Sitting atop a cooler fashioned with wheels, Ron Wates scoots along rows of vines, plucking leaves to make room for what in August will become plump bunches of deep red grapes.
“The vines are always more vigorous than we want them to be,” said Wates, a vineyard manager.
With a cool breeze tempering the spring sun, Wates could be pruning in Bordeaux, France, or California?s Sonoma County.
But, perhaps surprisingly, he is shuffling along the rows of Cabernet Franc grapes at Boordy Vineyards in Hydes in Baltimore County.
Boordy is one of the 32 local vineyards taking advantage of Maryland?s climate and soil to churn out thousands of gallons of wine each year.
“The idea that good wine can only come from a few places around the world is certainly is not the case,” said Chris Kent, winemaker at Woodhall Vineyards in Parkton in Baltimore County.
From warm Southern Maryland to the rolling hills of the Piedmont, Maryland offers several growing regions ideal for different varieties of grapes.
The Chesapeake Bay moderates Maryland?s climate, keeping temperatures from reaching extremes, according to the Maryland Grape Growers Association, a nonprofit of grape growers and wine makers.
The average grape growing season is 195 days, suitable for most grape varieties.
However, the state?s environment is not without its challenges, and unlike in California, Maryland?s humidity can present threats of diseases and pests like the Japanese beetle, said Kevin Atticks, executive director of the Maryland Wineries Association, a trade organization representing wineries.
With constant pruning and management, those threats can be mitigated, he said, but “if you let it go for a couple weeks, you will have problems here.”
The region?s volatile weather can also add headaches.
The peak of the hurricane season comes right as grapes are being harvested, so winemakers risk storms wreaking havoc just as the fruit is ready for plucking, said Kent.
Drought years can produce exceptionally good wines, he said, as the less water plants soak into the grapes, the more concentrated the taste.
But rolling with the punches is part of the job, and when winemakers have to tweak the sugar and acid levels for the right balance, Kent said.
“You have to be nimble in the type of wine you make,” said Robert Deford, president of Boordy Vineyards.
