Alba Vineyard hosts corporate outings, team building days, rehearsal dinners, birthdays, anniversaries and vineyard weddings, from private dining for up to 24 guests to fully catered events for 25 guests or more. The family-run winery lies in the Musconetcong Valley of Warren County, New Jersey, about two miles east of the Delaware River, with a Milford mailing address.
Seminars and company events
Corporate events take place Monday through Friday. The winery lists retreats, team building, client entertaining, employee appreciation days and company outings. The Pavilion, covered seating under the vineyard arbor, is the usual setting, and it suits a relaxed afternoon after a morning of work elsewhere or a client lunch with a tasting. Events of 25 guests or more come with full-service menus from the exclusive caterer. The winery does not describe meeting rooms or presentation equipment, so it fits social and incentive events better than a full working seminar.
Weddings and receptions
Weddings and large celebrations are held in the vineyard field. Rental companies can install tents with sidewalls, and events go ahead rain or shine. Alba limits field weddings to six a year, which keeps dates scarce, and the winery advises booking well ahead. Rehearsal dinners and smaller celebrations can use the Pavilion. Children are welcome at large field events that are fully separated from the public winery areas, but not in the Pavilion or the Auxiliary Arbor, as Alba is otherwise a 21-and-over property.
Rooms and capacities
The winery has four event settings. The Pavilion is the most common choice for private events. Reverie Kitchen private dining takes up to 24 guests with à la carte service during kitchen hours. The vineyard field hosts weddings and large gatherings. The Auxiliary Arbor serves as the backup when the weather calls for a covered space. Alba does not publish a guest capacity for the Pavilion or the field.
Catering
Catering for events of 25 guests or more is provided exclusively by Eques Hospitality, and outside caterers are not permitted. Groups of up to 24 can order à la carte from Reverie Kitchen. All music must end by 9 p.m., and the property closes at 10 p.m.
History and setting
Alba opened in 1982 as one of the first New Jersey wineries created after the state's Farm Winery Act. After the original business went bankrupt, cabinet maker Tom Sharko bought the property in 1997 and restored it with his family, which now runs the winery in its second generation. In 1999 Alba became the first East Coast vineyard to plant more than 2,000 vines per acre. The estate grows Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Riesling and Cabernet Franc, with smaller blocks of Gewürztraminer, Pinot Gris, Merlot, Traminette and Chambourcin, on south-facing limestone and granite soils in the Warren Hills AVA, established in 1988.
Getting there
The address is 269 County Road 627, Milford, New Jersey 08848. For GPS navigation, the winery recommends entering 269 Riegelsville Warren Glen Road.
