Summer Wines of Virginia Taste & Tweet

Summer Wines of Virginia ‘Taste & Tweet’

Though the Summer Solstice officially marks the beginning of summer – Tuesday, June 21 this year – here in our little corner of Southeastern, VA, the summer season unofficially kicks off the first weekend neighborhood kids take to the lake for swimming and other water activities.  As temperatures reached the high 80′s this weekend, the lake was filled with neighbors swimming, enjoying various water sports, and just vegging on floats – our unofficial official start to summer.

Not only does the start of summer mean high heat and humidity until the end of September, it also signals a natural change in my wine consumption preferences – from weighty reds to crisp, refreshing whites and dry Rosés.  Some of my favorite crisp, refreshing whites and Rosés are made here in Virginia, and last night I had the opportunity to try six newly released wines that will surely occupy a place on our summer sipping list.

These six wines were part of the ‘Summer Wines of Virginia‘ virtual taste & tweet that I had the pleasure of co-organizing with my friends Paul & Warren from Virginia Wine Time, VWD & GEG from Swirl, Sip, Snark, and Annette, Amy, and Mary Catherine from the Marketing Office of the Virginia Wine Board.   This virtual tasting showcased a selection of Virginia’s summer wines as a lead up to the 2011 Wine Bloggers Conference that will be held in Charlottesville in July.

The summer wine lineup included:

• Keswick 2010 Verdejo
• Veritas 2010 Sauvignon Blanc Reserve
• Boxwood 2010 Topiary Rose
• Jefferson 2010 Viognier
• Chrysalis 2010 Viognier
• Lovingston 2010 Petit Manseng

(* Disclaimer:  Each of the wines were provided as samples to participate in this tasting.)

Joining in the virtual taste & tweet were bloggers from across the US and the six winemakers also joined in the conversation via Twitter.  Based on Twitter statistics via Row Feeder from last night (7:30pm ET to 9:30pm ET) over 40 tweeters contributed to the virtual conversation resulting in 650 Virginia Wine tweets (using ‘#VaWine’ hashtag) and over 1,000,000 potential impressions just in that two hour period.  The number of related tweets and impressions goes up considerably if all tweets from earlier in the day prior to the tasting and later in the evening after the tasting were included.

Below are the wines our group tasted and a few tweets from fellow tasters:

DrinkWhatULike: @KeswickVineyard 2010 Verdejo – Enough citrus in this glass to stock a farmers market!

SwirlSipSnark: this wine has great, bracing acidity – it’s a great wine for these hot months

Ericalj: The Keswick Verdejo goes great with goat cheese

WineHarlots: The @KeswickVineyard Verdejo 2010 is a total glass of awesome. Come to mommy!

TheGoodWineGuru: Subtle citrus on both the nose and in the mouth, but nice and refreshing. Be good for a hot day on the deck

RedWineDiva: @keswickvineyard Verdejo is crisp and clean on the nose with hints of green melon

Melanie0: Getting lots of granny smith apple, diluted honey, a little grapefruit @keswickvineyard

KeswickVineyard: @lenndevours we have slightly more than 2 acres planted

DrinkWhatULike: @VeritasWinery 2010 Suav Blanc Res – gobs of citrus w/ hints of bazooka joe aromas on the edges, crisp, clean, yum!

VaWineTime: On the nose we get grapefruit, early grassy nose

LENNDEVOURS: Great varietal character on this @VeritasWinery 10 SB Reserve. Little grassy but nothing like the overblown NZ plonk.

HoustonWino: The Veritas Sauv Blanc is not bad at all. Nice acidity. I like it.

Lenndevours: Love that “reserve” apparently doesn’t mean “bludgeoned with oak” at @VeritasWinery

Melanie0: @veritaswinery Hello Veritas. Lots of fresh cut grass and grapefruit. I would have guessed this blindly to be from New Zealand

CellarBlog: @VeritasWinery 2010 Sauv Blanc grapefruit, pear and honey on the nose

Nectarwine: @boxwoodwinery really enjoyed the depth and character of the Rose. Great wine for a hot summer Virginia night

Vawinetime: The color is a pale pink, salmon color, a hint of orange.

