Then, Friday, November 7th is the 9th Annual New Jersey Harvest Wine Festival at the Hilton Short Hills. Unlike the other events mentioned that feature NJ wines, this event takes place in NJ, but features 150 wines picked by the Wine Library. This festival will also feature hors d'oeuvres, artisan foods, wine classes, and live jazz. On November 8th and 9th is Grape Adventure Wine Festival at Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson. This event features 14 NJ wineries and offers a special safari and tasting tour opportunity between 11:00 am and 3:00 pm. Purchase tickets in advance for a better rate. During the same weekend, Vintage North Jersey is hosting Not Just Wine Trail . They encourage you to visit North Jersey wineries where you will receive coupons, discounts and directions to nearby restaurants, hotels, farm markets, specialty food stores, unique shops, among other things. Additionally, Valenzano Family Winery is featuring events this same weekend. On Saturday, they present the 6th Annual Jeeps in the Vineyard where Jeep enthusiasts from different clubs in NJ come together. On Sunday, they're hosting a Run the Vineyards 5K.

The rest of the month is low key except for Cream Ridge Winery's Sugar & Spice Open House on November 15th and 16th. About this time, I'll be looking to stock up on their delicious Winter Spice Wine. Later in November, Thanksgiving Day weekend is the Holiday Wine Trail Weekend. Many of NJ's wineries participate in this event and will feature special offerings on these days.

Which events will you join?