Nassau Valley Vineyard, Lewes, Delaware

 

“Behold the rain which descends from heaven upon our vineyards; there it enters the roots of the vines, to be changed into wine; a constant proof that God loves us, and loves to see us happy.”

Benjamin Franklin

On our trip to New Jersey, we found that we had some extra time before going into the town of Lewes and started looking to see if there were any Vineyards in the area. This is one of the things Joe and I love to do while traveling is to stop at local wineries, taste their wines, and enjoy the scenery. We were pleasantly surprised to find there was an award winning vineyard just outside of town called Nassau Valley Vineyard. So off we went to give it a good look over.

We drove down a quiet country road and parked. There in front of our car was a stand of trees that were planted close together. It was a very pretty and unusual looking with the trees so close together. We thought they were Sycamore trees but were still unsure until we talked to Braedan, a worker at the vineyard, who told us we were correct. He said they were planted 40 years ago as a border.

We headed into the main shop where there is a nice gift shop and told Braedan we would like to do a tasting. After we paid our $12 a person for a tasting, he led us into a large building called the Claret Hall. This is a hall that can be rented out for special occasions and can seat 150 people or 200 people cocktail style. He said at one time this building was a carriage house. The brick arches in front of the building were modeled after Carter’s Grove Plantation in Williamsburg, Virginia. We were the only ones there that day as it was a week day and was early. He explained on the weekend it gets busy.

 The tasting room was set up with various tables to sit at and four larger tasting tables. He gave us a sheet with a listing of all their wines and told us we could each pick six different wines to taste. We each picked six wines to taste. We did the usual and I picked the white wines and Joe picked the reds. Braedan was very informative and easy to talk with. He told us he worked here for a few years and loves his job. He told us about each wine as we tasted it and also gave us background on this vineyard.

He told us the owner and founder of the winery was a popular jazz singer, named Peggy Raley. Peg started by buying 8 acres and between 1987 – 1990 planted 7 acres of grapes. Then she went to the local state legislature to get the law changed to allow her and others to be able to open wineries in Delaware. She was approved and became the first commercial vineyard to exist in the “First” state. She opened the vineyard in 1993.

There was a wide selection of wines to choose from and the wines were excellent. Braeden explained they grow Bordeaux variety of grapes. They first grew Cabernet sauvignon, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc and later expanded to grow chardonnay, Seyval blanc, and Chambourcin. This was a great stop since it was close to Lewes. After our tasting and revisiting, we choose to buy two bottles of wine. It was a hard decision choosing which ones as they all were very good.

There was a small but very unique museum that shows the history of start of wine making 8,000 years ago to how the grapes are grown in modern days. There were picture displays and some artifacts. It was very interesting.

Their was also an art gallery known as Gallery One that had a display of beautiful paintings done by a local artist displayed on the walls. It was beautiful work. They allow different artists to display their work throughout the year. This area can also be rented out for an intimate party of 35 or less seated or 50 standing. There is a glass window where you can look down to see their wine cellar. There were tables there so we sat down and opened the white Chardonnay.

Afterwards, we walked around the property some and saw there was another large venue area called the Grand Cru Hall. We were told you can either rent the whole building or just part of it, or the patio. We also heard that many people chose to get married in Bacchus Grove where the Sycamore trees are located.

The first Wednesday of every month, True Blue Jazz plays. They also have a farmers market every Sunday between 12 – 3 from the middle of May till the end of October.

What a beautiful vineyard and what a great place to spend part of our day. I only wish that Peggy was there so we could have met her. What a great venue for a special occasion. We plan on visiting again. This is a very special place. It is one of a kind. Check it out. https://www.nassauvalley.com.

Till next time. Bye for now.

Cape May- Lewes Ferry

 

“People don’t take trips. Trips take people.”

John Steinbeck

The Cape May-Lewes Ferry is a great way to travel, either for a nice day trip or to save time on a long distance trip. This ferry can save a lot of time if you are heading to the New Jersey Shore from Delaware or heading south to the Delaware beaches or to the Virginia Beach area from New Jersey.

