On Thursday evening January 26th, Maryland wineries showcased white and red wines as part of the Winter Wine event. This is one of the finest wine events on the East Coast. The setting, for the third year in a row, was the roundhouse at the B&O Railroad Museum in Baltimore, Maryland. The large roundhouse is surrounded by trains and passenger cars from different eras. These old machines give a sense of historic elegance to any event held in the large center of the room. Adding to the sophistication of the setting was the attire of the attendees. Gone were the tee shirts and shorts common to summer wine festivals. In its place was cocktail attire. Many men wore ties and women wore dresses and pant suits. This provided a stylish setting for showcasing Maryland wines.

Maryland Winter Wine 2017

Not only were the wines on center stage, also presented was a new logo for Maryland wine. The logo shows the outline of the state made from different sized grape berries. A sienna red and purple colored the berries. A single grape vine tendril and grape leaf was added to Western Maryland. The new logo signifies that the Maryland wine industry covers the entire state. Most Maryland residents are only thirty minutes away from a winery.

Danny and Darlene Ellis

We interviewed several people who attended the event. This was the third year at Maryland Winter Wine for Danny and Darlene Ellis who also enjoy the autumn Maryland Wine Festival at the Carroll County Farm Museum. They like the wine presented and the atmosphere of the museum. Danny is a history buff and relishes the historic trains surrounding the wine tastings. In contrast this was the first Winter Wine event attended by Kristen and Collin Hayward. They too were excited about the venue. Kristen likes to learn about wine and mentioned the willingness of the wineries to talk about the wines they were pouring.

Alexa Wolff and Harrison Scott traveled from Virginia to attend their first Winter Wine event. They used words like “fabulous” and “fantastic” to describe the event space and the wines. They were surprised with the quality of the wines and especially liked the wines from Boordy Vineyards. Also Boordy Vineyards fans were Tom and Sarah Haines. They also liked the wines from DeJon Vineyard. They noticed the variance in Maryland wines and pointed out some of their favorite reds.

Maryland Wine new logo

The main tasting took place in the roundhouse. Previous to that there was a sparkling wine reception in different museum rooms. During the sparkling wine reception we met Karen Marc and Liz Crammond. This was their first time at the Maryland Wine. They liked the diversity of people attending as well as the diversity of Maryland wines. They also commented about the beauty of the venue.

If you like getting dressed up and attending a classy wine tasting event, look for the 2018 Winter Wine event next January. It is a wonderful way to spend an evening chasing away the winter doldrums.

Cheers,
Terry