On August 9th, the “Virginia Women in Wine” (VWW) professional organization launched its inaugural event at Eastwood Farm Winery in Charlottesville. The soiree was equal parts an award ceremony for a trio of women trailblazers, a networking event, and a celebration of the hundreds of women who work in Virginia’s wine industry.
The group traces its beginning to the unlikeliest of places; a movie night for a small group of women who share a passion for Virginia wine but might otherwise may never have met.
In explaining the origins of VWW, founder Nancy Bauer told the audience of 160 attendees, “What started five years ago at a movie night at Glass House Winery is now hundreds of women across the state. Since then, an ever-growing passel of wine women – most of whom hadn’t met each other before – has been getting together at informal wine dinners. That movie was awful but the company was amazing. It was just for fun – but when women get together, electricity happens.”
Nancy was initially reluctant to turn these casual gatherings into a professional organization. After all, the local wine industry already has a number of industry associations, albeit ones focused on marketing or research.
Yet none of these organizations focus on the ‘human capital’ side of the wine industry, much less one specifically for women. The dearth of such an organization seems especially ironic considering two-thirds of the workforce at Virginia wineries are women, yet this demographic has traditionally been underrepresented in leadership positions.
Nudged on by her friends, Nancy slowly explored the idea. As she wrote on the group’s website, “Buzzing from each of those memorable evenings, the group asked: How to capture this energy? How to channel it? Make it meaningful and lasting?”
Virginia Women in Wine Board and Committee Members
Understanding Why “Virginia Women in Wine” Is Important
Even a quick look at the wine industry demonstrates the need for organizations such as VWW.
Even finding a full-time position in the wine industry is difficult. Most Virginia wineries are small, family-owned businesses with slim profit margins. While this makes landing a job difficult for both men and women, female talent face additional obstacles to stay in their chosen profession.
Winemaker Chelsea Blevins of Fifty Third Winery shared her own observations on these challenges.
“On top of the financial difficulties of getting into this industry, there are very few local wineries that can afford to offer real benefits to their employees. This is a dangerous job; I’ve gotten hurt multiple times and without insurance, it’s just too risky.
The wine industry also needs to learn how to handle pregnancies. I’ve known many talented women leave the industry because they wanted to start a family and the winery just couldn’t afford to handle the maternity leave or function without them being out for that long.
Add in tasting wine, climbing ladders, and running industrial equipment, this job isn’t ideal for expectant mothers.
If we want to bring in more women and keep them in the industry, we really need for more wineries to be able to offer a real career level position.”
“Women Helping Women”: Winemakers Chelsey Blevins, Joy Ting, and Emily Cochran (L-R)
The Mission of Virginia Women in Wine
Chelsea was able to obtain the support of fellow winemakers during times of injury and pregnancy, but not all are so lucky. Scenarios like these are exactly when a professional network like VWW most comes in handy.
According to their website, “The mission of Virginia Women in Wine is to strengthen the Virginia wine industry by creating women-led media and marketing ventures, by providing networking opportunities that lead to improved winery operations and career advancement of its members, and by funding projects that generate important discussions and raise the bar for the continued advancement of Virginia wine.”
Fundraising has already gotten off to a strong start. Twenty-six wineries and businesses have contributed as Patrons and Founders to the launch of Virginia Women in Wine, raising $52,000 thus far.
The organization has a few upcoming initiatives, including:
The VWW Trailblazer Award, which so far has recognized Lucie Morton, Emma Randel, and Felicia Warburg Rogan for their work in viticulture and founding some of Virginia’s first wineries.
Drafting a white paper, Closing the Gender Gap in Winemaking.
A number of retreats, wine dinners, and social events, including a “VWW Weekend” running from November 1st – November 3rd.
Coming up is the VWW Leadership Institute; an all-expense paid learning retreat for ten of the industry’s next generation of wine women leaders.
Membership is open to all in the Virginia wine, wine-tourism, and wine retail industries. To join, go to https://virginiawomeninwine.com.
These openings come at a time when there’s considerable concern over the health of the international wine industry. Sales have been steadily declining, in large part because younger drinkers tend to favor spirits and cocktails. Many are abstaining altogether.
Yet the local wine industry remains strong, and these openings suggest Loudoun seems well poised to weather these challenges.
Its reputation as “D.C.’s Wine Country” is one part of the equation. Loudoun wineries are in or adjacent to some of the nation’s wealthiest counties, which help buffer them from economic downturns. This area is also home to a community that is both business-savvy and has strong ties to agriculture, a combination that encourages those who dream of owning a winery to making ownership a reality.
But it’s not just geography. This trio of wineries share a secret weapon – winemaker Nate Walsh.
Nate and his team specialize in small-batch winemaking, produced at their newly-expanded facility at Walsh Family Wine. This makes him the go-to guy for new wineries looking for an experienced vintner. Not only does he perform contract winemaking for a number of clients, Nate makes wine for his own brand.
Blue Wall Cider & Wine (40614 Charles Town Pike, Paeonian Springs)
Justin & Casey Wisch are farmers-turned-cider makers. While beverages are part of the business plan, it’s only part of what they offer.
The Wisches are proponents of sustainable agriculture, producing meat and eggs that are antibiotic and hormone-free at their home at Long Stone Farm. These eco-friendly practices extend to their orchard, which integrates the farm’s livestock operations.
Their focus on sustainability led the Wisches to partner with others who share their values. This now includes Chesapeake Bay-based Rouge Oysters, and Nate Walsh to produce wine. Long Stone Farm also offers a trio of CSAs which specialize in meat, oysters, and cider, respectively.
Blue Wall opened their wine & cider tasting room this May, located adjacent to the Vino9Market on Route 9. The tasting room doubles as a farm store for some of their offerings. The name ‘Blue Wall’ was inspired by the farm’s westerly view of Short Hill Mountain.
Blue Wall currently has four wines and four single-variety ciders. Nate provides the fruit for the wine, while the cider is made from heirloom apples grown at their estate orchard.
Fans should be on the lookout for the Wisches’ farm-to-table dinners hosted at Long Stone Farm, as well as educational tours to learn about sustainable farming.
Domaine Fortier (13235 Milltown Rd, Lovettsville)
Owners Jennifer and Stephen Fortier are a couple that need to constantly stay busy. In addition to raising a trio of young daughters, Stephen runs a consulting firm while Jennifer is a patent attorney with an engineering background. Like many who catch the ‘wine bug’, they didn’t have any background in viticulture, but that didn’t stop them from pursuing the dream.
According to Stephen, the Fortiers were originally aiming for 5 acres of vines but decided ‘go big or go home’, picking a 34-acre property in Lovettsville. The vineyard now has 10 acres, which in the coming years will allow them to make 100% estate wine.
Jennifer explained they want to provide a more ‘elevated experience’. One problem the Virginia wine industry has is its wine is often sold young, as vintners can rarely afford to cellar bottles. To avoid this, the Fortiers took a methodical approach to building up the brand, opening only when they could sell wines that had some age.
The results already speak for themselves. Their 2017 cabernet franc (with a dash of tannat) won Gold at the prestigious 2023 San Francisco Chronical Wine Competition. My personal favorite is their albariño, a Spanish variety that is proving to be a great fit for Virginia’s terroir.
The Fortiers recently started pouring their wine at an open-air pavilion on the property while the tasting room is being built. Nate Walsh is tutoring Stephen in winemaking, but will make Domaine Fortier’s wine for the foreseeable future.
Farm de Vine (15960 Short Hill Rd, Hillsboro)
Years ago, with a son graduating high school and a daughter in college, owner Hari Moosani once asked himself, “What’s my next journey?”.
For starters, the Moosanis wanted more space. Hari found a former horse farm outside the town of Hillsboro, which he purchased in 2021. At the time, turning his new home into a winery was the furthest thing from his mind.
It was only after moving Hari realized he was surrounded by wineries. As fortune would have it, he once dreamed of owning a neighborhood bar where friends could come together. This property allows Hari to fulfill that dream.
Hari’s business plan calls for him to start small and slowly expand, starting with over an acre of cabernet sauvignon. Farm de Vine has since planted an additional acre of sauvignon blanc and some chambourcin.
Things moved faster than Hari could have hoped, as his 2023 cabernet crop was spectacular. Since the cabernet (made by Nate Walsh) is the only estate wine bottled so far, Hari supplements his tastings with bottles from the now-closed Forever Farm Vineyard.
Farm de Vine launched their soft opening in April. Visitors can find Hari personally serving his wine at the tasting room, which overlooks the vineyard.
“Shakespeare at the Ruins” returns to Barboursville Vineyards this July with a month-long showing of “The Comedy of Errors”. The play will be held at the ruins of the home of James Barbour, located a short walk from Barboursville’s tasting room.
One of William Shakespeare’s earliest works, The Comedy of Errors tells the story of two sets of identical twins who were accidentally separated at birth but later reunited. The name of the play has since entered the English lexicon to describe “an event or series of events made ridiculous by the number of errors that were made throughout”.
The theater behind this show is Four County Players, Central Virginia’s longest continuously operating community theater company. Founded in 1973, Four Counry Players has performed everything from contemporary musical satires to Dickens classics.
Four County Players came up with the idea of staging Shakespeare plays outdoors in 1990. Seeing the ruins’ potential as a unique backdrop, they approached Barboursville Vineyards to pitch the idea of a partnership. Barboursville accepted, and the troupe staged A Midsummer Night’s Dream at the winery later that year.
The Barboursville Ruins
The Barbour mansion is perhaps the perfect venue for outdoor events. Located in the heart of the breathtaking Barboursville Vineyards, the stately ruins with its nearby vineyards and high boxwood shrubs hosts everything from opera to weddings.
The mansion’s history adds to its allure. James Barbour served in a number of major offices, including Governor of Virginia, Secretary of War, and Minister to the United Kingdom. His red brick Flemish-bond home was constructed between 1814 and 1822, designed by his neighbor and good friend Thomas Jefferson.
The building’s distinctive eight-sided design was inspired by 16th century Italian architect Andrea Palladio, whose book I quattro libri dell’architettura (The Four Books of Architecture) Jefferson referred to as his ‘bible’. Jefferson used Palladio’s octagon motif in many of his buildings, including his home at Monticello and “The Rotunda” at the University of Virginia.
When Barboursville winemaker Luca Paschina was researching the history of the estate, he came upon the story of how Jefferson believed the octagon shape was a symbol of “perfection and balance”. This description was exactly what Luca strives for, which led his flagship wine to be named “Octagon”.
Photo credit: Eichner Studios
For decades the mansion was one of the largest in the region, even having its own racetrack. The building was destroyed by fire on Christmas Day, 1884.
Shakespeare Returns to Barboursville
Four County Players ended its 16-year run in 2006 due to the need to renovate the deteriorating ruins. Fittingly, the final production was All’s Well That Ends Well, directed by Clinton Johnston. Not wanting the tradition of Shakespeare to die, the annual production was moved back to its theater building in 2007.
Looking for a place to host outdoor events during the summer of 2019, Four County’s Production Manager, Gary Warwick White, investigated the possibility of reviving Shakespeare at the Ruins. Gary approached former volunteers who had instrumental roles in the previous iteration and received their support. When asked if they were interested in resuming their collaboration, the winery excitedly agreed.
Later that year, Four County returned to the ruins with a showing of A Midsummer Night’s Dream directed by Lydia Underwood Horan. COVID-19 forced a brief halt, but the summer tradition returned in 2022 with a showing of As You Like It directed by John Holdren.
Troupe member Edward Warwick explained in an email how he is excited to showcase Shakespeare’s more humorous side.
“I wasn’t around during the original run of Shakespeare at the Ruins, so having the opportunity to be a part of the return to the Ruins has been so special.
The Comedy of Errors is one of Shakespeare’s funniest works, and I think audiences are really in for a treat and a wild ride!
It is such a unique experience; a wonderful show, a spectacular setting, Virginia wine, fireflies, a symphony of crickets, spectacular sunset…you have to pause and take it all in. It’s a wow moment.”
Ticketing and Showtimes
The Comedy of Errors runs from July 12th – 27th at the historic Barboursville ruins. Shows will be held Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays. Tickets can be purchased at https://fourcp.org for $25.
Gates open at 6 PM. Shows start at 7:30 PM.
Guests use a separate entrance on Mansion Road that is only open for this event, not the one used for the vineyard/tasting room. The venue holds 400 seats.
The Palladio Restaurant at Barboursville Vineyards will have picnic baskets for sale, and Barboursville wine will be offered by the glass and bottle. The venue will also host both a savory and sweet food truck at each performance.
If you’re reading this, you probably know all about the “Judgement of Paris”. It’s a huge inspiration to my own wine comparisons, although mine tend to include a broader selection of varieties than the original event (and Virginia wine is always in the mix).
I often hear that both in style and geography, Virginia wine is a half-way point between California and France. But having tried a great deal of both, I’d only somewhat agree with that statement.
My observation is stylistically speaking, Virginia wine trends more towards France than it does California. That said, truly successful Virginia winemakers focus on being ‘Virginia’ rather than try to emulate one region or the other.
I’d already done one “Judgement of Virginia” comparison, but after a few years it was time to apply the lessons-learned from the first time and try again.
Tasting & Scoring Methodology
A group of friends & I blind tasted 5 comparison flights. All the flights were bagged blind. It wasn’t planned that way, but many of the same wineries I selected for my 2022 event were again represented.
The goal was to pick a ‘favorite’ every round, as opposed to rating them and determining which one we thought was the ‘best’. In many cases, ‘best’ was entirely subjective.
This particular event included an abundance of industry professionals. Of the six of us, two had side-gigs at wine stores, two were working on their WSET Diplomas (and one was a wine judge), and one was born in Bordeaux and had experience working at both California and Virginia wineries.
While all were familiar with Virginia wine, I didn’t need to worry about having a bias in favor of either France or Virginia. At least one (gasp!) may have even expressed doubts what Virginia could bring to the table, so I was on a bit of a mission to show the best of what Virginia had to offer.
Because of that, it’s fair to say that my Virginia wines represented a good cross-section of the ‘elite’ of the local industry. But that didn’t mean we slouched on our French pairings; I did my best to compare a wine from each area that was roughly equal in terms of blends and price points.
I specifically told my attendees to not share their guess on which wine came from which region until the end of the event. It was about the best wine of each round, not ‘guess the Virginia bottle’. All the bottles were unveiled at the end.
The contenders:
Charles Heidsieck blanc de blancs (France) ($95 Wine Searcher)
2016 Trump “Brut Reserve” (Virginia) ($95 for the 2017 vintage)
Bottle #1: Charles Heidsieck blanc de blancs (France; I believe it was bottled in 2017)
Bottle #2: 2016 Trump “Brut Reserve” (Virginia) (Round winner; 6 votes as favorite; all incorrectly guessed Champagne)
Of course, we start with sparkling.
This was arguably the biggest surprises of the day. All of us voted for Bottle #2 (Trump) as our favorite. During a last-minute pre-unveiling tally to guess its area of origin, all of us guessed it was Champagne. Nope; this was Albemarle County’s very own Trump Winery.
This is where I wish I took a video of the reactions. We were SURE this was Champagne; nobody even floated the idea it was Virginia (even those who’ve had it). The tasting notes also seemed to back that assessment up, with #2/Trump seeming a bit more ‘aged’ and having finer bubbles.
I’ve said in the past that “Trump sparkling can go toe-to-toe with anything”. But now, I need to edit that statement. It would likely take a +$100 Champagne to surpass a Trump Winery Brut Reserve.
Bottle #1 / Charles Heidsieck blanc de blancs (France). More brioche on the nose than #2. “Bigger” on the palate. Creamy and fresh. One of us mentioned it was more reminiscent of “American” butter while #2 (Trump) was reminiscent of French butter, and several backed that assessment up. It had thicker bubbles with more citrus notes.
Bottle #2 / 2016 Trump “Brut Reserve” (Virginia). The brioche was there on the nose but I personally thought there was a mineral note to it. Lemony, creamy and fresh. More ‘aged’ notes, including nuttiness. More ‘European butter’ notes, which (I’m told) is fattier and more delicious than its American counterpart.
Kathy: Voted #2 (Trump). Guessed Champagne (it was Virginia). Thought #1 had more aggressive bubbles, maybe more reductive. #2 was more oxidative and citrusy.
Lieven: Voted #2 (Trump). Guessed Champagne (it was Virginia). Lots of similarities between the two, although thought #1 was ‘narrower’. Thought #2 had probably a few more grams of sugar than #1, although both were Brut. He also came up with the idea that #1 (Champagne’s Heidsieck) was more ‘American’ butter while #2 was ‘European’ butter
Marine: Voted #2 (Trump). Guessed Champagne (it was Virginia). Concurred with Lieven’s comment about “American butter” vs “European butter”.
Matt C: Voted #2 (Trump). Guessed Champagne (it was Virginia). Thought #2 had more dosage. #1 was more kumquat notes while #2 was more mandarin orange.
Matt F: Voted #2 (Trump). Guessed Champagne (it was Virginia). No tasting notes (too busy writing).
Robrette: Voted #2 (Trump). Guessed Champagne (it was Virginia). Thought #1 was more acidic while #2 was ‘rounder’. Also liked the texture of #2.
Bottle #4: 2023 Walsh Family Bethany Ridge (Round winner; 6 votes for favorite; 3 guessed were Virginia)
This round was surprising because the Bordeaux Blanc came off as “New World”, while the Walsh was much more Sancerre-like.
At first I was upset I didn’t ask for a more ‘classic’ expression of French Sauv Blanc, but in retrospect I’m happy how it came out. It just goes to show you that not only can Virginia wine present as “Old World”, there are times when “Old World” wine comes off as “New World”.
The Bordeaux Blanc was so overpowering floral that I could have guessed it was a Torrontés in a blind tasting. A very off-brand Sauv Blanc, especially for France. But still very quaffable.
Bottle #3 / 2022 Chateau Picque-Caillou Blanc. The nose was aggressive, nearly overpowering. It was so off-brand it threw us for a loop, and I suspect those who weren’t familiar with Walsh Family assumed this had to be the “New World” wine.
Grassy, almost New Zealand-style perfume-y nose. Lighter in color, and maybe a dab of oak. Lots of texture. Notes of citrus, jasmine, tarragon, and gooseberry were mentioned.
Bottle #4 / 2023 Walsh Family Bethany Ridge. “Shy” was the key descriptor, which I assume was due to it being recently bottled. The nose took a while to make an appearance but was lovely when it finally arrived.
