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ugarloaf Mountain Vineyard grows the five Bordeaux red grapes (Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Malbec and Petit Verdot) and two white grapes (Chardonnay and Pinot Grigio). We have an overriding commitment to quality, both in the vineyard and the winery. Open since May 2006, our wines have been extremely well received and have won several awards.

We began our barrel aging program in the spring of 2007, setting aside some of our 2005 vintage. Our Chardonnay will be aged at least one year and our reds one to two years, depending on the vintage.

Our Awards
We are honored that nearly all of our vintages to date have been award winners, recognized by state, regional and international organizations. It is doubly pleasing that this affirms our commitment to producing quality wines and our efforts to provide enjoyment to our many patrons. We proudly present to you the following honors:

Double Gold
2005 Cabernet Franc – Maryland:  2007 International Eastern Wine Competition

Gold
2006 Circe:  2007 Maryland Governor’s Cup

Silver
2006 Cabernet Franc – Maryland: 2008 Grand Harvest Awards, Santa Rosa, California
2005 Comus Reserve: 2007 Maryland Governor’s Cup
2006 Pinot Grigio – Maryland:  2007 Maryland Governor’s Cup
2006 Circe: 2007 International Eastern Wine Competition
2005 Comus Reserve: 2007 International Eastern Wine Competition
2005 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve:  2007 International Eastern Wine Competition
2005 Chardonnay – American:   2006 Maryland Governor’s Cup
2005 Comus – Maryland:  2006 Atlantic Seaboard Vinifera Wine Competition
2005 Comus – Maryland:  2006 Maryland Governor’s Cup

Bronze
2006 Chardonnay – Maryland: 2008 Grand Harvest Awards, Santa Rosa, California
2005 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve:  2007 Maryland Governor’s Cup
2005 Merlot – American:  2007 Maryland Governor’s Cup
2005 Cabernet Sauvignon – American:  2007 International Eastern Wine Competition
2005 Cabernet Franc – Maryland:  2007 Atlantic Seaboard Vinifera Wine Competition
2006 Circe:  Atlantic Seaboard Vinifera Wine Competition
2005 Merlot – American:  2007 International Eastern Wine Competition
2005 Cabernet Sauvignon – American:  2006 Maryland Governor’s Cup

Our Vines
Our unique soil and microclimate create favorable growing conditions, or "terroir", for our carefully selected grapevines. With the expertise of world renowned viticulturist Lucie Morton, we selected 19,000 certified French vinifera clones. We purchased year-old vines from Caldwell Nurseries of northern California in 2002, and planted them at our vineyard in the spring of 2004. The care and attention provided by our vineyard manager, Carl DiManno, have produced outstanding results. We hand-pick our grapes, cold-soak our reds, cold-ferment all our varietals, and age them in French oak barrels (except for our Pinot Grigio, which is aged in a special tank).

Sugarloaf Mountain Vineyard has planted 2.5 acres of Cabernet Sauvignon, 2.5 acres of Pinot Grigio, 2 acres of Chardonnay, 1.25 acres of Merlot, 1 acre of Cabernet Franc, .5 acre of Petit Verdot, and .25 acre of Malbec. We plan to plant an additional 19,000 certified French Bordeaux clones in the next several years.