Dan and Heather Brown own and run the Wagonhouse Winery, which is located in Swedesboro, New Jersey in South Harrison Township. After leasing land from the Brown’s family farm in Mickleton and opening their doors in 2005, they decided to move to a larger space in Swedesboro in 2011, where they reside today. The tasting room is a beautifully restored and furnished barn with the feeling of an earlier era (the kind of place the cast of Happy Days might have frequented when Fonzie, Richie and the gang outgrew the malt shop). The room is full of antiques (some of the items are for sale), a shuffleboard game, a small marble wine bar and a few bar stools. There are also several tables where you can sit and enjoy your wine and snacks which you can also purchase. Saturdays and Sundays they offer a number of salads and sandwiches from Marino’s in Mullica Hill.
Wagonhouse Winery produces wine with two labels: their dry wines and semi-sweet wines are produced with the Wagonhouse Winery label, while their sweet wines are produced with the Three Boys Brand label (named for Dan’s and Heather’s three sons). Their dry white wines include Sauvignon Blanc, Vidal Blanc, 1401 blanc, Chardonnay, and Pinot Gris (their biggest selling dry white). Wagonhouse reds include Barbera, Merlot (their biggest selling dry red), Sangiovese, Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon. Their semi-sweet wines are Blueberry Wine, Peach Wine and Strawberry Wine.
A sense of humor is invaluable when raising children. The names of the wines produced under the Three Boys Label suggest Dan and Heather have a healthy dose of humor. The Three Boys Brand whites include Ornery Apple; Autumn Goddess; Daisy Grace (citrus and vanilla); Kick in a Glass (tomatoes and hot red peppers); Shore Thing (mango and Jersey peaches) and Sundance (Peach Wine with a little honey). The Three Boys reds include Nutty Quaker (red with chocolate, coffee, and cocoanut); Fallen Quaker (red with “hints of chocolate, coffee and lavender”); Peck’s Bad Boy (apples and some cranberries); Make Me Blush (sweet blush wine “with a little cherry on top”) and Sweet Love (blueberries and pomegranates). In my opinion, these wines are their strong suit. Though not usually a sweet wine fan, my favorites here were Autumn Goddess (great with an apple cider doughnut from a local farm market) and their Shore Thing.
Wagonhouse’s tasting room is open Thursday from 12-5 PM; Friday and Saturday from 12-16 PM; and Sunday and Monday from 12-5 PM. They are closed on Tuesday and Wednesday. Tastings are $10 per person for the 20 or so wines available on the Wagonhouse tasting menu. Even with one ounce pours, that’s a lot of wine so drink responsibly and plan ahead about designated drivers (especially if you are going to have a glass there or plan on visiting other wineries that day). Prices for bottles of their wines are reasonable. Check their website for up-to-date information:
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Cheers!
