The Other 46

What do you get when you put forty plus wines together on a one page tasting sheet?  Overwhelmed!  My third stop along the Monticello Wine Trail was Horton Vineyards, located in Orange County, Virginia.  Visitors are greeted by a castle-like winery and rows of manicured vines.  Owner and winemaker Dennis Horton, dubbed the “Lone Rhone [...]

Normally, I would never recommend visiting more than 3 wineries in a day, but when you live 3 states away, sometimes you make an exception.  Case in point, my recent visit to Charlottesville and the Monticello Wine Trail.  All in all, I visited 6 wineries out of the 22 on the trail, and enjoyed every [...]

Last week I received a Kansas wine via FedEx and upon opening, my first thought was “Toto, I’ve got a feeling we’re not in Kansas anymore”.  The dreaded words for any locavore, “American Dry Red Wine” were displayed on the front label.  In most cases where wines carry an appellation of “American”, the grapes were [...]

Not often do you see the new kid on the block make the splash Black Ankle Vineyards has in its inaugural year.  Winning Maryland’s top wine award two years in a row, the coveted Governor’s Cup for their Crumbling Rock Bordeaux blend, Black Ankle has won “best in show” in three of the last four [...]

In continuation of Regional Wine Week, I pickup where I left off with a review of the Elk Run 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon.  Produced from grapes from their Cold Friday Vineyard, the Cabernet was recently awarded a Best in Class in the 2009 Maryland Governor’s Cup competition for top red.  The wine also took home gold [...]

After several visits to Virginia’s wine country, I decided it was finally time to cross the state line to experience Maryland and the growing wine industry for myself.  I’ve repeatedly had my sights set on a visit, but for whatever reasons, always ran out of time.  Thankfully, I followed through and jumped on the Frederick [...]

Growing at a staggering 25 percent a year, Maryland’s wine industry is no longer the best kept secret on the East Coast.  With 38 licensed wineries on the map, encompassing 5 trails, 4 distinct growing regions, and 3 AVAs, Maryland offers visitors a wine for every palate and makes for the perfect weekend getaway. I [...]