Winery Visit - Crossing Vineyards

On Thursday, March 13, 2014, two of my friends and I went to Crossing Vineyards and Winery in Bucks County, Pennsylvania to tour the facility and enjoy a wine tasting. While this was not my first winery visit, I was excited to sample wines from the Washington Crossings area of Pennsylvania.

Crossing Vineyards and Winery Sign

Crossing Vineyards is located off of Wrightstown Road in Newton, PA and is located on a property that served as a mustering site for the Continental Army prior to Washington's Crossing of the Delaware River in 1776. The vineyard boasts of its 20 acres of Vitus vinifera grown on site; varietals include: Chamboursin, Concord, Steuben, Chardonnay, Vidal Blanc, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Cabernet Franc. They have nearly 20,000 vines on the historic property. The original 10 acres and 10,000 vines were planted by hand; whereas the additional 10 acres were planted using state of the art Laser technology in 2003. White grapes are often harvested in late September and red grapes in mid-November, but these harvesting times are determined as information becomes available at the winery's own computerized weather station and microclimate database on the premises.

My boyfriend, Matthew, and I in front of Steuben Vines

While most of the winery was stagnant for the day, we were allowed into the fermentation and barrel aging part of the winery. The fermenting tanks are where the pressed grape juice is sanitized and yeast is added to  allow the juice to yield alcohol.

Posing with a fermentation tank

Access stairs to "punch down the cap"

Once fermentation is stopped, the wine is placed into stainless steel or wooden barrels to be stored and aged before bottling. We were not allowed inside the sterile bottling room.

Barrels used for oak aging

Our tasting was $8.00 for our choice of 10 wines ranging from reserve reds to fruit and dessert wines and was held in the gorgeous tasting room. I decided to start with their signature whites, then signature reds, followed by fruit wines and desserts. I tried to pick reserve wines and wines that received awards to get a good representation of their wines. The following are my impressions of the wine I sampled:

• Chardonnay: It smelled sweet and of apricots and oak. The wine tasted of honey and cream, but was not very dry and yet still oaky. It also smelled slightly of sulfur, which was not very pleasant. Their 2005 Chardonnay was the winner of "The World's Best Chardonnay" by Starwine International Wine Competition in 2006 and first PA wine to be included on Ritz Carlton Hotel in Philadelphia.
• Sauvignon Blanc: The nose of this wine smelled of grass and lightly of citrus. It tasted sweet, of oranges, apricot, and honey.
• Viognier: This no residual sugar Viogner smelled acidic and grassy. It tasted sweet, sort of like artificial sweetener, and was not acidic and slightly dry, with hints of citrus fruit on the finish.
• Vintner's Select White (Chardonnay, Viogner, Riesling): This wine smelled grassy and light but tasted of honey and petrol with a slight oakiness. This complex white was sweet initially, bitter on the mid-palette, but had a rounded finish.
• Pinot Noir Reserve: This wine smelled of sweet, ripe red fruits and tasted like blackberries, slightly oaked and smoky with a black pepper finish.
• Merlot: The bouquet of this wine was peppery and of blueberries; it tasted oaky and tannic with hints of blueberries, blackberries, and too much black pepper that gave it a metallic, almost tin quality. Winner of "Best Red Wine in Pennsylvania" in 2006 by the Pennsylvania Wine Society and ranked in the top ten in 2010. The vineyard has high hopes for its 2013 Merlot.
• Heritage Blend (Bordeaux Style -  One third each of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot): The Heritage blend smelled of raspberries and red cherries but tasted like white pepper, black pepper, and had a rounded finish rampant with the flavor of plums.
• Cabernet Franc: This was my favorite wine of the tasting because it smelled like smoke and strawberries and tasted of clove, raspberries, and black pepper with hints of vanilla.
• Wild Berry (Fruit Wine - Raspberries, Blackberries, and Blueberries): The bouquet of this fruit wine was of ripe berries and artificial sweetener. It tasted like black and red cherries in addition to the flavor of berries; it was very sweet and tart. This wine was the winner of the Pennsylvania Governor's Cup in 213.
• Chocolate Cherry Truffle Port: This brandy fortified wine smelled of white chocolate and nutmeg and tasted delicious; the port was luscious and thick with flavors of black cherry and both dark and milk chocolate. Truly one of a kind!

2013 Governor's Cup on display in the Tasting Room

Enjoying Wine in the exquisite Tasting Room

What I found most interesting was the fact that none of their wines had vintages. This was because the 2011 and 2012 growing seasons were so erratic; they had to blend grape juices to make drinkable wines. However, their 2013 growing season was phenomenal and they hope to produce some delectable 2013 vintage wines. They have won the Best Winery of Bucks County by the Courier Times in 2011, 2012, and 2013.

My winey friends!

This was my favorite Pennsylvania winery I have yet visited. While some wine exhibited some strange characteristics, overall their quality was not something to ignore. The staff was quite knowledgeable and very helpful to show us around as much of the winery as they could during a weekday. I bought a bottle of the Cabernet Franc and hope to come back and sample some of their 2013 vintages!