In the third week of July, some wineries in the Shenandoah Valley, with the help of local and state-level sponsors, organized a 24-hour tour for members of Virginia media, with a focus on travel, Virginia-focused and wine. About a dozen members attended from around the state, from independent wine bloggers to print magazine editors and writers. Vicki Ruckman, owner of The Virginia Farmhouse; Stephanie Pence, co-owner of Brix and Columns Vineyards; and Lee Hartman, winemaker of Bluestone Vineyards, were the principal organizers, with enologist Joy Ting, blogger Frank Morgan and chef Tassie Pippert (also a Certified Specialist of Wine), as panel moderators.
Category-based Wine Tastings and Seminars
The event featured three wine category-based tastings and seminars: sparkling wine on Sunday, dessert and red wine on Monday. There were also two vineyard visits and a four-course dinner at the Pence’s Jefferson-inspired house, owners of Brix and Columns Vineyard. The dinner featured select wines paired with courses prepared by Tassie Pippert, a certified chef and lecturer at James Madison University’s Hart School of Hospitality (her Virginia Public Media television show “Un-Wine’d”, on Virginia wine, won an Emmy).
The event was not only well-organized but well-focused, with winemakers and winery owners able to describe the climate and soils of the Shenandoah Valley and how they differ from those east of the Blue Ridge Mountains to attendees in simple and understandable terms. The Valley is cooler and drier than regions to the east, and also has well-drained limestone and sandstone-based soils, all of which are very favorable to classic cool-climate viticulture.
Diverse but Successful Viticulture in the Valley
The Shenandoah Valley is the oldest and largest American Viticultural Area in Virginia, and attendees learned that there is impressive diversity of viticulture in the Valley. French (and other) hybrid grapes are more prevalent here, perhaps because of a shorter growing season than further east and for cold-hardiness. Some wineries grow both hybrids and vinifera (European) grapes; some grow only vinifera varieties, but the diversity of individual varieties and wines is impressive.
Thirty years ago, hybrid grapes in the Valley were almost all Chambourcin (red), Vidal and Seyval (whites). Now, in addition to these, there are newly-released hybrids like Arandell (red) and Traminette (a white from Cornell University in New York), and even La Crescent (a white variety from the University of Minnesota).
On the vinifera spectrum, there are many cool-climate vinifera classics, like Riesling, Chardonnay, Cabernet Franc, and even Pinot Noir and Blaufränkisch/Lemberger. Briedé Vineyards not only makes a varietal Arandell (a fairly new hybrid) but also varietal Tannat, which is able to fully ripen in the cool Valley. Muse Vineyards, which is a vinifera-only vineyard, grows an impressive range, from the red Bordeaux classics of Merlot, the two Cabernets, Petit Verdot and Malbec, to Rhone varieties Grenache, Mourvedre, Marsanne and Roussanne, and even Nebbiolo. The point is, they all perform well in the Valley, and also are all able to demonstrate Valley terroir (character of a region in a wine’s taste).
Sparkling Wines Showcase Classic Cool-Climate Chardonnay
To start the event, attendees met at Muse Vineyards in Woodstock for a sparkling wine tasting and discussion. Wines featured were all made in the classic bottle-fermented methode champenoise and ranged from an organically-farmed Cayuga by Briedé Family Vineyards 2017 (3 years sur lie), and two Chardonnays, one by Muse Vineyards Blanc de Blancs (non-vintage, 24 months sur-lie) and a 2017 Blanc de Blancs by Bluestone Vineyards (49 months sur-lie).
While I arrived late and was unable to taste the Briedé Cayuga sparkler, I was able to taste the Blanc de Blancs by Muse and Bluestone, and can tell you that Shenandoah Valley-grown Chardonnay is great material for classic methode champenoise sparkling wine. In fact, the table wine Chardonnays I also tasted (Brix and Columns 2021 barrel fermented and Bluestone estate Chardonnay 2021) rank in the best of Burgundian-style East Coast Chardonnays that I’ve tasted.
A Four-Course Dinner with Outstanding Shenandoah Valley Wines
The Monticello-inspired home of Stephanie and Steve Pence, next to their vines and tasting room at Brix and Columns Vineyards east of Massanutten, was the site for an impressive four-course dinner thoughtfully matched with the fine cuisine of chef Tassie Pippert of James Madison University’s Hart School of Hospitality. Appetizers were paired with Barren Ridge Vineyards’ Blanc de Blanc 2019, methode traditionelle (the politically correct way to say “methode champenoise” today if you’re not in Champagne).
