by Richard Leahy | Dec 7, 2019 | Regions & Terroir, Tastings/Evaluations, Virginia Wine
When a very good or great vintage comes along, it’s a good idea to buy enough to lay down for when they really mature, as you enjoy the other bottles when they’re young. Any wine lover deserves to drink mature wines of a decade old or more, especially if...
by Richard Leahy | Nov 26, 2019 | Regions & Terroir, Tastings/Evaluations, Virginia Wine
Since Thanksgiving was the original locavore feast (on the East Coast), it’s only appropriate to drink local wine (or cider, or mead or fruit wine) wherever in the country you are. Thanksgiving gives you the chance (with my encouragement!) to get outside the box of...
by Richard Leahy | Nov 11, 2019 | Competitions, Events, Regions & Terroir, Virginia Wine
The Shenandoah Valley Wine Trail, comprised of wineries in the Shenandoah Valley American Viticultural Area, will present the first Shenandoah Cup trophy to the top-rated wine submitted in its inaugural competition at a Gala on November 15. The celebration will be...
by Richard Leahy | Oct 5, 2019 | Tastings/Evaluations, Virginia Wine
Some may wonder whether Horton Vineyards can continue to push the envelope and make great, outside-the-box wines as it did for nearly 30 years under the late founder Dennis Horton. This iconic Syrah (on top of the Rose of Pinotage I reviewed last time) shows that they...
by Richard Leahy | Sep 30, 2019 | Tastings/Evaluations, Varietals, Virginia Wine
As we know, 2018 was a very difficult vintage for Virginia vintners, but despite that, the industry has been through bad vintages before and I’ve never seen such a bad vintage that people worked so hard through to get such surprisingly good wines from. One of...
by Richard Leahy | Sep 16, 2019 | Tastings/Evaluations, Virginia Wine
Winemaker Stephen Barnard of Keswick Vineyards has earned a reputation for making some of the best Cabernet Franc wines in Virginia. In the 2016 Governor’s Cup Competition, two labels of Keswick Cabernet Franc were awarded gold medals–the 2013 Signature...
