he phrase “the new normal” has been thrown around since the COVID-19 pandemic began, and as America struggles to define—and design—what that is exactly, colleges are paving the way for what it might look like.

After the chaos and uncertainty of 2020, colleges and universities throughout the Baltimore region began to find their groove as they moved into the 2021-2022 school year. Coronavirus safety committees had been erected, new mandates put in place, safety protocols implemented—everything from vaccine requirements to temperature checks to quarantine procedures and wastewater testing that can pinpoint a COVID infection before anyone is symptomatic.

By some counts, colleges may very well be the safest places to live and work.

“Just following simple rules of wearing face masks and social distancing, using wastewater management and testing when we need to, we have, in many ways, been able to return to normal life,” says Goucher College President Kent Devereaux. “Full athletics, student clubs, dining in the dining hall, use of the library—everything that you’d normally have, we’ve been able to return to.”

Despite the challenges and anxieties faced by students, staff, and faculty alike, some unexpected silver linings have emerged.

“It’s just incredible to watch how it’s grown into the vision that we, as a group of students, had.”

The widespread adoption of technology across college campuses has proven to provide more flexibility, efficiency, and innovation—and even accessibility, in some cases. Counseling sessions, for example, began to be conducted remotely during the pandemic and many students found that they preferred it to in-person sessions. Students who cannot, for whatever reason, make it to an in-person class can now study from anywhere.

Challenging times, combined with advances in technology and the general acceptance of it, have also brought more cooperation and collaboration among schools. It’s becoming more common, for example, for schools that offer complementary programs to partner with one another to offer students an educational pathway to continue studies in their chosen areas. That may mean a discounted tuition rate, a transfer of class credits, or an internship through a partner school.

Maybe most importantly though, schools, at their best, foster an environment where students are supported, expand who they are, and connect with like-minded people. At a time when gathering together is not always safe, being in a community has become even more precious, and students have found new ways to connect.

OCA Mocha, a coffeehouse in Arbutus founded by University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC) students, is one example of how effective a gathering place can be at a time when people are craving human connection. What started as a class assignment—to design a community center of some sort—has become a gathering place not just for UMBC students and alumni, but the Arbutus community at large.

“We’ve heard a lot of stories from people who are extremely grateful to have this space,” says Michael Berardi, UMBC class of 2019 and co-founder and general manager of OCA Mocha, which stands for Opportunities for Community Alliances. The coffee shop includes a stage, a community room, and an art gallery, employs UMBC students and alumni, and provides internship opportunities for current UMBC students.

“We have local groups and organizations that meet regularly in our community space and are grateful to not have to meet in someone’s living room or church basement,” says Berardi. “We see a lot of connections being made. It’s just incredible to watch how it’s grown into the vision that we, as a group of students, had.”

We checked in with colleges and universities throughout the region to find out what’s new and what campus life and classes look like, two years into the pandemic.

COPPIN STATE UNIVERSITY
A historically Black institution founded in 1900, Coppin State University is situated in the heart of Baltimore City in the Mondawmin neighborhood. Part of the University System of Maryland in Baltimore, the school offers 32 undergraduate and 11 graduate degrees, along with nine certificate programs and one doctorate degree. It’s been rated No. 4 Best HBCU in the Nation (College Consensus), the Top 5 Best Value Online Program (Online School Center), and No. 17 Best Value in the Nation (College Consensus).

In the summer of 2021, CSU announced its Student Debt Relief Initiative, which clears roughly $1 million in student balances and provided a $1,200 credit to every student enrolled in the fall 2021 semester. CSU also created the Freddie Gray Student Success Scholarship, which is available to graduates of Carver Vocational-Technical High School, where Gray was a student.

Coppin also takes esports (competitive video gaming) seriously. In the fall of 2021, Coppin became the first HBCU to open a building on campus exclusively devoted to esports. The Premier Esports Lab opened in September with a guest appearance from Grammy-nominated artist Cordae.

• SIZE OF STUDENT BODY: 2,383 undergraduates, 341 graduates
• STUDENT TO FACULTY RATIO: 13:1
• ANNUAL TUITION: $6,809 in-state, $13,334 out-of-state
• ACCEPTANCE RATE: 40%
• POPULAR AREAS OF STUDY: Nursing, Business, Biology, Education, and Criminal Justice, Rehabilitation Counseling

DICKINSON COLLEGE
Founded in 1783, Dickinson College is a liberal arts college in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, with a suburban campus that spans 144 acres. The school offers 41 undergraduate degrees within 17 fields of study.