The first course was scallop with asparagus, grits and a prosciutto chip, served with Brix and Columns barrel fermented Chardonnay 2021*** aged nine months in oak (Michael Heny of Michael Shaps Wineworks is the winemaker). The nose was fresh, with lemon and butterscotch, and elegant French oak notes. On the palate, it was fresh, with vivid fruit/acid balance and very skillful integration of acidity, oak and fruit, in a Burgundian style. ($26)
The second course was a salad of mixed greens, nuts, berries and local cheeses with Barren Ridge Viognier 2021 ** ($27). The nose was very subtle (just bottled), with hints of flowers and fresh apricots. On the palate: Wow! Great concentration, rich viscosity but great fruit/acid balance; drinks like a Riesling more than a typical Viognier, with racy acidity. The fruit will come in with a little more time.
The main course was a beef tenderloin with a local cherry sauce, mashed potatoes, and green beens. It was served with the Bluestone Vineyards “Houndstooth” 2017*** (Meritage-style blend dominated by Cabernet Franc), $29.50. This was a blend from eight select barrels.
Nose: wow! Large volume; lovely spice notes and black fruits typical of the vintage, with clean earth notes. Palate: wow; large, but also very elegant and fresh, solid oak and fruit on mid-palate but with enough acidity for a fresh finish.
Dessert was a dark chocolate bourbon cheesecake paired with The Winery at Kindred Pointe’s 2019 Petit Verdot ** ($32). It was aged 24 months in new American oak. Oftentimes, red wines can be a challenge to match well with a dessert course, because of high alcohol, tannins and oak levels. In this case, it was a perfect match. The Petit Verdot had lovely floral and herbal nuances on the nose, and the palate was more about texture than flavor; very plush, round and smooth, with lovely integration of oak, fruit, and velvet texture.
The dinner proved two things: chef Tassie Pippert’s cooking and wine matching skills, and the excellent quality/price ratio of fine Shenandoah Valley wines, from sparkling to red wines.
Shenandoah Valley Terroir Experienced In Person
Tour attendees ate breakfast the next morning at the top of a fairly new vi[neyard adjacent to Bluestone Vineyards. Bluestone winemaker Lee Hartman (his family owns the vineyards and winery) explained that the pleasant ambient breezes we felt were typical, even for late July. These breezes, lower average humidity and rainfall than east of the Blue Ridge, and well-drained sedimentary soils are hallmarks of Valley viticulture, and all contribute to grape and wine quality. Lee explained that the winery’s name “Bluestone” is the actual name of the local limestone, seen all around the city of Harrisburg, with its blue-gray color.
Cryo-Extraction Dessert White Wines and Hybrid Grapes
The morning panel featured three cryo-extraction icewine-style dessert wines from Valley vineyards. Cryo-extraction wines are picked at normal harvest chemistry, then artificially frozen in commercial freezers, and pressed while frozen. This mimics the wine chemistry achieved when grapes are naturally frozen on the vine and then picked and pressed, but the Tax and Trade Bureau which regulates the American wine industry won’t allow cryo-extraction wines to be labeled as “icewine”, unless they’re frozen on the vine before being picked.
Wineries participating included Barren Ridge Vineyards with their “Christof” 2019** ($35/375 ml), Bluestone Vineyards with their “Blue Ice” 2017* ($29.50/375 ml), and Rockbridge Vineyards with their “V d’Or” 2017*** ($35/375 ml). All three wines won gold medals in this year’s Governor’s Cup competition. Interestingly, all wines were made from hybrid grapes, either blends or solo varietals, and Traminette (a white hybrid with Gewurztraminer as one parent) was present in all three wines. This showed that hybrid grapes continue to be used in Valley wines, and in the dessert category, make excellent quality wines, showing that “grape racism” is flawed thinking.
Wines were mildly different in style, but all were rich, sweet but balanced (freezing grapes reduces water content, increasing both sugar and acidity). Jane Rouse, wife of winemaker Shep Rouse of Rockbridge, explained that their V d’Or started as a late harvest wine, but due to disease pressure, they got much better chemistry picking the grapes at normal ripeness and then freezing them. The wine is now a three-grape blend of hybrids Vidal, Vignoles, and Traminette. All three winemakers agreed they use Traminette for its perfumed aromatics and rich flavors. If the prices seem high for half-bottles, consider that the liquid volume extracted from frozen grapes is a small fraction of what it would be if they were pressed at room temperature. Also, natural icewine sells for about twice these prices.
