I’d never thought I’d write a blog about sorting grapes at a winery – but here we are.
2024 was an odd year for Virginia wine. We had an abnormally hot and dry summer, to the point many winegrowers were openly hoping for an inch or two of rain to relieve their parched vineyards. While dry conditions will reduce the volume of wine they produce, it gifted vineyards with intensely flavored berries which (we hope) will result in high-quality wine.
Yet when the rain finally came, it came in torrents. Tough decisions had to be made whether to let the fruit hang on the vine in hopes of achieving additional ripeness, or bring it in, else risk the grapes falling apart in the vineyard.
Hardscrabble Vineyard
Owner/winegrower Jim Law would have preferred to let his Cabernet Sauvignon hang for another week or two. But Mother Nature wasn’t cooperating, so it had to come in.
I had planned on making last Friday a leisurely wine-tasting day, but Linden Vineyards put out a last-minute request for assistance in sorting grapes that were being harvested that morning. They were short-staffed, the regular vineyard team was busy in the field, and Fridays are a tough day to get volunteers. I alerted a few like-minded friends about the opportunity, and we offered our services.
I told myself, “I’ve harvested grapes before; sorting them could be fun. How hard could it be?”.
It turns out – a lot.
So on a Friday morning, Linden harvested 10 tons of Cabernet Sauvignon from their estate ‘Hardscrabble’ vineyard. The harvest team was on the top floor with their destemmer, which separates vines and stems from the grapes. Those grapes would drop through a chute to the ground floor into a conveyor belt, where the rest of us stood ready to pick out bad grapes and smaller organic matter before they went into the grape bins.
If it sounds very “I Love Lucy at the Chocolate Factory”, that’s not too far off.
What is Sorting?
Sorting isn’t a sexy job, but it’s an important one. Alex Wilde, Jim Law’s son-in-law and newly-minted apprentice winemaker, related a story from one of Linden’s harvest interns. This intern asked Jim what was his most-important lesson-learned in improving wine quality during harvest.
Jim’s answer? ‘Good sorting’.
Alex gave us a quick lesson on what to look for. Priority should be given to tiny green berries (far too tart). Second priority were lightly colored berries (still too under-ripe to be helpful). Also watch out for the occasional grape with white-ish coating which indicated noble rot (good in some white wines, but not good for red grapes), grapes with insect punctures (they are also probably rotting), and grab any bugs that went along for the ride (be careful of yellow jackets!).
I tossed some bad grapes, but the vast majority of stuff we removed during sorting was green matter. This included tiny branches, some leaves, and stem fragments still attached to the grape which Alex called ‘stem jacks’. All of these contribute tannin; something important in small doses, but not the style Jim likes in his wine.
Alex assured us that there was no way we’d get 100% of this detritus, as there was simply too much even a group of 6 people (occasionally dropping to 3-4 people) working in concert could grab. Just do what you can, and don’t chase any grapes that gets away.
Since I’m a big fan of Linden’s Hardscrabble red blend, I had a vested interest in doing a good job. I’d quickly scan for objectionable material and toss the offender into the bucket next to me. Ideally, I’d remove stem jacks from the grape and send the grape back on its way. Occasionally, the pace was so fast it was easier to toss the entire berry out. Grab-yank-drop and repeat, usually for an hour on end.
We had 6 bins of grapes come down the line, each with fruit that usually aligned to a different vineyard block. Seeing the fruit first-hand was a lesson in what Jim calls the ‘vine-soil relationship’.
Older blocks have deeper root systems, which generally protects them from rainwater penetrating the ground. By contrast, younger vines get their nutrients closer to the surface, which makes them more likely to absorb surface water. This meant younger block fruit was sometimes water-logged and sloppy, while fruit from older vines were fairly clean and dry.
Not every winery performs this labor-intensive task. While nearby RdV has a fancy optical sorter, most Virginia wineries (if they bother at all) rely on humans for the job. ‘Human optical sorters’, Alex joked.
Once the grapes dropped into the bin, they were off to the cellar to begin their transition into wine.
