Apple & Honey & Grape at Loew Vineyards

I last visited Maryland's Loew Vineyards back in June 2005 - an unusually long absence in revisiting wineries. I seemed to have gravitated more to Black Ankle, then to Old Westminster, and more recently to Catoctin Breeze -- but this summer my focused snapped back to this small family winery after tasting their Honey & Grape. This wine received a Gold and Best in Class at the 2019 Comptrollers Cup and just last week the prestigious Jack Aellen Cup. I had also sampled their Chancellor and noted that the inherent acidity had been tamed by fifth-generation winemaker Rachel Lipman to create a very likable dry red wine. A visit was required.

On the outside, and actually the inside, the tasting room at Loew Vineyards looked exactly as I remembered 14 years ago.  Think country store motif.  Whereas my main goal was to learn more about the Honey & Grape, it became very clear that the winery provided a rather strong portfolio that others in the industry would consider limited by the wine grapes and styles.

This started with the Two Consenting Grapes - a dry and un-oaked blend of Vidal Blanc and Reliance that was complex with both citrus and tropical notes.  The Reliance, a grape bred at the University of Arkansas as a table grape, provides the tropical aspects which are highly noticeable in the semi-dry Serendipity. The grape is also the main ingredient in the Honey & Grape.  The Loew family has been making some type of honey wine for over a hundred years starting with founder Bill Loew's family in Galicia. The honey augments the tropical flavors providing depth and balance to the grape's acidity.  Rachel also mentioned that honey wines age gracefully and they have been enjoying 20-year-old wines all summer.

One to drink immediately is their Apple & Honey Cyser which comes across very dry with the apple's tartness and acidity blending with the honey notes. A bottle came home for this week. Another fun wine is the sweeter Strawberry Jubilee where the strawberries dominate.

On a serious note, I wanted to emphasize their Chancellor - it is made in a lighter style more like a Pinot Noir with sour cherry and berry notes with approachable tannins and acids. Their Classic Red, a blend of Maréchal Foch and Chancellor is similar but with more weight and pepper.  And in a few years look for Zweigelt which Rachel planted this year. I can't wait.  Come visit - theCompass Craft Beverage Finder will guide you there.

Rose Bank Winery

After a day playing at Sesame Place, it was time for the adults to have some fun, so we ventured only a few mile north to visit Rose Bank Winery. A member of the Bucks County Wine Trail, the winery first opened in 1984 as In & Out Winery. Mike Selesnick owned and operated this venture until 1999, when he decided to retire to Florida. Dave Fleming, a neighboring produce grower, had been thinking about branching out into vineyards, so he purchased the property. This action probably saved the historic farm from development and Fleming renamed the farm after the original William Penn land grant: Rose Bank Farm. In fact, the property resides on a parcel of land originally deeded by William Penn to his daughters. The manor house was built in 1719 and is one of only 25 dressed stone buildings constructed in Bucks County. The existing barn was built in 1835, although Fleming lost half the barn in a fire a few years ago.

When Dave Fleming purchased the winery, he had zero experience growing grapes and wasn't even a wine drinker. Mike Selesnick worked with him for a year, while he learned all aspects of running a winery and vineyard, then remained as a consultant even after relocating to Florida. Mr. Fleming also earned a degree in Enology from U.C. Davis from a correspondence course. Since taking over, the product offerings and quality have increased and Rose Bank Winery was awarded their first Gold medal in the 2008 Keystone Wine Competition for their Mulled Apple wine. The winery and vineyard also follow organic practices, where manure is used for fertilization and nets cover the vineyard.

The tasting facility is located in a new building which also holds both the wine making and fermenting tanks. The winery also hosts weddings inside the tasting room or in the historic barn, depending on the size of the party. During our visit there were over a dozen wines available to sample. To satisfy their market, most of the wines are made semi-sweet or fruit wines, but we started with a few of their dry reds. The De Chaunac is a light bodied wine whereas the Chancellor Royale was fuller with an oakier finish. Both were good, but our favorite was the upcoming 2006 Cabernet Sauvignon. This is a full bodied wine - with some oak - and a flavorful, smooth finish.

We really liked their white wines, particularly the Vidal Blanc - the 100% varietal and the Nouvelle. Both are made from estate grown grapes and made semi-dry, the difference is that the grapes in the Nouvelle are pressed almost full cluster - just the stems are removed. We left with a bottle of each of these wines. We also liked their Cayuga - it has perhaps the most flavorful that we had previously sampled. The final white was the sweet Niagara - we loved the wine's aroma - a good representation of the grape. The same holds for their Concord, the best part being that its sweet - but not overly so.

Rose Bank offers several fruit wines, besides the aforementioned Mulled Apple. This wine suits as more for winter, but apparently others prefer it year round. The Cranberry was our favorite - but may not be for everyone because of its tartness. The others were fruitier and there's a fruit for everyone: Blueberry, Blackberry Strawberry, Peach, and Red Raspberry.


We enjoyed our visit and hope to return in the Fall to spend more time at the winery and to explore the Bucks County Wine Trail. The area provides examples of both American history and excellent produce.