Jane Rouse says that over the years, Shep has decided that the ideal style to emulate for this wine is that of Sauternes in Bordeaux, where the final alcohol is about 13.5%, similar to the percentage of residual sugar. All three of these Valley cryo-extraction wines were similar in chemistry, which does seem to produce well-balanced wines.
Shenandoah Valley Reds: from Chambourcin to Cabernet Sauvignon
[panel pic]
The final tasting panel of the media tour featured three different red wines from the Valley. Two were Governor’s Cup gold medal winners from the 2022 competition, both from the excellent 2019 vintage, and one was a mature, 12-year old Meritage-style blend; this gave a sense of how well fine Valley reds can develop over time, and how forward the 2019s are for near-term enjoyment.
First was the Kindred Pointe “Picasso” 2019***, an elegant and original blend of 70% Petit Verdot, 18% Chambourcin and 12% Cabernet Sauvignon. Nose: ripe black fruits and oak. Palate: well-integrated ripe fruit and firm tannins, rich oak and fruit flavors. The fruit-forward Chambourcin balances the more tannin Bordeaux varieties but it still drinks like a red Bordeaux blend.
The Muse “Clio” 2010**** (a four-way Meritage-style blend) was next. The 2009 vintage of the same wine won the Virginia Governor’s Cup in 2015. The nose was rich and ripe with black fruits, oak and baking spices. On the palate, it was complex, with an intense explosion of fruit flavors on the mid-palate, then finishing with a fresh minerality. Great concentration, yet balanced, and a great way to show Valley terroir for a mature red blend from a great vintage. Close to its peak but can be enjoyed until 2028-30.
The third red was a Shenandoah Cabernet Sauvignon 2019**. Typical for a young Cabernet, the nose was mostly closed with hints of cassis and oak. The palate was rich, ripe and smooth, with well-ripened tannins, and hints of cigar box and spice. Young but well-integrated and balance, it will age well, and proves that this classic and late-ripening varietal can mature in the Valley.
An interesting discussion took place between the three winemakers (Bruce Helsley of Kindred Pointe, Robert Muse, and Mike Heny of Shenandoah/Michael Shaps wineries), moderated by wine blogger Frank Morgan. Bruce says he has had success growing and making wine from hybrids, in this case Chambourcin (in several styles) but also with Seyval Blancand Vidal. Robert Muse, who only grows vinifera (European) varieties, says Valley wineries and growers should consider growing hybrids due to their better disease resistance and the threat of climate change.
On the quality of Petit Verdot in the Valley, the winemakers agreed that it ripens well there, and as Mike Heny said, “Petit Verdot gave winemakers things that Cabernet Sauvignon grown in Virginia couldn’t deliver.” Robert Muse noted that Petit Verdot gives a higher yield than most vinifera grapes, high prices per ton for growers, and a European variety that isn’t even made as a solo varietal in Europe. Heny says that the future of Virginia reds is in the reliable ripening of Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, not in Cabernet Sauvignon. “There’s a freshness and verve to Valley wines,” says Lee Hartman, “I think the reds show that as well as the whites.
The Valley wineries want to grow tourism and increase visitation. As Robert Muse points out, “It’s no farther to the Shenandoah Valley than to Charlottesville for Northern Virginians.” Mike Heny says out that due to its climate advantages, “The Shenandoah Valley is shaping up to be the next big thing in Virginia wine.” Already, a number of wineries located elsewhere in Virginia are not only sourcing fruit from the Valley but sometimes labeling it with the Shenandoah Valley appellation. Robert noted that Virginia wine pioneer Gabrielle Rausse had told him some years ago that the Valley was the future of Virginia wine; average rainfall is a full six inches (“half a foot!”) less than east of the Blue Ridge. Add to that the well-drained soils of the Valley and an “agricultural heritage” where farming is respected and “I’ve never had trouble finding someone who could fix a tractor.”
This panel discussion had made a strong concluding case for considering the Shenandoah Valley as among the best locations in Virginia to grow winegrapes and make wine, but the high quality and diversity of the wines media members had tasted and enjoyed over the visit probably sealed the case. Attendees concluded the event by tasting a range of other Valley wines including newly-released early-drinking reds from the promising 2021 vintage.
[pic: ’21 reds]
Ratings key: * = good, ** = very good, *** = excellent, **** = exceptional, > = will increase in quality with time.