It’s been rated as one of the best schools in the country for its sustainability efforts, which include an 80-acre, USDA-certified organic farm. Princeton Review rated it No. 2 in the Top 50 Green Colleges, and it was rated No. 2 in Overall Top Performers among baccalaureate institutions in the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education’s “Sustainable Campus Index” in 2019 and 2020.

• SIZE OF STUDENT BODY: 2,345
• STUDENT TO FACULTY RATIO: 9:1
• ANNUAL TUITION: $58,708
• ACCEPTANCE RATE: 52%
• POPULAR AREAS OF STUDY: International Business, Economics, Political Science & Government, International Relations & National Security, General Psychology

GETTYSBURG COLLEGE
Gettysburg College, a private, liberal arts school, sits on 225 acres adjacent to the historical Gettysburg Battlefield in Pennsylvania. Many of the buildings on campus are historically significant, so it’s no wonder that it draws students interested in studying history.

The school offers 65 academic programs, more than 120 campus clubs and organizations, and 800 events on campus each year, plus more than 100 study-abroad opportunities open to students.

Its Majestic Theater serves as a venue for the greater Gettysburg community, hosting national acts as well as performances by the school’s Sunderman Conservatory of Music students.

It’s ranked No. 12 for “students who study the most” by the Princeton Review, which also ranked Gettysburg College’s dining hall No. 9 in the country for best campus food.

• SIZE OF STUDENT BODY: 2,600
• STUDENT TO FACULTY RATIO: 10:1
• ANNUAL TUITION: $59,960
• ACCEPTANCE RATE: 56%
• POPULAR AREAS OF STUDY: Political Science, Economics, Health Sciences, Organization and Management Studies, History, Psychology

GOUCHER COLLEGE
A private, liberal arts college in Towson, Goucher College prides itself on its close-knit community.

Goucher was extremely proactive when it came to COVID-19 precautions, being the first in the state to implement wastewater testing, which is able to isolate COVID infections by dorm.

Also of note: The college recently opened two new residence halls as part of the school’s First-Year Village. One hundred percent of Goucher students study abroad, and the school is committed to sustainability.

Most recently, Goucher has begun exciting partnerships with other schools, such as Johns Hopkins University, Loyola University, and more to come, to provide a pathway for students to continue their education beyond Goucher. For instance, their 4+1 MBA Program allows students to earn an advanced business degree through Loyola via a “Fast Track” admission process, and at a 15% discount on tuition.

SIZE OF STUDENT BODY: 1,100
STUDENT TO FACULTY RATIO: 9:1
ANNUAL TUITION: $48,000
ACCEPTANCE RATE: 79%
POPULAR AREAS OF STUDY: Psychology, International Relations, Economics, Political Science, Business Administration

JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY
Johns Hopkins University (JHU) offers nine academic divisions and hundreds of courses of study, with campuses spread throughout Baltimore, including the Peabody Institute, a music and dance conservatory in Mount Vernon. Its main Homewood campus is located on North Charles Street.

The prestigious, world-renowned university has a strong reputation for its public health and medical studies and has been compared to Ivy League schools.

One of its points of pride is its financial aid program, which covers 100% of calculated need for every admitted student, without loans. This means JHU works with families to calculate what they can afford to contribute toward the total cost of attendance—including meals, books, travel, and other expenses—and JHU covers the rest with grants that don’t need to be repaid.

This school year, JHU added two new minors: Latin American Studies and Writing Seminars.

It also announced new efforts this year to move toward a broader, more flexible undergraduate educational experience that will include a required first-year seminar and the streamlining of major requirements to allow for greater intellectual exploration.

• SIZE OF STUDENT BODY: 6,333 undergraduates, 22,559 graduates
• STUDENT TO FACULTY RATIO: 6:1
• ANNUAL TUITION: $56,313 for Peabody Institute, $58,720 for the School of Engineering and the School of Arts and Sciences
• ACCEPTANCE RATE: 9%
• POPULAR AREAS OF STUDY: Computer Science, Molecular and Cellular Biology, Neuroscience, Economics, Public Health Studies, International Studies

LOYOLA UNIVERSITY
This private, Jesuit institution offers undergraduate and graduate programs on a beautiful urban campus in northern Baltimore City. Education at Loyola is based in the Jesuit tradition of scholarship cura personalis, or care for the whole person. Loyola is known for its academic rigor while helping students lead purposeful lives. Seventy percent of students study abroad. It currently ranks fourth in best universities in the North region according to U.S. News & World Report.

