NEW JERSEY WINE AND FOOD FESTIVAL 2024

We sat down and talked with Robby Younes, founder of the New Jersey Wine and Food Festival and Chief Operating Officer of Crystal Springs Resort for their premier celebration of world renowned and highly-regarded local chefs along with prized wines and spirits on May 3-5. This event will be headed by New Jersey native, multi James Beard Award Winner, Restaurateur, and host of Bravo’s Top Chef which just launched their 21st season - Chef Tom Colicchio (our MAR ISSUE #99 cover alongside Chef Kristen Kish and Gail Simmons). On May 3rd, he will kick off 1 of 3 events that night for his Five Course Wine Cellar Dinner. The meal will be paired with Napa’s Eisele Vineyard.

Attendees will enjoy more than 200 wines, dozens of spirits, and over top 30 restaurants from NJ. From tastings, seminars, dinners, and parties, they will be able to meet the chefs and winemakers!

We wanted to find out more about this event and to hear about what we should know from Robby.

ATHLEISURE MAG: What is the purpose of the NJ Wine & Food Festival and how many years has it taken place? 

ROBBY YOUNES: The New Jersey Wine & Food Festival is a celebration of the amazing diverse talent we have here in New Jersey. More and more top chefs have been drawn to the state like Marcus Samuelsson, David Burke, Marc Forgione and coming soon Morimoto – we’ll be having a preview of his new concept at the Festival’s signature event The Grand Tasting. We also have incredible home-grown talent like David Viana and our own Crystal Springs Resort Executive Chef Aishling Stevens. We started the festival in 2009 and the restaurant scene has only grown since then. This year will be the first festival since the pandemic and we are looking forward to a great event. 

AM: With it coming back this year for the first time since 2019, what can attendees expect from this year's event? 

RY: The festival’s return has been much anticipated. People have been asking me for several years when it was coming back so now I can finally tell them it’s almost here! We have three days of events starting with our Wine Cellar Dinner by Tom Colicchio and amazing wines from Eisele Vineyard, very highly allocated boutique wines from Napa Valley. We also have a dinner featuring three former contestants from Bravo’s Top Chef – Karen Akunowicz, Sara Bradley and David Viana which has been a favorite for many years.  

AM:This event will take place from May 3-5th at Crystal Springs Resort, why is this the perfect destination to host this event? 

RY: Crystal Springs is the largest four-season golf, spa and culinary resort in the Northeast. We are setting the standard for excellence in both the culinary space and service. Our collection of seasonally driven restaurants gives us access to the finest ingredients and our two hotels offer plenty of accommodations for guests to stay overnight. Plus we get to showcase amazing features like our award-winning Wine Cellar which is the second largest in the country and our outdoor wood-fired restaurant, the Chef’s Garden. 

AM: Chef Tom Colicchio is headlining this year's festival, and his Five-Course Wine Cellar Dinner is 1 of 3 events kicking off the weekend. What can you tell us about this event? 

RY: The Wine Cellar has been a passion of mine since I started at Crystal Springs. Together with the late Gene Mulvihill, the founder of the resort, we built a one-of-a-kind collection of fine wine and this dinner showcases the resort’s wine legacy. We have two intimate dining rooms surrounded by thousands of bottles of wine so we invite in a renowned chef to create a dinner paired with wines. In the past, we’ve welcomed Daniel Boulud, Jose Andres, Thomas Keller, Gabriel Kreuther and more. This year, we are excited to welcome Chef Tom Colicchio and his team. The winery, Eisele Vineyard, produces very little wine so this is a unique opportunity for guests to taste them. 

AM: In terms of those participating in this year's event, what did you look for in terms of chefs, restaurants, wines, and spirit events that are involved? 

RY: We always look to celebrate a range of cuisines and ingredients when working with New Jersey restaurants. The scene has evolved quite impressively so I make sure to check out new restaurants and make sure we have the best of the best. I’m very interested in spirits and fascinated by the growth of agave. We have a great seminar showcasing agave beyond tequila which I think will be a lot of fun. For wines, more and more winemakers are practicing sustainable practices and things like regenerative farming like this year’s guest Eric Jensen. 

AM: Saturday May 4th is packed with a number of events! Can you tell us about some of the VIP experiences? 

RY: The VIP experience is an exclusive part of The Grand Tasting on Saturday night. Guests get access to two lounges with some amazing chefs like David Burke, Jacques Torres as well as premium wines and Champagnes. We make sure to have some fun entertainment and lounge seating as well that sets the VIP experience apart. 

AM: On Sunday May 5th, you will have a Cinco de Mayo Sunday Brunch. Can you tell us about this? 

RY: It’s a happy coincidence to have our Sunday brunch land on Cinco de Mayo! We’ve added some fun Mexican food options and margaritas — of course! 

AM: Tell us about ticketing for this event. Can you tell us what events are sold out, and what are 3 events that you are excited about that tickets are still available? 

RY: Friday dinners are already sold out but for Saturday, I’m excited about the Trailblazing Culinary Women – I love hearing the stories of how chefs and winemakers found their passion. We’ll have a discussion with two amazing chefs who competed on Bravo’s Top Chef, Karen Akunowicz and Sara Bradley. Crystal Springs Wine Director Susanne Wagner will talk about her work here at the resort. And then we’ll taste some wines from Mary J. Blige’s new project, Sun Goddess.  