Notes of dry grass (as opposed to freshly cut grass). Delicate and elegant. Citrus and lingering stone fruit notes. I completely understand why people thought this was France; maybe my next pairing will be Sancerre instead of a Bordeaux Blanc.
Kathy: Voted for #4 and guessed #4 was Virginia. Thought #3 had nice acidity and was perfume-y. #4 had notes of quince, mineral, and dried herbs.
Lieven: Voted for #4 and guessed #4 was France. #3 had notes of stone fruit, papaya, tarragon, and was floral and bright. #4 had a sharper nose.
Marine: Voted for #4 and guessed #4 was Virginia. #3 was ‘flamboyant’. Notes of cat pee, passion fruit, and was smooth. #4 was more subtle, notes of fresh herbs and had a lovely finish.
Matt C: Voted for #4 and guessed #4 was France. Thought #3 had notes of honeysuckle and grapefruit.
Matt F: Voted for #4 and guessed #4 was Virginia (mostly because I know and love Walsh’s SB) but never could have guessed #3 was French.
Robrette: Voted for #4 and guessed #4 was France. Thought #3 was grassy, fleshy, notes of dragon fruit. #4 was lmon-lime, grape fruit, hint of herbs.
Flight #3: Chardonnay
Bottle #5: 2015 Linden “Hardscrabble” (Chardonnay) (Virginia) (3 votes, tie; all guessed it was Virginia)
Bottle #6: 2015 Louis Jadot Beaune (France) (3 votes, tie)
This round was special because I LOVE aged Chardonnay. The 2015 Linden is one of owner/winegrower Jim Law’s favorite (and highest rated) Chardonnay vintages ever, and bottles of Hardscrabble Chardonnay are basically his ‘flagship wine’. I’m not familiar with the Louis Jadot but dang, that one aged beautifully as well.
I didn’t take great notes on why we all thought #5 was Virginia, but we all must have found something about it that stood out since we were all accurate.
Bottle #5 / 2015 Linden “Hardscrabble” (white) (Virginia). It had a ‘hot note’ of higher alcohol. Lemon notes, nutty nose. This seemed more ‘fruit’ driven.
Bottle #6 / 2016 Chateau Tour des Termes (France). “Big”, nutty qualities as well. Lots of complexity on the nose. Complex palate. This seemed a tad bit more ‘winemaker’ driven, at least on the nose.
Kathy: Voted for #5 and thought #5 was Virginia. Thought #5 was fresher, more fruit vs #6 showcased ‘the winemaker’, and #5 had a note of salinity.
Lieven: Voted for #6 and thought #5 was Virginia. Thought #5 was more bruised fruit, lemony but also cooked, with notes of marmalade. #6 was more lemon drop, with a sour note. Both had notes of baking spice.
Marine: Voted for #6 and thought #5 was Virginia. #5 was more pronounced bruised apple, lighter and more acidic than #6. #6 was shy, smooth, balanced and toasty.
Matt C: Voted for #5 and thought #5 was Virginia. #6 was ripe pair, fresh butter on the nose. Saw a hot note to it. #6 had a reductive nose, notes of melted butter, cooked apple, and baking spice
Matt F: Voted for #6, and thought #5 was Virginia.
Robrette: Voted for #5 and thought #5 was Virginia. Thought #5 as rounder and had more mouth feel. #6 was sharper.
Flight #4: Red Flight #1
Bottle #7: 2016 Chateau Tour des Termes (France) (Round winner, 6 votes)
Bottle #8: 2019 Fifty-Third Winery “Romulus” (Virginia; all guessed it was Virginia)
This round was our mid-price ranged red comparison. The differences between them were more pounced than the other rounds (at least in my opinion). It was relatively easy to guess the Virginia wine since it was brighter and more fruit-driven than the Bordeaux.
This was a fight between ‘easy drinking vs serious & complex’. They were slightly further apart in vintage than I would have preferred – but you take what you can get.
Bottle #7 / 2016 Chateau Tour des Termes (France). I wrote most of the notes below for this round.
Kathy: Voted for #7 and thought #8 was Virginia. Thought #7 had black plumb, notes of peppercorn, was rustic, and had more complexity. #8 was more black cherry vanilla (like the ice cream), notes of cherry cola.
Lieven: Voted for #7 and thought #7 was Virginia. Thought #7 was red and black fruit, notes of cassis and char, with a savory note. #8 was more blue and black fruit, note of violet, and had a lighter palate.
Marine: Voted for #7 and thought #8 was Virginia. #7 had notes of fresh herbs, black cherry, rustic, more ‘serious’. #8 was fresher, more crushed berry, and liked the brightness.
Matt C: Voted for #7 and thought #8 was Virginia. Thought #7 had a “Virginia nose”, notes of cassis, maybe a little new oak. #8 was softer, leaned into the fresh fruit, was softer and had a lingering berry note.
Matt F: Voted for #7 and thought #8 was Virginia. I thought #8 had a sour note on the palate, and wasn’t as well integrated when compared to #7.
Robrette: Voted for #7 and thought #7 was Virginia. #7 was more complex while #8 was brighter and was less complex, with cola notes.
Flight #5: Red Flight #2
Bottle #9: 2018 Chateau de la Brede Rouge (France) (3 votes; tie)
Bottle #10: 2017 Linden “Hardscrabble” (red) (Virginia) (3 votes; tie, 2 out of 6 guessed it was Virginia)
While Jim Law’s flagship wine is his Hardscrabble white (Chardonnay), he makes some damn good reds. His wines are always well balanced, and that was evident here.
But the Brede Rouge wasn’t a slouch either, everyone loved it just as much. Votes were tied between them.
Surprisingly (or not, depending on how high your estimation of Linden is), 4 out of 6 of us thought the Virginia wine was Bordeaux (even my guest from Bordeaux thought so). I’ll take that as a huge vote of confidence for Linden Vineyards.
It wasn’t until the next day that I got the ‘musty’ notes that are indicative of Bordeaux on the nose, although both bottles were well aerated before this event.
Bottle #9 / 2018 Chateau de la Brede Rouge (France). It was late so most of my tasting notes are below. Several thought they detected an ‘olive oil’ note to #9, which threw people off.
Bottle #10 / 2017 Linden “Hardscrabble” (red) (Virginia). Guests generally identified this as smooth, balanced, and fruit-driven.
Kathy: Voted for #9, thought #10 was Virginia. Thought #9 was brine-y and had a note of olive oil which was unusual for Bordeaux. #10 was fresher, more raspberry and herbs and fewer barnyard notes.
Lieven: Voted for #10, thought #9 was Virginia. Thought #9 was more red cherry, plumb, pomegranate, and potting soil. #10 was more red cherry, plumb, earth and forest floor. Thought this wine was more about the mid-palate.
Marine: Voted for #10, thought #9 was Virginia. Thought #9 had notes of cinnamon, pepper, nutmeg, prune-y and tobacco. I think she mentioned notes of nutmeg and spice. #10 had notes of black current, cherry, and ‘juicy’
Matt C: Voted for #9, thought #9 was Virginia. #9 was black cherry, liquorish, brine, notes of baked fruit and had a cooked quality to it. #10 was black current, cigar box, red and black fruit and cedar.
Matt F: Voted for #10, thought #10 was Virginia.
Robrette: Voted for #9, thought #9 was Virginia. Thought #9 was more red fruit, black cherry, but balanced and smooth. #10 was more red fruit, and lighter, smoother, softer.
Lessons Learned:
Normally I talk about how similar a well-made Virginia wine can be to a classic expression of the same variety from France. What surprised me was how French wine can, on occasion, showcase “New World” notes.
The Chardonnay and the 1st red flight were easy; 100% of guests correctly identified each country of origin. The Sauvignon Blanc flight was harder to guess, with only 4 out of 6 guessing correctly. Even more difficult was the 2nd flight (with Linden) where only 2 out of 6 guessed correctly.
The sparkling round was the real stumper. Was it conceit to assume Virginia couldn’t match a $80-$100 bottle from Champagne? Maybe! I stand by my assessment that Trump Winery’s sparklings hit above their price point.
I also loved how wrong people were about the Linden Hardscrabble red vs Bordeaux flight, which stumped most of us.
So was it that Virginia wines are expressive of “Old World”? Or a few of these French wines were New World-ish? A bit of both, at least in this case.
In the end of our 5 comparisons, Virginia won 2 rounds, Bordeaux 1 round, and we had 2 ties.
Virginia’s capital isn’t famous as a wine region – but it should be. Richmond is deeply connected to Virginia wine, from the industry’s earliest days to the vineyards and cideries that surround the city today.
It was in Richmond that Norton, Virginia’s first rockstar grape, was “born”. According to the book The Wild Vine, Dr. Daniel Norton was an amateur horticulturalist who experimented with crossing different breeds of grapes. In 1821 he discovered a new variety in his nursery, eventually bequeathing it his name.
The Norton grape was a mainstay of the American wine industry during the later half of the 19th century, only to largely disappear upon the advent of prohibition. It’s now making something of a comeback as winegrowers find new appreciation for Norton’s weather-hardiness, especially as climate change takes hold.