• SIZE OF STUDENT BODY: 3,787 undergraduates, 1,353 graduates
• STUDENT TO FACULTY RATIO: 12:1
• ANNUAL TUITION: $53,430
• ACCEPTANCE RATE: 80%
• POPULAR AREAS OF STUDY: Business, Management, Marketing, Journalism, Social Sciences, Biological and Biomedical Sciences, Psychology, English Language and Literature, Engineering and Education.

McDANIEL COLLEGE
McDaniel College sits in a bucolic setting near Westminster in Carroll County. The private, four-year liberal arts college offers more than 70 undergraduate programs of study and more than 20 graduate programs. McDaniel’s most recent addition to its curriculum is a National Security Fellows Program that provides students with knowledge, skills, and experience in national security as well as the ability to specialize in an area of interest, such as interstate conflict, intrastate political violence, cybersecurity, ethics, and human rights.

Also new this year, McDaniel appointed an inaugural associate provost for equity and belonging who provides vision and leadership to the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion and works in collaboration with the provost to co-lead the college’s diversity, equity, and inclusion administrative committee, and guides the Bias Education Response Support Team.

The school also launched a new STEM Center to serve as a physical hub to support students studying the sciences. It hosts workshops and other events while also supplying online and hybrid support.

• SIZE OF STUDENT BODY: 1,757 undergraduates, 1,324 graduates
• STUDENT TO FACULTY RATIO: 13:1
• ANNUAL TUITION: $46,336
• ACCEPTANCE RATE: 81%
• POPULAR AREAS OF STUDY: Kinesiology, Business Administration, Psychology, Biology, Political Science, International Studies

MORGAN STATE UNIVERSITY
The largest of Maryland’s HBCU’s (Historically Black Colleges and Universities), Morgan is a public institution founded in 1867. It is situated in northeast Baltimore. As a Carnegie-classified high research (R2) institution, Morgan provides instruction to a multiethnic, multiracial, multinational student body and offers more than 140 academic programs at undergraduate and graduate levels. As Maryland’s Preeminent Public Urban Research University, Morgan fulfills its mission to address the needs and challenges of the modern urban environment through intense community level study and pioneering solutions.

• SIZE OF STUDENT BODY: 6,270 undergraduates, 1,364 graduates
• STUDENT TO FACULTY RATIO: 15:1
• ANNUAL TUITION: $8,008 for in-state and $18,480 for out-of-state
• ACCEPTANCE RATE: 73%
• POPULAR AREAS OF STUDY: Civil Engineering, Communications Engineering, Business Administration and Management, Social Work, Biology/Biological Sciences, Architecture, Finance, Psychology, Sociology

NOTRE DAME OF MARYLAND UNIVERSITY
A private, Catholic liberal arts university in northern Baltimore, Notre Dame of Maryland University offers programs from undergraduate through PhD, as well as Maryland’s only women’s college. It recently launched the first master’s of art degree in Art Therapy program in the state.
The beautiful, wooded campus is just steps from the bustling downtown Baltimore culture. With values rooted in Catholicism, the school focuses on service to others and social responsibility.

• SIZE OF STUDENT BODY: 783
• STUDENT TO FACULTY RATIO: 7:1
• ANNUAL TUITION: $39,675
• ACCEPTANCE RATE: 88%
• POPULAR AREAS OF STUDY: Nursing, Education, Biology, Art Therapy, Pharmacy

TOWSON UNIVERSITY
One of the largest public universities in the state, Towson University offers more than 60 undergraduate majors and continues to draw students from other states, though it remains part of the University System of Maryland.

Its campus continues to expand, with a huge new dining hall, a 23,000-foot recreation and fitness facility with an indoor swimming pool, and its 5,200-seat arena for sporting events and concerts. In 2021, it opened its new Science Complex, the largest academic building on campus at 320,000 square feet.

In September, Towson opened its StarTUp at the Armory, a space for startups and new businesses to engage with the broader community and larger businesses. It serves as a home to Towson’s entrepreneurship programs, as well as student competitions and events.

While Towson remains the largest supplier of medical professionals and educators in the state, the university has also built a strong reputation for its College of Fine Arts and Communication, as well as its Asian Arts & Culture Center, both of which bring students into the wider community and the Baltimore community to Towson for enriching performing arts, music, and visual art programs.

