You can't know where you are going if you don't know where you've been and that is exactly what Peg Raley shows in her history-of-wine walkthrough.

Stowed away behind some commercial centers outside of Lewes, Delaware is a most unexpected surprise-- a vineyard. Nassau Valley Vineyards is the first vineyard in Delaware due to the hard work of Peg and her father and remains the state's only award winning one.

Winding around back away from the main roads, the car is first greeted by perfectly aligned rows of saplings. Around the bend, the road opens up to the beautifully rustic edifices next to rows and rows of the vineyards' prize.

Admittedly, I am not much of a wine connoisseur, even though my previous moniker, "Wayward Winos," may say otherwise. With some minor experience in Napa Valley and a brief stint in Chile and Argentina, my wine knowledge was still mediocre at best. I like things because they taste good, that is all; complexities and pairings are over my head. What interests me is why they food is the way it is? Why and how does wine exist at all?

Most vineyards I've visited have been dedicated to showing off their skill, however Nassau Valley does an excellent job of showing off the historical value of wine – what were its purposes and its evolution.

The walk begins with a bit of history of the vineyard just outside the doors, then it begins to really get into the meat of how and why wine came about: the necessity of it because of poor water quality, an armies need during war time, the portability in transit to far off destinations to name a few.

As the museum-ette wraps around, it gets into the cork and bottle process and then trips taken to get to its locations today. The vineyard mascot, Cholly, ran around behind and between legs momentarily drawing attention, but eyes soon fixed back on the interesting walls and pieces behind glass.

By the end, no new knowledge of how to taste wine may have been honed, but a new appreciation of wine had been gained. Though what grape each glass was fermented from may not be obvious to me, it certainly tastes a bit more real and interesting now that I know where it came from.

Protips:

Try the peach ambrosia chardonnay... It's delicious!

How about bring a picnic? They have picnic tables outside with amazingly peaceful surroundings to enjoy.