Today, Richmond is surrounded by wine trails on all sides. North of the city is the “Heart of Virginia” wine trail, encompassing a half-dozen locations. To the city’s east is the “Virginia Peninsula” wine trail, and westward lies the Richmond West Trail, which includes wine, cider, beer, and spirits. Further out is the Central Virginia Fermentation Farm Trail, which stretches from Richmond to almost Charlottesville.
Richmond is also home to a growing craft beverage scene. 30+ award-winning breweries and cideries dot its neighborhoods, as well as both an urban winery and meadery.
Understanding RVA Wineries
Unlike the Shenandoah Valley or the nearby Northern Neck peninsula, most Richmond-adjacent wineries aren’t part of a specific wine growing region.
The major exception to this is the Virginia Peninsula American Viticultural Area (AVA), which was established in 2021. AVAs are federally recognized for their distinct growing conditions, allowing wine grown inside their boundaries to be associated with a “sense of place”. The Virginia Peninsula AVA is located just east of the city, stretching 50-miles down to Hampton Roads.
This area is characterized by its subtropical climate, moderate weather, and soil types ranging from sandstone, gravel, and sandy-clay. Many grape varieties are grown here, but local winemakers report it’s particularly suitable for warm-weather varieties, such as Albariño.
While many of these growing conditions apply to other nearby vineyards, the area around Richmond is too diverse to be placed in a single geological or stylistic basket. If anything, for the dozen wineries within a roughly 30-minute drive of the city, diversity is their hallmark.
7 Lady Vineyards at Dover HallBen Jordan at Dover Hall
Some locations such as Skipper’s Creek are quaint venues where your server is likely to be the owner/winemaker, while others including Jolene Family offer lake-side picnicking. Saudé Creek’s tasting room may evoke images of an old colonial inn, while Resolution is an urban winery and one of a handful of Black-owned wineries in the state.
A Combined Food & Wine Experience
If there’s one aspect of Richmond’s wine scene that sets it apart from Virginia’s other regions, it’s their focus on providing an all-inclusive experience. A number of local wineries have full-service kitchens, providing fare that go beyond the normal charcuterie plates or food trucks usually found elsewhere.
With that in mind, here are several must-visit wineries to fully experience what Richmond-adjacent wineries have to offer:
Dover Hall is the home of 7 Lady Vineyards, one of Virginia’s newest wineries. Founders Chad Hornik & Jeff Ottaviano teamed up with winemakers Ben & Tim Jordan of Commonwealth Crush to provide an assortment of Virginia-grown wines as well as varietally-correct styles from around the world.
7 Lady is offering pop-up tastings and wine dinners at Dover Hall while the tasting room is being built. But the wine club is up & running and they are already booking weddings, rehearsal dinners, and corporate events.
According to winemaker Alan Thibault,opening a kitchen has as much to do with practicality as it does with providing complimentary food and wine pairings. “There’s not many local restaurants in our area, so we wanted to provide options so people have everything they want right here. We keep it as farm-to-table as we can.”
Ashton Creek’s food focuses on handheld dishes and shareables. Alan’s favorite food combination is his 2022 Gravity red blend (67% Noiret, 22% Merlot, and 11% Tannat) with lamb lollipops, using a wine reduction sauce using his Chambourcin.
Located less than 30-minutes outside the city down I-64, New Kent is not only a farm winery with 38 acres under vine, but a brewery as well.
The tasting room uses pre-Civil War bricks and reclaimed old-heart pine to blend modern and historic aesthetics. Its trusses came from a 1901 railroad depot in Richmond, while the floors and timbers were reclaimed from a Connecticut warehouse that was built in 1852.
Try their BBQ pork sliders with an IPA, and have a taste of their flagship Reserve Chardonnay and Merlot, both of which earned Gold medals in the 2024 Virginia Wine Governor’s Cup.
Upper Shirley is the brainchild of Suzy and Tayloe Dameron, who saw potential in an otherwise undeveloped stretch of land on the bank of the James River. They soon partnered with Michael Shaps, who’s won more wine awards than anyone in Virginia.
Their kitchen offers everything from brunch to pre-fix dinners, while in 2024 alone their wine won 3 Gold medals at the 2024 Virginia Wine Governor’s Cup. Check out the view from their porch while dining on a burger or crab cakes.
“Out of all the grapes, you must grow Nebbiolo. It’s beautiful, it’s the wine of kings”.
These words were spoken by an Italian winemaker (who’s identity is still unknown) to Paul Breaux during his 1996 research trip to Alba, Italy. This gentleman overheard Paul order a glass of wine with dinner and walked over to his table to insist he try Nebbiolo.
A long conversation ensued. Paul was so impressed by the wine and the man’s passion for it, he decided on the spot Breaux Vineyards needed this grape. It was a huge leap of faith for a variety that was then untested in Virginia.
This chance encounter had a profound impact on Breaux Vineyards. Jen Breaux went on to explain, “Nebbiolo has given us a name in Virginia wine. I truly believe that”.
I recount this story because not only does Nebbiolo evoke such passion, only winegrowers truly in love with this grape would be willing to deal with such a finicky, difficult to grow variety.
While the Italian Piedmont has the near-goldilocks conditions to produce the world’s finest Nebbiolos, it’s a far riskier proposition here in Virginia. Early budding, late ripening, and with inconsistent yields even when things go well, Nebbiolo flies in the face of any logical growing strategy. That’s likely why Virginia has only 39 acres of Nebbiolo planted, divided between about a dozen wineries.
Bill Gadino of Gadino Cellars gave one of my favorite answers. When deciding what red grape to plant, he approached Luca Paschina of Barboursville for advice. Luca told him, “If you’re going to pick one, go for the gold and grow Nebbiolo.”
Tasting & Scoring Methodology
A group of friends & I blind tasted 8 wines in 4 comparison flights, youngest to oldest. All the flights were bagged blind.
3 of the 4 East Coast wines came from Virginia, and 1 was from Pennsylvania. The Italian wines included 1 Barbaresco and 3 Barolos, widely considered the best expressions of this grape. Except for a 2015 vs a 2017, all pairings were matched by vintage year.
The goal was to pick a ‘favorite’ in every flight, as opposed to rating them according to a sophisticated scoring system. After the 4 flights, we selected 3 bottles to go into a ‘finalist’ round. Our resident chef also prepared a meal that went with the wine.
It’s important to point out that ‘favorite’ was a very subjective term. It wasn’t a requirement we choose the most ‘varietally correct’ wine as a ‘favorite’. That said, my guests often used ‘varietally correct’ as part of their own criteria. To satisfy my curiosity, I also asked which wine they thought was from Italy.
The lack of Virginia producers greatly limited our options, especially when it came to finding older vintages. By contrast, you can pick up great Italian Nebbiolos anywhere.
No doubt this biased the outcome in favor of Italy. But hey – if you want to play in the big leagues, you come with the team you have!
The contenders:
2020 Barboursville ($40 on website) vs 2020 Nada Giuseppe Barbaresco Casot ($49 Wine.com)
2017 Va La Vineyards ‘Cedar’ (~$50 for the current vintage?) vs 2017 Manzone Barolo Gramolere ($59 – $69.99 Wine.com)
2015 Gadino Cellars ($51 on website) vs 2017 Parusso Barolo Perarmando ($65 Wine.com)
2012 Breaux ($80 on website) vs 2012 E. Pira Chiara Boschis “Cannubi” Barolo ($99.99 on Wine.Com, $84 at a nearby wine store)
Bottle #2: 2020 Nada Giuseppe Barbaresco Casot (3 votes)
This was the closest matchup of the day in terms of votes. We needed to let these wines open up before we could fairly judge them, and the tasters wine went back-and-forth in selecting which was their ‘favorite’.
Eventually, 5 of 7 guests settled on #1 being Virginia, as those subtle pyrazine notes were suggestive of the East Coast. They weren’t prominent by any means, but ‘green’ notes of any type were so uncharacteristic of Nebbiolo that just a hint was enough to identify its origins. This trend continued over the course of the event.
Bottle #1 / 2020 Barboursville Nebbiolo (Virginia). Light but noticeable nose. Lots of pepper notes, with an undertone of pyrazines. Rustic. Complex, with earthy/leathery notes. Dried herbs also came up. Ruby colored.
Bottle #2 / 2020 Nada Giuseppe Casot (Barbaresco). VERY light, almost unnoticeable nose unless you swirled it a lot. Notes of anise was mentioned. “Smooth” tobacco came up. Garnet color.
Alex: Favorite was #1/2020 Barboursville and thought #1 was East Coast (correct). Loved the nose of #1 and thought it was ‘drink now’ while #2 needed more time.
Kathy: Favorite was #2/2020 Nada, and thought #1 was East Coast (correct)
Lindsay: Favorite was #2/2020 Nada, and didn’t guess country of origin.
Matt: Favorite was #1/2020 Barboursville and thought #1 was Italy (inaccurate). I thought #1 had an Old World quality to it while #2 was smoother & easy to drink, hence I thought #1 was Italy while #2 was Virginia.
Ryan: Favorite was #2/2020 Nada, and thought #1 was East Coast (correct)
Sarah: Favorite was #2/2020 Nada and thought #1 was East Coast (correct). Thought #2 had ‘deeper’ fruit.
Vincent: Favorite was #1/2020 Barboursville and thought #1 was East Coast (correct). Thought #1 was more complex.
