Make Wine With Us

Been making wine with them for more years than I care to remember but it’s always a good time. John, John, and Diann make you feel at home and no one is better to learn how to make wine from than them. They make you feel like family because it isn’t just their winery, it’s OUR winery. If you’re even just thinking about learning how to make wine, go to one of their classes or tastings. You won’t regret it.

I purchased LivingSocial voucher to make a case of wine. Although the voucher said for two, only one person is able to partake in the wine making in a given session. We were a little disappointed with this the first time but it ended up being fine – we were able to bottle together which was a nice ending. The employees are very nice, helpful and dedicated to their craft. They are friendly and knowledgeable and answered all my questions. Being able to partake in the tastings whenever we went for our wine making was a bonus we thoroughly enjoyed. We really liked our wine and enjoyed the process as a whole. We are considering making more wine with them and would highly recommend them.

We had a great time… We actually rented a car service to come from Long Island. We had a ton of laughs, wonderful wine and dining experience. Four girlfriends went but we came home with 1000 stories and new friends…

I won a wine and cheese tasting for 12 people at a fundraiser. I wasn’t sure what to expect. But this was one of the best tastings I have been to! My friends all had a fantastic time and we learned so much about wine and wine making. Diann was very responsive in setting up our evening and very friendly. She told us all about the wine making process without trying to force us into buying anything. I think the spread of cheeses and fruits was one of the best I have ever seen for a wine tasting! We will definitely be back.

Lots of fun — great experience and highly recommended.

We had a great time here at the wine making sessions last year.
Each visit was enjoyable and we learned alot!
the resulting wine was very good.

What a great experience. Attended a wine tasting for 12 and was hooked. I just started making my own Chilean wine and so enjoy the experience. Warm family atmosphere and fun times.

Amazing place family oriented. A+ customer service. Wide selection of grapes from all over the world so pretty much you can make any wine you like. Very cozy place. Diann, John and John junior you are the best.

So much fun every time I go-​just need to make time to do the wine making but my friends loved it!!!

We had so much fun making a Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon during our first season that we decided to join for a second season to make a California Cabernet Sauvignon. Both came out great!
During the four 1 – 2 hours sessions spaced out over nine months, we attended several wine tastings at the bar and even barrel tastings. All of our experiences were interesting and fun. We especially liked that we could provide a picture for the label for the bottle. Diann, John, Sr., John Jr., and the rest of the staff are friendly and knowledgeable.
I continue to recommend this place and will consider joining for a third season.

I’m not a member here so my review is based on the invite from an actual member*.
Okay so as a member you get to go through the process of making your own wine, being able to go back and trying out, until it’s fully ready. You also get to invite friends to tastings (for free) which is where I came along. There are tables where you can set up your own snacks when you need a break from all the wine. The place didn’t feel overcrowded so there was enough space to try plenty of different wines. The tasting was from 6 – 8.
The employees were beyond helpful. They are walking around and always in sight incase you need to get to one of the top barrels. And since I’m only 5’2.I needed that employee when I wanted to try the Chilean wines. I had a great time as a guest and I’ll look into member prices soon.

Very cool place. I am not a wine fan but it is a great place to learn and make your own wine. The people are here are very nice. They have tastings which is cool, people come and taste wine, bring food and have a good time. If you like wine you should try to make your own!!!

I loved the idea behind this. Make your own wine… awesome. The people who run the place are informative, but the experience is highly disorganized. The two days I went were jam packed. I could not see a thing so the fact that the people who worked there knew wine facts did not make a difference. Most people were frustrated and gave up trying to listen, unless they pushed their way to the front (literally). The only thing I got to do was throw a crate of grapes in (it seemed like they had too many because we did this twice… the grapes were growing mold so I think they were getting rid of them quickly). Lol… threw the fuzzy grapes in because it was the one time I got close to the action. I asked why it was so crowded, and a staff member told me to come for a private class if I wanted less people… so this may be because I purchased a groupon. They seemed to have a different attitude and different day for social media holders. We had to register so there was no reason for the crowding. Other Unilocalers may have done a private class if they were able to see, hear, or do anything. I really could not get over the level of disorganization… it was baffling. That said, it is a great idea poorly executed.

Woo! First help elite to post a review!!! Curretly waiting for the pressing portion of our wine class. It was suppose to start at 4 but its 4:30 now. Minus one star for that.
So far I’ve been having an amazing time, drinking wine and learning about how it’s made. I’m not going to lie, I’m pretty buzzed but the perk of being an elite is the ability to review from your phone.
The people who run this joint are super informative and sweet. I wish there was more for me to nosh on other than lard crackers– which are delicious BTW. Another minus one star for that.
However I can’t wait to come back after the entire process to try the wine we’ve made! This seems like something that could get addicting!

