Wednesday, May 30, 2012

This Week at the Market: Running Hare Vineyard

Did you know that Cheverly Community Market has a long tradition of supporting local wineries? We were the first farmer's market in Maryland to include wineries. We have supported new legislation that allows wineries to ship their products and we're proud to support Maryland wineries as they grow and prosper.
This week, Cheverly Community Market favorite Running Hare Vineyard returns to Cheverly, and we are eager to welcome them! In 2000, Mike Scarborough purchased a 300-acre private farm which is now known as Running Hare Vineyard. While originally purchased as a hunting property, Mr. Scarborough soon discovered that the sandy, dry soil provided ideal conditions for growing grapes. His love of wine had been cultivated in France, where he lived as a child. His desire to pursue winemaking as a hobby was realized in 2002 with a planting of 100 vines. Since then, Mike and Barbara Scarborough have added several varietals of grapes and the vineyard has expanded from the initial 100 vines to approximately 5,000 vines on an eight-acre vineyard. During the fall 2007 harvest, the Scarboroughs decided to begin a commercial operation. Since then, the winery has expanded from a 550-gallon tank capacity to 12,500 gallons, producing just over 18,500 bottles of wine to date. Running Hare Vineyard has produced numerous award-winning wines, including three international gold medals. In August 2008, the vineyard celebrated it's grand commercial grand opening. Just one month later, five of Running Hare Vineyard's six wines received medals in the Maryland Governor's Cup Wine Competition; a first ever for a new winery! Since that time, wine production has more than tripled. Learn more about the impressive offerings of this wonderful local vineyard at their website. Even better, stop by and welcome the Scarboroughs to Cheverly Community Market thus Saturday!

No comments: