By: Shane Bagot, Follow South Jersey Intern
Located in Landisville, New Jersey, Bellview Winery invites family and friends back to their annual Seafood Festival. The two-day festival is on August 8th and 9th from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m.
The Bellview Winery is an estate winery on the Bellview farm that has stood for over 100 years. The winery itself just celebrated its 25th anniversary. They grow, bottle, and produce everything on location.
It was started by Angelo and Maria Quarella, originally from Italy, who purchased the farm in 1914. They grew anything from strawberries and watermelons to peppers and lettuce. Throughout the years, the property grew as their family did. It went from the 20 acres they first bought to the present 150 acres.
It was Jim Quarella, Son of Joe and Lettiza Quaraella, who was looking for more. Tired of the vegetable market, he went towards his dream of opening a winery. This began in 1999 with the planting of grapevines and the building of a tasting room and winery. From then on, it would become a staple in Landisville.
Bellview Winery has a lot of other events like Spring Fling and Fall Fest to look forward to, but the largest is the Seafood Festival. Matthew Lapsley, event and account manager, is in charge of planning all festivals. This includes putting together the music, food trucks, and craft vendors. Lapsley is also in charge of weddings, baby showers, and birthdays.
Lapsley has seen the festival evolve and change since starting back in 2017. There used to be a tasting tent. As COVID hit, they had to transition out of that. Even before that, it was a combination of a festival and a car show. They now offer sangrias, glasses, and bottles of wine. The festival has grown larger each year, hitting an average of 1,200 to 1,300 people.
This year, they are having live music by “To the Max”, a dance band. With 15 different food trucks, mainly seafood but also including desserts and non-seafood options for those who can not partake. They also provide a variety of craft vendors and a mobile cigar lounge.
The seafood with the wine makes for a terrific mixture.
“Seafood wine is a very nice pairing, especially in the summertime, because in the summer, more people drink whites and rosés. So a seafood dish, especially anything with crabs or shrimp, always goes really nice with a nice dry white, like a Sharnene or our Grüner, even our Piesta Sangria,” said Lapsley.
Lapsley started planning this year’s festival right after last year’s. It starts by booking the band right away. Followed by booking the food trucks and craft vendors. They try to add some variety and build up a list as they get lots of interest. It is a full year process to plan and set it all up.
They have to constantly watch out for weather concerns, get the lawn in top condition, and make the winery ready. There is typically something that puts a wrench in the plans.
Their main concern is creating a healthy and joyful atmosphere.
“We just want a day for everyone to come out and relax and hang out. We have people who come with large groups, or just a couple that came out, and we just want to make a day where they can just enjoy themselves. Take a moment to relax in the middle of summer, and kind of just enjoy themselves and have a glass of wine. Not have to worry about their day,” said Lapsely.
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