Our first year as wine makers was a success! We will be back for more. Nicest people, fun atmosphere and our wine is great!

I’ve gone through the whole process twice now — bought a barrel with friends and did the pressing, racking, a bunch of tastings, and then the bottling. The experience the second time was way less fun than the first time and reading some of the other reviews I now see why.
The first time (two years ago) our group was able to come to several barrel tastings and spread out our snacks at a table and spend the afternoon. You get to see how your wine is coming along, taste other wine and share some cheese and snacks. Made for a very nice day and though we paid several hundred dollars for a quarter barrel, we thought the experience was worth it.
This year was way different. Tasting events were mobbed — apparently by people with Groupons who signed up for one wine lesson. Couldn’t find a place to sit, could barely move around the warehouse. So while the wine came out OK at the end, the shared experience with friends while it was in the barrel was totally lost. We ended up skipping many of the tastings this year.
The Gizzi’s are working hard to make a go of it and nothing against Groupons, but the space is limited, especially the seating. Why run a promo to entice people to become full-​barrel customers that annoys the full-​barrel customers you already have? Have separate tastings for lesson people and Groupon people. For $ 700, I shouldn’t have to be throwing elbows to get a 2 oz. taste out of a barrel.
Also didn’t appreciate being treated like a kid with my hand in the cookie jar on the final bottling night. After our group finished bottling, we were delayed for a half hour — all just standing there — while the owner ran around stressing about how many bottles we each had and trying to get an exact count. We had counted. We walked in with a spreadsheet. They had a copy because they print the labels. Everyone in our group had exactly the bottles they should have had. Turns out there was an empty carton sitting on the cart — just leftover from the bottling process — so we were immediately under suspicion. Then we were scolded for leaving an empty carton. How do we know that matters? Poor way to treat repeat customers. It left a sour taste at the end. I certainly won’t be back again.

I purchased a Living Social coupon for my husband and I and my parents after meeting John and Diann at a local NJ Chamber event. The coupon was for an Intro to Wine-​making event, which included cheese/​cracker appetizers, a hot catered buffet dinner, dessert, wine tasting (of four different kinds of homemade wine), participation in a step of the wine-​making process and a case of wine to take home. The event was three hours and the night we attended was sold out.
Upon arrival, we completed some forms and paid a $ 15 fee for an ABC license and received our yearlong membership. We immediately tried our first wine, a 2005 Syrah, and snacked on some of the cheese and crackers. We also got to try a 2007 Syrah and two 2010 Bordeauxs. The only disappointment of the evening was that no white wine was available. I’m not particularly fond of reds, so this was a bit of a letdown. Another couple at my table shared my sentiment. There are definitely more white wine drinkers than was assumed.
We sat down to a catered dinner while John and Diann told us all about the wine-​making process and how things are done at Make Wine With Us. The presentation was very informative and I didn’t feel like they were trying to sell me on buying a barrel (which you can do and ultimately, is how they make their money). We then participated in the «racking» of the wine and enjoyed some dessert. Out of the four wines we tasted, we were told to select one and we would go home with a case of that wine. We chose the 2007 Syrah and proceeded to label and seal our own bottles. This was a really neat step in the process and I’m glad we were able to do this.
The evening ended with a «thank you» from John and Diann and we all filled out evaluations. Our yearlong membership allows us to participate in any barrel tasting throughout the year, several events and if we chose to — we could buy a barrel and participate in the 9-​month wine-​making process.
Overall, it was a great evening and both my parents, my husband and I had a great time. Highly recommended for an interesting and offbeat night out.
Don’t be scared away by the location of the warehouse. It’s right next to train tracks and parking is on gravel.

I had my 30^th birthday party here and it was a really nice treat! Sue and Gus made things really seamless and pleasant! I wanted to do something different rather than the typical old restaurant and lounge scene so this place catered food from a great local Italian shop, setup a buffet and appetizers, cheese and crackers, and all you can drink tastings. They had personalized labels setup for my birthday and each person got to foil and label their own wine bottle as a take home party favor! We were allowed to bring our own cake and had the whole place to ourselves. It was a great time!

Make Wine With Us is such a great business idea and it’s a whole lot of fun to get involved in. They buy grapes from California and you can go in and taste wine before you pick what type of wine you want to make. Then at different points during approximately a 9 month process, you go back and get to actually help make the wine — pressing the grapes, tasting the wine, and bottling it when it’s ready. Even more fun, you can design your own label and choose a name for your own wine — so you can name it after yourself or your dog if you want. The staff is super friendly and knowledgeable.
I highly recommend getting a group of friends together to go in on making a barrel (or a portion of a barrel) of wine in Jersey City. It’s a really unique experience, especially for us city folk. :)