It’s tough to find a Virginia wine lover who’s unfamiliar with Ankida Ridge. While Ankida is one of the state’s more remote vineyards, being one of Virginia’s very few pinot noir growers make them one of the more famous.

Ankida is only 75 minutes from downtown Charlottesville, but the last leg of the journey is all uphill. You know things will get interesting when you pass signs that say “end of state maintenance” and your signal gets weak, but at least the views are beautiful.  

I’d been trying to meet up with owners Christine and Dennis Vrooman for a long time but always seemed to miss them. But this time I was in luck; Christine was happy to host a small group, and it was easy to find ‘volunteers’ to come with me.

With an elevation that tops out at 1,800 feet, Ankida is one of Virginia’s higher-elevation vineyards. While one wouldn’t blame the Vroomans for choosing the location for the view alone (which is technically true – the land was originally going to be a weekend getaway), its elevation actually serves a more practical purpose.

Standing on the deck of her tasting room overlooking the valley, Christine gestured at the scenery before us. “We have a little valley here and a little valley there, and cold air moves down them to the bottom of the mountain. We’ve never been touched by spring frost, and our disease pressure is low since we never get morning dew. I could have called it Utopia Ridge.”

The phenomenon Christine was referring to is called a ‘thermal belt’, and its why winegrowers prize mountaintop sites. Cold air is dense, and like water flows to the lowest point available. This in turn displaces lighter warm air which rises above it. This results in a narrow zone where the temperature is warmer than what is above and below it.

As Ankida is 1,000 feet higher than the bottom of the valley, the morning cold air passes through the vineyard but like an unwanted guest is shown the way out. This lets the vines stay within a consistent temperature range, one that is conducive for growing grapes. Christine explained their mornings start off warmer than the town below, but in the afternoon, the vineyard is typically 5-15 degrees cooler than the surrounding lower regions. Even in the hot 2023 summer the temperature never hit 90 degrees.

This climate (plus the ancient granite the vines are planted on) makes it a great place for pinot, gamay, and chardonnay; 6 acres in total. The first two grapes are nearly unheard of in Virginia, while the later retains a degree of acidity that’s rarely found.

This unique microclimate is the inspiration for an initiative that Ankida and nearby 12 Ridges Vineyard are working on; a new American Viticultural Area (AVA) dedicated to high-elevation vineyards.

Details are scarce since it’s mostly conceptual, but the idea is to have a non-contiguous AVA which only includes vineyards situated above a certain elevation. 1,000 feet has been bandied around as the measuring stick to join the club, but fine details such as the vineyard’s elevation in relation to its surrounding area are just as important as the site’s true elevation above sea level.

Fortunately for my group, Christine didn’t let my geeky wine questions stop her from pouring. Out came several cheese plates and a number of bottles, starting with their newest wine, the Blanc de Noir champenoise-style sparkling.

As much as I missed their Blanc de Blanc, this Blanc de Noir was equally good. Even in a lineup full of stars, it was special.

Next up were a pair of pinot-based wines; Ankida’s rosé and “Verday”, plus a chardonnay.

The rosé was nice, but I’ve had lots of great rosés and it was almost unfair to it put it next to a wine that truly surprised me; the Verday. Named after the light, refreshing wine that Portugal is known for, Verday had the same zestiest as any Vino Verde I’ve had.

Next up was their chardonnay. While the pinot noir gets the majority of the press, I think their bright & creamy 2021 Chardonnay should get equal billing. Not sure if I should give credit to the terroir or winemaker Nathan Vrooman, but dang I liked that one.

Then came a pair of pinot noirs; 2017 Reserve and 2019. The former was a special treat and made me kick myself for not ordering it while I could (granted it was $85…but still). 2021 wasn’t quite as complex but was still very quaffable. I was excited to learn that a 2021 Reserve was also in the works.

We ended the day sitting at the top of the vineyard finishing off the open bottles and admiring the view before heading home – but not before we were treated with a ride through the vineyard.