W hether or not Ben Franklin was correctly quoted as saying that “ Beer is proof that God loves us and wants us to be happy ,” you will find several farm-based breweries in Montgomery County that full-heartedly believe in the sentiment !
Modern-day beer enthusiasts can credit their favorite beverage to the experimentation of interested drinkers from thousands of years ago . The world ’ s oldest-known barley beer dates from 3400 B . C . and was identified from remnants in archaeological artifacts excavated in Iran . Since then , researchers have worked to uncover the role of beer in ancient cultures , from its use as payment to workers constructing the pyramids in Egypt to its inclusion in dozens of drinking vessels buried with King Midas in Turkey . For millennia , different cultures have experimented with the process of extracting sugars from various combinations of grains and fermenting them with wild or domesticated yeasts . For a more in-depth guide through the fascinating history of beer , read the Smithsonian ’ s article , “
The Beer Archaeologist .”
Today , brewers in Montgomery County and Maryland as a whole continue this storied tradition , producing beers that reflect seasonal preferences as well as the availability of locally sourced inwhen exploring the soil characteristics and topography of farms in the area .
98 wineries that together have an economic impact of $ 200 million . Montgomery County is home to three farm wineries , and they are featured in this self-driving tour . There are also three new farm wineries in the planning and / or construction phases that will be added to this tour once their tasting rooms are open !
Self-Driving Winery Tour From 270 N from Gaithersburg :
1 Take 270N 11 miles to Exit 22 / MD-109S 2 Follow 109S for 3 miles and turn right onto Comus Rd ( 1.6 miles ) 3
Sugarloaf Mountain Vineyard is located at 18125 Comus Rd 4 Turn right out of SMV ( 0.8 miles ) 5 Turn left onto Sugarloaf Mountain Rd ( 0.5 miles ) 6 Continue onto Mt . Ephraim Rd ( 2.4 miles ) 7 Turn left onto MD-28E / Darnestown Rd ( 9.9 miles ) 8
Windridge Vineyards is located at 15700 Darnestown Rd 9 Turn left out of Windridge Vineyards onto Darnestown Rd ( 1.1 miles ) 10 Take a slight left onto MD-107 / Whites Ferry Rd ( 0.2 miles ) 11 Turn left onto Sugarland Rd ( 1.5 miles ) 12 Turn left onto Montevideo Rd ( 1.2 miles ) 13
Rocklands Farm Winery is located at 14525 Montevideo Rd 14 Return to Gaithersburg by turning left out of Rocklands Farm Winery and following Montevideo Road 1.1 miles to River Rd . Turn left . 15 Follow River Rd as it becomes Seneca Rd ( 3.7 miles ) 16 In Darnestown , turn right onto Rte . 28 ( 2.5 miles ) 17 Turn left onto MD-124N / Quince Orchard Rd ( 2.7 miles ) 18 Turn right onto MD-117 ( 0.3 miles ) and follow signs to I-270 .
* Entire route is approximately a 1 hour and 15-minute drive without stops . plenty I autumn harvest 2020 43