While I complained about how much my back hurt afterwards, you always learn something when talking with the team at Linden. Plus, helping out gives you a deeper respect for the hard work that goes on ‘behind the curtain’. Everyone who loves local wine should volunteer at a winery, even if only once.
Over the years I’ve poured wines at festivals, planted a new vineyard, harvested grapes, and now helped sort them. Anybody need a junior apprentice winemaker?
“Fcking” Merlot is arguably the least-appreciated wine in Virginia. Petit Verdot and Petit Manseng are the rising stars people like to talk about, while Cabernet Franc and Chardonnay are vineyard workhorses. Yet for some reason, Merlot doesn’t get the same level of attention.
A look at Virginia’s recent wine competitions doesn’t help its case. Merlot has earned a grand total of 8 Gold medals in the past three Governor’s Cup competitions. Not bad…but that pales compared to 49 Golds for Petit Verdots and 24 for Petit Mansengs in the same space of time. Heck, even Albariño has earned 10 VA Governor’s Cup Golds recently, and that’s with a fraction of the plantings Merlot has.
This would seemly indicate Merlot doesn’t have the same luster enjoyed by other well-known varieties. Yet that statement defies logic, for two reasons.
First, Merlot is the 2nd most planted grape in the entire state, according to a 2024 survey of Virginia grape growers. This isn’t what you’d expect from a variety that’s unappreciated. It helps there is lots of clay (this variety’s preferred soil) in Virginia, enhancing Merlot’s suitability for the state’s terroir.
Second, Merlot is a key component of a number of Virginia’s most iconic Bordeaux-style wines (looking at you, King Family, Barboursville, and Michael Shaps, to name a few). In many of them, Merlot is often their largest contributor.
Merlot’s most famous expression is found on Bordeaux’s Right Bank, although arguably that’s somewhat an unfair statement as these wines are blends. That’s a big difference to Virginia Merlots, where 100% expressions are the norm.
So when I decided to do a Merlot comparison, it wasn’t a straight-up comparison. All four bottles from Virginia were 100% Merlot, while only one of the French bottles was 100%. The remaining three Bordeaux were anywhere from 80%-88% Merlot, and finding bottles with that high a percentage was difficult.
Tasting & Scoring Methodology
I picked the Bordeaux bottles in advance, selecting ones that were anywhere from $35-$45 and composed of least 80% Merlot. I paired the French and Virginia bottles according to vintage age as best as I could.
I felt ~$40 was a sweet spot price-wise since the French bottles would largely be at the same price point as their Virginia counterparts. I assume I was getting more export-oriented bottles (France tends to keep its best stuff, or put it outside my price point), but such is Bordeaux’s esteem that even ‘budget-friendly’ Bordeaux wines punch above their weight.
I also took the unusual step of decanting all of my wines. Young Bordeaux are notorious for taking time to open up, so I made sure they all received a good 2 hours in my decanters. The Virginia wines usually got an hour.
A group of friends & I blind tasted 4 comparison flights, each consisting of one French and one Virginia wine. All the flights were bagged blind. It wasn’t planned that way, but it turned out the odd numbers were always Virginia and even numbers were France.
Every round my guests picked a favorite, and also told me what region they felt it came from. After we sampled all of them, we did a vote to decide the top 3 wines of the day, then revisited the top wines for a 2nd tasting.
The contenders:
1. 2022 Greenhill Vineyards Merlot
2. 2020 Chateau Dragon de Quintus – St. Emilion (84.7% Merlot, 15.3% Cabernet Franc; roughly $40)
3. 2019 “Russ Mountain” Walsh Family Wine Merlot ($42)
8. 2020 Chateau Tour St Christophe – St. Emilion (80% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc; $35)
Flight #1
Bottle #1: 2022 Greenhill Vineyards (4 votes)
Bottle #2: 2020 Chateau Dragon de Quintus (4 votes)
This was a tough round to judge. The results were evenly split, with #1/Greenhill generally being described as more smokey/spicy while #2/Dragon de Quintus was more tannic/punchy, with notes of dark fruit and forest floor. We didn’t do a great job identifying the correct region, as Greenhill really came off as ‘old world’.
