Trails End wins Best in Class at the 2010 WineMasters Competition.
The 3rd Annual WineMasters Competition was held on May 20th, at the Baltimore Waterfront Marriott. The competition is open to all Maryland wineries and is judged by both winemakers and selected retailers. The purpose is to judge the winemakers skills. Frederick Cellars did well, winning medals for all six of the wines that were entered.
Trail's End: Best in Class and Gold Medal
Riesling: Gold Medal
Eye of the Oriole: Silver Medal
Mer de Glace: Silver Medal
Heritage Red: Bronze Medal
Frederick Red: Bronze Medal
Frederick Cellars is excited to announce some important changes
for the winery.
First, a little background. Maryland State laws that govern wineries have
evolved over the last 30 or more years in a confusing and incomprehensible
way. This creates a roadblock to new winery development. The Maryland
Wineries Association has been working hard for the last year to create the
Winery Modernization Act of 2010. This act will update laws that govern
all Maryland wineries; it is good for the MD wine industry; and we fully
support the bill. However it significantly restricts the food service and hours
of operation that Frederick Cellars can offer its customers.
Therefore, we've decided to take advantage of an opportunity that allows
us to offer customers an even more interesting and pleasant winery
experience. Effective April 1st, our operations will be consolidated in our
current production space (with a small tasting bar area), while our former
tasting room will become a full-service restaurant called Shab Row Bistro
(Class B operation).
Shab Row Bistro is owned and operated by Michael King, along with
co-owners Lindsay and Jack Clark. Michael's background includes culinary
training from Le Cordon Bleu and Sommelier training from the International
Guild of Sommeliers and the French Wine Society. He has designed and
managed award-winning wine cellars for upscale restaurants in Rockville
and Alexandria, VA. Michael's previous experience also includes well-known
Frederick restaurants Acacia and Tauraso's Ristorante.
In order to facilitate necessary construction changes, Frederick Cellars will
be closed from March 25th through April 7th . We plan to reopen on
Saturday, April 10th .
Frederick Cellars will no longer serve food. However, our customers will
be able to top off a winery visit with lunch or dinner at Shab Row Bistro,
starting in early May when it is scheduled to open.
An unfortunate consequence of these changes is that neither operation
will be able to provide entertainment. We sincerely regret this circumstance;
our customers have certainly enjoyed the jazz, blues and acoustics of many
local and regional musicians who appeared in our tasting room, and the
musicians themselves certainly appreciated having an additional venue in
which to perform.
In closing we wish to thank our customers who have given us not only
their business but many hours of pleasant conversations about wine. Please
stop by the winery soon to see our changes in action. We'll be focused as
always on making small batch traditional and casual wines from local and
regional vineyards, as well as expansion of our own vineyard in Middletown.
We think you'll see that having Shab Row Bistro right next door will be good
for our winery, good for our downtown Frederick neighbors and good for
the Everedy Square / Shab Row shopping district in general.
If you have any questions or need further information, please contact us at
info@frederickcellars.com.
Sincerely,
Charlie Daneri & Emily Williams
Owners of Frederick Cellars Winery
Introducing Frederick Red - along with the re-issue of some old favorites!
A red blend with a smidgeon of sweetness. Add some fruit for a great summer sangria!
Eye of the Oriole and Mer de Glace are now available!
Maryland Senate to consider Direct Shipping of Wine
Want to get a favorite wine from that small boutique winery you visited in Temecula, CA. Well, if you live in Maryland, you can't. It's against the law. There's a bill being introduced on Wednesday, Feb 18th @ 1:00 that would allow anyone of legal drinking age to receive wine via common carrier. It's sponsored by over a dozen Senators, but has some very powerful and wealthy opponents that don't want it to pass. If you can make it to Annapolis, sign up to testify or just be there to show your support. Can't make it, see one of the sites below to find out what you CAN do.
If you don't make your voice heard in Annapolis, the laws will never be modernized.
Some facts to know
- Citizens in 35 states have the ability to receive wines by mail.
- The Governor's Wine & Grape Advisory Committee Report "Maryland Wine: The Next Vintage"
recommends changing the law to allow wineries to ship.
- The Maryland Wineries Association endorses this legislation, based on the National Conference
of State Legislators' model bill.
The bill is also endorsed by:
-WineAmerica, representing America's family-operated wineries
-Wine Institute, representing 1800 California wineries
-Specialty Wine Retailers Association, representing modern wine shops located throughout the U.S.
-Free the Grapes, consumer group representing thousands of Maryland citizens
-Marylanders for Better Beer and Wine Laws, consumer group representing Maryland citizens
Advocacy sites:
- Marylanders for Better Beer and Wine Laws: www.betterbeerandwinelaws.org
- Free The Grapes: www.freethegrapes.org
Introducing Winter Red - our newest wine
An unoaked Chambourcin / Chelois red blend with a smidgeon of sweetness. Pairs with cold winter nights and good friends. Enjoy as is or add spices for a mulled wine.
Welcome - Barbry Moran
Please join us in welcoming Barbry Moran as our Sales Manager. From the winery's early days, Barbry worked as a festival volunteer. She quickly learned the ins and outs of conducting festivals. Over the past year and a half, she's worked part time with us, doing a brilliant job coordinating not only our festival volunteer effort but also packing, loading, setup, breakdown and all those other fun jobs that go into a successful festival, come blistering heat or drenching rain (sometimes both in the same day)! Many of you have responded to Barbry's requests for help at our wine festivals, which we certainly appreciate.
Having been bitten by the winery bug, Barbry joined us full-time in September. She'll be visiting retail wine shops and restaurants throughout Maryland, introducing them to Frederick Cellars wines. So, if you have a favorite wine shop or restaurant that does not already carry our wine, just email Barbry and she's on it.
In the off-season, Barbry has more time to spend back in the tasting room. So, please stop by and congratulate her.
Welcome aboard, Barbry.
Governor's Cup Competition
Frederick Cellars wins 6 medals in the 2008 Maryland Governor's Cup Competition, including a Gold Medal for the Reisling. See Our Wines for all the winners
Outdoor Seating
Join us on our newly decorated patio and experience the wonderful weather and downtown ambiance. Enjoy a glass of award-winning wine and light fare.
Frederick Magazine
The Frederick WIne Trail and Frederick Cellars are featured in the September issue of the award winning Frederick Magazine.
Entertainment to return to Frederick Cellars
In March of 2007, the Zoning department of the City of Frederick determined that Frederick Cellars was not allowed to host any type of entertainment nor rent their facility. In June 2008, the City Planning Commission approved a text amendment to the Land Management Code that clearly defined a winery usage. This included entertainment and rental. Since the usage was conditional in the Downtown Business district, Frederick Cellars appeared before the Zoning Board of Appeals on July 22, 2008 to seek permission to operate as a winery at 221 N East St, in the DB district. Several residential and commercial neighbors were on hand to voice their support and the Board unamimously granted their approval.
Frederick Cellars is awarded a Façade Improvement grant
Frederick Cellars applied for and won a matching grant from the Downtown Frederick Partnership and the State of Maryland to spruce up the front of the building. Improvements include a wrought iron fence which will allow outdoor seating, lighting in the style of Everedy Square/Shab Row, a shade awning and a trellis for a clinging vine.
Our thanks to Kara Norman of the DFP for her assistance in helping us improve the look of our building and the downtown business district.
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