Bottle #4: 2017 Va La Vineyards ‘Cedar’ (Pennsylvania) (2 votes)
Wine #4/Va La was noticeably different than anything else we had that day. Hard to put my finger on it…maybe it was the filtering (or lack of it)? It was a bigger & bolder wine than we were expecting. Wine #3/Manzone was one of the most ‘varietally correct’ wines of the day.
Bottle #3 / 2017 Manzone Barolo Gramolere. Very balanced and ‘classic’. Notes of dried roses and tar were mentioned, but they weren’t overwhelming. Very tannic. Ruby color.
Bottle #4 / 2017 Va La Vineyards ‘Cedar’. Oh boy, this wine was complex! Punch you in the face ‘big’. Acidic and ‘weird’ but in a good way. Garnet color.
#4 had the oddest descriptor I’ve heard in a long time; “caramel/chocolate/olive oil”.
Alex: Favorite was #3/2017 Manzone and thought #4 was East Coast (correct). Thought #3 was varietally correct while #4 was ‘interesting’.
Kathy: Favorite was #3/2017 Manzone and thought #4 was East Coast (correct)
Lindsay: Favorite was #3/2017 Manzone and didn’t guess the region. Went with #3 because of its balance.
Matt: Favorite was #4/2017 Va La and thought #4 was East Coast (correct). I thought #4 wasn’t varietally-correct but I didn’t care. I was completely fascinated by this wine so picked it as my ‘favorite’, even if arguably #3 was ‘better’.
Ryan: Favorite was #3/2017 Manzone and thought #3 was East Coast (inaccurate)
Sarah: Favorite was #3/2017 Manzone and thought #4 was East Coast (correct)
Vincent: Favorite was #4/2017 Va La and thought #4 was East Coast (correct). Thought the results were very close but leaned towards #4 because he thought it was denser and had more going on.
This round was more of a blowout because #6 veered pretty dramatically away from varietal-correctness, to the point we thought it was almost a California Cab.
I was surprised when I unveiled the bottle and found it to be our 2015 Gadino. I’ve had this bottle before and didn’t remember it diverging from ‘traditional’ Nebbiolo characteristics, so I can’t quite explain it. Maybe the comparison showcased qualities we otherwise would have overlooked? Or was it something in my storage?
Bottle #5 / 2017 Parusso Barolo Perarmando. Light nose, looooong finish. Ripe fruit, with notes of liquorish. Spearmint gum or cedar on the nose, or maybe herbal notes (depending who you asked). Balanced.
Bottle #6 / 2015 Gadino Cellars. A little caramelly, with a tar nose. But we also found notes of toasted vanilla and blackberry. This was the least varietally correct wine of the day.
Votes:
Alex: Favorite #5/Parusso, thought #6 was East Coast (correct).
Kathy: Favorite #5/Parusso, thought #6 was East Coast (correct)
Lindsay: Favorite #5/Parusso, thought #6 was East Coast (correct)
Matt: Favorite #5/Parusso, thought #6 was East Coast (correct)
Ryan: Favorite #5/Parusso, thought #6 was East Coast (correct)
Sarah: Favorite #5/Parusso, thought #6 was East Coast (correct)
Vincent: Favorite #5/Parusso, thought #6 was East Coast (correct)
This was the highlight of our 1 vs 1 comparisons. Our biggest challenge is Wine #7 had a ‘hot’ note caused some initial worry that maybe it was cooked during storage. Fortunately, after a short time that quality blew off and became much more enjoyable.
Bottle #7/ 2012 E. Pira Chiara Boschis “Cannubi” Barolo. Notes of cherry, blackberry, and menthol were mentioned, but stewed fruit, tar, dry cherry, and star anise came up even more. Not a lot of fruit on the palate but there was a tremendous depth of flavor. One person mentioned a note of bell pepper.
FYI – 97 points from James Suckling; 95 points Vinous.
Bottle #8 / 2012 Breaux Nebbiolo. “Light and well balanced” were the key descriptors, but there were a lot of other descriptors to go along with this. It was almost the complete opposite of #7.
Green pepper on the nose (and one person mentioned green pepper on the palate), with maybe a barnyard quality. At least one person said it was jammy on the palate with tighter tannins. Sweet tobacco on the palate was also mentioned. Char notes.
If this is what Virginia Nebbiolo can taste like after 12 years…sign me up! Very impressive.
Votes:
Alex: Favorite was #7/E. Pira Chiara, thought #8 was East Coast (correct). Went with the depth of flavor with #7.
Kathy: Favorite was #7/E. Pira Chiara, thought #8 was East Coast (correct). Thought this was the closest flight of the day.
Lindsay: Favorite was #8/Breaux, thought #8 was East Coast (correct)
Matt: Favorite was #7/E. Pira Chiara, didn’t guess the geographic region
Ryan: Favorite was #7/E. Pira Chiara, thought #7 was East Coast (inaccurate). Liked the nose of #7 but palate of #8.
Sarah: Favorite was #7/E. Pira Chiara, thought #8 was East Coast (correct). Detected some pyrazines on #8 but overall a good wine.
Vincent: Favorite was #8/Breaux thought #8 was East Coast (correct)
Finalist Round:
Bottle #3: 2017 Barolo Gramolere (Event Winner)
Bottle #5: 2017 Parusso Barolo Perarmando
Bottle #7: 2012 E. Piara Chiara Boschis (Runner Up)
We voted and collectively came up with our 3 ‘finalists’, based on the previous round winners. That said, it was a shame we didn’t include wine #8/Breaux Vineyards as one of the finalists, because it deserved to be there.
I didn’t take extensive tasting notes this round. In the end, #3/Barolo Gramolere was by far the consensus favorite of the day. It was nearly a toss-up between the next two for runner-up, but the #7/2012 Chiara came 2nd by a small margin.
Votes:
Alex: 5/3/7
Kathy: 5/3/7. #5 was ‘talking to me’
Lindsay: 3/7/5. #3 was balanced and classic
Matt: 3/7/5. Loved the nose and the rusticity of #3’s palate
Ryan: 3/7/5
Sarah: 7/3/5. Thought there was a lot going on with #7, and it was still getting better over time, while #3 had already peaked
Vincent: (absent)
Lessons Learned:
First off, I want to say that I’m really proud how Team Virginia (with an assist from Pennsylvania’s Va La Vineyards) showed here. While none made it to the final round (although we agreed the 2012 Breaux should have), the East Coast contenders brought their A-game.
But as good as they were, these East Coast wines went up against exceptional producers from one of the most highly regarded wine regions in the entire world. This tasting was the equivalent of a World Cup soccer match between Team America and Team Italy. While the US has some great players…come on…it’s ITALY we’re dealing with.
That said, the results were far closer than I could have expected. We uniformly enjoyed the East Coast wines, especially the ones from Barboursville and Breaux.
Two main lessons learned:
Point #1: Age matters – and the East Coast Nebbiolos showed they could do that. There were many compliments about how that 2012 Breaux was able to last 12 years. Having had older Barboursville vintages I could say the same for them as well.
Point #2: East Coast Nebbiolos (at least in this round) were rarely ‘varietally correct’. Out of the 7 of us, we almost always guessed the correct region for each of the 4 rounds. I’m convinced while the East Coast wines were consistently good, being ‘different’ lost them some points.
What made the East Coast wines easily-identifiable were the light pyrazine and overall earthy notes, which were suggestive of their non-Italian origin.
Starting June 1st, fifteen participating Loudoun County wineries are celebrating Pride Month with a special month-long wine trail. Passport holders for “Pride in the Vines” who obtain ten different stamps will be eligible to win a prize drawing which includes private wine tastings, bottles of wine, gear, tickets to events, and tours of the vineyards and wineries.
Pride Month has its roots in the Stonewall riots, which started on June 28, 1969. Coincidentally, Pride in the Vines celebrates a movement that was galvanized at a drinking establishment.
Located in New York’s Greenwich Village, the Stonewall Inn was one of the few local bars that catered to an openly gay clientele despite state laws which made it risky for them to show affection in public. The Stonewall was run by the Mafia, who saw gay bars as a good business opportunity. Police raids against such establishments were common but corrupt officers would typically tip the managers off in advance, allowing business to continue with limited interruptions.
This time was different. Not only was the raid unannounced (possibly due to the police not getting sufficient kickbacks), the patrol wagon responsible for picking up arrested patrons took longer than usual to respond. The gathering crowd became increasingly agitated as they watched the police manhandle those they detained, including those arrested for violating the state’s gender-appropriate clothing statute.
The final trigger was a scuffle between a lesbian woman who was roughly escorted to the awaiting wagon. She fought back, calling on the crowd for support.
The resulting riots (Stonewall veterans prefer the term ‘uprising’) continued for several days. It was a turning point in the gay rights movement, leading to the formation of several new LGBT advocacy groups. The first gay pride parades were held on the 1st anniversary of the riots.
Bottom left: Sydney and Bridgette Smith, Williams Gap and Greenhill wineries
Bottom right: Brian Pace and Chris Sexton, Maggie Malick Wine Caves
How Loudoun’s First Pride Wine Trail Started
The idea behind Pride in the Vines in Loudoun County blossomed with Two Twisted Posts Winery, which has hosted gay pride events since opening in 2014. For the family that owns it, namely Krista Cato, her partner Lynda Dattilo and fellow owners and parents, Theresa and Brad Robertson, the topic is a personal one.
