Grapes of Wealth, Potentially

The cooperative has 17 members, growing 23 varieties of grapes, and a wine consultant. Cooperative leaders wish the winery had started before the farmers randomly picked their grape selections from a list compiled by the state extension office.

With small quantities of so many varieties, the cooperative plans to make a few distinct wines from one type of grape -- such as Vidal Blanc, Chardonnay, Chambourcin and Cabernet Franc. All of the other grapes will be mixed together to create basic, less-expensive white and red table wines.

One of the strengths of the cooperative, members say, is the variety of personalities, backgrounds and talents. The lifelong farmers know how best to grow crops in Southern Maryland's sandy soil. Wine snobs recommend varieties and talk up the start-up to their tasting clubs. Others help with the business plan, marketing strategy, logo design and accounting.

Assisting them in tying those threads together is consultant Tom Payette, who has helped open wineries up and down the East Coast. "There's a lot of romance around the wine industry," said Payette, who is from Virginia. "It's easy to get these rosy glasses on and not see all the work that goes into it."

Many in Maryland hold up Virginia as the golden example, said Patrick Isles, a co-op member and the engineer who produces wine in his basement. "We look at them for the potential of what our wine can be," Isles said.

Although Virginia has produced wine since the 17th century, wineries in the Shenandoah region and Eastern Shore have become major tourist attractions in the past two decades, pumping millions of dollars into the state's economy. In 1979, Maryland and Virginia had the same number of wineries. By 2005, Virginia had 94 wineries, compared with 15 in Maryland. Today, Maryland has almost 30.

But Maryland growers have a few legislative obstacles in their way. To be labeled a Maryland wine, 75 percent of the grapes used to make it must be grown in state. And Maryland wineries can't ship wine out of state, meaning wineries cannot take orders from across the country by phone or the Internet, as they can in most other states.

Still, dozens of Southern Marylanders are trying their luck with the delicate crop, including Charles County farmer Todd Connick, who switched from tobacco to grapes, oats and wheat during the state tobacco buyout. The buyout used money from a settlement with major tobacco companies to pay tobacco farmers to switch to a different and more sustainable crop.

Connick planted his first vines three years ago and has about 1,000 vines on his 130-acre farm. This year, he sold his first 2,000 pounds of grapes to Friday's Creek Winery in Calvert County.

"We've been pleasantly surprised by how many good vines we've had," he said, "but it took constant pruning and spraying."