Maryland Salutes Its Wine Pioneers

Six legacy wineries honored for forging a path

Maryland’s wine community celebrated its pioneers last month, saluting six founding wineries and the families who laid the foundation of the state’s wine industry.

The series of commemorations, held over two weeks in late July, were an opportunity for reflection by a community facing serious headwinds at a time when it is gaining momentum and market acceptance.

The six legacy wineries were Basignani Winery, Boordy Vineyards, Elk Run Vineyard and Winery, Fiore Winery & Distillery, Linganore Winecellars and Loew Vineyards. Frequently mentioned among all the speechifying were other influential Maryland wineries that have not survived to this day: Montbray Cellars, Byrd Vineyards and Woodhall Cellars.

“You walked, even crawled, so we could run,” said Melissa Aellen, third-generation winemaker at Linganore and president of the Maryland Wineries Association, which co-sponsored the events with the Maryland Department of Agriculture. “My generation can move forward at lightning speed because of the groundwork you all laid in the past.”

1. Maryland Agriculture Secretary Kevin Atticks and MWA Executive Director Janna Howley honor Bert and Lynne Basignani; 2. Wine poured at Basignani; 3: Fred Wilson, co-founder of Elk Run; 4: Wines displayed at Elk Run; 5. Atticks with Lois Loew of Loew Vineyards; 6: The Aellens of Linganore - Parker, Eric, Anthony and Melissa. Photos: Sarah Healey, Cultivate & Craft.

“When you started, there was no industry to speak of,” said Kevin Atticks, Maryland’s secretary of agriculture and former executive director of the wineries association. “There were a handful of pioneers trying something out, and through your diligence you have made this industry the national success story it has become,” he said.

“The challenges you overcome in every vintage — and you’ll get through this one as well — are remarkable, and a guide to other industries just getting started,” Atticks said.

He was referring to the devastating freeze that struck the Mid-Atlantic region the morning of April 21. Janna Howley, the current executive director of the wineries association, estimated the freeze would cost Maryland wineries $14 million in lost retail sales from the 2026 vintage. But the freeze will be felt for years to come as wineries assess long-term damage to their vines and even replant some vineyards.

As recently as the turn of the 21st century, Maryland had only 12 wineries. Today, that number has reached 75, with about 1,000 acres planted to grapevines, Howley said. (By the final ceremony, the number bandied about was “75-80,” after The Wall Street Journal posted a favorable writeup of Maryland wine that put the total at 85 wineries.)

That growth over the last quarter century was possible in large part to the work of the families honored in July. Not only did the early winemakers have to convince skeptical consumers that wine could be made in Maryland, they struggled against unfavorable regulations that stymied efforts to create a new agricultural industry.

“We couldn’t offer samples or sell a glass of wine,” said Rob Deford, whose family has owned and operated Boordy, the state’s oldest winery, since the early 1980s. “We couldn’t have tables and chairs, or we’d be a restaurant.” Alcohol distribution laws in the late 1970s and early 1980s limited wineries to selling one quart per year to each customer; this was later relaxed to one quart per product, which led to an explosion of SKUs and may help to explain why some wineries make so many wines even today. (That limit was eventually dropped.)

1: Mike and Rose Fiore with Kevin Atticks; 2: Fiore Grappa on display; 3: Atticks with Phineas, Julie and Rob Deford of Boordy Vineyards; 4: An 80th anniversary commemorative wine at Boordy. Photos: Dave McIntyre

To change that hostile regulatory climate, winemakers founded the Maryland Wineries Association in 1984. The association held an annual wine festival to build its market and began lobbying extensively in Annapolis. Mike Fiore of Fiore Winery recalled how testifying before a legislative committee was the most terrifying experience of his life. (This from a man who emigrated from Calabria and had a long career as a health physicist at the Calvert Cliffs nuclear power plant, during which he planted a vineyard and started his winery in his spare time.)

Much of the association’s success came in the 20 years it was helmed by Atticks, from 2002-2022, before he was tapped for his state post by Governor Wes Moore. Atticks presented each winery with a citation honoring their contributions.

“You planted the first grapes, championed legislative change, and established the very foundation of what has become a thriving industry,” he read from the citations.

“Your deep commitment to local agriculture, education, and land stewardship has been instrumental in elevating Maryland into a world-class wine destination.”

Six Pioneers

Of the six legacy wineries, only Boordy and Linganore sport bright, modern facilities most tourists would associate with wine country. The others still feature a modest pioneer vibe, with the air of inviting you to their home or their patio for conversation over a glass of wine. And pizza at Basignani, if you time your visit right.