“We wanted to create a safe space for people to gather regardless of their orientation or race,” explained Krista. “From Day 1, we hung a Pride flag. It wasn’t always a smooth journey and we received some hate.
My family decided to host an event to celebrate National Coming Out Day (October 11). We thought about celebrating Pride, but Pride is already a big event in D.C. and we didn’t want to overlap with another important celebration.
We advertised it in a local paper, and they came back to us and asked, ‘Do you really want to publish this?’ And we replied; ‘yes we do!’
So we posted the ad and put out flyers in local businesses. We found a lot of them were afraid to post them out of fear of creating animosity with their customers. But a few did.
Simple things like getting a food truck was difficult. The first two canceled but eventually we found one that would support us.
When the day came, Two Twisted Posts had over 200 people come out from all walks of life. Since it was so well received, we couldn’t imagine not continuing annually.”
More Wineries Involved Than Ever Before
Over time, more wineries joined Two Twisted Posts in celebrating gay pride events. In 2019, Bob and Teri Riggs of nearby Forever Farm Vineyard noticed the Pride flag and asked what they could do to get involved. They were soon joined by Williams Gap Vineyard.
The issue hit home for Bob and Teri, whose son is gay. Teri explained, “My participation is to get families involved. We’re all in it together.”
This trio of wineries hosted an informal Pride trail for several years. But as the world around them became more accepting, the idea of a larger wine trail took shape.
“One of the things we’re learning in this journey is there are other people out there who hear them and see them,” said Bridgette Smith, tasting room manager at Williams Gap Vineyard. “So when I brought it up at the Loudoun Wineries and Winegrowers Association (LWWA) I was surprised how many wineries wanted to participate. I think there are more people out there who are willing to speak out loud to support their neighbors than we realize.”
Krista added, “The support is like 300 times more than when we opened. In the beginning, I don’t remember seeing a Pride flag anywhere. When we started hosting events for National Coming Out Day, we were so focused on the event, we didn’t reach out to anybody.
With the partnership of Forever Farm Vineyard, Williams Gap Vineyard and now so many others, it’s safe to say this year’s Pride in the Vines Wine trail is indicative of the changes that have happened in Loudoun.”
Guests can acquire a passport at any of these participating wineries. For more announcements, see the LWWA webpage at https://www.loudounwine.org/new-events.
This event was three years in the making. Petit Verdot has long been one of my favorite grape varieties, so serving PV in a blind tasting was a no brainer.
Each of these blind tastings produced three top contenders. I did my best to collect those specific vintages, or at least the closest I could find. Thanks to the generosity of several wineries who opened up their wine libraries, I was able to collect 7 of the 9 of these top-scoring wines.
There were two exceptions. I wasn’t able to get a 2017 Cave Ridge Petit Verdot. But since I had a 2019 Cave Ridge PV, I figured that’s close enough.
Neither was I wasn’t able to get a bottle of a 2018 True Heritage Petit Verdot (used in my second event). But I did get the next best thing; a 2020 Petit Verdot from Southwest Mountains Vineyards, which is actually from the same vineyard (Castalia Farm) and winemaker (Emily Pelton).
Tasting & Scoring Methodology
A group of friends & I blind tasted 9 wines in 3 flights. All the flights were bagged blind.
We didn’t have a sophisticated scoring system. The goal was to pick a ‘favorite’ in every flight, as opposed to rating them and determining which one we thought was the ‘best’.
The favorite of every flight went to a ‘finalist’ round. I took the extra step of hiding the ‘finalists’ with a second bag, so any biases of an earlier tasting hopefully didn’t carry over to the final round.
After finishing the final round, we unveiled all the wines and crowned the overall favorite of the day.
This group was composed of Virginia wine aficionados, so all were very familiar with Petit Verdot.
The contenders:
2019 Wisdom Oak Winery
2017 Glen Manor Vineyards
2017 Arterra Wines
2017 Hark Vineyards
2020 Southwest Mountains Vineyards
2019 Chateau MerrillAnne
2019 Cave Ridge Vineyard
2017 DuCard Vineyards
2014 Linden Vineyards
We also kicked things off with a pet-nat Petit Verdot from Early Mountain Vineyard.
Flight #1:
Bottle #1: 2019 Wisdom Oak (round winner)
Bottle #2: 2017 Glen Manor
Bottle #3: 2017 Arterra Wines
Bottle #1 / 2019 Wisdom Oak. This was the fruitiest wine of the flight (and turned out, of the event). Very nice aroma which reminded us of “sweet cherries and brandy”; at least one person mentioned they found some coconut as well. Notes of stewed strawberry, plumb, and maybe some vanilla on the palate, followed by some barrel notes.
Bottle #2 / 2017 Glen Manor. Soft, aromatic nose, with notes of barnyard and black cherry. Someone mentioned ‘forest floor’ as well. Black plumb or more general ‘dark fruit’ on the palate. A few detected a ‘hot note’ of higher alcohol (which turned out to be true; at 14.7% it was the highest-alcohol wine of the day).
Bottle #3 / 2017 Arterra Wines. Rustic nose. Tart cherry on the palate. Notes of leather. Someone mentioned ‘meaty’ notes, which I would agree with. It was pretty easy to tell this was a natural ferment, since everything just seemed ‘different’. In retrospect I probably should have opened it up much earlier, since wines from Arterra need extra time to open up.
Votes: When it came time to pick a favorite, this was probably the first time I’ve had 100% of my attendees vote the exact same way, for the exact reasons. All seven of us gravitated towards Wine #1/Wisdom Oak very quickly.
That said, I wish I had more time with this round. #2/Glen Manor was just hitting its stride as I took votes, and some guests seemed conflicted if they should stick with their original vote or change it.
Arterra likewise need time to open up, since their wine isn’t designed to be ‘showy’. I had a glass the next day and it definitely smoothed out.
Alex: 1/2/3. Thought #1 had the best nose and best balance
Allison: 1/2/3.
Dave: 1/2/3. Liked #1 from start to finish.
Kathy: 1/2/3.
Matt: 1/2/3.
Stephanie: 1/2/3.
Vicki: 1/2/3. Liked the fruit-forward nature of the wine.
This was probably the most difficult round to pick a favorite as we really, really enjoyed them all. All of these wines were also very aromatic, which was unusual for Petit Verdot.
Bottle #4 / 2017 Hark Vineyards. I was immediately taken by the very plush, almost ‘juicy’ aroma. Others mentioned the nose had notes of purple flower, graphite, forest floor, or grassy. Very dark in color.
The palate had dark fruit and rougher & aggressive tannins. Someone mentioned they found a ‘metallic’ note, but didn’t mean to use that as a negative.
Bottle #5 / 2020 Southwest Mountains Vineyards. Long, juicy finish. Bright, lightly colored, “sweet” nose; it almost reminded me of a Nebbiolo. The palate was on the lighter side, with a sweet barrel note to it.
I later learned this had 20% Merlot, so the softness made a lot of sense.
Bottle #6 / 2019 Chateau MerrillAnne. Soft aromatics; maybe notes of caramel? Not a lot of fruit on the palate; someone mentioned they felt the barrel was overpowering it. My favorite descriptor was ‘cherry cordial”, which several agreed with.
Votes: We gravitated towards SWM Vineyards, but really liked all of these wines. I suspect the softness of the SWM was a huge attraction.
Alex: 5/6/4.
Allison: 5/6/4.
Dave: 5/6/4.
Kathy: 5/4/6. Voted #5 for the ‘juicy-fruit’ quality of it, but also liked the cherry/tannin combo of #4.
Matt: 5/4/6.
Stephanie: 5/6/4. Toss-up between 4 & 6, but liked #5 all the way through, from nose to finish.
Vicki: 5/6/4. Voted for #5 because of the cherry/vanilla qualities. Thought #4 was too acidic.
Flight #3:
Bottle #7: 2019 Cave Ridge Vineyard
Bottle #8: 2017 DuCard Vineyards
Bottle #9: 2014 Linden Vineyards
This was our tannic, heavier-alcohol, ‘food wine’ round. We started to heavily snack during this round and anything with fattiness greatly improved nearly all of these wines.
It really came down to a narrow finish between #8 and #9.
Bottle #7 / 2019 Cave Ridge Vineyard. Lots of different notes on this one. I found blueberry on the nose (and palate), while others said it was more toasty, maybe toffee.
Descriptors on the palate varied greatly. Some mentioned raspberry/cherry, others mentioned dark chocolate; even bitter chocolate (I suspect those were the tannins talking to me).
Bottle #8 / 2017 DuCard Vineyards: Caramel nose. Palate descriptors ranged from dark chocolate to caramel to sweet fruit. The fruit was most prominent on the finish.
Bottle #9 / 2014 Linden Vineyards: Stewed red berries and tart on the palate, with a sweet cherry finish. The nose wasn’t well received; the higher alcohol was a turn-off (it was actually slightly less alcoholic than other bottles but didn’t wear that alcohol as well).
Many mentioned they wished the nose was as good as the palate, although the nose seemed to lighten up the longer the tasting went on. That helped greatly, which swayed some votes from #8 towards #9. This was actually 88% PV, with 8% Cab Sauv and 4% Carmenere’.
Votes:
Alex: 8/7/9. The nose of #8 was well integrated, while #7 and #9 had more alcohol.
Allison: 8/7/9
Dave: 9/8/7. Thought #9 had a little more complexity than the others.
