Frightened Turtle Vineyard and Winery is New Jersey’s newest and best kept secret. Indeed, it was quite the quest to locate the tasting room as currently there are no signs for the winery and Google Maps was awful. (signage will be posted soon!) Instead, look for the wine barrels and Sunny Slope Farm sign out front and be sure to use the 400 Greenwich Road address in Bridgeton (Not the 400 Bridgeton-Greenwich Road address that Google gives you). The entrance to the tasting room is to your left after you pull in. Once inside the Frightened Turtle tasting room you will embark on an exciting new expedition featuring many flavorful wines.
Mark and I kicked off our tasting venture with the FT Chardonnay, which was very smooth and enjoyable. The Pinot Grigio with its tropical fruit notes was invigorating, as was the FT Rose with its delightful hints of strawberry and cherry. The hard cider lover in me fully embraced the SS Apple with its distinctive caramel notes but the standout of the day was the wonderful paradox known as SS Blueberry. This wine had the complexity of a red while preserving the purity of the fruit, yet it wasn’t sugary. It was the perfect ending to what turned out to be one of those rare tastings where I fully enjoyed every wine I sampled.
Frightened Turtle may not be fancy but it is one of the friendliest and most genuine wineries I’ve ever visited. It is a family-owned business with a family-friendly atmosphere and most of all, owners Ronald and Lisa Thomas are dedicated to simply making great wines. That is not to say that Frightened Turtle doesn’t hold public events – they do indeed. During our visit we were treated to live music by the accomplished singer/guitarist Gene Shepherd. There are also plans in the works for food trucks as well. In the meantime, patrons are allowed to bring their own food and yes, leashed, well-behaved dogs are also welcome. This is definitely a winery to watch and I can’t wait to see what see the future brings.