Glenfiddich Tasting — this is an amazing opportunity to taste some older expressions of whiskies from Glenfiddich with a tasting of 18, 21, 23 and 26 year olds. 

The Grand Tasting of course! You can’t go wrong with dishes from 30 top restaurants and more than 400 different wines and spirits to taste. What more could you ask for? 

Read the latest issue of Athleisure Mag.

ATHLEISURE LIST | CRYSTAL SPRINGS RESORT

As we all embrace getting back into travel, we're adding some stops to our list! Crystal Springs Resort boasts 2 properties that allow you to be one with nature while taking in a myriad of activities.

The AAA 4 Diamond Grand Cascades Lodge is a newly renovated luxury hotel set amid lush natural surroundings. The majority of the rooms are suites with a full kitchen and balconies. The recent extraordinary makeover of Grand Cascades Lodge, which was undertaken when the resort was closed during the pandemic, is highlighted by its biophilic design, which is a concept utilized to increase guests' biological connection with the environment through using natural materials and light.

Minerals Hotel is tucked into a mountain in Vernon, NJ just a few minutes from Grand Cascades Lodge. The hotel is family-friendly and features multiple pools, a state-of-the-art sports club, family-friendly golf course and a top-rated spa in the state – Elements Spa.

The Resort has an incredible array of amenities with something for everyone including three pool complexes (the Biosphere, a tropical pool complex plus two outdoor pools), two spas, 6 golf courses, putting green, free Wine Cellar tour, marshmallow roasting and family movie night, outdoor game deck, fire pits and more. There are also more than 4,000 acres of hiking trails including on the mountaintop, as well as archery and fishing at the Quarry. On weekends, guests can also purchase bottles from the renowned Wine Cellar at the resort’s new wine shop.

Crystal Springs allows city residents to reconnect with nature and also themselves, which is incredibly important after the stressful past 18 months. The newly launched Health & Wellness Program includes many self-café experiences and activities. Guests can choose a range of activities from strenuous hikes and kayaking on the mountain top to mediation, sound healing and yoga classes including goat yoga, to forest bathing. Crystal Springs is also the largest golf resort in the Northeast with 6 courses for golfers of all levels, as well as the David Leadbetter Golf Academy.

The 10,000 square foot Biosphere pool complex features multiple pools, lush tropical foliage, a sauna, underwater aquarium and a 140-foot long water slide. The indoor pool connects to an outdoor pool that is heated so guests can use it year-round. The Biosphere was the first structure of its kind in the U.S. to incorporate advanced German Foiltec roofing material, allowing nearly 100% light transmission for year-round natural tanning. The roof also retracts in the summer months.

CRYSTAL SPRINGS RESORT

1 Wild Turkey Way

Hamburg, NJ 07419

crystalgolfresort.com

IG @crystalspringsresort

PHOTOS COURTESY | Crystal Springs Resort

Read the Jun Issue #66 of Athleisure Mag and see ATHLEISURE LIST | Crystal Springs Resort in mag.

ATHLEISURE MAG | #66 JUN 2021

In this month’s issue, our cover shoot is with World Champion Skateboard professional and member of Team USA who will debut this event at the Olympics in Tokyo next month, Heimana Reynolds. We talk about how he fell in love with the sport, training as well as participating in a number of events around the world and taking it to the global stage.  We talk with Don Brooks aka Don-A-Matrix, celebrity fitness trainer to the Kardashians, Fergie, Travis Barker and more. We talk about his work with the NFL led him to creating his own fitness method, working with his clients and how we can add various routines into our workouts. We also catch up with celebrity fitness trainer and sports nutritionist, Harley Pasternak who shares workouts we can do when we may not have equipment, go to bites and the importance of hydration. EDM artist RIOT TEN talks about his upcoming album dropping next month, his tour and his creative process. We had an in-depth conversation about the efficacy of vaccines on organ transplant and immunocompromised patients with world renowned organ transplant surgeon, Dr. Dorry Segev MD, PhD (a Major K. and Thomas Pozefsjy Professor of Surgery and Epidemiology and Associate Vice Chair of Surgery at John Hopkins University. He is the founder and director of the Epidemiology Research Group in Organ Transportation). We find out more about one of our favorite golf tournaments, THE NORTHERN TRUST which returns to Jersey City at the Liberty National Golf Club Aug 16 -22nd. Executive Director of the PGA TOUR, Julie Tyson talks about how she came to the golf industry, what is involved in creating this event as well as how important it is to the season as well as the communities that it is played in.

This month, Team USA Diving’s, Steele Johnson shares his favorite songs in 9PLAYLIST. Celebrity Hairstylist and Founder of Beachwaver Sarah Potempa shares her favorites and why in our 9LIST STORI3S. EDM and Dim Mak artist, RIOT TEN shares his 9DRIP with us. Journalist, broadcaster and podcaster Catt Sadler shares her favorites and why in our 9LIST ROUTIN3S. In addition, country music star, Tyler Rich shares his 9LIST ROUTIN3S that he enjoys in the morning, afternoon and evening. Our 9PLAYLIST 9MIX 9ACOUSTIC performance is by Ultra Record’s OMI. 

Our monthly feature, The Art of the Snack focuses on Concord Hill in Brooklyn. This month’s Athleisure List comes from Birch Aquarium and Crystal Springs Resort. As always, we have our monthly roundups of some of our favorite finds.

Read the Jun Issue #66 of Athleisure Mag.