Closing Out 2022

What’s Been Going On. 

Well, 2022 is coming to end, dear readers.  In this, my first year of retirement, I thoroughly enjoyed driving around the Commonwealth with Kim, meeting winery owners, growers, wine makers, and staff.  Much is going on in the state – lots of experimentation with varietals and blends to see what works best in the unique climate that is Virginia.  For example, we applaud Justin Montifalco’s work with Rkatsiteli and Saperavi blends, Adam McTaggart’s work with Carménère at Casanel, and Kerem Baki’s work with Fer Servadou at Hillsborough Vineyards.

We began the year by interviewing Annette Boyd of the Virginia Wine Marketing Office.  She offered many useful perspectives on the state of the industry and anticipated publication of the Virginia Wine Vision Statement which happened in March.  We hope to start off 2023 by visiting with Annette again.  We spent some time in Loudoun County this year and made the acquaintance with the Loudoun Winery Association.  This is an example of a community growing together and employing the state’s scientific resources to implement the best practices in viticulture.  They even produce a wine as a communal effort.  I spent a day bottling wine down in Stafford, courtesy of Potomac Point Winery, toured a white oak sawmill making barrel staves in Culpeper, courtesy of Vic Ramoneda, and spent time learning how to eradicate the evil Spotted Lanternfly, courtesy of the Virginia Agricultural Extension Service.

We established a Facebook® page to promote the blog to a wider audience.  Each new blogpost and change to background pages will be announced over there in Meta-land.  We also plan to add a new background page to the blog that will detail grape growing, wine production, and cover other industry topics with a focus on Virginia.  We’ll announce when that page is up.  There are also some tentative plans for taking a wine course at the local university.  

We conducted our second annual wine trip to the Charlottesville area and our first wine trip to the Shenandoah Valley.  We are hungry for return visits in 2023 as well as visits perhaps to the Northern Neck and further afield. 

Our Top Wines for 2022.

We don’t buy wine at every venue we visit, but when we do, it’s generally a sign that we like the wine for the price.  Over the course of 2022, this blog captured our impressions of 38 wineries, vineyards, and cellars, and we noted sampling 213 different wines.  Below are the wines we bought or rated very highly.  It is a mix of established varietals and experiments that make Virginia wine interesting and vital: 

Whites

2018 Chardonnay.  Three Creeks Winery.  A rare A- rating, but did not buy bottle
2019 Chardonnay Reserve.  Chateau MerrillAnne Winery and Vineyard
2019 Barrel-fermented Chardonnay.  Delaplane Cellars
2018 Chardonnay.  Effingham Winery
2021 Keswick Viognier.  Keswick Vineyards
2018 Chardonnay.  Stinson Vineyards
2019 Pinot Gris. Pollak Vineyards
2018 Chardonnay.  Hazy Mountain Vineyards
2018 Chardonnay.  Chisholm Winery
2020 Chardonnay.  Montifalco Vineyard
2017 Opal.  Hillsborough Vineyard and Brewery
2020 Chardonnay.  Fabbioli Cellars
2021 Patricia Marie Pinot Gris.  Casanel Vineyard and Winery
2019 Chardonnay.  Valerie Hill Vineyard and Winery.  A rare A-rating but did not buy bottle.
2020 Petit Manseng.  Carriage House Wineworks
2021 Viognier.  Paradise Springs Winery
2019 Chardonnay Reserve.  Old House Vineyards.  A rare A rating but we did not buy the bottle.

Blush/Rosé

2021 Rosé.  Montifalco Vineyard
2021 Serefina.  Hillsborough Vineyard and Brewery
2021 White Merlot.  Hillsborough Vineyard and Brewery

Reds

2019 Ashby Gap.  50 West
2017 Mélange á Quatre 2017.  Revalation Winery
2016 Le Mariage.  Cana Vineyards
Founded 1734.  Chateau MerrillAnne Winery and Vineyard
2019 Marquis Rouge. Chateau MerrillAnne Winery and Vineyard
2018 Meritage.  Effingham Winery
2021 Cabernet Franc. Stinson Vineyards
2019 BDX Red Blend.  Hazy Mountain Vineyards
2019 Gigi Red Blend.  Chisholm Winery
2019 Bloodstone.  Hillsborough Vineyard and Brewery
2020 Valle Tranquilo.  Loudoun Wine Trail Cooperative
2017 K2 Bordeaux Red Blend. Casanel Vineyard and Winery
2019 Cabernet Franc. Muse Vineyards
2019 Cabernet Franc.  Paradise Springs Winery

That’s it for 2022!  This is an ideal time to get some Virginia wine.  Bubbly or still, red, white or rosé, or Port-style for the cold nights.  As Emily Dickinson said:

 

    I bring an unaccustomed wine

    To lips long parching, next to mine

    And summon them to drink.

 All the best from Roger and Kim.  See you in 2023!

 

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