Circling the wagons for Disabled American Veterans
Last weekend’s food truck competition held by new-kid-on-the-block Harvest Ridge Winery rolled out great food for a great cause. Located in Marydel, Del., the winery grounds were dominated by twice as many trucks as last year, including soon-to-open-in-Dewey Vanderwende Farm Creamery.
This year’s event was extended to two days. Trucks on hand included Dover’s Meat Mechanics (last year’s grand prize winner); Milford’s Mr. BBQ (aka Chris Young); The Grill Cheese truck from Philly; Lewes’ own Bethany Blues; Dover’s I Don’t Give a Fork (home of the original Mac & Cheesesteak); the based-out-of-Lewes but serving all of Delaware Backyard Louie’s BBQ; Wildwich Gourmet Sandwiches from Wilmington; The Plum Pit from Newark, dishin’ up Asian, jerk and Mexican delights; KAMI (Korean-American Never Imagined); Jerk King (whose jerk chicken asks the eternal question, “What-Jah maican?”); The Wandering Chef’s Catering Cart based in Newark; Just Jackie’s Gourmet Comfort Food; and Philadelphia’s Fresh Truck Bistro with those chicken confit springrolls.
Quite a lineup (not to mention the world’s longest run-on sentence), and yes, it (the event, not the sentence) was all for a good cause: The local chapter of the Disabled American Veterans, serving 1.2 million U.S. military veterans who suffered disability while serving in time of war or armed conflict. The organization and its volunteers transport sick and disabled veterans to and from VA medical facilities for treatment, and offer education and counseling. The DAV receives no federal funding and relies solely on dues and contributions.
This year, Harvest Ridge boss and certified oenophile Chuck Nunan took it upon himself to raise enough money through the sale of commemorative glasses (brimming with wine, of course) to purchase the chapter a new vehicle. On Friday night, Chuck told me that they were already well over halfway to their goal - and still had the entire day Saturday ahead of them.
Chuck began making wine in his basement in 1995. After visiting a South Carolina vineyard in 2010, he and his wife Chris converted their Marydel farmland into Harvest Ridge Winery. Chuck, his family and their employees planted the first vines - Chardonnay, Viognier, Malbec, and Merlot - in 2011. Delaware’s fourth winery officially opened to the public Nov. 1, 2013.
Like the town(s) of Marydel, the property spans the border of two states - Delaware and Maryland - and is smack dab on the Mason-Dixon Line. In fact, Chuck tells me that one of the most unique features of the property is one of the Mason-Dixon’s original witness stones & crown markers - No. 47. That historic number is integrated into the winery’s logo.
Chuck is proud of the wines at Harvest Ridge, and after tasting some of them, it’s no mystery why. He was kind enough to take me and Realtor Deb Griffin (Beach Paper’s new shopping columnist) through the production facility. The ensuing short course on grapes, aging, barrel science and fermentation was simply amazing, and the hands-on portion of our education (sipping the wines directly from the stainless steel tanks and oak barrels) was a delectable and dizzying experience - on many levels.
The winery’s social media and online promotion manager, Sofia Horvath, reports that the 2,500+ attendees voted Meat Mechanics No. 1, with Wandering Cart and Wildwich following close behind. And yes, Chuck’s goal of presenting the DAV with a brand-new car was achieved - and then some! Harvest Ridge Winery is about 20 minutes west of Dover. Schedule a tour and hope that owner Chuck Nunan is your guide. He’ll treat you as he treats his wines: Like family.