Bottle #1 / 2022 Greenhill Vineyards (Virginia). The first wine (Greenhill) was a shade lighter, had some earth notes, but didn’t present as ‘New World’ to me. Our tasting notes generally focused on how it was more smokey/spicy, smooth, with reminders of autumn.
Bottle #2 / 2020 Chateau Dragon de Quintus (France). This wine was definitely the earthier and bolder of the two. I felt #2 was France, but I wasn’t completely certain of that call.
Most of the tasting descriptors listed #2 as more tannic/punchy, with notes of dark fruit; blackberry specifically. The higher level of alcohol (15.5%) was a turn-off for some people.
Votes:
Matt: Voted #1, felt it was Virginia.
Dominick: Voted #1, felt it was VA. Detected a woodsy, barrel-y char to it. Felt #2 had darker fruit, a more cranberry nose, and was tannic.
Hailey: Voted #2, felt it was VA. Described #1 was smoky and peppery, while #2 had more cloves and forest floor.
Ann: Voted #2 and thought it was Virginia. Felt #1 was ‘woodsy’. Felt #2 was bolder, with a blackberry note.
Emily: Voted #1, felt it was from VA. Thought #1 had a cherry nose, ‘autumnal spice’ notes on the palate. Thought it was nicely balanced. Thought #2 was ‘punchy’ (it did have 15.5% alcohol), was more fruit forward, and notes to blackberry and cherry.
Brandon: Voted #1, thought #1 was VA. Thought #2 was higher in tannin.
Ashley: Voted #2, thought #2 was France. Thought #1 had notes of coco and detected smooth tannin, maybe cherry coco on the notes and some pumpkin spice, nutmeg on the palate. Thought #2 was more caramelized, maybe a bit of brett and notes of liquorish.
Mica: Voted #2, thought #2 was France. Thought #1 was ‘mustardy’ (maybe spicy?), peppery.
I immediately liked this round much more than the previous one, even if both came off as somewhat barnyard-y. Again, the Virginia wine was lighter in color. I wasn’t a fan of #4 (Lalande de Pomerol) although by and large it was enjoyed by the table. #3/Walsh was almost universally pinned as our Virginia wine, if only because #4 was so unmistakenly France.
Bottle #3 / 2019 “Russ Mountain” Walsh Family Wine Merlot. I was surprised how many notes of ‘barnyard’ came out; having tried this in the past I don’t remember that at all. There were fruit notes here, but you had to look for them. Some noted notes of jamminess with that fruit.
Bottle #4 / 2019 Chateau Belles Graves. 13.5% alcohol but some felt it was higher. If #3 was barnyard-y, this was VERY barnyard-y with a side of funk. More than a few guests said they detected notes of green pepper and overall ‘earth’ notes.
Votes:
Matt: Voted #3, thought #3 was Virginia. I felt it was the far more balanced of the two, while #4 was rather monolithic to me (ironic because #3 was 100% Merlot while #4 had some Cab Franc).
Dominick: Voted #4, thought #4 was Virginia. Detected notes of thick jam, specifically strawberry in #3. Detected more green pepper on the nose and some on the palate of #4.
Hailey: Voted #3, thought #3 was Virginia. Felt #3 had a longer finish, more tart cherry, black pepper, with some barnyard characteristics. Felt #4 was more vegetal.
Ann: Voted #3, thought #3 was Virginia. #3 had a petrol nose, more fruit forward, floral, grippy and jammy.
Emily: Voted #3, thought #3 was Virginia. Thought #3 was very funky and barnyard-y on the nose. Thought #4 had higher alcohol and more green pepper notes.
Brandon: Voted #3, thought #3 was Virginia. Thought both were funky, but #4 was more so. #4 also had more alcohol.
Ashley: Voted #4, thought #4 was France. Thought #3 had notes of barnyard on the palate. Was tannic, notes of green pepper, ‘pesto sauce’. #4 was earthier.
Mica: Voted #3, thought #3 was Virginia. Thought #3 was ‘mildly memorable’, had a pepper tang, was earthy. #4 was more acidic.