• SIZE OF STUDENT BODY: 17,907 undergraduates, 2,949 graduates
• STUDENT TO FACULTY RATIO: 16:1
• ANNUAL TUITION: $7,100 in-state, $22,152 out-of-state
• POPULAR AREAS OF STUDY: Business Administration, Education, Nursing, Exercise Science, Psychology, Sociology and Anthropology, Biology, Computer Science, Information Technology

UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND, BALTIMORE
University of Maryland, Baltimore is Maryland’s only public health, law, and human services university. Located in downtown Baltimore, it offers 86 degree and certificate programs through its six nationally ranked professional schools—dentistry, law, medicine, nursing, pharmacy, and social work—and an interdisciplinary graduate school.

The school’s 14-acre BioPark is Baltimore’s biggest biotechnology cluster, employing 1,000 people, and remains on the cutting edge of new drugs, treatments, and medical devices.

• SIZE OF STUDENT BODY: 7,244
• ANNUAL TUITION: Varies by school
• POPULAR AREAS OF STUDY: Medicine, Law, Dentistry, Pharmacy, Nursing, Social Work

UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND, BALTIMORE COUNTY
University of Maryland, Baltimore County educates a campus of more than 10,000 students in programs spanning the arts, engineering, information technology, humanities, sciences, preprofessional studies, and social sciences. Located on the edge of Baltimore County, it allows easy access into the city and all the conveniences of suburban life and housing. It also offers plenty of opportunities for study abroad.

In the fall of 2021, UMBC opened the Center for Well-Being, a new two-story complex that houses Retriever Integrated Health, Student Conduct and Community Standards, and i3b’s Gathering Space for Spiritual Well-Being. UMBC’s already significant NASA partnerships have continued to grow. In October, NASA announced a major award of $72 million over three years for the new Goddard Earth Sciences Technology and Research II center. UMBC is leading the national consortium and will receive over $38 million. The GESTAR II consortium will support over 120 researchers, creating extensive opportunities for breakthroughs in Earth and atmospheric science research, and providing major opportunities for students to conduct research and be mentored by NASA scientists and engineers.

• SIZE OF STUDENT BODY: 13,638
• STUDENT TO FACULTY RATIO: 17:1
• ANNUAL TUITION: $12,280 in-state, $28,470 out-of-state
• ACCEPTANCE RATE: 81%
• POPULAR AREAS OF STUDY: Computer and Information Sciences and Support Services, Biological and Biomedical Sciences, Social Sciences, Psychology, Visual and Performing Arts

 

Cited tuition costs exclude room and board and books.

It was a cold and bleak evening in December 2009 when the Baker siblings gathered at the family farm in Westminster for a reckoning. The fall semester had ended, and Drew, Lisa, and Ashli were home for the holidays from their respective colleges. The Great Recession and the accompanying slump in housing starts had eviscerated their father’s carpentry company, and they’d been informed that their 17-acre Carroll County family farm, which they had never farmed but had rented out to local farmers, was going to have to be sold.

“My sisters and I were all home for Christmas break,” recounts Drew, then a senior at Towson University. “This was the place we grew up. It’s the only home we knew.” The siblings were crestfallen. “The whole family was trying to figure out what to do when our mom, Virginia, said, ‘Wouldn’t it be nice to plant grapes?’ She read an article about the rising popularity of wine grown in unlikely places around the country,” says Drew. “That’s where the idea for all of this began.”

And so, what started as a farm rescue fantasy is now Old Westminster Winery, a welcoming sprawl of neatly kept vineyards that surround the original farmhouse, flanked by their spacious Western ranch-style tasting room and events space, built by none other than Jay Baker, carpenter and proud Dad. It is here that visitors may sample Old Westminster’s offerings, from their fanciest reds to their fun, low-alcohol, spritzy canned beverages.

The fantasy became a reality in no time at all. Virginia and Jay fronted all their savings to seed the business as their children began to set the plan in motion. The siblings weren’t even finished with school; only Drew was of legal drinking age at the time and would spend the year applying for permits while studying for final exams. The following year, they planted their first vines, and, on June 8, 2013, they opened for business. They have never looked back.

In the interim, they have become not just local winemakers but Maryland wine evangelists. Today, Old Westminster Winery produces roughly 120,000 bottles a year from grapes grown on the farm or at neighboring vineyards in an effort to showcase all of the potential of the region’s winegrowing. They were also the first Maryland winery to can some of their wines. The tasting room and events space, completed in 2015, hosts weekend events, live music, and wine dinners. They also support a wine club that boasts 2,000 members.

