MARYLAND: THE OLD LINE STATE

BY CLAY LARROY

People in general consider traveling as their personal interests. Traveling can quickly become an interest simply because it is such an enjoyable experience. When you travel around the world and you will see a variety of different cultures and people. There are two things to remember while traveling. The first thing is to be open-minded about people and their culture. The second thing and the most important, is to respect other cultures no matter how different. When you want to plan a vacation contact me!

Read the article below for an interesting perspective on wine.

Wine Regions of Maryland

By J. Robinson

Growing up in Maryland, I always thought my home state had great diversity in topography and a nice equal dose of all four seasons - a little something for everybody. When it came to growing grapes for wine, however, I didn't realize Maryland possessed the "terroir" - the special characteristics that the soil, weather conditions, and other environmental elements bestow upon a particular variety - required to produce world class wines. As it turns out, Maryland is producing some pretty impressive wines and the Maryland Wine industry is growing with equally impressive speed and vigor. Maryland has four distinct wine growing regions. From west to east they are: Western Mountain, Piedmont Plateau, Southern Plain, and Eastern Shore. Just as Maryland has four distinct seasons, the four distinct growing regions of Maryland each bestow their own unique characteristics upon the wines produced in those areas.

Western Mountain: The Western Mountain region is characterized by mountainous terrain with cooler average temperatures and a shorter growing season. This region is best suited for cold-hearty varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, Chardonnay, Norton/Cynthiana, Chambourcin, Vidal and Seyval.

Piedmont Plateau: This region is home to the majority of Maryland's vineyards as well as some of the oldest. Rich in historical landmarks and inspiring views, a wide variety of grapes grow well in this region, including Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Chardonnay and Pinot Gris.

Southern Plain: This flat, low altitude region presents some challenges with warmer temperatures both day and night, but varieties that do well in southern Italy and similar Mediterranean climates can do quite well on the Southern Plain too. Look for varieties like Barbera, Sangiovese, Montepulciano, Chardonnay, Vidal, Blaufrankisch, and Symphony.

Eastern Shore: Maryland's Eastern Shore comprises more than a third of the state's land area, but only 8% of the population. Surrounded by water - the Atlantic on one side and the Chesapeake Bay on the other - it's no surprise that two of the biggest industries here are farming and tourism, which might explain why this is one of the fastest growing wine regions in Maryland as well. The warm days, cool nights, and sandy soil of the Eastern Shore make it possible to grow a wide variety of wine grapes in this region.

I've always appreciated the variety of activities available to residents and visitors of Maryland - you can be tanning on the beach in Ocean City in the morning and mountain biking near the Appalachian Trail by afternoon. Turns out that all this topographical and environment variety also creates a tremendous opportunity for a burgeoning Maryland wine industry to translate this rich variety of terroir into remarkable world class wines.

REFERENCE SITES:

http://www.travelresearchonline.com/

http://EzineArticles.com/

In the springtime, we have softshell crab from Maryland, which I'd never had until I came to America. In the summer and early fall, we have striped bass, 'stripeys,' which come all the way up the Hudson River but mostly gather in the sound at the tip of Long Island, off Montauk.

Daniel Boulud

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