Barrel Oak Winery and Brewery

January 16, 2023.  To start off our new year of winery visits and tastings, we decided to pick a brisk and sunny holiday to visit Barrel Oak Winery in Delaplane, Fauquier County, within the Middleburg AVA.  This was maybe our third trip to Barrel Oak since they opened in 2008.  Over the years, Barrel Oak has added a brewery, which we aren’t going to review for this trip, and just last year changed ownership when founder Brian Roeder wanted to return to family in California.  According to Jennifer Schaefer, Barrel Oak is now owned by White Star, although Virginia State Corporation Commission records show Barrel Oak is a fictitious name for Grape and Grain, LLC, a corporation with the same principal address as White Star in Bethesda, Maryland.  Some reports are that the sales price set a record for Virginia wineries at around $14 Million.

Let’s get past the wonky stuff.  The winery has always been fun and welcoming to families and their dogs, achieving the distinction of “Most Family Friendly Winery in the World” by Wine Enthusiast (2012).  “BOW” as it is sometimes called, welcomes dogs into the tasting room and around the grounds.  Wide hillside spaces accommodate families and groups.  In the winter, there are an abundance of firepits outside and a warm fireplace in a corner of the tasting room itself.  (Seating before that fire is time-limited due to demand.)   

 

On weekends and in the summer, be prepared for a crowd at BOW.  It may be hard to find parking.  And the dog and kid policies may make a visit to BOW a little less inviting for some who are looking for an intimate or romantic venue or are allergic to dogs.  If you want to get a little quiet, see if you can take your wine up to the loft which has views of the vineyards to the North, with the home of Chief Justice John Marshall in the distance.  (You are standing on what used to be part of his estate.) 

One result of ownership change is that outside food is no longer allowed at BOW.  Cheeses and the ubiquitous charcuterie are available but the better choice is a snack from one of the food trucks.  There are usually two trucks on the weekends.  I believe that Barrel Oak accepts the Wine Pass app.

Thanks to Jennifer Schaefer, a tasting room manager, for touring us around the plant.     

                                                      Jeannine Wenners (l) and Jennifer Schaefer (r)

BOW’s tasting room itself is probably not suitable for private events, but there are large side rooms off of the tasting room and the brewery, as well as the aforementioned smaller loft which can be reserved for such events.  Plans include repurposing a home on the property for weddings and like events.

Barrel Oak has around 30 acres under vine growing ten different varietals.  Their production is between 10,000 and 12,000 cases per year depending on the harvest.  Expect production from the large 2022 harvest to be on the upper end of that scale.  Except for bottling, they do all of their production on site.  Around 60% of Barrel Oak’s wines are estate grown.  They buy and sell grapes with other Virginia wineries, especially in Fauquier and Loudoun counties.  In fact, we only tasted one wine that was made from out-of-state juice.  Of the 21 wines available for tasting, only seven have production over 300 cases.  So, the focus appears to be mostly on small-batch wines.  

BOW’s winemaker, Jeremy Ligon, is from southern Virginia, and joined the winery in July 2021.  He is excited about adapting his enology degree from Fresno State to the unique demands of the Virginia terroir to produce world class wines here.  To that end, Barrel Oak is re-entering the Virginia Governor’s Cup competition for 2023, having been absent since 2018 in favor of other events like the San Francisco International Wine Competition. 

Alright, so let’s get to the wines.  Thanks to Tony for walking us through an extended tasting.  In keeping with our policy of focusing on wines available at a normal tasting, we’ll note wines that are not on the usual tasting grid.  I believe that most of the off-grid wines are available for the asking, by glass or bottle:

2019 Chardonnay Stainless.  Kim rates this estate wine a “B.”  I detected some burn on the finish.

2020 Seyval Blanc.  This is an off-grid wine.  Kim rated this a “B-.”  It is more acidic than the Chardonnay but with more tropical fruit on the finish.

2020 Traminette.  This is another off-grid wine.  Kim rated it a “B-.”  Very floral nose.  Very dry. Nice finish.

2021 Albariño.  Yet another off-grid wine.  Kim rated the Albariño a “C+.”  This wine is made at BOW from Washington State juice.  It has a good floral nose of honeysuckle and has .19% residual sugar.

2021 Rosé.  Back on the normal tasting grid – Kim rated the Rosé a “B.”  It is composed mostly of Chambourcin and Vidal Blanc – all estate grown.  It is a dry Rosé with some cherry notes.

2019 Merlot.  This is a fruit-forward wine with some roasted nuts on the nose.  Smooth tannins.

2019 Meritage.  Off-grid again, the Meritage has well balanced fruit and tannins.  It is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and Petit Verdot.  Kim found it a little weak. 

2014 Cabernet Sauvignon.  This wine is available only to wine club members although it may be released more widely in future.  The tannins are mild as befits a Cab Sauv of this age.  The finish is great.

2019 Cabernet Franc.  Kim rated this wine a “B+.”  Good black fruit and white pepper.  Light balanced finish.  Good to order a glass off-grid.

2017 Norton. Barrel Oak offers two Nortons.  Fruit for the 2017 Norton is from Chrysalis Vineyard in Middelburg.  It is smooth but more jammy and sweeter than I like.  Kim rated it a “B-“ or “C+.”

2019 Estate Norton.  By comparison, the 2019 Norton is 100% estate grown at BOW.  Kim rated this one a “B.”  It is lighter and not a sweet as the 2017 Norton.  I think we both preferred the Estate Norton.  This is not on the regular tasting menu.  

We concluded the tasting with two dessert or after-dinner wines:

NV Chocolate Lab.  This is a Port-styled wine made with 100% Estate Chambourcin.  Kim rated it a “B+.”  It is sweet with a high ABV of 17.5%.  Long finish.

2011 Declaration Madeira.  The small-bottled Declaration is by far the priciest and highest alcohol wine that Barrel Oak sells.  It is also made in the smallest batch.  It is 100% Vidal Blanc fortified with brandy and aged in bottle or barrel since 2015.  Very balanced flavor of sweet peaches and blossoms.

Discounting crowds and dogs (if that is a bother), Barrel Oak is a warm and comfortable venue and well worth a visit.

 

Location: 3623 Grove Ln, Delaplane, VA 20144, USA

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