Shenandoah Valley Media Tour Showcases Region’s Wine Diversity and Quality
In the third week of July, the Shenandoah Valley Wine Trail, with the help of local and state-level sponsors, organized a 24-hour tour for members of Virginia media, with a focus on travel, Virginia-focused and wine writers. About a dozen members attended from around the state, from independent wine bloggers to print magazine editors and writers. Vicki Ruckman, owner of The Virginia Farmhouse; Stephanie Pence, co-owner of Brix and Columns Vineyards; and Lee Hartman, winemaker of Bluestone Vineyards, were the principal organizers, with enologist Joy Ting, blogger Frank Morgan and chef Tassie Pippert (also a Certified Specialist of Wine), as panel moderators.
Category-based Wine Tastings and Seminars
The event featured three wine category-based tastings and seminars: sparkling wine on Sunday, dessert and red wine on Monday. There were also two vineyard visits and a four-course dinner at the Pence’s Jefferson-inspired house, owners of Brix and Columns Vineyard. The dinner featured select wines paired with courses prepared by Tassie Pippert, a certified chef and lecturer at James Madison University’s Hart School of Hospitality (her Virginia Public Media television show “Un-Wine’d”, on Virginia wine, won an Emmy).
The event was not only well-organized but well-focused, with winemakers and winery owners able to describe the climate and soils of the Shenandoah Valley and how they differ from those east of the Blue Ridge Mountains to attendees in simple and understandable terms. The Valley is cooler and drier than regions to the east, and also has well-drained limestone and sandstone-based soils, all of which are very favorable to classic cool-climate viticulture.
Diverse but Successful Viticulture in the Valley
The Shenandoah Valley is the oldest and largest American Viticultural Area in Virginia, and attendees learned that there is impressive diversity of viticulture in the Valley. French (and other) hybrid grapes are more prevalent here, perhaps because of a shorter growing season than further east and for cold-hardiness. Some wineries grow both hybrids and vinifera (European) grapes; some grow only vinifera varieties, but the diversity of individual varieties and wines is impressive.
Thirty years ago, hybrid grapes in the Valley were almost all Chambourcin (red), Vidal and Seyval (whites). Now, in addition to these, there are newly-released hybrids like Arandell (red) and Traminette (a white from Cornell University in New York), and even La Crescent (a white variety from the University of Minnesota).
On the vinifera spectrum, there are many cool-climate vinifera classics, like Riesling, Chardonnay, Cabernet Franc, and even Pinot Noir and Blaufränkisch/Lemberger. Briedé Vineyards not only makes a varietal Arandell (a fairly new hybrid) but also varietal Tannat, which is able to fully ripen in the cool Valley. Muse Vineyards, which is a vinifera-only vineyard, grows an impressive range, from the red Bordeaux classics of Merlot, the two Cabernets, Petit Verdot and Malbec, to Rhone varieties Grenache, Mourvedre, Marsanne and Roussanne, and even Nebbiolo. The point is, they all perform well in the Valley, and also are all able to demonstrate Valley terroir (character of a region in a wine’s taste).
Sparkling Wines Showcase Classic Cool-Climate Chardonnay
To start the event, attendees met at Muse Vineyards in Woodstock for a sparkling wine tasting and discussion. Wines featured were all made in the classic bottle-fermented methode champenoise and ranged from an organically-farmed Cayuga by Briedé Family Vineyards 2017 (3 years sur lie), and two Chardonnays, one by Muse Vineyards Blanc de Blancs (non-vintage, 24 months sur-lie) and a 2017 Blanc de Blancs by Bluestone Vineyards (49 months sur-lie).
While I arrived late and was unable to taste the Briedé Cayuga sparkler, I was able to taste the Blanc de Blancs by Muse and Bluestone, and can tell you that Shenandoah Valley-grown Chardonnay is great material for classic methode champenoise sparkling wine. In fact, the table wine Chardonnays I also tasted (Brix and Columns 2021 barrel fermented and Bluestone estate Chardonnay 2021) rank in the best of Burgundian-style East Coast Chardonnays that I’ve tasted.
A Four-Course Dinner with Outstanding Shenandoah Valley Wines
The Monticello-inspired home of Stephanie and Steve Pence, next to their vines and tasting room at Brix and Columns Vineyards east of Massanutten, was the site for an impressive four-course dinner thoughtfully matched with the fine cuisine of chef Tassie Pippert of James Madison University’s Hart School of Hospitality. Appetizers were paired with Barren Ridge Vineyards’ Blanc de Blanc 2019, methode traditionelle (the politically correct way to say “methode champenoise” today if you’re not in Champagne).
