Wine

The 19th annual Wine in the Woods festival was held May 21-22 at Symphony Woods at Merriweather Post Pavilion. Beautiful weather helped attract crowds that averaged 20,000 each day, according to organizers from the Howard County Department of Parks and Recreation. Twenty-nine wineries from Maryland took part. Visitors who purchased a $30 wristband could sip as many half-ounce samples as they wished.

It's widely available, it's moderately priced, and it doesn't require a corkscrew. What more do you need in a red wine? It doesn't hurt that this medium-bodied blend of shiraz (75 percent) and cabernet sauvignon (25 percent) shows plenty of earthy character, with vibrant flavors of blackberry and chocolate. It's not the most complex red on the market, but it's thoroughly enjoyable and ready to drink. A wine for the masses, not the critics. From: Australia Price: $13 Serve with: Grilled meats, pasta

Torrontes is Argentina's premier white wine grape, and frugal connoisseurs have latched onto it as one of the wine world's great values. This organic dry wine from the Michel Torino Estate is medium-bodied, clean and fresh. It offers a subtle mix of flavors — herbs, pears, tropical fruit — in which no one dominates. It's a very satisfying wine that is best consumed over the next six months. Wine Find: 2010 Cuma Torrontes From: Cafayate Valley, Argentina Price: $13 Serve with: Lobster, fish

The weekend is so close you can taste it. If you're headed east to the Atlantic, take a look at our guide to 100 Best Beach Eats , which covers Ocean City, West Ocean City and Delaware towns stretching from Fenwick Island to Lewes. It might be hard to get to on a busy weekend, when the Ocean Gateway (Route 50) is bumper to bumper, but sometime this summer make sure you stop by the Shrimp Boat on Stephen Decatur Highway. This 23-year-old roadside shack is the real deal, where the locals have always come to buy fresh seafood and steamed-while-you-wait shrimp.

From: Rioja, Spain Price: $13 Serve with: Grilled red meat This smooth, young red wine made entirely from tempranillo offers vibrant black cherry and vanilla flavors, a touch of herbs and enough lush fruit to give the impression — but not the reality — of sweetness. Rioja is still a fine source of affordable wines, and importer Kysela Pere & Fils is doing a great job uncovering Spain's hidden gems. — Michael Dresser

From: Gran Altura, Valle Calchaqui, Salta, Argentina Price: $15 Serve with: Shellfish, or by itself This fresh, youthful white wine is dry but very fruity for a torrontes, a varietal in which mineral flavors often prevail. Savvy wine drinkers have realized by now that torrontes is a very appealing varietal, and clearly Argentina's best white grape. This version offers intense, electric flavors of lime, grapefruit, orange and tropical fruit — with bracing acidity and a long, clean finish.

From: Alsace, France Price: $24 Serve with: Roast turkey, ham, pork, pate Looking for a robust, dry white wine to serve with the Christmas turkey or New Year's Day pork? Here's a full-bodied, spicy, intense wine from one of Alsace's most reliable large producers. (Hugel wines are in broad distribution.) It offers flavors of mulling spices, lemon, tropical fruit, peach and pear. This wine could come as a jolt to folks who are used to the sweeter style of most American gewurztraminers, but Hugel's is a wine in the classic tradition.

This robust young red wine from Argentina offers excellent quality for the price, and it's produced in quantities that should assure wide distribution. It offers juicy flavors of blackberry and blueberry, and a rounded, smooth texture. It's not enormously complex, but it has a friendly approachability that would make it perfect for an evening barbecue. — Michael Dresser 2009 Alamos Malbec From: Mendoza, Argentina Price: $13 Serve with: Grilled meat, pasta

The proposal to allow direct shipment of wine in Maryland might have to age for another year, after the Senate voted Wednesday to require the state's comptroller to study how 37 other states have implemented similar measures. "I think it will set us on a course for passage next year," said Sen. Jamie Raskin, after offering the study as an amendment to a related wine-sale bill. The study is supposed to push forward the contentious issue of lifting a Maryland ban on shipping wine to residences via the postal service - an increasingly popular method for small vineyards across the country to market and sell their product.