TheGoodWineGuru: Getting some minerality on the finish of the @BoxwoodWInery Rose – I like it

CellarBlog: @BoxwoodWinery 2010 Topiary good red cherry notes and spices on the nose

BoxwoodWinery: Huge thank you to all the taster’s! Enjoy the Rose! #vawine

RedWineDiva: Topiary Rose form @BoxwoodWinery – spicy, dry – WOW at the end! #VaWine – where do we get this one???

Melanie0: @boxwoodwinery Lots of dried fruit, spice and definite minerality. One of my friends is going gaga over it

WineHarlots: @BoxwoodWinery Topiary Rose – Soft strawberry flavors, porch-swing wine

RedWineDiva: @th_jefferson Voignier has a caramalized pear on the nose

WineWonkette: The @Th_Jefferson Viognier nose reminds me of honeysuckle and star jasmine in my backyard

CellarBlog: @th_jefferson green apple on the nose and good floral notes

Swirlsipsnark: enjoying the hint of lemon on the finish as well <– I love a wine like Shrek…one with layers

VaWineInMyPkt: We would drink this on a hot summer day on a big boat in our bikinis

WineHarlots: Love the Thomas Jefferson Viognier 2010 – My favorite President and maybe my favorite wine!

Nectarwine: Very very full mouth feel on the Jefferson Viognier, nose is soft honey and sweet tropical fruit. Nice balance on the finish

ChrysalisWine: Alan Kinne’s 1st Viognier back in VA

DrinkWhatULike: Holy honeysuckle @ChrysalisWine 2010 Viognier #VaWine #WBC11 Really like the honeysuckle, stone fruit components!

LENNDEVOURS: I like the acidity on the @ChrysalisWine better. Nice little mini-snap at the end.

VaWineTime: On the nose we are getting some tart fruit, pear, and honeysuckle.

SwirlSipSnark: melon and pear are joining the floral notes – glad to find neutral oak here as well

CellarBlog: The @ChrysalisWine Viognier has a nice tartness to it with honeysuckle and some spiciness

LENNDEVOURS: this @ChrysalisWine ’10 Viognier shows the fruit-meet-flowers varietal correctness I’m looking for. But also spice from the oak

DrinkWhatULike: The @lovingstonwine Petit Manseng – pineapple, pineapple tart, pineapple bunt cake, pineapple sweetarts, pineapple

WineWonkette: @Lovingston I have never tasted a Petit Manseng before. This is my FIRST TIME!

LENNDEVOURS: Whoa…this @lovingstonwine reminds me of my honeymoon in the Caribbean…so much tropical fruit

SuburbanWino: Dang! Now that’s acidity in the @lovingstonwine Petite Manseng. LOVE it with the bit o’ sweetness. Gimme some hot chicken!

SwirlSipSnark: apricot, pineapple, mango – this @lovingstonwine is like a smoothie minus the ice

VaWineTime: Pineapple nose, and it smells sweet

VaWineInMyPkt: Pear and lime. It’s an odd pairing but we like it. The lime comes out at the finish

Melanie0: @lovingstonwine Hello fruit with a little effervescent action going.

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From the tweets and statistics it’s clear that a good time was had by all during the tasting.   For several tasters, this was their first time tasting Virginia wine.  For a couple others, they were introduced to a new grape (namely, Petit Manseng).  Definitely a great lead up to Wine Bloggers Conference.

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Questions, Comments, Complaints, Random Observations? Contact Me Here

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RdV – The Va Wine Story of 2011?

Will RdV be ‘the’ Virginia Wine story of 2011?

No.  There are too many established wineries, wines, winemakers, and emerging success stories for any one particular winery, or wine, to be ‘the‘ singular focus of the Virginia wine narrative this year (or any year).  However, as RdV’s wine and message spreads, no doubt Rutger de Vink and crew will be the subject of much conversation throughout Virginia, and beyond.   Sprinkle in a little controversy – namely an inaugural vintage nearing the $90 mark – and RdV will certainly be one of the most talked about openings in Virginia wine this year.  (Editorial note: I find it interesting that no one seems to blink or pause when a California cab is released at this price point.)

