Boordy

In the year 2000, Maryland was home to only eleven wineries. Boordy was one of those wineries. It is actually the oldest one in Maryland. Maryland's first ever commercial winery owner, Philip Wagner, gave his grapes to the DeFord's in 1965 so they could farm his vines under his management. He sold Boordy to them in 1980. Philip Wagner was born in New Haven Connecticut in 1904. He got his AB degree from the University of Michigan, then moved to New York. He worked for General Electric for a few years then moved to Maryland to work for the Baltimore Sun as an editorial writer, soon to be promoted to London correspondent, ultimately becoming editor of the Evening Sun. He only started making his own wine because of prohibition. You were allowed to make your own in your homes. The alternative was drinking no wine at all. This grew into beginning  his own experimental vineyard in Riderwood, Maryland. His vinifera vines all failed so he used hybrid grapes he had discovered in London. Robert DeFord, Jr. has a story that may indicate Wagner even stole  vidal blanc vines from France. Warren Winiarski, owner and winemaker of Stags Leap Wine Cellars, studied under Wagner. He began selling his vines and his operation became known as Boordy Nursery. They were sold all over the country, and Canada. In 1945, Philip and his wife, Jocelyn opened Boordy Vineyards at their Riverwood property. What is currently Boordy Vineyards under the DeFords, is at the Long Green Farms property in Hydes, Maryland, formerly a beef farm dating back to the 1930's. Initially the vineyard failed due to a few cold winters and some neglect. Then the vineyard grew and with that so did interest within the family. After Bob DeFord fell ill in the mid seventies, Rob came home to the farm for good and ultimately offered to buy the vineyard from Philip. Rob went to the University of California for education in viticulture and oenology. In 1984 Rob became the first president of the  Association of Maryland Wineries. He was also president of the National Association of American Wineries from 2002-2004. He got his MBA from Loyola in 1995. In 1996, Boordy signed a 50 year lease on a property in South Mountain for the "Landmark Project." Any one who has tasted any wines from the Landmark series in the last 10+ years would agree that  their mission of creating "premium wines that are made from 100%  MD fruit, sourced from newly planted and replanted vineyard'' has been achieved. Especially the numerous award winning albarino reserve with its notes of tangerine, kumquat and wet stone and the Lost Order No. 191,  petite verdot with dark fruit, smoky complexity and a great story from the civil war. Ian and I have been members of Boordy since 2016 but have been  frequenting this winery since we discovered it back in 2014. Their wine club members nights from 6-9pm on a Friday or Saturday once a quarter make you feel special and appreciated right from the moment you enter and are handed a few ounces of what is typically one of their new releases. You'll enjoy a complimentary tasting of all the wines in the various packages for pickup, can bring your own picnic or enjoy food from one of their tasty food truck partners, and a lovely evening complete with live music either on the patio or in the barn. The last two vertical tastings Ian and I have received at members nights have been from Robert DeFord, Jr. himself. He was a wealth of knowledge and got us excited for some upcoming library tastings of older vintages they have been keeping and aging. Ian asked him to sign my Maryland Wine A Full-Bodied History by Regina McCarthy book and he happily did writing "Briana - Thanks so much for enjoying our wines. We love making them and  sharing them! Cheers, Rob DeFord." A true class act.