There's a lot of just-average Italian pinot grigios on the market, including some well-known brands. Only a few stand out, and this is one of them. It's a ripe, full-bodied white wine with intense flavors of nuts, minerals and herbs — including mint and oregano. There's a roundness, length and complexity that takes this wine out of the realm of the ordinary. From: Collio, Italy Price: $16 Serve with: Trout almondine, salads

The Friends of Patterson Park are holding their 8th annual Wine Tasting at Sunset event on Thursday night around the historic Marble Fountain and Pagoda. Wine tastings and food samplings are coming from Chesapeake Wine Co. , DiPasquale's , Bistro Rx , V-No and  Todd Conner's . The evening includes an acoustic performance by Rob Fahey and silent and live auctions. Tickets are $50 and can be purchased on the Friends website or by calling the Friends office at 410-276-3676.

When the first Wine in the Woods festival was being planned in 1992, Ellicott City restaurateur Fernand Tersiguel suggested organizers add enlightenment to their goals for the event. This weekend, as the wine festival marks its 20th anniversary in Symphony Woods, the education seminars still attract a loyal following. But these are not the formal or snobby classes one might imagine. Instead, they are casual interactions among wine lovers. "You start tasting wine almost right away," said Larry Elletson, an Ellicott City resident and one of three co-directors of the Maryland chapter of Tasters Guild International.

Happy  Mother's Day  dear readers, If you are a mom or a grandmother, you hopefully will celebrate Sunday surrounded by loved ones. Mother's Day  is the single most popular day to dine out - how about a Havre de Grace restaurant - or make long-distance telephone calls. It is the third most popular holiday to send greeting cards. Anna Jarvis, a 45-year-old Philadelphian spinster and insurance clerk, was inspired to create Mother's Day after the death of her mother. With the financial backing by Philadelphia department store tycoon, John Wanamaker in 1907, Anna dedicated her life to fulfill her mother's dream of a national holiday to honor mothers everywhere.

From: Mendocino County, Calif. Price: $14 Serve with: Salmon, ham, crabs Bonterra is one of California's largest and most reliable producers of organic wines. More important, from my point of view, is the fact that they're very good wines that won't make you feel like you're consuming them for your health. This Chardonnay would be an excellent value, organic or not. It's made in a breezy, fresh style, with a light application of oak (only 16 percent was put in new barrels)

Last week's episode gave us bombs over Orange County, and now the ladies are looking to calm their nerves with a nice wine and cheese party. We start the episode with Vicki accompanying Tamra to a lingerie store as she attempts to fit her new “girls” into a new bra. I don't even mind that the camera follows them into the dressing room. The threat of a nip slip doesn't faze me - I'm just excited because tonight there is very little Heather exposure! During their shopping trip, Vicki drops the bomb on Tamra that Briana eloped.

The kerfuffle over the proposed wine store in Wegmans' newest location in Columbia heralds the next looming battle in consumers' fight to modernize Maryland's alcohol policy. The recent Howard County liquor board hearing demonstrated the intensity of both sides' arguments. The local retailers, backed by the alcohol distributors, fear increased competition — while consumer groups clamor for greater convenience and selection, and lower prices. The alcohol industry in Maryland has traditionally dictated its own regulations.

From: Elqui Valley, Chile Price: $13 Serve with: Seafood, salads Find it at: i.m. Wine, 8180 Maple Lawn Blvd, Fulton, and other local wine shops Pedro Ximenez is a white wine grape varietal best known for its role in producing dessert wines in Spain's sherry region and in Australia. But this version from Chile shows it can also produce a compelling dry white table wine. The 2010 Falernia Pedro Ximenez Reserva shows a bright range of flavors: mint and other herbs, lime, grapefruit, pear and minerals.