RdV Vineyards Facility

I first heard about RdV in October from a Virginia wine friend who wrote to ask if I’ve visited the soon-to-be opened winery that ‘could take Virginia to the next level on the global wine stage.‘  Personally, I don’t feel any one wine or winery can take Virginia to the next level.  Virginia wine, as an industry, has made huge strides in wine quality and name recognition over the last 10 or so years.  Moreover, the Virginia wine industry, as a whole, is quickly moving in the direction of more global prominence based on the sweat equity of industry pioneers like Luca Paschina, Jim Law, Dennis Horton, Gabriele Rausse, and a handful of others, along with a huge cadre of talented young winemakers throughout the state.

Although I know the spirit of my friend’s comment was not intended to minimize what other wineries have accomplished, I feel it’s unfair to other Virginia wineries and winemakers who have worked their land for years to posit that one winery can ‘put Virginia on the global wine map‘ (the Virginia wine industry is already on the map, by the way).

Given the growth rate of Virginia’s wine industry – 34 new wineries opened in 2010 alone – news of a new winery opening is not really news at all.   I will admit my superficial attention to the bottle price is what peaked my curiosity of RdV, when this friend noted that RdV could be Virginia’s first $100 bottle of wine.

The price tag clearly got my attention as very few wines here in the Commonwealth come anywhere close to the $100 mark.  After a number of emails and calls to industry folks who would know of a new winery quietly setting up shop to produce what could be our state’s highest priced wine, I finally made contact with the proprietor of RdV Vineyards, Rutger de Vink.

Me and Rutger de Vink

Although our schedules precluded us from setting up a visit to RdV during the winter months, we had several phone conversations to discuss Rutger’s background, mission, and of course, RdV wine.  Thankfully, after a number of phone conversations with Rutger over the last few months, our schedules synced up and I recently had the chance to visit RdV.

During my visit, Rutger, RdV’s cellar master Joshua Grainer, and I walked the hilly vineyards, discussed site selection, soil, soil, soil, toured the cave (seems weird to say ‘wine cave’ in Virginia), and of course tasted wine.  This is one of the few winery visits where I left with more questions that I came with.

A picture perfect day at RdV

Vineyard rows lined with granite from the land.

After spending the day with Rutger and Joshua, there is no doubt in my mind that RdV wines are going to be noticed in a big way.  The pre-planning, planning, vineyard work, extreme attention to detail, and the investment behind RdV is impressive and very exciting to see here in the Commonwealth.  Rutger’s time spent working at Linden and the French influence by way of consultants like Eric Boissenot, along with Rutger’s absolute commitment to producing world-class wine will ensure that RdV is a major part of the Virginia wine conversation this year.

As for the wine, we tasted RdV’s three offerings from the 2008 vintage – RdV ($88), Rendevous ($55), and the friends and family wine ($TBD, ~ $25).  The wines were good, and not in that cursory ‘oh these are good’ type of way that one sometimes informally judges a wine with as much work and price tag behind it.   RdV wines are ‘really’ good, characterized by concentrated aromas and flavors with a complexity and depth missing from so many wines.

When tasting wine, especially with the winemaker and cellar master present, I don’t like to show my hand in terms of my opinion.  Instead, I prefer to marinate on the wine and usually move past any form of opinion-sharing with a banal statement like ‘this is good.‘  I got by with a ‘this is excellent,’ but wanted to say ‘holy shit this is really good, I can’t believe this is made form third leaf vines.’   I seriously cannot wait to see how this wine ages – will be amazing in a few years!

I am still in data gathering mode for a print piece on RdV so I won’t ramble on with too much more commentary here, but encourage interested readers to check out Dave McIntyre’s excellent piece, ‘First Growth Virginia? A fledgline vintner wants to prove it’s possible,‘ that was published in the Washington Post’s Lifestyle section in March.  This article resulted in a lively discussion on the Wine Berserkers discussion board (see thread here).  Discussion is perhaps too strong of a word – a sharing of very strong opinions is a better way to describe the chatter.

