2/27/18, Richmond, VA–Virginia Governor Ralph Northam tonight announced that from a field of 99 gold medal wines, King Family Vineyards of Crozet had won the Governor’s Cup for their 2014 Meritage, made by winemaker Matthieu Finot, who has been consistently producing one of the top Meritage wines in the state for many years.
Governor Ralph Northam presents
King Family winemaker Matthieu Finot
with the 2018 Virginia Governor’s Cup.
The KFV 2014 Meritage is a blend of 50% merlot, 23% petit verdot, 21% cabernet franc, and 6% malbec. [official] Tasting Notes: A complex nose of bright red fruit, violets, and dried rose petals is laced with delicate notes of saffron, vanilla and spice. The palate is bright and youthful, with a focused structure and layered flavors of cherry and raspberry alongside oak spice and tar. The tannic structure and acidity follow through the finish. Aged for 18 months in French oak.
King Family Vineyards won a total of five gold medals in the Governor’s Cup; aside from the Cup-winning Meritage, these include:
- 2015 Mountain Plains
- 2015 Loreley
- 2016 Viognier
- 2016 Chardonnay
In 2010 King Family Vineyards also won the Governor’s Cup for their Meritage, from 2007.
Governor’s Case
Every year, the top-scoring twelve wines in the Governor’s Cup Competition make up the Governor’s Case. This year they include:
- (Cup Winner) King Family Meritage 2014
- Barboursville Vineyards Paxxito 2014 (dessert white)
- Cross Keys Vineyards Ali d’Oro 2015 (dessert white)
- Early Mountain Vineyards Eluvium 2015 (Meritage-style red)
- Jefferson Vineyards Viognier 2015
- Jefferson Vineyards Viognier 2016
- Keswick Vineyards Cabernet Franc Estate Reserve 2016
- North Gate Vineyard Petit Verdot 2015
- Potomac Point Winery Cabernet Franc 2016
- Veritas Vineyard & Winery Petit Verdot 2015
- Virginia Cellars dba The Barns at Hamilton Station, Meritage 2015
- Virginia Cellars dba The Barns at Hamilton Station, Petit Verdot 2015
Other Awards
Lucie Morton (center) accepts the Lifetime Achievement Award from Gordon Murchie (right)
The Wine Person of the Year was awarded (posthumously) to Frank Britt, publisher of the original Virginia Wine Lover magazine, and the Gordon Murchie Lifetime Achievement Award was awarded to Lucie Morton, viticulturist and consultant. “Home is where the heart is,” she said in her acceptance speech. “In wine regions, it’s where people have planted vines.”