Flight #3
Bottle #5: 2019 Chateau O’Brien Merlot (6 votes)
Bottle #6: Troplong Mondot – St. Emilion (2 votes)
This was perhaps my favorite round of the day, and the group agreed these wines had two of the nicest finishes of the entire lineup.
Bottle #5 / 2019 Chateau O’Brien. Lots of great descriptors, with fruit notes of black or tart cherry, blackberry, blueberry, clove. “Fun” and “Vibrant” were my two favorite tasting descriptors. I suspect many of us knew this would be in the finalist round.
Bottle #6 / 2020 Troplong Mondot – St. Emilion. A rare 100% Merlot from Bordeaux. I liked it when I first sampled it at a wine store and my palate remembered it, since I was one of two people to vote for this wine as the round favorite. I thought this would go into the finalist round too, but I got outvoted.
This wine was almost universally praised for its balance, body, and black cherry/blackberry notes. Someone mentioned this was a ‘sit by the fire’ wine, and I think there was a lot of agreement on that.
Votes:
Matt: Voted #6, thought #6 was France. Thought #6 had wonderful black cherry notes.
Dominick: Voted #5, thought #5 was Virginia. Thought #5 had notes of dark fruit, noted a nice finish.
Hailey: Voted #6, thought #6 was Virginia. Thought #5 had notes of cloves, cherry, blackberry, and was tart. #6 had black cherry, blackberry, and was velvety.
Ann: Voted #5, thought #5 was Virginia. Thought #5 was ‘vibrant and fun’, fruit forward, with notes of boysenberry. #6 was more savory and had a good body.
Emily: Voted #5, thought #5 was Virginia. #5 was tart cherry, a little musty, liked the fruity aroma. #6 changed a lot in the glass (no tasting notes though).
Brandon: Voted #5, thought #5 was Virginia. #5 had notes of tart cherry, while #6 had an almost Pillsbury note to it, maybe brioche.
Ashley: Voted #5, thought #5 was Virginia. (I think this was #6); thought the nose and palate had different flavors.
Mica: Voted #5, thought #5 was France. Thought #5 had notes of blackberry and chocolate, with some mild pepper. #6 was tangier on the finish but was balanced.
Bottle #8: 2020 Chateau Tour Saint Christophe – St. Emilion (0 votes)
This was my 2nd favorite round. Both wines were well balanced and complex, although we overwhelmingly thought the Bluestone simply had more going for it.
Bottle #7 / 2021 Bluestone Vineyard Merlot. People LOVED the nose on this one. Very well balanced (I thought the best balance of the day), and this is the first time I ever heard someone describe ‘tomato leaf’ as a descriptor. Notes of tart cherry were also mentioned.
I do want to give a special shout out – at $27.50 this was possibly the best buy of the day. Try that Shenandoah Valley fruit!
Bottle #8 / 2020 Chateau Tour St Christophe. I looked online and this had some amazing ratings to it. This wine was almost universally praised for its balance, body, and black cherry/blackberry notes. Several noted its higher level of acidity, notes of mocha or chocolate, and many agreed with comments of its richness.
Votes:
Matt: Voted for #7 and I leaned towards France but couldn’t really decide. I thought #7 was complex and balance.
Dominick: Voted for #7 and thought it was Virginia. Thought #7 had a tomato leave nose, while the palate was more tomato and bell pepper. #8 was more dark chocolate.
Hailey: Voted for #7 and thought it was Virginia. Thought #7 was more tart cherry, red cherry, basil, and baking spice. #8 was more blackberry, clove, was more fruit-forward.
Ann: Voted for #7 and thought it was Virginia. Thought #7 had an almost sweet nose to it, and found notes of plumb. #8 had more brioche to it.
Emily: Voted for #7 and thought it was Virginia. Loved the nose on #7. Thought #8 was more of a cherry pie nose, and noted the great color.
Brandon: Voted for #7 and thought it was Virginia. #7 was more vegetal, well balanced, #8 was more jammy and rich.
