Black Ankle Vineyards: A Visit

Black Ankle Vineyards

14463 Black Ankle Road, Mt. Airy, MD 21771 | blackankle.com

EXPERIENCE

Emerging from the winding, wooded road to the sloping, grapevine-covered hillsides of Black Ankle Vineyards, the inviting patios and rustic buildings emerge organically from the landscape, creating a sense of delightful anticipation. I know I’m going to enjoy this experience—especially since I’ve been fortunate enough to visit here several times before.

I discovered Black Ankle during the late summer/early fall of 2020, when we’d been locked-down in Baltimore since March, and outdoor activities were the only safe and viable options. My partner, three friends, and I all needed to get away from the city for a bit, so we thought outdoor wine-tasting would be an excellent choice.

With next-to-zero research, we chose Black Ankle due to their list of dry-style wines and a travel time of only 1 hour. ‘Pleasantly surprised’ doesn’t quite capture the joyful and delicious time we all had on that warm afternoon, and every time we’ve visited Black Ankle in the intervening 3 years, we’ve never been disappointed.

This day, we came to Black Ankle for a Syrah Showcase. The outdoor seating here is thoughtfully designed—separated into several patio areas, all with large overhead sails for shade—which allow for a bit more intimacy while still seating quite a large number of people. Along with the rolling acres of estate vines, native wildflowers and their important pollinators surround the two main buildings. The buildings’ roofs exhibit the Black Ankle ethos: one is covered in solar panels, while the other is a ‘living roof,’ covered in sod and plants. Stepping inside the main tasting room, I’m greeted by natural light, warm wood, rugged stone, and plenty of green foliage from a variety of plants—a true reflection of the feel from outside.

The winery is quite busy—unsurprising on a sunny Sunday afternoon in July. However, the large staff is friendly, knowledgeable, and accommodating, perfectly capable of serving this many guests. In our staff interactions, it quickly becomes apparent that each and every worker here 1) loves wine and 2) is passionate about the wines and wine-making processes here at Black Ankle. From intimate tables for 2 inside or outside, to living-room-style couch seating areas, to social-friendly tasting bars, to larger tables and areas for groups, Black Ankle Vineyards offers a variety of experiences focused on ultra-local, biodynamic, sustainable viticulture and winemaking.

THE VINEYARD

Vineyard practices mirror the ethos of the of the tasting room. Biodynamic measures are used in many places, such as Horn Manure, avoiding the use of sulphites, and as much as possible, to not use chemical sprays in the fields. At harvest, they hand-pick their entire estate, ~57.5 acres of grapes!

The vines grow in soils that are a mix of clay, sand, and silt, with rolling hills having slope grades of 15-25%. The land is well-draining and terrible for most farming—which actually means it’s prime for growing grapes!

With the first plantings in 2003, proprietors and winemakers Ed Boyce and Sarah O’Herron made their first wine in 2008. They currently grow 13 varietals, six white wine grapes and seven red wine grapes.

White grapes:

🥂Albariño 🥂 Grüner Veltliner 🥂Sauvignon Blanc 🥂Viognier 🥂Chardonnay 🥂Muscat

Red grapes:

🍇Cabernet Franc 🍇Cabernet Sauvignon 🍇Malbec 🍇Merlot 🍇Petit Verdot 🍇Pinot Noir 🍇Syrah

WINES

TL;DR (A simplified version of what to expect)

Black Ankle is a French-style winery, for the most part. Their red wines are Pinot Noir (Burgundian), Syrah (Côtes du Rhône), and Bordeaux blends. The white wines are grapes that are more traditionally grown in Maryland: Albariño, Grüner Veltliner, Chardonnay, Viognier. Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, and Viognier all originate from France, but they grow almost everywhere, minus the Viognier. Your expectation in visiting this winery should be all dry wines. They make one dessert wine, but otherwise they steer away from the traditional Maryland fruit wine scene.

For the Wine Geeks

The wine list currently looks like this:

It appears that Black Ankle really prides themselves in transparency, both with what they grow and how they make it. They put their vineyard map up on their website, which includes the varietal clone numbers. Since 2015, they have been creating and sharing the technical specifications for all their wines, which is very fun for us wine geeks, as it creates a detailed image of what the year was like for that vintage. Wine Tech Sheets

Additionally, keep an eye out for bottles labeled with specific vineyards! On Instagram, the Black Ankle account recently posted images of their first bottled wine labeled Live Edge Vineyard! Beginning in 2020, Ed and Sarah started planting at two newly purchased vineyard sites, Tortuga and Live Edge. It is well worth keeping your ear to the ground about the new location as there are grand plans for the Live Edge property. For information regarding the progress of Live Edge Vineyard, their website has a wealth of information.