The Maryland Winter Wine event was organized by Kevin Atticks of Maryland Wine. The event, considered by some to be the best wine event on the East Coast, started at 6pm with a special sparkling wine tasting. This part of the event took place in the train museum where one could talk with winery owners and taste some of the sparkling wines coming out in Maryland. In addition there was time to browse the numerous historic displays related to trains. The wineries offering sparkling wines included: Old Westminster Winery, Cygnus Wine Cellars, Crow Vineyard, Great Shoals Winery, Elk Run Vineyards and Knob Hall. While they were all tasty, my favorite was the Cygnus Wine Cellars’ Royele 2011 Blanc de Blanc. Prices for the sparkling wines ranged between $28 and $46. It was very enjoyable to taste sparkling wines and amble past displays of historic train memorabilia.

At 7pm the doors to the train museum’s roundhouse opened and attendees quickly entered the large rotunda. Train engines and cars surrounded the circumference of the room. Inside the circle of engines, almost 20 participating wineries were at tables pouring wines with catered foods including tender roast beef slices on a pretzel roll. Wines included whites, rosés, reds and dessert wines. The white wines were produced with Pinot Gris, Grüner Veltliner, Albariño, Vidal Blanc, Chardonnay, Viognier, Traminette, Gewürztraminer and Vignoles. Red wines included several varieties: Cabernet Franc, Barbera, Merlot and Malbec. Three dessert wines were available: Cygnus Wine Cellars’ Port of Manchester 2010, Knob Hall Winery’s Starboard 2014 and Thanksgiving Farm’s Dessert Wine 2013.

Live music at the event featured David Bach and his jazz band.

At the end of the evening, one well-known East Coast wine writer noted that the B & O Museum location and the event is one of the best East Coast wine events. If you missed the 2016 event, be sure to add next year’s Winter Wine event to your January calendar. My only hope for next year’s event is that many more of Maryland’s 60 plus wineries will participate. Watch the Maryland Wine website for the 2017 WinterWine Wine event date.

The Maryland Winter Wine event is a great way to learn about the Maryland wine industry and also spend a cold January evening with wine, food and live music.

Cheers
Kathy