Maryland Official Visitors Guide - 2017
Wine, Craft Beer & Distilling
Brennen Jensen 2016-12-08 04:41:42
Tap into a booming craft brewing scene with suds for all seasons.
With more than 50 craft breweries producing everything from traditional Baltimore pilsners and Belgian-style farm ales to dessert stouts and cask-conditioned classics, beer lovers will be hard pressed not to find a new foamy favorite in Maryland. Most breweries offer tours and tasting rooms. Watch beer being made and then savor it, fresh as can be.
Only-in-Maryland Brews
Antietam Brewery in Hagerstown brings together innovative beers and locally sourced food at its popular brewpub. Crabs and beer are a classic Maryland combo and Frederick’s Flying Dog Brewery, the state’s largest beer maker, uniquely unites them with their Dead Rise Ale. This summer seasonal, one of some two-dozen offerings, is named for a type of crabbing boat and is flavored with Old Bay crab spice. Baltimore’s Union Craft Brewing, meanwhile, named its award-winning flagship beer, the deftly hopped Duckpin Pale Ale, after a homegrown form of bowling. Heavy Seas, another brewer earning accolades nationally, produces a line of nautically named beers in Halethorpe and its roots go back 20 years to Baltimore’s first brewpub. The brewery is also a proponent of cask ale, the old-school way of dispensing naturally carbonated beers by gravity or hand pump.
Burely Oak Brewing, Berlin
Suds for Sailors, Summer and Sustainability
Annapolis is home to Chesapeake Brewing and the U.S. Naval Academy, which goes a long way in explaining the brewpub’s Beat Army Golden Lager with its playful nod to a storied football rivalry. Calvert Brewing in Prince Frederick offers an al fresco experience in a pet-friendly beer garden.
Flying Dog Brewery Frederick
PHOTO: FLYING DOG BREWERY
Thirsty after a day at the beach? Ocean City Brewing Company can help you out in its namesake town or in its new Abingdon restaurant. Or head to nearby Berlin where Burley Oak Brewing also makes root beer and occasionally features live bands along with their brews. While on the Eastern Shore, visit RAR Brewing in Cambridge where the brews often have a Belgian accent.
And have you heard of the field-to-mug movement? Milkhouse Brewery in Mt. Airy, Manor Hill Brewing in Ellicott City, and Falling Branch Brewery in Street are among nine designated “farm breweries” where beers are brewed with grain, hops or both, grown onsite.
The Brewers Association has more information on Maryland craft beer at marylandbeer.org.
Barreling Back
Spirits soar as a surging craft distilling scene revives Maryland’s storied whiskey heritage.
BY BRENNEN JENSEN
A century ago, Maryland rye whiskey kept America in the best of spirits coast to coast.
The state was a distilling powerhouse, and rye our liquid ambassador. Now, a new wave of craft distillers is picking up the old traditions and making a splash with cuttingedge concoctions of their own. Maryland rye is back, along with vodka, gin, rum, brandy and limoncello.
Charm City Sips
Baltimore’s Sagamore Spirit has a rye cut with water from a storied Maryland horse farm; visit them at their multi-acre distillery complex on the Port Covington waterfront. The Baltimore Whiskey Company has its first rye aging away in barrels (look for it in 2018), but sells gin and apple brandy and offers tours of its distillery in the city’s Remington neighborhood. Two former naval aviators bought a craft distillery (and its stocks) in Oregon and moved it to Baltimore to get in on the booming scene. Renamed Old Line Spirits, currently it offers a single malt whiskey with a complex nose of maple, toffee and vanilla. There is also a peated version—an American take on a smoky Scotch.
And there are many other tipples to try. Twin Valley Distillers in Rockville bills itself as “Home of Maryland’s Bourbon.” After adding distilling to its vino business, Fiore Winery in Harford County now offers limoncello made using an old family recipe and grappa from its own grapes.
Sagamore Spirit, Baltimore
Shore Spirits
Blackwater Distilling in Kent Island has made a splash with its award-winning Sloop Betty vodka. Lyon Distilling in St. Michaels also makes a rye but is perhaps best known for its rums, which are a hit with the sailors that populate the nautical town. For a fiery exotic taste, head to White Tiger Distillery in Stevensville and try its 120-proof Laotian rice whiskey.
The Maryland Distillers Guild has more information on Maryland Craft Liquors at marylandspirits.org.
Wine Trails
Find the perfect pairing for your Maryland adventure.
BY JIM MEYER
Maryland’s distinct microclimates provide diversity and flavor to our wines. Try them out along these wine trails.
DRINK IN HISTORY
Antietam Highlands Wine Trail
Meander through the mountains of Western Maryland and the heart of the Civil War while visiting eight stand-out vineyards. Don’t miss Big Cork Vineyards, winner of the 2015 Governor’s Cup, and Willow Oaks, where organic fruits become unique artisanal ciders.
Big Cork Vineyards, Rohrersville
PHOTO: SAGAMORE SPIRIT; BIG CORK VINEYARDS
BOLD WINES AND WARM WELCOMES
Carroll Wine Trail
From yoga at Serpent Ridge Vineyard to Solstice celebrations at Cygnus Wines to the Maryland Food & Wine Festival at Old Westminster Winery, the five wineries on this trail will welcome you with open arms and open corks.
UNBRIDLED BEAUTY AND UNFORGETTABLE WINES
Chesapeake Wine Trail
With 16 wineries, this trail is the perfect excuse to explore the treasures of the Eastern Shore. Don’t miss St. Michaels Winery’s Gollywobbler Sangrias brimming with fresh local fruit.
MOUNTAINOUS HEIGHTS OF FLAVOR
Frederick Wine Trail
With soil as dark and rich as fresh-ground coffee, the beauty of the Catoctin foothills fills every glass at these five wineries. Sample President Frank Underwood’s (of “House of Cards” fame) favorite vintage at Elk Run Vineyards.
SOUTHERN CHARM
Patuxent Wine Trail
The 10 wineries of the Patuxent Trail capitalize on Southern Maryland’s Old-World growing traditions to bring an exciting new vision to classic wine profiles. Port of Leonardtown has helped lead the charge, winning best in class and gold medals at the 2014 Maryland Wine Masters.
SEASONAL GETAWAY
Piedmont Wine Trail
The lush, forested Piedmont plateau is home to eight great wineries; it’s an ideal getaway from summer heat, or to take in the fall foliage. Boordy Vineyards is famous for their outdoor concerts and open-air festivals.
The Maryland Wineries Association has more information at marylandwine.com.
©Maryland. View All Articles.