Wine Cellars

MEMBERS OF Manchester Parks Foundation will honor a new board of directors from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday with a wine and cheese reception at Cygnus Wine Cellars.The public, including children, is welcome to visit the winery and meet members of the parks foundation.Cygnus Wine Cellars, 3130 Long Lane, has offered to present selections of its label wine, and cheese, bread and complimentary logo wineglasses. Coffee, tea and soft drinks will be available.Mayor Elmer C. Lippy Jr. will install the board of directors for the foundation, the nonprofit volunteer organization that oversees Pine Valley Nature Center in Manchester.

EVERY PUPIL entering Spring Garden Elementary School will see a large tree that climbs the foyer wall and arches its branches, which hang from the ceiling.The tree was built by every pupil, and many parents, for an Earth Day celebration late in the school year.It was planned by art teacher Jan VanBibber so that each of the school's 850 or so pupils would gain sculptural art experience. A group of parents modeled armature of chicken wire, plastic pipe and wood (donated by parent Joe Ibex).

AUTHOR Kevin Atticks will appear at Cygnus Wine Cellars of Manchester, where owner/winemaker Ray Brasfield will release three new wines at a free tasting from noon to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday."

MAKING FINE WINE isn't rocket science. But for Ray Brasfield, who opened Cygnus Wine Cellars in Manchester, having been a rocket scientist helps.Brasfield, a winemaker and consultant for three area wineries since 1981, was once involved in materials research and development for the Saturn rocket boosters at Thiokol Corp.He also studied winemaking with respected vintners Peter Bell and Dave Munksgard in the Finger Lakes wine-producing region of New York."The connection is that winemaking is a blend of art and science," Brasfield said.

Farewell, summer. You certainly sprinted by in a hurry.For sun worshipers and schoolchildren, the first breezes of autumn might be an ill wind. Not so for wine enthusiasts. For us it is the vintage -- the best time of the year.As the summer's heat ebbs, serious wines regain their full appeal. Chardonnays and rieslings hit their stride. Bordeaux and California cabernet sauvignon taste impressive rather than oppressive.For those who keep wine cellars, it's a good time to take stock. Take note of those wines that are fully mature.

Irish eyes will truly be smiling this weekend as the St. Patrick's Day festivities get under way. From the city's big parade on Sunday to the parties at neighborhood saloons, revelers will paint the town green. Here are a few of the events planned:Baltimore's 36th annual St. Patrick's Day Parade will commence Sunday at 2 p.m., featuring lifelong city resident and Irish community member, Leo Welsh as grand marshal. This year's parade, which includes the Baltimore Colts Band, boasts more than 22 bands and 69 marching units in what is believed to be the city's largest parade of the year.

There was a notable absence at this year's Maryland Wine Festival at the Carroll County Farm Museum: Montbray Wine Cellars of Westminster and its founder, Dr. G. Hamilton Mowbray, weren't present.After several years of trying to sell his winery to a white knight, the grand old man of Maryland's struggling wine industry did not renew his state license this year.Dr. Mowbray, a former Johns Hopkins University psychologist who began the winery in 1966, did not press any grapes last year. This year, another winemaker rented his Westminster land to produce grapes.

Take a break from all that political programming on your televisions and get into the grass roots yourself. You are invited this weekend to whichever party you prefer.The county Republicans promise old-fashioned fun at their picnic to honor state Sen. Larry Haines from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday at the Agriculture Center, Smith Avenue, Westminster.Alesia Band and the Haines Family Singers provide entertainment.Weather permitting, the Maryland State Balloon will sweep you into the clouds for a $3 fare.

There was a notable absence at this year's Maryland Wine Festival at the Carroll County Farm Museum: Montbray Wine Cellars of Westminster and its founder, Dr. G. Hamilton Mowbray, weren't present. After several years of trying to sell his winery to a white knight, the grand old man of Maryland's struggling wine industry did not renew his state license this year.Dr. Mowbray, a former Johns Hopkins University psychologist who began the winery in 1966, did not press any grapes last year. This year, another winemaker rented his land to produce grapes.

WESTMINSTER - A hearty crop of oenophiles is expected to cluster at the Carroll County Farm Museum next weekend, to raise a toast to state-grown grapes at the Maryland Wine Festival.Though rain dampened the grounds during last year's festival, the two-day event still attracted 15,000 hearty spirits from across the state and mid-Atlantic region, said Jean Scott, program coordinator at the Farm Museum."We're hoping for more cooperation from the weather and even better attendance," she said.

SATURDAY THIEVERY CORPORATION: D.C.-based DJs Eric Hilton and Rob Garza usually keep their live shows interesting by bringing musicians from their label, ESL Music, on stage. So you can look for lots of special guests and music from the duo's latest release, "Radio Retaliation." Thievery Corporation performs at Pier Six Pavilion, 731 Eastern Ave., at 5:30 p.m. Tickets are $25-$65. Go to ticketmaster.com. MARYLAND WINE FESTIVAL: Grab a designated driver and your wine notes journal: You're in for abundant samples from Maryland's wineries, including Basignani Winery, Boordy Vineyards, Cygnus Wine Cellars, Elk Run Vineyards, Fiore Winery, Woodhall Wine Cellars and dozens more.

