Jack Tomasello remembers Tom Cosentino as more than just a guy who loved great wine.
“He loved people,” Tomasello said. “Whether it was dealing with lobbyists and legislators, big wineries or small wineries or, really, just anyone who wanted to know about wine, Tom had the patience and the personality to get people together and gets things done.”
It’s a rare ability, but one that was vitally important in Cosentino’s role as executive director of the Garden State Wine Growers Association.
“He made sure that everyone got a say and a fair shake at the association, whether you were one of the biggest wineries in the state — as we are — or if you were just starting out,” he said. “He was just a great guy. He is going to be missed.”
Cosentino, 59, passed away Tuesday at Jersey Shore Medical Center. There will be a visitation Friday night and a Mass on Saturday in Marlboro.
Tomasello, part of the third generation of leadership in a family-owned company that has been in the wine business in this state for nearly 90 years, said he’ll be there to pay tribute to someone who did as much for the industry in New Jersey as Tomasello can remember.
“It was just bringing people together,” Tomasello said. “Tom was constantly doing promotion — or giving us opportunities to do promotion.
“I never passed on a chance when he asked me to do an interview because I knew it would be a good idea if he had suggested it. And I never worried when he was going to do an interview, because no one spoke as passionately as he did it.
“He was so proud of New Jersey wines and wineries and wanted everyone to know it. He was just a great front man for the industry. I can’t think of a better way to put it.”
Tomasello said he remembers back in 2015, when the winery was having a celebration of an expansion. Cosentino got then-Lt. Gov. Kim Guadagno to come to the winery a few days before, during harvest season, and got her up on the harvester to see the process firsthand.
“He knew how important that was,” Tomasello said.
Marketing and promotion were a constant in Cosentino’s life.
After graduating from St. John’s University with a degree in sports administration, Cosentino began his career in 1983 as a media relations intern with his beloved New York Yankees. From publicity director at Yonkers Raceway to working championship boxing and launching the Ted Williams Card Co., his diverse practice spanned sports and events to, later, public affairs.
He was instrumental in passage of direct shipping legislation to support New Jersey’s burgeoning wineries while working with MWW. That advocacy led him to his role as executive director of the Garden State Wine Growers Association.
It was a role he cherished.
“I was just texting with him a few weeks ago,” Tomasello said. “I was so sorry to hear that he passed. He was just such a great guy. He will be missed.”
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Cosentino is survived by his wife of 32 years, Ann; son John and wife Jessica, and granddaughter Diana; son Mark and wife Allison; and his mother-in-law, Hilda Marotta.
