A cross-section of no-brainers if I found myself with a post-round dinner invitation to MRGC
The Swig Coach proprietary grid lays out the MRGC list by country and grape
See detailed comparisons to retail prices hat show MRGC’s impressive commitment to member value

Swig Coach Verified Review: Manasquan River Golf Club, Brielle, NJ

Manasquan River Golf Club (MRGC) appears as an oasis just a few miles from the jangle of the Point Pleasant Boardwalk and the full Jersey Shore experience. Tucked against the western shore of the Manasquan River, the Club celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2022.

I haven’t had the chance to play the golf course, but I got an independent perspective from a Golf Digest course rater who told me among other virtues the Club’s 16th hole is one of the best in New Jersey. However, through the kind invitation of the Club’s General Manager of Clubhouse Operations, Ryan Brennan, I did get a full view of the MRGC wine program, and it’s also one of the best in New Jersey, if not the whole country. We subjected MRGC to the rigorous Swig Coach analytic framework and we imagine it would crack the 10 Top in the US if the OWGR gave points for wine.

The Big Picture

What distinguishes the MRGC list? We have never seen a Club list that so deftly balances affordable diversity on the one hand and deep pockets of fine wine in key categories important to members on the other. Equally appealing is a palpable sense of adventure and fun as you explore the world of wine at your (digital) fingertips on the Club’s iPad list. While there are some small possible improvements we can suggest, it’s important to note we consider this list and the entire wine program at MRGC to be a blueprint that other mid-sized clubs invested in wine should seek to emulate.

Maximum scores were awarded for the most important and heavily weighted Swig Coach criteria: breadth, depth, price, value, storage, and classic wines. Before we dive into the details we want to highlight three aspects of MRGC’s excellence.

***Man with a plan: Ryan Brennan, CCM, architect of the MRGC wine program***

Incredible selection. MRGC has an exceptional list offering more than 500 wines, which would make it an automatic “platinum” award winner in the context of a fine dining restaurant. But it’s a soaring accomplishment in a private club with 600+ members.
Curated experience. The list touches all the expected bases but doesn’t stop there. Club Management has expressed a conscious goal to offer members access to the best the world of wine has to offer, both within the US and globally. This isn’t just a list, it’s curation of a high order, and is only going to get better as the Club’s talented management continues its current trajectory.
Friendly pricing. As you’ll see below, there’s a real commitment to everyday low prices on hundreds of wines. We love how this democratizes the notion that wine can and should be part of the everyday member experience.

A further point is worth making upfront. The MRGC management team has carefully cultivated relationships with producers of top-tier, highly allocated wines, particularly on the West Coast, allowing them access to product that would simply not be available to others. There’s no way to “jump the line” here, it’s the result of diligence, persistence, and patience in building the best possible list and creating an enduring asset for the Club. This is an intangible benefit of MRGC’s program that probably doesn’t get the recognition it should.

MRGC Performance On Key Swig Coach Criteria

Following is a discussion of each component of the SwigCoach rating for MRGC. Note that each category begins with a generic definition of how we rate it, and then comments specific to MRGC appear in Italics.

Breadth means the list displays regional and grape diversity. Major wine regions and important grapes are represented, with extra points for thoughtful additions outside the expected.

The MRGC list offers nearly 50 distinct grape varieties and/or blends from 12 different countries. Almost every well-known region in the world of wine is represented, but careful attention has also been paid to embrace the unexpected, like Finger Lakes riesling or Greek assyrtiko. While “red meat reds” will always tend to dominate at a golf club, we especially love the breadth of appealing (and inexpensive) whites that would be terrific after a round on a hot summer day...

Depth recognizes the depth of quality in specific regions that merit attention (Bordeaux, Burgundy, Napa, Tuscany etc.) with multiple selections in each, as well as a range of vintages that allow for drinking mature wines. The presence of larger formats is also a plus.

MRGC knocks this out of the park, especially with American cabernet, Bordeaux blends, New World pinot, and chardonnay. There are more than 70 California cabs to choose from in all price ranges. Excellent assortments of New and Old World syrah and Spanish tempranillo are other examples. A nice selection of magnums is available, but most unexpected is the presence of approximately 30 half-bottles, usually something you would see in a high-end restaurant with a tasting menu orientation. If you told us we had a strict $125 budget, we could easily be talked into a first course 375ml Kistler “Les Noisetiers” followed by Corison cab. This turns out to be part of a deliberate strategy involving the by-the-glass program, which will be covered separately below, but also allows couples to split a bottle according to their personal preferences or dining choices on a given evening.

Price range indicates availability of a broad range of prices that suit both casual drinking and special occasions, consistent with member expectations and the local market.

If there’s any SwigCoach criteria that MRGC absolutely crushes, it would be price. There are well over 100 options under $50 and approximately 275 under $100. Clearly, no second mortgages are required to drink well at MRGC. By the same token, if you are ready to splurge, the list stands ready to indulge with many premium or super-premium options in classic regions like Bordeaux and Napa cab.