All their efforts haven’t gone unnoticed. At the 2014 Maryland Governor’s Cup Competition, Old Westminster’s Albariño 2013 was awarded best white wine and brought home a gold medal. At the 2015 Maryland Winemaster’s Choice Competition, Old Westminster’s Greenstone 2014 was awarded best white blend wine and a gold medal. In 2017 alone, they won a gold medal at the Governor’s Cup and Best in Class, two double-golds, and four golds at the Comptroller’s Cup. Even without the accolades, a visit to Old Westminster is an experience on par with any of America’s wine country destinations.

Maryland’s winescape has always been an eclectic mix of businesses, ranging from purveyors of sweet fruit wines to focused aficionados striving to put Maryland on the national stage of serious wine regions. Old Westminster was conceived from the beginning as the latter, looking to stalwart producers such as Rob Deford at Boordy and Sarah O’Herron and Ed Boyce of Black Ankle Vineyards for inspiration. Lisa, now 32, a chemist who was sizing up a corporate career before that fateful December, is now Old Westminster’s winemaker.

“We began with a vineyard consultant and a winemaking consultant,” she says. “We had a broad idea of what our soil composition was, what grapes might work, and a sort of orthodox conception of the winemaking.”

For Lisa, that initially meant using techniques to emulate a Californian style. But the sibs were quick to learn that chasing a West Coast ideal was a fool’s errand. Instead, they decided to take advantage of Maryland’s unique terroir (the French concept of defining a place based on its soil composition, weather, and geography), and pursue natural winemaking, though that term is difficult to define and is still the subject of heated debate globally.

Essentially, the family is building a model of Maryland winemaking that leans into our region’s limitations rather than trying to patch them up. “We go with what nature gives us, rather than fight for a predetermined style of wine,” Lisa (now Hinton) points out.

 

The family is building a model of Maryland winemaking that leans into our region’s limitations rather than trying to patch them up.

 

It was in the Loire Valley that Drew, Old Westminster’s wine grower and farmer-in-chief, and his wife, Casey, discovered wines that were fermented not with purchased yeast, but with the local spores that rode into the winery on the grapes. “Our principles and philosophy evolved rapidly,” says Drew, 33, especially after his honeymoon trip to France in 2014.

Along the way, they also fell in love with a style of wine known in France as pétillant naturel. These are wines that undergo fermentation in the bottle itself, capturing the resulting carbonation in a lower-alcohol, super-fresh style of sparkling wine. Upon their return to Maryland, Drew and Casey shared their discoveries and stories with Lisa and Ashli.

“That was a pivotal year for me,” recalls Lisa as she gazes out over the vines. “The 2015 vintage was a learning year. It was empowering and liberating to let go of orthodoxy and begin making the wines our vines wanted to make.”

In many winemaking regions around the world, it is considered safer to use purchased yeasts that have been bred specifically for winemaking purposes. Fermenting with yeasts that naturally hang out in the air and on the grapes is a risky endeavor. Will your yeasts impart desirable flavors? Will they be robust enough to complete fermentation as alcohol rises? This is one of the biggest challenges to anyone who wants to make wine naturally, without intervention.

“No doubt it’s a challenge,” admits Lisa. “But coming to this from a chemist’s perspective, it’s a matter of understanding the science. We are okay if the wines are a little wild.” Drew agrees. “Today, what our wines lack in refinement they make up for in intrigue.”

“We make Maryland wine,” adds Ashli (now Johnson), 30.

Local retailers are more than happy to hawk the wine. “I like that they’re adventurous,” says Lauren Loeffler, wine manager and buyer at The Wine Source. “They’re willing to try out various winemaking techniques, which I think is a smart move for a Maryland producer to stand out. They definitely have a loyal following and customers seek out their wines to try and often come back for repeat purchases—I think they have a positive presence in the market and are adept at reaching their audience.”

Clare Yost, beverage director and general manager at True Chesapeake Oyster Co., agrees. “I find the wines compelling because they are giving Maryland Wines a sense of place. They have a distinctive style that is relatable. They’re bright, balanced, but with a hint of funk…just like the people of Maryland!” Ashli Johnson sums it up this way: “This is what Maryland tastes like if you aren’t trying to influence the wine.” The youngest of the three, Ashli is ostensibly in charge of business and marketing, but her brother and sister assert she is also the unsung hero of Old Westminster. “She holds this all together,” says Lisa. Gesturing to the tasting room, the patio, and the outdoor entertaining space, she adds, “And all this.”