2007 Stags' Leap Winery Viognier From: Napa Valley, Calif. Price: $25 Serve with: Salmon, monkfish California viogniers have been a mixed bag ever since the state's vintners latched on to this elusive and once-rare white Rhone Valley varietal in the 1980s. They routinely deliver gobs of fruit, but often in a ponderous package of low acid and high alcohol. This lively, nuanced viognier from the winery (which is not the better-known Stag's Leap Wine Cellars) avoids these pitfalls with breezy acidity and a perfectly balanced mix of flavors of peach, apricot, oranges, spices and marzipan.

By design, the rooms are chilly, damp and dark -- but an environment in demand. Homeowners are turning to wine cellars to keep their vintages in optimal storage conditions, building rooms that can be as elegant as a Tuscany-styled entertainment hideaway or as stark as a rack-lined cave. Cellars can cost as little as a few thousand dollars for a simple grotto or well into the six figures for an architectural statement, and they are as likely to hold inexpensive vintages as they are those valued at upwards of $2,000 a bottle.

What do you have to do to get a good Chardonnay around here? Fly across the country for a tasting in Northern California's Napa Valley? Put down a few grand for a trip to St.-Emilion near France's beautiful western coast to savor the intricate flavors of a rich Cabernet? It turns out neither is necessary for a Maryland-area resident to experience the nuanced delights of oenophilia - the love of wine. Just drive about 30 miles west from Baltimore into the heart of Carroll County, and you will be greeted by the wonderful taste of fermented grapes at their finest.

One-man act focuses on mental illness To raise public awareness for mental health, Carroll Hospital Center's Behavioral Health Services will co-sponsor a one-man play, "Hearing Voices," by Michael Mack, on Thursday at the Carroll Arts Center, 91 W. Main. St., Westminster. A wine-and-cheese reception and art exhibition will begin at 6 p.m., and the play starts at 7:15 p.m. Mack, a performing artist and poet, will share his family's struggle to cope with his mother's battle with paranoid schizophrenia.

Ray Brasfield vividly recalls when he first started making wine about 25 years ago in the basement of his 33rd Street home in Baltimore. With only a small amount of equipment, including a small basket press, a wooden grape crusher and commercial garbage cans, Brasfield experimented with different varieties of grapes as he taught himself winemaking. His procedure was simple: He purchased grapes from growers in Maryland and southern Pennsylvania, crushed them and then poured the juice into the garbage cans to allow it to ferment.

Some of the finest grapes in Maryland are grown in a small town off Route 70. The three vintners who call Mount Airy home were drawn to the area by its terrain and soil. Now the wineries are drawing attention to Mount Airy, thanks to their award-winning wines and popular wine tastings. With spring in full swing, Berrywine Plantations/Linganore Wine Cellars, Elk Run Vineyards and Loew Vineyards are open for tours, tastings and other events this weekend. Among the highlights is Sunday's April Champagne Release at Elk Run. This once-a-year tasting includes gourmet treats and live music.

Wine and soup? Where: Woodhall Wine Cellars, 17912 York Road. When: Noon-3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Why: Winter means soup. Date means wine. Ergo, the perfect winter date might require a bit of both. The Woodhall Wine Cellars is serving soups of France this month. This weekend's menu including seafood soup, tomato and herb soup and soup a la canard -- and of course each soup will be matched with a glass of wine. Information: Cost is $10. For reservations call 410-357-8644. Visit www.wood hallwinecellars.

Rudys' to hold annual masters' dinner Sept. 9 Rudys' 2900 restaurant in Finksburg will sponsor the annual Dinner with the Masters at 6:30 p.m. Sept. 9. Certified Master Chef Rudy Speckamp will lead eight chefs from all over the country in preparing a seven-course dinner, including a champagne reception with hors d'oeuvres. The event is a celebration of the restaurant's 19th anniversary and of the continued partnership of Speckamp and maitre d' Rudi Paul. The menu will include appetizers, game birds, a seafood entree, sorbet, a meat entree, salad/cheese, desserts and friandise (chocolate confections)

Cygnus Wine Cellars in Manchester will hold a spring equinox tasting of new wines Saturday and Sunday. Featured wines will include a barrel-aged 1998 vintage cabernet sauvignon, and a sweet white dessert-style wine made from Seven Valleys Vineyard 1999 Botrytis infected barrel fermented late harvest Vidal Blanc. The free wine tasting will be held noon to 5 p.m. both days at the winery, 3130 Long Lane, Manchester. Information: 410-374-6395. Hampstead will elect Town Council on May 8 Hampstead will hold an election for members of the Town Council from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. May 8. The council meeting will not be held as scheduled that evening.