By AML Publisher
Photography courtesy of April Ziegler Photography

A cozy winery hidden on a hilltop in Bucks County has much to offer Main Liners looking for a pleasant daycation this summer.
Peace Valley Winery, Chalfont, PA

In 1967, Susan Gross was working as a chemist, rubbing elbows with horticulturists and thinking about her next career move. A country winery was not on her radar. But, before she knew it, Gross was a proud owner of a bare stretch of cornfield in quaint Chalfont, Pennsylvania. She had never been on a tractor in her life. As many first time entrepreneurs do, Gross went with a gut feeling-experimented with her new piece of property and planted three acres of wine grapes along with a large experimental plot of hybrids from France and Germany.

Seventeen years later, Peace Valley Winery opened (in 1984) with Robert Kolmus as a partner. Today, Peace Valley is a quaint, country winery in the heart of Bucks County farmland with over twenty acres dedicated to over two dozen varieties of grapes. “Our philosophy is one of a laidback approach. We are certainly not wine snobs out here at Peace Valley. We are a working farm and small town vineyard, and our loyal customers prefer us to the state store brands-because we have great wines and they can support a local business” Gross explained.
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By AML Publisher
Photos Courtesy of Kevin E. McPherson

Grand Opening: A Capacity Crowd Filled the Bakery Anxious to Test the Gluten-Free Treats.

Christine Ruggio had suffered for twenty-five years with debilitating stomach ailments, making hundreds of visits to her doctor complaining of severe pain and digestive issues. And, for twenty-five years, Ruggio was given the same diagnosis. “’You are hyper, you are in high school, so it’s stress-related. You are about to get married, you need to calm down, it is all about stress. You have IBS, you need to calm down and relax, look what you are doing to yourself! You have children now, you are getting too wound up,’” Ruggio explains. So, Ruggio’s doctor placed her on medication for IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome) and strictly advised her to take it easy—ensuring her the symptoms would eventually subside if she followed her prescriptions and cut back on her busy lifestyle.

But Ruggio felt that there was something more to her body’s rejection of some of the food she consumed – and finally she confronted her doctor again. “I said to him, ‘Let’s get real here. Aren’t we masking the problem and not trying to solve it? This is not going away and I’m getting worse,’” she said.

But the doctor visits continued and Ruggio’s health continued to worsen. Then, a few years ago she took a family trip to Italy, where her Italian cousin happened to be on a gluten-free diet. Everywhere they went the whole family dined on gluten-free meals, and educated Ruggio about the intolerance to wheat that had made her cousin very ill. This was the first time she had heard about a medical condition called Celiac Disease, an autoimmune intestinal disorder that affects people for life.

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Weekends are certainly the time we treasure with family and friends but finding the financial resources in this day and age to plan full blown getaways can be difficult. So, a daycation (a day trip that doesn’t exceed a full tank of gas and is a reasonable distance from your home) is a great, affordable, satisfying alternative and a travel concept steadily gaining in popularity. Since the Main Line and surrounding suburbs are so rich with activity, events and interesting people and places, I’m excited to begin what I believe will be a valuable resource for our readers, Main Line Daycations!

So, this is the first in AroundMainLine.com’s special travel series, and I hope you find it useful, interesting and educating. For those of you new to the Main Line area, welcome, and we hope that you will find some inspirational ideas here for exploring and experiencing this great area. Our travel section you should be of great help navigating around this area you now call home, welcome! And for ML vets such as myself, I hope to remind you of some great, affordable afternoon options that fill your weekends with fun and rich memories without breaking the bank—and I’m sure you’ll see some new ideas too!
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