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Ultra-Premium

Penns Woods Winery Produces World-Class Vintage

Article by Julie Brown Patton

Photography by Courtesy of Penns Woods Winery

Originally published in West Chester Lifestyle

As a family-operated and daughter/father business, Penns Woods Winery produces internationally recognized, award-winning wines from 100% Pennsylvania-grown grapes.

The winery's tasting room in Chadds Ford provides an all-around vineyard experience from its convenient location off of US Route 202. There, they host live music, food and wine pairings, classes and events each weekend. However, during composing this article during the COVID-19 shutdown, Penns Woods co-owner Carley Razzi Mack, says their Wine Club Members helped them keep operating by purchasing cheese and lunch trays for pickup, and by promoting the winery to their friends. 

Additionally, Penns Woods ultra-premium wines are found in restaurants throughout Philadelphia and surrounding suburbs. 

Carley says women have gotten more involved in winemaking in recent years. "Women have more in-depth palettes, so we can taste deeper," she adds. "And our customer base is 79-80% females, so we've devoted a lot of effort to creating various experiences and comfortable environments on our 30-acre property, regardless of whether someone wants an adult-only, family, picnic or pet-friendly spot."

Penns Woods Winery is the result of Gino Razzi's lifetime of experience in the world of wine. A respected importer and distributor of wine, Gino is an Italian immigrant from Abruzzo, in southern Italy. He settled in the Delaware County area in 1962, where he was fostered by the area's Italian-American community. Gino served four years in the US Marines, then attended college in California. After graduation, he returned to Pennsylvania to rejoin family and friends. With three decades of success as a wine importer, in 1995, Gino turned his experience toward the craft of winemaking. He finished his first wine in 1997. 

Symposium, a Montepulciano d'Abruzzo, was Gino's first commercially released wine, and was awarded 95 points by Wine Spectator Magazine. Gino's pursuit of perfection led him to his own back yard. In 2002, he began crafting wines from Pennsylvania–grown grapes. To his surprise, he found superb wines can be made in Pennsylvania.

After a 2-year search for an ideal vineyard site, Gino decided to purchase the Smithbridge Winery, in 2004, to take advantage of its 25-year-old vines.

In 2010, Gino's daughter, Carley, joined him to manage the family's tasting room and marketing aspects of the company. Also in 2010, Andrea Creato joined the Penns Woods Team. Together, the two work to provide wonderful experiences at the tasting room, hosting interactive wine tastings, unique wine and food pairings, and exclusive member-only events. 

In 2011, Davide Creato began working at Penns Woods, aiding in the advancement of the winery’s production and wine quality. In honor of the local contributions benefiting the winery, $1 from the proceeds of each bottle of Penns Woods wines is used to further wine and grape research in Pennsylvania.

Due to the intimate size of the Penns Woods facility, reservations are required on Saturdays and Sundays. Buses and limos are not permitted without approval from Penns Woods Winery.

THIS MONTH'S LIVE MUSIC DATES:

May 1:  Rich Cox from 6-8 p.m.

May 2:  Jason Ager from 2-5 p.m.

May 3:  Jeff Kessler from 1-4 p.m.

May 9:  Pete Marziano from 2-5 p.m.

May 10:  Amanda & Teddy from 1-4 p.m.

May 16:  Matt Spitko from 2-5 p.m.

May 17:  Bill Hake from 1-4 p.m.

May 23:  Joe Grasso from 2-5 p.m.

May 24:  Jason Farley from 1-4 p.m.

May 25:  Mark Teague for Memorial Day from 2-5 p.m.

May 29:  Jarett Muzi for Wine Club Happy Hour from 6-8 p.m.

May 30:  Adam McCue from 2-5 p.m.

May 31:  Greg Jones from 1-4 p.m.

Friday, May 1: Open later until 9 pm
Saturday, May 9: Closing early at 6 pm
Friday, May 15: Closing early to public at 5 p.m. for Wine Club event
Friday, May 29: Closing early to public at 6 p.m. for Wine Club event

Call 610.459.0808 to make reservations. 

PennsWoodsEvents.com