The first course was scallop with asparagus, grits and a prosciutto chip, served with Brix and Columns barrel fermented Chardonnay 2021*** aged nine months in oak (Michael Heny of Michael Shaps Wineworks is the winemaker). The nose was fresh, with lemon and butterscotch, and elegant French oak notes. On the palate, it was fresh, with vivid fruit/acid balance and very skillful integration of acidity, oak and fruit, in a Burgundian style. ($26)
The second course was a salad of mixed greens, nuts, berries and local cheeses with Barren Ridge Viognier 2021 ** ($27). The nose was very subtle (just bottled), with hints of flowers and fresh apricots. On the palate: Wow! Great concentration, rich viscosity but great fruit/acid balance; drinks like a Riesling more than a typical Viognier, with racy acidity. The fruit will come in with a little more time.
The main course was a beef tenderloin with a local cherry sauce, mashed potatoes, and green beens. It was served with the Bluestone Vineyards “Houndstooth” 2017*** (Meritage-style blend dominated by Cabernet Franc), $29.50. This was a blend from eight select barrels.
Nose: wow! Large volume; lovely spice notes and black fruits typical of the vintage, with clean earth notes. Palate: wow; large, but also very elegant and fresh, solid oak and fruit on mid-palate but with enough acidity for a fresh finish.
Dessert was a dark chocolate bourbon cheesecake paired with The Winery at Kindred Pointe’s 2019 Petit Verdot ** ($32). It was aged 24 months in new American oak. Oftentimes, red wines can be a challenge to match well with a dessert course, because of high alcohol, tannins and oak levels. In this case, it was a perfect match. The Petit Verdot had lovely floral and herbal nuances on the nose, and the palate was more about texture than flavor; very plush, round and smooth, with lovely integration of oak, fruit, and velvet texture.
The dinner proved two things: chef Tassie Pippert’s cooking and wine matching skills, and the excellent quality/price ratio of fine Shenandoah Valley wines, from sparkling to red wines.
Shenandoah Valley Terroir Experienced In Person
Tour attendees ate breakfast the next morning at the top of a fairly new vi[neyard adjacent to Bluestone Vineyards. Bluestone winemaker Lee Hartman (his family owns the vineyards and winery) explained that the pleasant ambient breezes we felt were typical, even for late July. These breezes, lower average humidity and rainfall than east of the Blue Ridge, and well-drained sedimentary soils are hallmarks of Valley viticulture, and all contribute to grape and wine quality. Lee explained that the winery’s name “Bluestone” is the actual name of the local limestone, seen all around the city of Harrisburg, with its blue-gray color.
Cryo-Extraction Dessert White Wines and Hybrid Grapes
The morning panel featured three cryo-extraction icewine-style dessert wines from Valley vineyards. Cryo-extraction wines are picked at normal harvest chemistry, then artificially frozen in commercial freezers, and pressed while frozen. This mimics the wine chemistry achieved when grapes are naturally frozen on the vine and then picked and pressed, but the Tax and Trade Bureau which regulates the American wine industry won’t allow cryo-extraction wines to be labeled as “icewine”, unless they’re frozen on the vine before being picked.
Wineries participating included Barren Ridge Vineyards with their “Christof” 2019** ($35/375 ml), Bluestone Vineyards with their “Blue Ice” 2017* ($29.50/375 ml), and Rockbridge Vineyards with their “V d’Or” 2017*** ($35/375 ml). All three wines won gold medals in this year’s Governor’s Cup competition. Interestingly, all wines were made from hybrid grapes, either blends or solo varietals, and Traminette (a white hybrid with Gewurztraminer as one parent) was present in all three wines. This showed that hybrid grapes continue to be used in Valley wines, and in the dessert category, make excellent quality wines, showing that “grape racism” is flawed thinking.
Wines were mildly different in style, but all were rich, sweet but balanced (freezing grapes reduces water content, increasing both sugar and acidity). Jane Rouse, wife of winemaker Shep Rouse of Rockbridge, explained that their V d’Or started as a late harvest wine, but due to disease pressure, they got much better chemistry picking the grapes at normal ripeness and then freezing them. The wine is now a three-grape blend of hybrids Vidal, Vignoles, and Traminette. All three winemakers agreed they use Traminette for its perfumed aromatics and rich flavors. If the prices seem high for half-bottles, consider that the liquid volume extracted from frozen grapes is a small fraction of what it would be if they were pressed at room temperature. Also, natural icewine sells for about twice these prices.