Kathy: 9/8/7
Matt: 9/8/7. Thought #9 opened up enough to put it ahead.
Stephanie: 9/8/7. Also liked #9 more as it opened up.
Vicki: 8/7/9. Also agreed with Alex; thought #8 was well integrated.
Finalist Round:
Bottle #1: 2019 Wisdom Oak Winery (Event Winner)
Bottle #5: 2020 Southwest Mountains Vineyards
Bottle #9: 2014 Linden Vineyards (Runner Up)
I didn’t take extensive tasting notes this round. Neither did I bother re-bagging them. These wines were so memorable, a new bag wouldn’t have done anything.
All of us were really struck by the fruitiness of wine #1 (Wisdom Oak). That fruitiness really stood out, especially compared to some of these tannic heavy-hitters.
We loved it so much that when I did the vote tally, 6 out of 7 participants decreed the 2019 Wisdom Oak Petit Verdot was the best wine of the event. It was just really well balanced, with a strong fruit quality that really put it over the top.
I contacted owner/winemaker Jason Lavallee for details on this wine (PS – except for some library bottles, it’s sold out) and he explained his opinion where those fruit notes came from.
According to Jason, the particular barrels he used were actually designed for white wine, specifically for those whites to showcase more fruit qualities. Surprisingly this only got a Silver at the Monticello Cup; maybe it just wasn’t ready yet? Well, it’s ready now!
Votes:
Alex: 1/5/9
Allison: 1/5/9
Dave: 1/5/9
Kathy: 1/9/5
Matt: 9/5/1
Stephanie: 1/9/5
Vicki: 1/5/9
Lessons Learned:
This was a tough one to judge. I don’t really have any ‘lessons learned’, but do have a few observations. I just wish I knew how to best enact them.
First, many of these wines presented very differently than other bottles of the SAME VINTAGE did even a few months back. I can’t explain why they tasted so differently.
Second, nearly all these bottles could have greatly benefited from decanting. I thought about that in advance and opened them up around noon (we started tasting around 3 PM), even sampling them to ensure more air entered the bottle (you know…quality control…). But that limited amount of air wasn’t nearly enough. I think we would have enjoyed them much more if I had given them a full decanting.
Third, I understand what people say about “Petit Verdot overload”. By that third round my mouth was drying out. I also suspect that it wasn’t a coincidence that the 2 of the 3 top bottles had 12-20% of another grape blended in to smooth the tannic nature of PV down.
I’m undecided if serving food with these wines would have helped. Granted, that would have been unfair since a wine should be judged on its own, not on the quality of the pairing. But this entire event really did cry out for more food. Something to keep in mind in the future.
You might say that Cabernet Franc is a grape that ‘gets around’.
First off, it’s the most planted wine grape in Virginia. Just over 700 acres of Cabernet Franc is grown in the state – much more than runner-up Chardonnay and leaps and bounds more acreage than #3 Petit Verdot.
Second, Cabernet Franc is one of the parents Cabernet Sauvignon. Back in the 17h century, Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc got feisty in a French vineyard and produced an offspring which took parts of both parents’ names. So even if you aren’t in love with Cabernet Franc, thank it for being a great parent.
Cabernet Franc possesses a lot of great qualities yet shows them in moderation, including good but not high tannin and acidity, medium body and alcohol, and a floral aroma. This makes it a versatile wine able to be paired with a variety of food options or enjoyed on its own.
It’s also a hardy grape in the vineyard, able to ripen in cooler weather, offers good disease resistance, and doesn’t need a long growing season. Virginia winemakers (and wine growers) constantly sing its praise.
I did a “Virginia Cabernet Francs vs The World” comparison last year with wines from Virginia, France, and the Finger Lakes, but this time around we did a round of 100% Virginia wines. Most were of the 2021 vintage but we had some variation in vintage year.
Tasting & Scoring Methodology
A group of friends & I blind tasted 9 wines in 3 flights. All the flights were bagged blind.
We didn’t have a sophisticated scoring system. The goal was to pick a ‘favorite’ in every flight, as opposed to rating them and determining which one we thought was the ‘best’.
The favorite of every flight went to a ‘finalist’ round. I took the extra step of hiding the ‘finalists’ with a second bag, so any biases of an earlier tasting hopefully didn’t carry over to the final round.
After finishing the final round, we unveiled all the wines and crowned the overall favorite of the day.
This group was composed of friends who are definitely Virginia wine aficionados, so all were very familiar with Cabernet Franc. Only one had industry experience, but the others were more than familiar with blind wine tastings.
The contenders:
2021 Glen Manor
2021 Pippin Hill
2022 Wolf Gap
2021 Pollak
2021 Greenhill
2020 Pearmund
2021 50 West
2021 Keswick
2020 Stone Tower
Flight #1
Bottle #1: 2021 Glen Manor (round winner)
Bottle #2: 2021 Pippin Hill
Bottle #3: 2022 Wolf Gap
We were immediately struck by how different all of these wines were. #1 leaned into elegance while #2 was fare more traditional. #3 was probably too young for this lineup.
Bottle #1 / 2021 Glen Manor. Earthy nose, but also light and clean. Guests mentioned notes of spice and coco on the palate. It was velvety and tannic; firm tannins were mentioned. Astringent but in a good way.
Bottle #2 / 2021 Pippin Hill. Green pepper on the palate, white pepper on the nose. There initially was a mustiness to it but that went away as the wine opened up. Someone mentioned notes of tart cherry, and the term ‘mocha’ got some traction. Several used descriptors of balanced and smooth. Velvety; maybe a little oaky. One person mentioned too peppery
Bottle #3 / 2022 Wolf Gap. This was our ‘easy drinking wine’. Smooth, but the nose and palate weren’t aligned. Some mentioned notes red pepper and maybe vanilla on the finish. Others mentioned white pepper, or even evergreen and pine on the nose. Soft tannins.
Votes:
Ann 1/3/2. Liked the astringency and body of #1, but thought #3 was easy drinking
Ashley 2/1/3. Liked the complexity and spice of #2, but also enjoyed the balance of #1
Brandon: 1/2/3
Frank: Tie between #1 and #2, with #3 a more distant third.
Emily: 2/1/3
Isabel: 1/2/3. Thought #1 was spicy but bold, with some nice black pepper
Martha: 2/1/3
Matt: 1/2/3. I thought #1 was an easy favorite here, for its overall elegance.
Flight #2
Bottle #4: 2021 Pollak (wild card advance to next round)
Bottle #5: 2021 Greenhill (round winner)
Bottle #6: 2020 Pearmund
This round was the complete opposite of the previous one. If the 1st round wines were strangers, this round was like seeing triplets, or at least close brothers. This round reminded me more of the Loire than Virginia.
This was also our favorite round of the day (outside of the winners round). While #6 / Pearmund lagged behind in votes, many felt it was easily was the equal to the best of the previous or subsequent flights.
Bottle #4 / 2021 Pollak. Nice complexity; good fruit qualities. Notes such as vanilla, liquorish, or barnyard were bandied out. Others mentioned notes of coco and elderberry on the palate. Acidic and dry.
Bottle #5 / 2021 Greenhill. Complex and rich were the key descriptors. Very light in color but complex on the palate. If Wine #4 (Pollak) was fruit forward, this leaned into the dark fruit. This also had a more ‘traditional’ coco nose as Cab Francs go. Notes of sweet cherry or ripe red cherry were mentioned.
Bottle #6 / 2020 Pearmund. Light color. More vegetal nose, but definitely not in a bad way. Tart cherry was mentioned. Notes of cranberry and dry fruit, plus some tartness.
Votes:
Ann: 5/4/6. Seemed torn between #4 and #5, as both were complex, lively, and balanced
Ashley: 5/4/6. Liked the dark fruit of #5
Brandon: 5/4/6.Thought “#5 had everything”, but especially liked its complexity
Frank: 5/4/6. Thought #4 was complex and balanced
Emily: 5/6/4. “Liked everything going on” for #5, but appreciated the fruit on #6
Isabel: 5/4/6. Focused on the ripe cherry notes of #5; also mentioned its smoothness
Martha: 5/4/6. Liked the nose on #5
Matt: 4/5/6
Flight #3
Bottle #7: 2021 50 West
Bottle #8: 2021 Keswick (round winner)
Bottle #9: 2020 Stone Tower
If the previous round were near-triplets, these were brothers. It was also our big & bold group.
Bottle #7 / 2021 50 West. This wine had higher levels of sugar and alcohol than we expected, yet was also on the lighter and peppery side. Sesame nose, notes of tart cherry were mentioned. Mildest nose of the flight. Dark fruit on the palate… maybe plumb? Someone mentioned it was ‘vibrant’.
Bottle #8 / 2021 Keswick. Someone mentioned a ‘beeswax nose’. Regardless, that nose was divisive, with some loving it but others not so much.
But after it opened up, people’s opinions changed. We found it to be fruit forward, with rich raspberry notes. Smooth and lush was also mentioned. Of all the wines we tried, this one needed the most time to reach its full potential. I suspect several people changed their votes once it did.
Bottle #9 / 2020 Stone Tower. Probably the most tannic wine of the entire day. One person mentioned a barnyard-y nose, while another said it had a liquorish, earthy nose. Musky, hints of vanilla. This was a classic, more fruit-forward Virginia Cab Franc. My favorite descriptor is this was a “big stud” of a wine.
