New Jersey Winemakers Team Up to Create Delicious "Open Source" Chardonnays

I’m used to defending my home state of New Jersey to outsiders. As a kid born on the Jersey Shore, surfing Jersey waves was my first passion in life — it still is. When I started traveling for surf, I’d hear dismissive comments from others. “There’s no surf in New Jersey.” That’s changed quite a bit over the years, as the Jersey surf scene has exploded. But utter “New Jersey wine” among some oenophiles, and I’ll bet you an Italian sub you’ll see some eyes roll. 

A group of conscientious winemakers is aiming to change that. Four Garden State wineries teamed up to for the Winemakers Co-Op in 2015, with the stated goal of promoting fine Jersey vino. In 2016, these producers (Working Dog, Unionville, Beneduce and William Heritage) combined their skill, and grapes, to pull off something unique and pretty damn cool.

Each participating winery contributed some 1,000 pounds of their own estate Chardonnay to William Heritage winery. There, all of the grapes were all pressed together. That comingled juice was they divvyed up equally among the four winemakers. Each winemaker then crafted their own wine separately. The finished product is four “Open Source” Chardonnays. These wines were promoted through trade tastings and other events, such as an online Twitter tasting I participated in a few weeks ago. 

I tasted all four of these Chardonnays side-by-side, and found the process delicious and fascinating. The wines do all share an underlying commonality, as they should — each winemaker started with the same juice. But each also had unique signatures, different scents, flavors and textural elements, like slightly different guitar leads built on the same basic riff.

I’m also excited about where this project is headed in the future, as Cape May-area winery Hawk Haven (I’m a fan) has joined the Co-Op this vintage.

My notes on the wines I tasted are below. And, for more information on the Winemakers Co-op, you can check them out here. The wines, if still available, are sold only at the wineries themselves. All the more reason to get out and visit one of these wineries if you live in or are visiting the Garden State.

2016 Unionville Vineyards Chardonnay Open Source - USA, New Jersey
On the nose: yellow apples, pears, apricot, along with almond skin, white flowers and sea salt. Rich texture on the palate but really fresh acidity, a nice and velvety texture. Yellow apples, pears, lemon curd, the fruit is matched with graham cracker, ginger, honey and butter, sea salt. Rich but nuanced, totally delicious. This spends nine months in old French oak with maloactic fermentation mostly inhibited. (90 points) 

2016 Working Dog Winery Chardonnay Open Source - USA, New Jersey
On the nose, I get yellow and green apples, along with honey, butter, sea salt, some ginger and graham notes. Crisp and fresh on the body but a velvety, creamy mouthfeel. Impressive depth of flavor: yellow apples, lemon curd, apricot, along with honey, white tea, almond skin, saline. Plump but also really fresh and inviting. Aged six months in third-year French oak, inoculated for maloactic fermentation. (88 points) 

2016 Beneduce Vineyards Chardonnay Open Source - USA, New Jersey
Fresh and floral on the nose with yellow and green pears and apples, a creamy, honeyed element too, with some sea breeze. Crisp but juicy on the palate (creamy apples and pears, apricot), but the acidity keeps it balanced nicely and the lack of maloactic fermentation keeps this wine brisk and bright. Flavors of nougat, honey and white tea mix with sea salt and some floral perfume. Lovely balanced style. Aged eight months in third-year French oak. (89 points)

2016 Heritage Vineyards Chardonnay Open Source - USA, New Jersey
I am loving the burst of floral aspects on the nose, all sorts of pear and apple blossoms, in top of pears, apples, honeysuckle, some ginger and honey. Precise acidity frames the palate so nicely. This is the lip-smackingest of the bunch, but also boasts plump pears and apples. Notes of honey, white flowers, chalk, sea salt and minerals add depth. Pure, vibrant, really impressive. Aged eight months in third-year French oak, not inoculated for maloactic fermentation. (90 points)