“This” is a concerted effort to create a space as warm and welcoming as the Baker family itself. In 2015, the family ramped up the hospitality aspect of the winery, with a tasting room built by Jay Baker, and plenty of space for outdoor revelry. Visitors can visit the tasting area, hang out on the patio, or help themselves to picnic tables on the grounds.

There is also a push to spotlight the bounty of Maryland farms with a burgeoning food program. “We want to take a holistic approach to food and wine from Maryland farms like us,” explains Ashli. “We want to showcase Maryland on top of a pizza!” Consider this offering, called “The Crew.” It features housemade honey mustard, Kitchen Girl Farm kale, salami made from pigs raised at Burnt Hill Farm, and mozzarella from Caputo Brothers Creamery in Spring Grove.

Artisan farmhouse pizza may be where it starts, but what’s happening at Old Westminster now is just the beginning of a much grander plan that these three visionaries conceive for the farm. “We now know what European wine grapes do best here. Albariño is our white wine rock star,” says Lisa, “and Old Westminster in more suited to white wine.” “But what we grow here now are all European wine grapes, the same ones used around the world,” adds Ashli. Drew agrees, adding, “Burnt Hill is where our future will truly be written.”

 

THE SIBLINGS WERE QUICK TO LEARN THAT CHASING A WEST COAST IDEAL WAS A FOOL’S ERRAND.

 

Located 25 miles south of the main farm, Burnt Hill was acquired in December 2016. It represents the culmination of all these emergent philosophies—dedication to the land, to a sense of place that speaks through its produce, produce that is coaxed from nature without any reliance on outside help or influence. Burnt Hill is a parcel of land that the family has exhaustively researched—soil types, drainage, orientation to the sun, elevation, average temperatures, rainfall, and a dizzying array of other factors.

“It’s an ideal site,” says Drew. “It is our opportunity to take 10 years of learning to a blank canvas.”

It is here that an even grander winemaking experiment is underway—to learn which of our region’s native grapes, grape varieties that were here long before European settlers, are best for making wine as local and ancestral as anyone has ever thought possible. Alongside new experiments with grape varieties from Europe is a block of vines of dozens of native American grape varieties.

“We’ve got some experimental genetic diversity in there,” Drew says with a chuckle. “There’s this guy who has been carefully collecting and nurturing all these native grape vines,” adds Lisa. “It’s nuts. We have acquired over 20 different plantings from him, and they are all planted at Burnt Hill. I am so excited for 2021. After all the craziness of this past year, this is going to be Burnt Hill’s first harvest, and there is going to be a lot of fruit coming in!”

Fruit won’t be the only thing coming in, though, as Ashli is quick to point out. “There is a dual aspect to what we are doing there with agriculture. Yeah, there are the grapes, but Drew is living [at Burnt Hill] now and raising animals, and there’s an apiary . . . the holistic bond between our wine and our food here is going to be vastly different.”

One can’t help but be taken in by Ashli’s energetic enthusiasm for everything that’s happening at Old Westminster. She sees how every facet of the family business flows into the others and is often the one to shepherd them all along. Drew exudes the same passion and positive energy, and he is clearly happiest when he’s connected to the land.

On one recent spring day, he was super excited about a new tractor (“I mean, it’s just like the old one, but this one won’t break!”), and on another day he had to bow out of an interview due to a lost pig at Burnt Hill. (“It sounds kind of funny, but actually I’m really stressed out about it,” he said. “And I need to stay here and find it.”)

It doesn’t take long to understand why Lisa is the scientist of the group. Her relaxed bearing belies an intense focus, a constant striving to improve, and a sense of practicality born out of a mission to make truly good wine in a region bereft of a reputation for doing so. Collectively, they represent a superhero team of hospitality, passion, and inquiry that is the essence of Old Westminster’s success.

“In retrospect, I am amazed that it didn’t go as poorly as it could have,” says Drew. “We really just want to make the best wines possible while sticking to our principles and philosophy about how we nurture our land and nurture our fruit.”

Nearly 11 years into the project, all three siblings are married with families of their own. In the context of establishing a vineyard and a winery, 11 years is nothing—the greatest sites in Europe have been under vine in one form or another for millennia. Given the extraordinary legacy Old Westminster has already established, it is breathtaking to imagine the future as a second generation grows into the business. How amazing will it be? We can’t wait to see—and taste.