Keymar Winery

Keymar Winery is located in Keymar, Maryland next door to the property that was the birthplace of Francis Scott Key. Most Marylanders know him as the writer of the poem that ultimately became the National Anthem. He was also a lawyer in Baltimore and Washington D.C. back in the 1800’s. Terra Rubra is the name of the historical site, and also the name of the Winery's cabernet franc. Owners, Michael Moran and Lillian Nash believe this property is the key to good wine and couldn't be more excited for what is to come. They opened during 2025 and are already making some pretty great wines. Mike is the winemaker who served for 15 years in the U.S. Army before attending a Stomp and Chomp event in Baltimore in 2012 and meeting winemaker, Moe Fraunfelder. Mike loved meeting him and drinking his Zinfandel. After a few years, Moe convinced Mike to let him teach him to make wine. As they say, the rest is history. Cabernet franc vines were planted in the spring of 2025. Merlot and albarino are next to be planted in the spring of 2026. The wines they currently have for tasting were made by Mike with grapes locally sourced from neighboring wineries like Big Cork, Serpent Ridge and Libertas Estates. The barn is in the  process of being renovated into a tasting room. In the meantime, you can visit and taste through their wines from the bar in the basement of their house. We visited in December 2025 so the bar was beautifully decorated for Christmas, the fireplace was lit, and it was the perfect backdrop for tasting through our flight. The nebbiolo had structured tannins, aromas of pepper and vanilla and red fruit flavors of cherry and raspberry. Terra Rubra, the cabernet franc was aged 18 months in oak and had notes of pepper, cherry, plum and  vanilla. Mike and Lillian couldn't have been better hosts, chatting with us the whole time and took us for a ride through the vineyard and to the barn to see what is going to be the tasting room, ideally by March, when they will be having a grand opening event. Stay tuned! They even plan on having Yertz on the property for anyone who wants to do a little glamping and stay over night on the property after enjoying their wine and the gorgeous sunset they get daily if you have seen their social media. We couldn't have had a better visit. Make an appointment on their site and get out to see what this new Maryland winery has going on.