On your journey across the bay, you will have the pleasure of seeing historic lighthouses, picturesque harbors, sea vessels, and great wildlife. You may even be lucky enough to see a dolphin or two. It is a 17 mile cruise that takes you on a very nice ride across the Delaware Bay. The trip take about 85 minutes on way.

After we spent a lovely day in Lewes, Delaware, we headed to the Cape May-Lewes Ferry Terminal for our scheduled crossing. We showed our ticket at the entrance to the Lewes Terminal. They lined us up with all the other vehicles heading to Cape May. We noticed there were a couple tractor trailers as well as numerous cars and campers. This was going to be a big load.

We got out of the car and explored the terminal still decorated for the holidays. In front of the terminal is a complete mini replica of the vessels they use at this terminal. There was also a plaque stating The Legacy of Ted Freeman who was a local boy who became an aviator, went to the US Naval Academy, and was later selected for NASA to be an astronaut. He lost his life while making up a routine flight in Houston, Texas when a flock of snow geese flew into both engines. Both engines died and his plane was heading right towards a housing area where all the astronauts were staying. He stayed with his plane and veered away from the populated area saving many lives but taking his own. May he rest in peace.

Behind the terminal, the waterfront area looked beautiful that day with the sun shining and clear blue skies. There is a nice patio area with Adirondack seating and fire pits facing the waterfront. During the good weather, there is a patio bar/snack bar they open. There is also an Unknown Sailors Cemetery for all the sailors whose unidentified remains had washed ashore. From the shore you can look out over the water and see both the Breakwater Light House and the Harbor of Refuge Lighthouse. It is a pretty place to sit and look at the views of the water.

The Breakwater – a reddish lighthouse and can be seen from the shore and is the first lighthouse you spot when you leave Lewes. It was formerly known as the East End Lighthouse and was built in 1885 of cast iron.

The Harbor of Refuge Lighthouse is painted white and is a bit further out in the bay. This lighthouse was built to protect the National Harbor of Refuge and was built in 1926. They built it to stand up to the harshest of storms and has proved to be a strong lighthouse making it through several hurricanes.

Over the loud speaker they announced that it was time to go back to your vehicles. We did and prepared to be loaded up on the ferry. A lot more vehicles had lined up to get on the ferry since we arrived and we were shocked to see how many actually fit on the ferry. They sure know how to pack them in.

After the cars all stopped moving on the ferry, we got out and headed upstairs to the lounge. It is a huge lounge with TV's, comfortable seats with tables, and great places to relax and watch the day go by. There is also a small cafeteria and gift shop and two bars on board. We sat in a booth with a table where we could see the amazing views and enjoyed our time watching the beautiful scenery. I got up and took pictures of the lighthouses outside of Lewes. The sunset was glorious that day. The captain of the ferry came on to announce for everyone to look to the port side of the boat to see Samuel B. Roberts (FFG-58), a US Navy guided missile  frigate, aka “Sammie B,” being towed to Texas to be scrapped. This boat was commissioned in 1986 and was later damaged in the Persian Gulf. That was quite the site with the sun setting appropriately behind it.

 

Pulling into Cape May, we could see the Cape May Lighthouse in the distance. The Cape May Lighthouse was built in 1859 and is the oldest and tallest of the three lighthouses that we saw on this trip. As we pulled into Cape May, the ferry crew got busy with letting all the cars off in a particular order which appeared to be like a puzzle. We were one of the first off. A shuttle runs during the summer months, that will take you into Cape May from the Ferry terminal.

This ferry system was first planned in 1926. They initially planned to use an old WWI military ship but the idea was soon left behind. In October, 1962 they tried a dry run with the Pocahontas ferry which they borrowed from the Chesapeake Bay Ferry Commission. It was a success so they began this service on July 1, 1964. These ships were replaced in the 1970’s.

There are now three ferry vessels, MV Delaware, MV New Jersey, and MV Cape Henlopen which are operated by the Delaware River and Bay Authority and two terminals. The ferries are based at North Cape May on the north shore of the Cape May Canal. All three vessels carry both cars, buses, RV’s, tractor trailers, motorcycles, and bicycles and foot passengers. They can fit about 100 cars about 800 passengers. The ferry runs 16 hours a day.

It was a great day to enjoy this ferry ride and we hope to do it again soon. Till next time. Bye for now.