Jane Rouse says that over the years, Shep has decided that the ideal style to emulate for this wine is that of Sauternes in Bordeaux, where the final alcohol is about 13.5%, similar to the percentage of residual sugar. All three of these Valley cryo-extraction wines were similar in chemistry, which does seem to produce well-balanced wines.
Shenandoah Valley Reds: from Chambourcin to Cabernet Sauvignon
[panel pic]
The final tasting panel of the media tour featured three different red wines from the Valley. Two were Governor’s Cup gold medal winners from the 2022 competition, both from the excellent 2019 vintage, and one was a mature, 12-year old Meritage-style blend; this gave a sense of how well fine Valley reds can develop over time, and how forward the 2019s are for near-term enjoyment.
First was the Kindred Pointe “Picasso” 2019***, an elegant and original blend of 70% Petit Verdot, 18% Chambourcin and 12% Cabernet Sauvignon. Nose: ripe black fruits and oak. Palate: well-integrated ripe fruit and firm tannins, rich oak and fruit flavors. The fruit-forward Chambourcin balances the more tannin Bordeaux varieties but it still drinks like a red Bordeaux blend.
The Muse “Clio” 2010**** (a four-way Meritage-style blend) was next. The 2009 vintage of the same wine won the Virginia Governor’s Cup in 2015. The nose was rich and ripe with black fruits, oak and baking spices. On the palate, it was complex, with an intense explosion of fruit flavors on the mid-palate, then finishing with a fresh minerality. Great concentration, yet balanced, and a great way to show Valley terroir for a mature red blend from a great vintage. Close to its peak but can be enjoyed until 2028-30.
The third red was a Shenandoah Cabernet Sauvignon 2019**. Typical for a young Cabernet, the nose was mostly closed with hints of cassis and oak. The palate was rich, ripe and smooth, with well-ripened tannins, and hints of cigar box and spice. Young but well-integrated and balance, it will age well, and proves that this classic and late-ripening varietal can mature in the Valley.
An interesting discussion took place between the three winemakers (Bruce Helsley of Kindred Pointe, Robert Muse, and Mike Heny of Shenandoah/Michael Shaps wineries), moderated by wine blogger Frank Morgan. Bruce says he has had success growing and making wine from hybrids, in this case Chambourcin (in several styles) but also with Seyval Blancand Vidal. Robert Muse, who only grows vinifera (European) varieties, says Valley wineries and growers should consider growing hybrids due to their better disease resistance and the threat of climate change.
On the quality of Petit Verdot in the Valley, the winemakers agreed that it ripens well there, and as Mike Heny said, “Petit Verdot gave winemakers things that Cabernet Sauvignon grown in Virginia couldn’t deliver.” Robert Muse noted that Petit Verdot gives a higher yield than most vinifera grapes, high prices per ton for growers, and a European variety that isn’t even made as a solo varietal in Europe. Heny says that the future of Virginia reds is in the reliable ripening of Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, not in Cabernet Sauvignon. “There’s a freshness and verve to Valley wines,” says Lee Hartman, “I think the reds show that as well as the whites.
The Valley wineries want to grow tourism and increase visitation. As Robert Muse points out, “It’s no farther to the Shenandoah Valley than to Charlottesville for Northern Virginians.” Mike Heny says out that due to its climate advantages, “The Shenandoah Valley is shaping up to be the next big thing in Virginia wine.” Already, a number of wineries located elsewhere in Virginia are not only sourcing fruit from the Valley but sometimes labeling it with the Shenandoah Valley appellation. Robert noted that Virginia wine pioneer Gabrielle Rausse had told him some years ago that the Valley was the future of Virginia wine; average rainfall is a full six inches (“half a foot!”) less than east of the Blue Ridge. Add to that the well-drained soils of the Valley and an “agricultural heritage” where farming is respected and “I’ve never had trouble finding someone who could fix a tractor.”
This panel discussion had made a strong concluding case for considering the Shenandoah Valley as among the best locations in Virginia to grow winegrapes and make wine, but the high quality and diversity of the wines media members had tasted and enjoyed over the visit probably sealed the case. Attendees concluded the event by tasting a range of other Valley wines including newly-released early-drinking reds from the promising 2021 vintage.
[pic: ’21 reds]
Ratings key: * = good, ** = very good, *** = excellent, **** = exceptional, > = will increase in quality with time.