Value quantitatively measures the degree to which the club's mark-up makes wine prices competitive externally and is determined through direct comparison to US retail prices available at wine-searcher.com. Value can be found across the price spectrum, not only in less expensive wines.

At MRGC, we think the question of value is rendered somewhat moot by the presence of so many low-cost options. Honestly, what is there to complain about? Nevertheless, our benchmarking analysis revealed that every one of the 20 wines we researched was priced less the 2x retail across a range from $37 to $1300 per bottle. Since in most cases restaurants charge 2-3 x above retail prices and recognizing that only the best restaurants would even have access to MRGC’s mature fine wine inventory, the MRGC list consistently offers solid value when compared to external benchmarks. Once again, though, the list has hidden and unexpected gems like Armand Rousseau Gevrey-Chambertin Les Cazetiers at fair (and sometime great) prices that have us licking our lips and double-checking our wallets. (For detailed price comparisons, see the table at the end of the article).
Additional value is delivered through regular tastings and wine dinners (see Member Education below).

Storage requires the wine inventory is appropriately temperature- and humidity- controlled, with careful consideration of provenance.

MRGC has a novel approach to storage that gives them ultimate flexibility and at the same time helps them minimize the Club’s on-going inventory investment. There are two relatively compact wine rooms easily accessible to the dining rooms, one for white/sparkling/rose and one for red. Several bottles of each wine are stored and are replenished via suppliers on an as needed basis. Finding the wines is a virtual no-brainer for the experienced management team, but less knowledgeable servers can pull up an up-to-date, Excel-based layout on their phones if necessary. Since they aren’t weighed down by case commitments, the wine team has the freedom to fluidly shift gears when a wine sells through by replenishing it, selecting a comparable replacement, or moving on to something else.

Classic wines are generally recognized to be great exemplars of their region, based on historical reputation, critical acclaim, higher prices, and active auction markets. Availability of mature wines is necessary for a full score.

MRGC’s collection in Napa and Bordeaux is effectively world-class, whether the frame of reference is retail or a famous restaurant with a destination-worthy wine list. The Bordeaux selections are especially noteworthy for the availability of perfectly mature wines, including several each from the excellent 2000, 2005 and 2010 vintages. As mentioned, there is good representation in multiple other classic regions/varietals, including Spanish tempranillo, Super Tuscans, and both Old and New World syrah. Relationships that have been cultivated over time with key suppliers and wineries often enable replenishment of even hard-to-find vintages of allocated, classic wines.

Other scored criteria

Glassware should be appropriate for the quality of wines on the list with at minimum different shapes for pinot noir and Bordeaux varietals. Good quality carafes should be available as needed during service.

MRGC estimates they have more than 4000 wine glasses on hand. A conscious effort has been made to provide appropriate glass shapes for multiple different varietals. Riedel is the standard. While the varietal-specific stemware is not generally used in everyday service, it is always deployed during the special tastings and dinners to showcase the wines in the best possible light.

Staff knowledge and service means that there should be someone on the floor after 5PM who can intelligently answer questions; staff can find bottles with unfamiliar names. Service denotes that the staff goes the extra mile to anticipate member needs.

In season the three key managers who maintain the wine program are on the floor every evening, assuring their ready availability if members need help. Due to the longevity of this management team, member preferences are intuitively top-of-mind, and no POS software is necessary to deliver highly personalized service. As a result, it is a frequent occurrence for even knowledgeable members to ask the staff to select wines off the list for them, a tribute to the trust that has been built over time.
The staff will do most anything to accommodate individual member needs, no matter how unusual. Several examples of highly personalized service were cited, including always pre-icing a post-golf Oregon pinot noir, and ensuring a favorite chardonnay is available at room temperature.

Corkage policy allows room for a reasonable approach to corkage, even in a list that is already great. Immediate deduction if not available.

MRGC inherently recognizes that a percentage of members may be collectors themselves and the Club fully supports corkage, currently a reasonable $30/bottle.

Member education tries through tastings and other activities to educate members about wine and enhance their enjoyment of the experience.

Up to eight paired dinners are held each year along with several additional more formal tastings/seminars, including some built around winemaker visits. Another popular program is a walk-around tasting where distributors will each pour multiple wines from their portfolios.
The common practice is to absorb the cost of the wine during an event, that is, charge only to cover the Club’s wholesale cost, allowing for a substantially lower tariff than say a comparable tasting in New York City. Special pricing on wines served at Club events may be offered to attendees creating additional member value, such as a recent dinner focused on the wines of super-Spanish producer Vega Sicilia.
A flyer announcing the next year’s events goes out each March and everything sells out within days. Feedback confirms that members perceive this activity as another contributor to the intrinsic value of the Club’s overall wine program and events have been so successful that wine programming has effectively supplanted a slate of traditionally offered theme nights.

