For the love of drinking wine and listening to music, I love attending wine festivals in New Jersey. These are monumental events with live music, that allow me to get to know new musicians and styles of music.
While chatting with the wine experts, I can also gain more knowledge about winemaking and its history in the region.
Moreover, I love being able to taste the different wines and appreciate their subtleties while fulfilling my curiosity about wine. That way, I know more about wine and the method of making wine.
In this article, I’ll take a closer look at the best wine festivals in New Jersey you will want to experience for yourself the next time you visit The Garden State.
Wine Festivals in New Jersey
- Italian Festival & Wine Tasting
- Luau Food Truck Festival at Laurita Winery
- Wine Down Summer at RiverWinds
- Wine on the Beach Festival
- Winefest
- Annual Pig Roast
- MBA Wine Tasting
1. Italian Festival & Wine Tasting
- Monmouth Park
- 175 Oceanport Avenue
- Oceanport, NJ
- Tickets: $5.00 to $15.00
Enjoy delicious Italian Food from the area’s top restaurants and food trucks. Also, sample an ample variety of Italian wines presented by Opici Wines.
Food vendors include Cutlo Italiano, Chank’s Grab-N-Go, Enzo’s Pizza and Subs, Kiersten’s Creations, Food for All Food, Twisted Steaks, LLC, House of Cupcakes, Your Sister’s Balls, Lexilicious Ice Cream, The Zeppole Guys, L’Acquario Seafood Italiano, The Little Sicilian Riceballs, and Shore Good Eats N Treats.
Appreciate the live music from 12 to 4 PM on both days. Each festival presents professional and popular bands, like Garden State Groove and West End Dogs.
Bring your kids with FREE family activities in the picnic area on Sunday from 12 to 4 PM. The activities include face painters, pony rides, a bounce house, and clowns.
Horse racing continues during the wine festival, with gates opening at 9 AM, and the first race is at 12:15 PM. Free parking with Children 12 and under is FREE. Dogs are not allowed, so make sure you leave your pets at home.
2. Luau Food Truck Festival at Laurita Winery
- Laurita Winery
- 85 Archertown Road
- New Egypt, NJ 08533
- Cost: $12.00 to $21.00
Come with your family for a fun-filled day of unwinding and enjoying the festivities on the grounds of Laurita Winery, an ideal location to enjoy quality wines with family and friends.
Pair their wines with many mouth-watering foods available from the food trucks onsite. Listen to live music while wining and dining. Each attendee will receive a Laurita wine glass as a souvenir.
Activities include Hawaiian DJ segments between each show. Fire Dances are the second and fourth performances of each day. One 30-minute Hula Lesson each day. Free parking.
Family activities include fire pits, face painting, and fantastic fireworks. Anyone under 20 gets in free. Check the winery’s calendar for future festivals.
3. Wine Down Summer at RiverWinds
- RiverWinds Great Lawn
- West Deptford, NJ
- Cost: $20.00 Advance and $25.00 (Cash Only) at the Gate, Non-Samplers over 21 $5.00 at the Gate, and under 21 Free
The total price includes a wristband, souvenir wine glass, sampling, and sales of many New Jersey Wines. The annual family event features the best wine in New Jersey, sampling, and purchasing of NJ wines.
While sipping wine, relax, spend either day listening to live music, shopping artisan craft work, indulging in yummy treats, and eating from NJ’s food trucks.
Wineries include Wagonhouse Winery, Terra Nonno Winery, Chestnut Run Farms, Plagido’s Winery, DiMatteo Vineyards, Salem Oak Vineyards, Villari Vineyards, Valenzano Winery, and Salem Oak Vineyards.
The festival lasts for two days, Saturday and Sunday, and each day is a separate admission.
4. Wine on the Beach Festival
- Sugar White Sand on the South Beach
- Blaine Avenue at the Dune Crossover
- Seaside Heights, NJ
- Usually Runs One Day from 12 PM to 5 PM
The popular event hosts several wineries and food venues. Guests can attend wine-related presentations and seminars to hone their wine connoisseur skills in wine tasting. Vacationers and locals can attend the festival.
5. Winefest
- Valenzano Winery Festival Grounds
- 1318 Old Indian Mills Road
- Shamong, NJ 08088
- 609-268-6731
- Noon to 5 PM
This annual event hosts ten of New Jersey’s finest wineries! The local wineries show off their new vintages while you sample wines in style. Some are award-winning wines from across the state, and you’ll find your new favorite wine!
Live entertainment begins with a DJ, then the live music wings to two stages of rotating performances by top musicians and bands. They may include Five Dollar Shakes, Jeff Selby and The Quixote Project, Goodman Fiske, Legacy Band, DJ Nico Oso, and more!!
You can reserve a VIP tent as a home base for your family and friends. The 10×10 tent offers a table, ten chairs, early access, and a prime location. Name your VIP tent where your party or business stands out in the crowd!
Bring your lawn chair, corkscrew, and umbrella!
6. Annual Pig Roast
- Brook Hollow Winery
- 594 State Highway 94
- Columbia, NJ
- Cost: $55.00
Over the years, guests have enjoyed QCrew BBQ’s many excellent pig roasts, presenting delicious expectations and more.
They feature a whole slow-roasted pig, teriyaki sirloins, and yummy side dishes and desserts. Enjoy an afternoon of prizes and live music and Brown Hollow Winery sells wine by the glass and bottle throughout the event.
Besides roasted pig and sirloins, the menu includes BBQ pulled port, BBQ chicken, hamburgers and cheeseburgers, BBQ ribs, hot dogs, corn on the cob, coleslaw, and potato salad. Desserts include assorted cakes, mouthwatering watermelon, and more.
Fill a table with eight or more people, and you receive a complimentary bottle of red and white wine for your group — that’s two bottles of wine!
7. MBA Wine Tasting
- Edgemar Circle Recreation Field
- Adjacent to the Jerome Avenue Ballfield
- Margate, NJ
- Tickets: $75.00
Besides enjoying wine that pleases your palate, there is much more to the festival! Diane Mitchell from 95.1 WAYV’s “Mike and Diane Show” hosts the event with a live and silent auction featuring auctioneer Lou Solomon.
Devour the fantastic food, chocolates, spirits, wine, beer, tasty bar drinks without the alcohol, live music, and dancing with the Mas Tequila Orchestra, Usual Suspects, or any popular bands. It’s an annual event that sells out yearly, so get your tickets early!
A portion of the proceeds funds needs and opportunities for children, such as high school seniors who attend Margate City schools and plan to continue their education.