Basignani Vineyards: Bert and Lynne Basignani celebrated their wedding in 1974 by planting 60 vines on their property in Sparks, Md., north of Baltimore. Bert, a second-generation Italian-American of Tuscan heritage, had been unhappy with the grapes he bought from California for home winemaking, so he decided to grow his own. Over the years, the vineyard grew and he sold grapes to a few wineries until 1985, when he and Lynne took the plunge and opened Basignani Vineyards. Their best wine is the Lorenzino Reserve, a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc, though at the reception there was worthy buzz about a limited-release Nebbiolo. The winery is open Saturdays and Sundays, and some weekends Bert heats up a wood-fired oven and slings a limited number of Tuscan-style pizzas. (“None of that Neapolitan stuff!” he says.) 15722 Falls Rd, Sparks, MD 21152. If you go and don’t score a pie, just a few miles down the road is Jake’s Grill, a decrepit hole in the wall with amazing pit beef sandwiches, a Maryland treasure.

Boordy Vineyards: Boordy is Maryland’s oldest winery, founded in 1945 by Philip Wagner, a Baltimore journalist (Yay!) and a champion of French-American hybrid grape varieties along the East Coast. Wagner sold the winery in the early 1980s to the Deford family, who relocated to their property in the Long Green Valley north of Baltimore and began concentrating on vinifera varieties. Two decades ago, Rob Deford, the second generation of the current ownership, added a vineyard near South Mountain, in central Maryland’s Catoctin range, where Boordy’s top wines, labeled Dry Bench Reserve and Landmark Series, are now grown. Rob’s son, Phineas Deford, is the third generation now active in managing the winery. Visitors are welcomed daily at the winery in Long Green Valley. 12820 Long Green Pike, Hydes, MD 21082. And if you’re still hungry, Fast Eddie’s Pit Beef is just a short drive away.

Elk Run Vineyard and Winery: Founded in 1983 by Fred and Carol Wilson in central Maryland’s Frederick County, Elk Run was an early champion of vinifera grape varieties in Maryland, and still is one of few wineries in the state to grow Pinot Noir. Elk Run’s estate vineyard along Liberty Road in Mount Airy has the enchanting name of Cold Friday, a name dating back to when the property was part of a land grant from the King of England to Lord Baltimore. It was Fred who called Janna Howley and suggested honoring the pioneers “before we all die.” His son, Julian, is currently handling the vineyard and winemaking. 15113 Liberty Road, Mount Airy, MD, 21771.

Fiore Winery & Distillery: Mike and Rose Fiore planted their first vines on their farm in Harford County, near the Pennsylvania border in northeastern Maryland, in the early 1980s, to make wine for themselves. When they couldn’t sell the extra grapes, they established Fiore Winery in 1986. Mike was the first to plant Sangiovese in Maryland, and after testifying to the Maryland legislature, he became the state’s first distillery licensee. Today, Fiore Winery & Distillery makes outstanding grappa, including an oak-aged version. Fiore’s rye whiskey ignited Maryland’s craft spirits industry and helped establish rye as the signature state liquor. And his 2014 Sangiovese, poured at the reception honoring his achievements, was quite lively for a 12-year-old wine. Open daily. 3026 Whiteford Rd., Pylesville, MD 21132.

Linganore Winecellars: Jack and Lucille Aellen bought 230 acres of an old dairy farm near Mount Airy, Md., in 1971. The next year, they planted 6 acres of vineyards, and in 1976 they opened Linganore Winecellars. To build their market, they held wine festivals on their property, and shifted from dry to sweet wines to meet market demand. Today the second generation is in transition: Anthony Aellen, the older son, is approaching retirement and will be handing the reins to his brother, Eric. The third generation is already involved, with cousins Melissa and Parker Aellen moving the winemaking back toward drier, more classic European-styled wines and creating their own label, Simple Theory, to showcase innovative wines and new varieties adapting to climate change. Open daily, with several events and festivals throughout the year. A brewery onsite is under reconstruction following a fire and should reopen this fall. 13601 Glissans Mill Rd., Mount Airy, MD 21771.

Loew Vineyards: Loew Vineyards has Maryland wine’s most compelling story, and recently is making some of the state’s most compelling wines. Winemaker Rachel Lipman can lay claim to being a fifth-generation winemaker as she helms the winery founded in the early 1980s by her grandparents, William and Lois Loew. William, whose given name was Wolf Löw, was born into a family of mead producers in Lvöv, Poland, now known as Lviv in Ukraine. He was the only member of his family to survive the Holocaust and started the winery as a retirement project after a career with the U.S. government. Since Rachel took over, she has modernized the modest production facility, greatly improving the wines, including a fantastic Cabernet Franc and a stunning 2025 Chenin Blanc to be released this fall. She has extensively researched her family history in Poland and this year received kosher certification for her meads, making Loew Vineyards this country’s first kosher meadery. Open Fridays-Sundays and federal holidays. 14001 Liberty Rd., Mt. Airy, MD 21771.

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