I found it interesting that many of the strong opinions shared about RdV at Wine Berserkers were coming from people who had not visited RdV, or talked with RdV’s founder to discuss his mission, or walked the vineyards, or… wait… actually tried RdV’s wine.  Perhaps an educated opinion just doesn’t make sense to some people.

Below are a few photos I took during my visit (unfortunately these photos do not do justice to RdV’s vineyards and facility.   NOTE:  All photos/images are copyright DrinkWhatYouLike.com and Frank Morgan):

RdV cave

Another view of the RdV cave

Granite wall at one end of cave - 36 inches above are grape vines

Free range chicken coop on property

Tank room (this photo does not do justice to the size of this room)

A very interesting discussion point - rock/soil samples taken from the land

Another view of vineyard row

Idyllic red farmhouse and barn adjacent to RdV

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Questions, Comments, Complaints, Random Observations? Contact Me Here

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Kinley Grace Morgan

After many months of waiting, planning, anticipating, preparing, creating a baby-friendly home environment, painting, repainting, assembling lots of baby related items, and purchasing about five years of clothing and other baby trinkets we don’t need, Kinley Grace was born yesterday. She weighed in at 7 pounds, 2 ounces, along with an impressive set of lungs and vocal chords.

Kinley snoozing, wrapped in her fav blankie

Despite hours of intense labor, my wife delivered our daughter naturally and did an amazing job. Childbirth is one of the many examples of why mothers rock! I don’t know too many men who could make it through childbirth.

Being part of child birth – even a minor role like providing ice chips, a cold cloth for the forehead and face, and attempting to provide comfort with words of wisdom like “deep breath…” – is a watershed experience that stays with people throughout their lives. My grandmother can still describe the circumstances and details of the birth of all seven of her children.

Tuesday, May 17, 2011 will always be a memorable day for me…

Mrs. DrinkWhatYouLike and I are still debating what bottle to open for our official celebration. Since it’s been nearly 11 months since wifey’s last taste of wine, I plan to make her re-entry in to the world of wine a good one!

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Questions, Comments, Complaints, Random Observations? Contact Me Here

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Viognier – Virginia’s Signature Grape?

The latest in Virginia wine news is a decision by the Virginia Wine Board ‘to pursue a marketing plan that will include the designation of Viognier as Virginia’s signature grape for national branding purposes.‘

As I’ve noted here on a number of occasions, I believe Viognier could be the future of Virginia white wine in terms of gaining prominence in the global marketplace.  Though Viognier can be a major differentiator for Virginia, one challenge with such focus on one varietal may be the loss of focus (perhaps enthusiasm) for other equally deserving grapes. This of course, is just the opinion of someone with virtually no viticulture or winemaking experience.

As part of the Industry Release, Rock Stephens, Chairman of the Virginia Wine Board, noted the success other regions have had with similar focus on a ‘signature‘ grape as a way to increase attention and drive tourism and sales on all wines for the region – like New York Riesling, Oregon Pinot Noir, Argentina Malbec, and New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc.

Of the 191 Virginia wineries, just 74 of them currently produce a Viognier. Will be interesting to see if this new varietal focus encourages more wineries to make the investment to produce Viognier.

From a personal perspective this is a timely announcement as I’ve been working on a small side project, a modest e-book of sorts (I emphasize modest).  The working title is ‘Virginia is for Viognier – A Guide to the Viogniers of Virginia.’  Virginia’s Rhone Ranger, Jordan Harris winemaker at Tarara Winery, is graciously writing the Foreword.

The Guide – which is organized by region – is intended to serve as an educational and reference document (in pdf format) for Viognier and/or Virginia wine enthusiasts.  In addition to a brief history of the grape along with the history of Viognier in Virginia, this guide will also contain basic information about each Viognier including the winemaker, alcohol content, residual sugar, aging method, tasting notes as well insights from several winemakers.  A June release date is planned.

No doubt there will be more chatter about Virginia’s newly designated grape.

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Questions, Comments, Complaints, Random Observations? Contact Me Here

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