By-the-glass program should include multiple wines available by-the-glass at less than restaurant mark-ups with an intent to “push the envelope” and expose members to new and possibly off-the-beaten-path options.

MRGC has a robust by-the-glass program administered under a fierce and admirable commitment to ensure that every pour is fresh. In support of this, the Club stocks an unusual number of half-bottles for BTG use. These smaller formats turn more quickly to avoid overexposure to air, an issue that plagues all but the most conscientious establishments.
Naturally, the BTG list caters to members’ preferences, specifically chardonnay in summer and cab in the off-season. Members can become very attached to specific brands so favorites tend to remain the anchors while the rest of the list can vary with seasonal options or interesting wines the staff wants to promote. At any point in time there are approximately 25 “everyday” selections plus, 2 monthly specials (also available for full bottle purchase) and another 15-20 premium pours under Coravin. Average price for non-Coravin wines hovers around $12-14 per glass, less than typically found in area restaurants, especially with the cleverly lined glasses that allow bartenders to consistently pour a generous 6 ounces.
Previously mentioned relationships fostered by the management team can often enable access to close-outs for BTG use that simultaneously generate member value and help subsidize pricing on full bottles.

The wine list itself is clearly presented, up-to-date, free of errors and encourages members to explore their options

MRGC adopts a bold strategy of using iPads to house the list. It affords maximum convenience for the staff, since changes can be made electronically through the Uncorked cellar database in as little as 15 minutes (!), and it avoids the necessity of constantly reprinting a 500-bottle list when changes are made on a frequent basis. Kudos are warranted as well for taking an environmentally friendly approach, in its own way akin to switching to an EV. The list as displayed on the iPad is well-laid out, very readable, and nicely indexed to allow multiple methods of search. A bonus is descriptive text for each wine available at a click. This allows less confident or knowledgeable members the ability to do some research on their own if desired.

Areas for Improvement

While the MRGC program flirts with perfection, there are several tweaks still possible to up its game and we humbly offer these suggestions in that spirit.

Consider paring back several of the deepest categories to free up room for other types of wines. MRGC would like to offer a list with access to the best wines from everywhere around the globe. We suspect it can come very close to realizing this ambitious goal without increasing its already impressive total inventory simply by cutting back a little on the very deep existing categories like California cabernet and chardonnay. Some suggestions for continued regional expansion consistent with the Club’s current list might be an even broader array of Burgundy appellations or more diversity in the ever popular and expanding world of rosés.
Keep the focus on excellence. MRGC management has expressed a vision of building a wine program that generates real excitement every time a member or guest touches the iPad, and we love the idea. Who wouldn’t? The only advice here is to stay true to that mindset when onboarding new wines so that every addition moves the overall program closer to the ideal.

Summary

Whatever a member’s heart desires or budget allows on a given visit to MRGC, the wine program stands ready to delight and inspire.

Distribution by Country and Grape Variety

This point-in-time analysis clearly shows the diversity in the current MRGC list, offering more than 500 individual labels spanning 13 countries and almost 50 different grape varieties or blends.

Price and Value Analysis

Given the presence of more than 200 bottles priced at $75 or less on the list (almost half the total!), there appears to be a clear mandate to make wine at MRGC both affordable and an everyday component of the member experience. But the Club’s expansive list also embraces the notion that great wines should be available at multiple price points as befits different member budgets, tastes, and the celebration of special occasions. In truth, the balanced approach to quality, whatever the price, renders moot the notion of a sweet spot on the list: at MRGC everyone is a winner.

But price only tells part of the story, and truth be told, it’s irrelevant without some notion of the value embedded in the list. MRGC’s wine program offers excellent value relative to available data on what a drinker would have to pay in the real world. The table below takes a representative sample of MRGC wines and compares the price a member would pay while at the Club with average retail prices taken from a recent snapshot at wine-searcher.com. The index is a simple calculation that divides the MRGC price by the retail price. Think about it this way. A typical retailer is going to mark up a wine 40-60% over their cost. A restaurant marks it up 3 or 4 times over their cost. Any result near 100 means the wine costs about the same as retail. Similarly, an index of 200 or less beats almost any restaurant on the planet, especially for more expensive bottles.

As we eyeball the 20 specific comparisons we made, we can conclude that a de facto strategy is in place to keep prices within hailing distance of retail and well below what a member might find at a comparable restaurant, assuming they could find one with a list this good! In every bracket we examined, the MRGC price was less than 2x retail and in most of them it was within 50%. This is an excellent proxy measure for corroborating the significant value the list delivers. Low handicap wine drinkers will quickly spot the screaming bargains (hint: pay attention to vintages…)

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Swig Coach Verified Review: Manasquan River Golf Club, Brielle, NJ

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