by Richard Leahy | Aug 10, 2021 | Events, News, Regions & Terroir
New Layout and Features This Year The Maryland Wine Festival returns to the Carroll County Farm Museum on Saturday, September 18 and Sunday, September 19. While 2021 marks the 37th celebration of this tradition, updates to the event’s programming and layout promise...
by Richard Leahy | Aug 5, 2021 | Conferences & Meetings, Regions & Terroir, Virginia Wine, Winery Visits
The Monticello Wine Trail Media Event, co-organized by Virginia wine writers Frank Morgan and Nancy Bauer, brought a versatile, curated group of 15 writers to Charlottesville on August 1-2 for an immersion in the wines, winemakers and winery owners of the Monticello...
by Richard Leahy | Jun 22, 2021 | Regions & Terroir, Tastings/Evaluations
Having been forced by the pandemic to avoid traveling to New York State last year, I eagerly drove to the Finger Lakes in early June. It was a good time to check out the wine scene; the “classic” 2019 vintage was still widely available but the great 2020 vintage was...
by Richard Leahy | May 16, 2021 | Regions & Terroir, Virginia Wine, Winery Visits
May 15th was an ideal day to do most anything outdoors. Near Charlottesville, it was an ideal day to avoid the crowds near the University and visit wineries, especially since the CDC had OK’d not wearing masks when in groups outdoors. Wineries were serving...
by Richard Leahy | May 14, 2021 | Regions & Terroir, Tastings/Evaluations, Varietals
In 2004 I had the pleasure of traveling to Lexington, NC and interviewing Richard Childress, the famous NASCAR legend and then the owner of a new, eponymous winery in the Yadkin Valley AVA. The resulting story made the cover of a national wine trade...
by Richard Leahy | Feb 28, 2021 | Competitions, Regions & Terroir, Tastings/Evaluations, Virginia Wine
As I have done for the last decade, I was a judge in the annual Virginia wine Governor’s Cup competition this month, only there was a logistical proble: how to do the event with safe social distancing during the pandemic? Jay Youmans MW came up with what I...
