Sunday loop through Maryland hits Mount Felix and Woodhall wineries

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From Mount Felix: What's left of the delicious plate of figs and cheese and a shot of the tasting room.

Spent part of Sunday afternoon visiting Mary and Peter Ianniello at their new Mount Felix Winery in Havre de Grace. Haze cheated us out of the sharp view of the distant Chesapeake Bay, which sits beyond the property, including the vineyard, and makes for a scenic backdrop off the large patio that sits off the house and a stroll from the tasting room.

Originally from northern New York, the couple and their three children have called the 9,000-square-foot Mount Felix Manor -- which dates back to the 1830s -- home since the early part of this decade. They have Chambourcin and Foch vines in the ground; they hope to plant more over the next couple of years, including Traminette. Getting signs out on I-95 at their exit (89, Md. Route 155) has to help their exposure; so will getting a sign put along Rt. 155 at the end of their driveway. It's an easy one to miss the first time through, as we found out yesterday. The winery is less than a mile from the exit, located on the right side of the road.

It's probably one of the smaller operations you'll come across in terms of parking and the size of the tasting room, which you can see in the picture above. But it's cozy inside, with plenty of small personal touches on the wall and counters. Mount Felix is producing a line of nine wines, from dry white (Matilda's Devotion) to dry red (Adlum's First) to semi-sweet and sweet red and white. Our hosts went the extra mile, taking figs off a tree they planted when they moved in and cutting those up on a plate with some chunks of sharp cheese. Loved it. That fig tree is so big it looks like it's been there for 20 years, and the fruit is fantastic. We stayed until a wave of visitors arrived, packing the tasting room. All of the wine's names, by the way, relate to the historical significance of the area where the winery sits.

So we took the couple of bottles we purchased and headed north and west back to York Road, where Woodhall Wine Cellars sits. That's the winery that has helped cultivate our passion for regional wines; there are no friendlier folks in the business than the gang at Woodhall, where they have been turning out bottles of wine since the mid-1980s. That would make it one of the oldest wineries in the state. A five-minute drive off I-83, it's in a far more rustic setting than what you'll find at today's newer wineries. But there's room to stretch out and taste wines in the main tasting room and out on a covered back porch, where we got comfy yesterday. You should have no trouble finiding something you like there; I didn't specifically count the wines available for tasting that were listed on their chalkboard, but it's gotta be at least 25, including some delicious reserve wines.

This is a winery that until recently had a vineyard on the hill next store; safe to say at this point it's dormant. Winemaker Chris Kent said Sunday they'll likely replant at some point in 2010 or 2011. But they've done fine sourcing in the grapes and producing the extensive line of wines; we walked away with a couple cases that we ordered back in the winter during barrel tasting. Well, that's not the only thing we stopped for. A glass of wine out on the back porch hit the spot. Others were streaming in and out to pick up wine they had ordered; in the middle of it all was a party of about a dozen working through some Woodhall wines with a few plates of appetizers. Unfortunately, we couldn't manage an invitation.

Mount Felix lauds bond with local eateries

Mentioned the other day about Mount Felix Winery's improved Web site that offers a blend of information; some present, some past. There are older wineries that provide more substantial news on their wines and events, but there are a heckuva lot of other wineries that have been around a lot longer than Mt. Felix whose Web sites can't match up.

Peter Ianniello said by phone Wednesday that he and his wife Mary have done the upgrades, evidence that they're willing to invest the time and energy needed to help market their wines. Peter said they've been blessed these first few months in business by the support they have received from the business community.

“Some retailers were thrilled to carry a quality local wine,” he said, “and some restaurants . . . even created some special dishes featuring and highlighting Mt. Felix wines.”

According to the site there are 22 retailers carrying some or all of the eight wines that Mount Felix produces, and 10 restaurants that have included the label on their wine lists. That's not an easy advance; so many wineries have talked about how difficult it is to move any of their wines onto the wine lists of area eateries.

“That's the best part of what I'm mentioning to you,” Peter said. “We have been very, very fortunate to work with some really great businesspeople that took us on. You know what this market is like. You have Chile on the bottom, Italy on top, New Zealand to the left, Australia to the right. It's a pretty crowded market.”

Peter said that MacGregor's Restaurant and the Laurrapin Grill, both in Havre de Grace, Md., have created dishes using Mt. Felix wines. “So in addition to carrying them and offering them on the list, they actually made special dishes. The one place, Laurrapin, people would come up here and they were raving about it. They took our blush wine, which is blend of Traminette and Chambourcin, and they sauteed some large sea scallops in it. I had some people come in who were still drooling from tasting it. It was that good. So we're very, very humbled by the support we've gotten. That's the only reason we've been successful.

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That and their location, less than a mile off Exit 89 of I-95. Peter said that when winetrailtraveler.com came down for a taste, they told him that of all the hundreds of wineries they've been to across the entire United States that “we have one of the best locations next to a highway infrastructure and major population sites.”
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He said they have applied to have their name put on signs preceding the exit north and south to let people who are driving by know they're there. “We're just waiting,” he said. Hopefully the applications wil lbe approved soon.”

Mt. Felix Web site adds some bells, whistles

The Manor Home at Mt. Felix Estate, taken off the Web site.

Have written before about the benefits of having an updated Web site and how the qualify of the sites among wineries in this region ranges from unsatisfactory to exemplary. Some haven't changed their sites in the year that I've been posting; no doubt they are the same ones who get quiet on the other end of the line when I mention the word blog? No, sir, that has nothing to do with cranberries. Check with you next decade.

One that has taken a step forward is the Mt Felix Estate Vineyard & Winery in Havre de Grace, Md. There are 20 entry points, a mix of text and photos about the winery and the area that its situated in, overlooking the Susquehanna River and Chesapeake Bay. This is another one of those "savor the view" wineries in the region, a la Moon Dancer and Hauser Estate in Pennsylvania. There are also photos of the villa, snapshots of parts of its 9,000-plus square feet and 11 fireplaces. There are notes on the seven wines that Mary and Peter Ianniello currently make. Some wineries post their prices; Mt. Felix chooses not to. But it does offer a blog, an entity that more wineries are adding to their sites, and photos of the vineyard. All in all, a step ahead for what's really a winery in its infancy, less than a year old.