Ashley: Voted for #7 and thought it was Virginia. #7 had an almost butter popcorn nose to it, toasty oak, coco. #8 had higher acidity and a chocolate pop to it.
Mica: Voted for #7 and thought it was Virginia. #7 reminded her of blackberry jam, while #8 was more acidity, maybe a lime and blackberry note to it.
Finalist Flight
Bottle #3: 2019 ‘Russ Mountain’ Walsh Family Wine (2nd place)
Bottle #5: 2019 Chateau O’Brien (#1st place)
Bottle #7: 2021 Bluestone Vineyard (#3rd place)
I did a poll of our favorite wines, and #3/Walsh Family, #5/Chateau O’Brien, and #7/Bluestone Vineyard were picked. As it so happened, all were from Virginia!
I wasn’t surprised that #5 (Chateau O’Brien) or #7 (Bluestone) made the list; there seemed to be a consensus to include those two. The hard part was choosing a 3rd option.
While I wasn’t a big fan of our 2nd round, we had more than a few guests who LOVED that round the most. There was just something about the ‘Old World’ quality that spoke to some people.
In the end, complexity of the #5/Chateau O’Brien earned the most #1st place votes, as well as many 2nd place votes. Walsh and Bluestone were almost tied.
Matt: Voted #5 / #7 / #3.
Dominick: Voted #7 / #5 / #3.
Hailey: Voted #3 / #7 / #5.
Ann: Voted #5 / #3 / #7.
Emily: #5 / #3 / #7.
Brandon: #5 / #7 / #3.
Ashley: #5 / #3 / #7.
Mica: #3 / #5 / #7.
Lessons Learned
I hadn’t done a straight-up Bordeaux comparison before, so it was interesting to see the results. I have to say though; I was genuinely surprised to see that in 1-vs-1, Virginia won 3 out of 4 and tied with the 4th. On top of that, the top 3 were all Virginia.
I have to wonder if maybe my guests having a ‘Virginia palate’ may have influenced the results (we picked the Virginia wine around 75% of the time). That’s not entirely true though; we often liked the Bordeaux wine, and several chose Bordeaux over Virginia…but the purity of the fruit of the Virginia wines often carried them to the ‘win’.
That in itself was surprising. Normally you think that blends are an improvement, since the combination is supposed to give them an edge over single-varietal wines. Yet here, the most popular French wine was probably the 100% Merlot. The other three (with 12-20% Cab Franc) were at times too tannic, or too acidic, or too alcohol-y.
I do think I need to up my game in finding equivalent French bottles. You’d think wines in the $40-range would be equivalent to what Virginia can produce, but here that wasn’t so.
I also have to give credit to Howard O’Brien of Chateau O’Brien, who introduced this wine to me on a visit earlier this year. O’Brien is known for smooth but big reds, especially his Tannat. This was the first time he’d had a 100% Merlot, and he knocked it out of the park. I probably should have put this against a higher-priced Bordeaux to make it a more equitable challenge.
Most importantly, everyone in attendance loved these 100% Merlots. So screw that Sideways movie and try one yourself.
Farm-to-table dinners are by definition designed to showcase food that’s locally produced. Yet it’s less common for the dinner hosts to also be the farmers who grew your meal, and especially rare to see exactly where and how those provisions were sourced.
So when Long Stone Farm owners Justin & Casey Wisch took my group on a ride through their farm, right before enjoying one of their culinary experiences, it really took the ‘farm-to-table’ idea to new heights.
I discovered Long Stone when visiting the Wischs’ new tasting room, Blue Wall Cider & Wine, located just outside Leesburg. Blue Wall doubles as a storefront for their trio of CSAs, which specialize in meat, oysters, and cider.
Long Stone is all about sustainable agriculture, producing all of their own meat and cider with an emphasis on farming organically and integrating livestock into their operation. The Wischs also partner with those who share their values, so they serve wine made by Nate Walsh of nearby Walsh Family Wine, while the CSA oysters come from Chesapeake Bay-based Rouge Oysters.
