Where's the Dornfelder??

Adding Otium Cellars to my list of wineries to visit (http://www.otiumcellars.com/). It appears this vineyard makes a Dornfelder wine.. one that I've had great difficulty finding since coming back to CONUS. On the rare occasion that I do find a Dornfelder in the wine store.. I've been dissapointed with the quality. Is it me or is Germany not exporting any of it's decent Dorn? The best I had was one I picked up at a Weingut just outside of Stuttgart - unfiltered, wish I could remember the name of it. But everything I've had back here in the states just can't compare. I'm putting high hopes on Otium Cellars and will definitely post my thoughts once I visit.

If anyone runs into another vineyard producing Dornfelder.. drop me a note!

A couple stops on the Piedmont Wine trail

Still updating my map on google mapsengine.. check it out here: https://mapsengine.google.com/map/embed?mid=zcIao4X18QA0.kvvJnLWxvlfc

Today we hit a couple more vineyards along Maryland's Piedmont Wine Trail.. and I'm still kicking myself for forgetting to take pics of the vineyards and tasting rooms.

The first one was Legends Vineyard & Winery and I think it's become our new favorites.. for the wines, not the grounds. By far the most important thing is that you like the wine.. the grounds just add to the appeal, especially if there is a nice area to retreat and share a bottle of your favorite over a packed picnic lunch. Legends Vineyard is unassuming.. you wont find a luxurious estate, stone houses or professionally maintained gardens and grounds. What you will find are some pretty spectacular wines that have won many medals. And as their website claims, you will find wines for just about any taste. I prefer the bold reds, my wife has lately been leaning towards the semi-sweet wines.. the prices were reasonable and we liked so many of the wines that we left with a full mixed case. Carrie, the owner was very personable and gracious. She gave us some tips on home made sangria and when we told her about how we like to marinate local fruits in ceramic casks of rum she invited us to come back and pick raspberries from her fields once they are ripe. On marylandwine.com I rated Legends 4 out of 5 wine glasses. They would do well to build onto the vineyard, perhaps set up a picnic area where visitors can sit out and look at the vineyards while enjoying their favorite bottle.

From there we drove up to Mount Felix Estate Vineyard & Winery, in which had a more historical old time estate look and feel with a gorgeous view out back overlooking the vinyards and the Chesapeake Bay off in the distance. I thought the wines were a bit overpriced, but after we finished our wine tasting, we snatched up a bottle of chilled Riesling and made a picnic on their back patio with the owner's dog Zoey (spelling?). 

Zoey relaxing as we unpacked a lunch

A peaceful serene view while enjoying our chilled Riesling

Maryland Wine

Maryland Wine: So well over 10 years ago.. I tried a few MD wines.. red wines... I think one was from Boordy Vineyards. I was not overly impressed. They were ok. Nothing great, and the wines in my opinion were overpriced.  MAN Times have changed! The quality is so much better now, and there seems to be an explosion in the number of vineyards popping up. Check out marylandwine.com.. we don't have anywhere near as many vineyards as Virginia (They reportedly have over 200).. but there are probably over 50 now.. and the quality of some of the wines in the region (MD/VA/PA) are really starting to shine.

The vineyard at Woodhall Wine Cellars

A short drive out to the vineyards is a nice escape, so make a day-trip of it and support your local MD vineyards and wineries. I have my MD Wine Passport now.. have 6 vineyards checked off and can't wait to visit more!