With the weather sweltering hot, and dehydration threatening to rear its ugly head, we decided the best remedy is to ride our bikes ten miles one way in order to drink some wine at the Bordaleau Winery just outside of Salisbury, Maryland.

The ride was beautiful, especially with the brilliant sunshine, but the roads weren't so friendly. As you move through Salisbury, past the university (which offers great scenery with its large brick buildings and manicured lawns) there are plenty of sidewalks. However, soon after the school the sidewalks vanish along with any glimmer of shoulder; it is simply you and the oncoming traffic.

For most, including myself, this maybe a bit nerve racking, especially when cars come barreling around corners with your vision skewed by lazy, drooping trees. This trek on bike is not for the faint of heart, or safety-minded folks. Even with these annoyances, we preserved since the weather and sky were to our liking. Then a nail in a tire caused us to abandon ship, for me to go back and grab the car and finish our adventure via Volvo.

Finding the Bordaleau Winery was a game of trial and error. Directions online landed us at an odd intersection directly across from lush green cornfields that reflected the radiant light of the August, however no vineyard was in sight. After many u-turns, we finally placed a call into the vineyard get help on their mysterious location. Down the road we were on, hang a left, yellow house; far from where our nifty GPS system was pointing us. Our adventure didn't end there. The yellow house turned out to be a residential abode with people sunbathing near their pool. They did, however, seem used to this type of interruption and the pointed us in the right direction... two more driveways down.

The tasting room of Bordaleau was cool and welcoming place from the scorching heat outside. It had a sense of newness that would later be explained by the fact the edifice, once a barn, was merely a year old. Plush leather stools and inviting high-top tables gave a mirage of a filled room, though, along with the barkeep, we were the only occupants.

Though my knowledge of wine is growing, I must still make clear that I am far from an expert in the nuances of tasting, but I can say that the Wicomico Red, a sweet red, was delicious. Armed with a bottle and two plastic couples, Mel and I walked along the gray lumber dock behind the vineyards out to gorgeous Wicomico River. Here, on a solitary wooden bench, looking out at the lily pads, trees, and a calm, flowing river, we enjoyed our sweet, chilled red wine. It was a surreal moment as if I was living out someone else life in another time.

What followed in the day might be the most intense three minutes of the summer. With our goal so far being plenty of low-impact activities involving kayaking and cycling, we were quiet distraught about our flat tire, so we spared no time with a repair. And for this repair, Bike Sport right off 13 in Salisbury was the first one we came across.

This bike shop has a certain spunk and swagger that more places need. They seem to love their trade and have fun with the customers, making what would have normally have been a totally drag a good time.

On this occasion, not only was I was challenged to balance seven nails on the head of another, but our the mechanic was challenged by another mechanic to a race; the younger gentleman, sporting patten leather loafers and a neat little fedora, said he could solve a Rubik's cube faster than our mechanic could change our flat.

The race was close, but in the end, the Rubik's fell to the ground in victory. Still impressive on the mechanic changing our tire, since we had our bike back good as new in less then three minutes.

Pro Tips:

When heading to Bordaleau, don't look for signs; there are none! Go to the end of Noble Farm Road and hang a left. The tasting room is the 3rd driveway on the right. (They are brand new and the barkeeps says signs are on their way.)

Tasting hours are not everyday. Take note: Wednesday 12-6 ~ Thursday 12-6 ~ Friday 12-6 ~ Saturday 10-6 ~ Sunday 12-6. Call ahead for tours.

A refreshing bottle of Wicomico Red is only $12 and the other wines are also reasonably priced.

Bordaleau is one of several wineries/vineyards along the new Chesapeake Wine Trail.

The quickest, most entertaining bike tire fix in history was a mere $5 for the inner tube, $10 for the installation, Rubik's cube challenge included...great deal!