After my visit I found out about their culinary tour, which combines an educational farm ride followed by a meal initially described as ‘southern comfort food’. I later learned this dinner was far more high-end than this descriptor implies, and the tour greatly complimented the meal.
What is Sustainable Agriculture?
We kicked off the event with a quick meet-and-greet with cider, wine, and cathead chicken biscuits as our hors d’oeuvres. Then we hopped into the hay wagon for the educational part of the visit.
In describing the Sunday Supper, Casey explained, “The meals here are usually gluten free and highly nutritious. You won’t find a more local meal even if you go to a farm-to-fork dinner, since a lot of time you’re missing the farmer in that relationship.”
The Wischs also discussed how the farm got started, their CSAs, and the overall philosophy that guides their business.
The book definition of sustainable farming is “farming in such a way that it protects, if not aids, the natural environment”. That’s true at Long Stone Farm, but only covers part of what goes on.
The Wischs described sustainable agricultural in very practical terms. The short version: sustainable farming is not just good for the land, it provides healthy and delicious food. Their customers seem to think so as well, which is why their CSAs have a 90% renewal rate.
As we passed chicken coops and cow pastures, Casey gave us the full story of what makes their farm truly sustainable. “The integration is mutually beneficial. Our chickens drop nitrates, which fertilizes the grass for the cows. Those areas are the first places our cows want to graze. The cows also provide a great ecosystem benefit by eating unwanted underbrush, which manages a lot of land in a regenerative way.
Our livestock also provides pest prevention by grazing dropped fruits, and reduces costs associated with mowing under the trees. We have the ability to run our poultry, hogs, and cattle to assist with understory management and additional fertilizer applications during various times of the year.
All of this leads to healthier food and better fruit.”
We also learned about their cider operation, which they named “Blue Wall” due to the farm’s western view of Short Hill Mountain. They manage the farm to organic standards, and their cider is only made from this estate orchard. As with the rest of the farm, it benefits from being integrated with their livestock.
“We have four varieties of apples right now, with a focus on Winesap. We pick new varieties based on their disease-resistance and performance. Because we are integrating the orchard into our operations instead of selecting a farm and planting an orchard, we select varieties that grow best on this particular site.
We have beautiful north to south runs for the trees and have been rehabilitating our soil in this field via our livestock and cover crops for the last 5 years. We feel soil preparation is vital to our tree health and it has taken a few years to prepare for trees to be planted.”
Time for “Sunday Supper”
After our tour was complete it was time for our 3-course meal (plus dessert), with live music in the background.
Justin & Casey picked Leesburg-based Buford’s Biscuits as our chefs for two reasons. First of all, Long Stone always uses local businesses as their chef partner. Just as importantly, Buford’s Biscuits is amazing.
Co-owner Lauren Barret explained to the audience what ingredients she used and where they came from, while Casey told us about the hogs that gave ‘their last full measure’ for this meal.
The first course consisted of an Appalachian Panzanella, a crouton-based salad using Buford’s dried biscuits rehydrated in vinaigrette, with cheese and heirloom tomatoes.
Our second course was a sweet tea-brined chicken served with Nashville sweet & spicy sauce, alongside a fresh squash & corn salad.
The third course consisted of seared herb & garlic pork chop, with nectarine jam, roasted bacon, and collards.
Topping it all off was a strawberry short cake with chocolate gravy. Lauren emphasized the Appalachian roots of all of Buford’s dishes, laughing how “down South we love chocolate gravy”.
Every meal was paired with cider or wine. We started with their Ashmead’s semi-sweet cider, but our hosts provided samples from a wide variety of other beverages from Blue Wall.
Most cideries focus on what I call ‘beer cider’; carbonated, often flavored, usually served in a can. The cider from Blue Wall is what I think of as ‘wine cider’; lighter, elegant, and more representative of the fruit they came from. Most are dry, although the off-dry Ashmead’s hit the spot on a warm evening.
After our meal I picked up some duck eggs at the local farm store.
I loved my entire visit! You’ll appreciate farm-to-table food even more once you visit the farm. Their next event is September 22, this time with The Wine Kitchen and Wined & Dined. Check it out and tell me what you think.
