Local Beer & Wine Pouring at the 7th Annual Wine and Food Festival at National Harbor

One Spring event I always anticipate is the annual Wine and Food Festival at National Harbor, now in its 7th year - held May 3rd & 4th. The reason: always a wide selection of wine, beer, spirits, cigars, fresh food (oysters), as well as numerous cooking demonstrations and food. Lots of food. There will be also be plenty of wine, beer, & spirits options (over 150) including local options from Boordy Vineyards, The Winery at Olney, Detour Vineyard and Winery, Fenwick Wine Cellars, Far Eastern Shore Winery, Harvest Ridge Winery, Fordham Brewing Company, Heavy Seas Brewing Company, Bold Rock Cidery, Devils Backbone Brewing Company, and Starr Hill Brewing. And the night before the festival, on May 2nd, the Old Hickory Steakhouse is hosting a wine dinner featuring Barboursville Vineyards. On Sunday I am looking forward to Theo Rutherford - Craft Whiskey Specialist for Beam Global presentation, but over the course of the weekend there will be presentations from Shannon Shaffer, Executive Chef, Design Cuisine; Michael Schlow; Victor Albisu - Del Campo & Taco Bamba; Scott Drewno - The Source by Wolfgang Puck; Chef Bryan Voltaggio - Volt | Lunchbox | Family Meal | Range; Chef Rahman “Rock” Harper; and Mike Isabella - Graffiato, Washington D.C.. Here's the promotional video from Drink.Eat.Relax:

 

June Happenings in Maryland Wine Country

There's a lot going on north of the Potomac, so I decided to share a few special events happening in Maryland Wine Country. First, this weekend finds Old Westminster Winery hosting their official Grand Opening on Saturday, June 8th from 12 to 5 pm. If you recall, we featured winemaker Lisa Baker in a VirginiaWineTV video last year and the Baker family received wide acclaim for their offerings at this year's DrinkLocalWine.com conference. So pair some excellent wine - their Cabernet Franc is my favorite - with locally sourced baked bread and farm raised cheese as well as live acoustic music.

Not far away, but two weeks later, Linganore Winecellars is hosting their Vine Rewind Wine, Music & Art Festival during the weekend of June 22 & 23. This festival pays tribute to the music of the 70s, 80s, & 90s and features many regional performers such as The Reagan Years, All Natural, the Leslie Avenue Band, and Spiral. Attendees will be able to sample 19 Linganore wines and take tours of their eco-friendly wine-making facility. Try the Traminette, I hear its quite good and don't miss TRYs.



Finally, the Maryland Wineries Association (MWA) is preparing for Maryland Wine Week, a period (June 14-24) designated to encourage Maryland wine consumers to ask for Maryland wine at their favorite wine shop or restaurant. The MVA is also assisting local restaurants and wine shops host a range of events themed around Maryland wine; including wine maker dinners, tastings, wine flights, and more. Check back to the events website for more updated event information. Cheers to Maryland wine.

Winemaker Series: Old Westminster Winery

For this episode we ventured north into Maryland to learn about a new winery - Old Westminster Winery - and to determine if they shared any similarities with start-ups in the Virginia Wine industry. We tasted wine from the barrel and one that was impressive was made from grapes sourced from Chatham Vineyards, located in the eastern shore of Virginia. Old Westminster is owned and operated by the Baker Family, with siblings Drew, Lisa, and Ashli managing the vineyard, wine making, and marketing respectively. And evidently the housing crash of 2008 lead to the creation of the winery. Wanting to sell the winery, and seeing reduced property values, the family investigated alternative uses for the land and decided, why not a vineyard and winery. They then planted seven acres of grapes, some unique to Maryland: Cabernet Franc, Syrah, Merlot, Chardonnay, Albariño, and Sauvignon Blanc. The first harvest from these vines occurred during the Autumn of 2011, so they will need to wait two more years until they can utilize estate fruit. Currently the winery is not open to the public (expect a Spring 2013 opening) but are allowing 100 Century Club members to receive lifetime access to the facility in order to taste the wines as they progress from barrel to bottle. As usual, the intro music is "How High the Mountain" by Andrew McKnight and all VirginiaWineTV videos are available via iTunes.