Votes:
Ann: 8/7/9. Thought #8 was bold and has musty nose, but that softened out. Vibrant.
Ashley: 9/7/8. Though #9 had a liquorish nose
Brandon: 8/7/9. Thought #8 was barnyard-y but that mellowed out. It was also the earthiest of the bunch (I wonder if he was referring to #9 and I got this wrong?)
Emily: 9/8/7. Thought #9 had a nice warming sensation; cozy and toasty. Also was fruit forward with a peppery aroma.
Frank: 8/7/9 complex. #8 had a bell pepper note, and was lush and easy drinking
Isabel: #8 and #9 were tied, then #7. Felt #8 had earthy and berry notes, while #9 had a tobacco character
Martha: 8/9/7. Liked the nose and finish of #8, felt it was well balanced
Matt: 8/7/9. The nose really stood out on #8
Finalist Round
Bottle #1 / 2021 Greenhill (Bottle #4 in the 2nd flight) Event Winner
Bottle #2 / 2021 Glen Manor (Bottle #1 in the 1st flight) Runner Up
Bottle #3 / 2021 Keswick (Bottle #8 in the 3rd flight)
Bottle #4 / 2021 Pollak (Bottle #5 in the 2nd flight) Third Place
Normally I only pick a single favorite of every flight, but in this case Flight #2 was so universally loved, I picked a ‘wildcard’ to advance to the winning round (turned out to be our 2021 Pollak).
I re-bagged the wines so help prevent any biases from our previous rounds influence this round (although mostly we still guessed which was which). No surprise at who made finalist round; all of these were elegant, complex wines from exceptional producers.
I didn’t take many notes on this time. But after some deliberation we went with the 2021 Greenhill Vineyard CabernetFranc as the favorite of the day. It was a great example how Cabernet Franc can be light on the palate yet be rich and complex.
I thought the runner-up 2021 Glen Manor Cabernet Franc leaned into that elegance even more, even if it didn’t have the same layer of richness. While GMV was my personal favorite of the day, but I wouldn’t argue with either bottle.
Votes:
Ann: 2/4/3/1. Went with Glen Manor because of its balance and spice note
Ashley: 2/1/4/3. Thought the Glen Manor had body but was also clean and complex
Brandon: 1/4/3/2
Emily: 1/4/3/2. Loved Greenhill because it was cozy and balanced
Frank: 1/2/4/3. Thought Greenhill had the lightest style
Isabel: 1/2/4/3
Martha: 1/2/4/3. Loved the nose and palate of the Greenhill; soft
Matt: 2/4/3/1. I gravitated towards Glen Manor because of its richness
Lessons Learned:
First off, all of these wines had ‘Virginia’ written all over them. That’s because Cab Franc is very terroir-influenced, plus it’s so widely grown that different winemakers have different signatures. You can have 9 wines and have 9 very different flavor profiles, yet all of them are recognizably ‘Virginia’ in style.
That said, very broadly this group tended to be divided between more traditional ‘Virginia style’ wines that leaned into the earthiness and pepper notes, and a set of lighter, more refined ‘Loire’ style wines. In this case, the Loire-style wines won the day.
I think the 2020 Stone Tower and 2021 Glen Manor were great examples of this spectrum. The former was a ‘big tannic brute’. The later was more of a ballerina. The 2021 Greenhill and 2021 Pollak were likewise examples of these more refined style. I’ve seen a trend which focuses on the former, but I’m hopeful we’ll keep seeing the later.
One last (late) edit. I also think this event also showcased why certain wineries have the exceptional reputation that they enjoy.
Virginia makes outstanding Cabernet Francs, so it’s hard to go wrong in this category. This particular lineup had a bunch of stars. Even so, going into this event certain names – namely Glen Manor, Keswick, and Pollak – kept being mentioned as likely winners.
It was no surprise that each of those made it into the final round. Despite that, the ‘brown bag’ really helps strip away biases.
Yet it the winner didn’t surprise me at all. Greenhill Vineyards’ Ben Comstock has been making a lot of great wine, racking up a bunch of Double Golds or “Best in Class” at various events. Having the best Cabernet Franc at this event was no surprise at all.
Have you tried wine made with the norton grape lately? If you say, “I had it a few years ago and wasn’t a fan,” you’re missing out.
Earlier this year, Chrysalis Vineyards’ 2021 Locksley Reserve became the first norton to ever receive a Gold medal from the Virginia Governor’s Cup wine competition. On top of that, The Omni Homestead Resort now hosts an annual Norton Cup Challenge, and competition organizer Fred Reno has devoted a series of podcasts dedicated to this grape. These accolades are the direct result of winemakers treating norton as a ‘serious wine’.
Norton’s high acidity and unique flavor profile makes it a love-it or hate-it wine amongst consumers. Growers, however, are willing to overlook these issues due to norton’s ability to endure difficult weather and its natural disease resistance, minimizing the need for chemical sprays.
Norton at Fifty-Third Winery and Vineyard
Therein is the reason why norton is underappreciated, wrote Jason Murray of Arterra Wines.
“Just because norton is tough doesn’t mean it doesn’t require care. Many winegrowers tend to take their norton for granted, neglectfully managing the crop and canopy, or planting it in the worst spots in the vineyard.”
The growing number of extreme weather events is another reason why many growers are giving norton a second look. In describing norton’s place in his vineyard, owner Scott Elliff of DuCard Vineyards used a football analogy.
“Think of an NFL draft. Do you draft based on their current performance despite having a limited ceiling, or on their long-term potential? Smart owners do a bit of both. Our vinifera have great potential, but sometimes they’re like a star athlete that’s injury prone. But norton is reliable year-after-year.”
While its sustainability is perhaps norton’s greatest strength, it’s unfair to assume norton growers are simply hedging their bets in the vineyard. Winemakers are also learning to tease out its best expressions in the cellar, making today’s nortons better than ever.
The Origin of “Virginia’s Grape”
Few realize norton was the original rockstar grape of the Virginia wine industry.
According to the book The Wild Vine, norton was ‘born’ in 1821, in a Richmond nursery owned by horticulturalist Dr. Daniel Norton. Norton became one of America’s most prominent grapes over the following decades, largely due to its immunity to the phylloxera louse which was then devastating vineyards around the globe. In 1873, a norton made near St. Louis was declared the “best red wine of all nations” at a worldwide competition in Vienna.
There’s still debate on where to place norton amongst the various species of grapes. Is it a ‘hybrid’; aka the child of Vitis aestivalis (American) and Vitis vinifera parents? Or should it be referred to as an ‘American’ grape? While it’s still sometimes referred to as a hybrid, most experts feel norton’s resiliency strongly suggests it’s far closer to its American DNA than any European relatives.
Despite its early popularity, by the early-20th century norton had disappeared. Growers discovered grafting American grape rootstock on vinifera vines allowed them to survive phylloxera, leading to a renaissance in vinifera plantings. The advent of prohibition doomed Virginia’s remaining norton.
Lucie Morton and Julien Durantie
Fortunately, the grape survived in Missouri, and returned to its ancestral home thanks to Dennis Horton of Horton Vineyards. Norton was further popularized by Jenny McCloud of Chrysalis, which today owns the single largest norton planting in the world.
The story of DuCard’s norton vines demonstrates both how this grape has often been treated, and how growers are finding ways to improve its quality.
According to a recent podcast interview with Fred Reno, Scott planted norton at Dennis’ recommendation. During a visit, Dennis pointed to a block at the bottom of a swale and told him, “Just put the norton down there. It won’t care; it’ll do perfectly fine. You won’t have any trouble with it and it will be a consistent producer.”
By Scott’s own admission, his first few norton vintages were rough. Its wines were too acidic, too ‘untamed.’ Since adjusting grapes in the cellar wasn’t DuCard’s style, Scott looked for a solution in the vineyard.
DuCard winemaker Julien Durantie hypothesized that moving to a unique modified open lyre system resulted in better chemistry in the grapes. Their experimentation must have paid off, as DuCard’s 2017 Norton was selected as the winner of the inaugural Norton Cup in 2022.
Winemaker Chelsey Blevins of Fifty-Third Winery and Vineyard likewise noted the impact proper care has on wine quality. During her own interview she explained to Fred, “I think why nortons have gotten a bad rap is people have been planting it in not ideal locations, and not necessarily giving it the TLC it needs in the vineyard. They’re like, ‘oh, it’s a hybrid, it can handle this.’ But I think if you give it a little extra love and attention out in the vineyard and winery, you’re going to make a better wine out of it.”
Many of Virginia’s most acclaimed norton producers have also learned to smooth their wines, usually with a bit of blending. The Lockley Reserve is 80% norton, but the remainder is tannat and petit verdot. DuCard adds cabernet franc to its norton.
Chelsey takes norton blending a step further. Since 2021 she’s released a wine named Arrowhead, which usually hovers around 70% chambourcin and 30% norton.
Arterra takes a different tactic. One of Jason’s experiments has been to age his 2020 “Büyükbaba” in a clay amphora, giving it an Old World vibe. While he’s happy with the result, Jason readily admits he doesn’t think the winemaking is nearly as important as the growing conditions. “Good fruit, given time, will make great wine and will not require correcting anything,” he told his audience at a blind tasting of different nortons.
Try any of these nortons and tell them what you think!
Wine Trails and Wanderlust 