This Saturday I joined Jason Murray of Arterra Wines for a fall wine release/vineyard tour of Seven Oaks, his main satellite vineyard. Joining us was Seven Oaks owners Mark and Madeline Skinner.
For those unfamiliar with Arterra, Jason is a huge proponent of low-intervention winemaking. I’d go so far to call it ‘ultra-low’ intervention, given his focus on using only natural yeast fermentation and basically allowing his wines to decide ‘what they want to be’ rather than force them into a certain direction.
The result is Jason produces wine that, if you tasted them blind in a lineup, you can always tell which are his. During the tour he explained, “I like wine that’s distinctive, that doesn’t taste like every other wine”. All his wines are made to be variety-specific or vineyard-specific.
Arterra’s estate vineyard provides most of their fruit. But since 2005 he’s also partnered with the Skinners to grow wine at their home in the town of Philomont (roughly halfway between Middleburg and Purcellville). Today, Seven Oaks Vineyard has 8.5 acres under vine.
When we got started, Mark and Jason gave us the low-down of the property.
It turns out the farm is historic, going back to colonial times when Lord Fairfax was sub-dividing his land grant into different segments (driving in you pass a sign that says “Seven Oaks Circa 1795”). You wouldn’t know by looking at it, but the main house started as a log cabin and was repeatedly expanded upon over time.
The land was purchased years back by Mark’s father Ben Skinner, a retired Marine Corps aviator who wanted a place away from the city. It’s also really, really pretty and I hope the Skinners host more events here. I especially loved the pond with a sitting area in front of it.
Seven Oaks is what Jason calls a “Piedmont site”, which he defines as relatively lower-elevation site with more energetic soil, as opposed to the thinner soils of a mountain site such as his 950-foot elevation estate vineyard. Seven Oaks’ lower 450-foot elevation drives much of the decision-making on what to plant here.
The vineyard’s original plantings includes Chardonnay, Petit Verdot, and Cabernet Franc. More recently it’s become home to Arterra’s Grüner Veltliner, Blaufränkisch, and Zweigelt. It used to grow Arterra’s Malbec, until it was torn out around 2019.
Planning for cold weather events is actually why Jason chose the last three varieties. All three are indigenous to Austria, which only grows grapes suitable for cooler climates.
At first I was confused why someone would plant cool-climate varieties in warm-climate Virginia. But Jason explained “It’s all about the right grape in the right site”.
While Virginia’s summers are characterized as ‘hot and humid’, its winters can occasionally be very cold (as the polar vortex of 2014 demonstrated). Low-elevation sites are especially vulnerable to cold weather, which is why Jason decided to keep his most tender vinifera at his estate vineyard while focusing on early ripening, cold-hardy varieties here.
Jason and Mark walked us through their various plantings and we sampled grapes from the vine while tasting wine made from those plots. It was my first time tasting the Zweigelt and Blau, and only second time tasting the Grüner.
I felt the Blau was very fresh and juicy; a summer/fall wine that can be enjoyed a little chilled. The Zweigelt was more of a fall/winter or food wine; it was too warm for me to enjoy on our walk but I’d enjoy it with hearty meal. It was also a favorite of the local wildlife, apparently.
I loved the Grüner as well. This was different from the lean, austere wines of Austria. It was ‘bigger’ in volume and richer in texture than the typical Grüners you find. Some of that may be its location, but I think most of the credit is because of Jason’s focus on ‘clean’ wine and use of natural yeast.
All three varieties were recent additions, with 2022 being their first vintages. Sandy and Jason Murray were really excited to see how the vine’s growing maturity would influence the wine.
We also tried the no-sulfite PV, Cab Franc, and his rosé. While Jason makes a more ‘traditional’ PV, this one only uses fruit from the Seven Oaks Vineyard. This PV was softer than his regular PV, while the Cab Franc might have been my favorite wine of the day.
We finished the day with a big charcuterie plate and other light bites, which we paired with his Seven Oaks red blend.
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.
Wine Trails and Wanderlust 