Author: Paul

Wines for the New Year

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https://sugandhmalhotra.com/2024/08/07/vrhsizo Last week we were sent two bottles of wine from Virginia Wine.org. They asked us to taste the wines and share our food pairings. What a great way to start 2020!

https://merangue.com/14ompup The first wine was the 2018 Blenheim Vineyards Albariño. We love the wines from Blenheim so much that I’m a club member! We decided to have this bottle as our evening sipper. We paired it with various crackers and brie and Havarti cheeses. We noted white stone fruit, citrus zest, chamomile, a refreshing palate. Even though we enjoyed this as an evening sipper, we could also see pairing this with a fish dish. If you don’t often find yourself in the Charlottesville area, you can purchase this wine right from their website for $23.

https://www.completerehabsolutions.com/blog/1c62p38bygy The second bottle of wine was the 2016 Pinot Noir from Ankida Ridge Vineyards. We have been a fan of their pinot noir for years but hadn’t had a chance to taste the 2016. We were looking forward to it! Warren decided to roast a chicken to enjoy with the wine. He also made roasted root vegetables with a sprig of thyme and mashed potatoes. We noted bright seed berries, hint of anise, bright berries on the palate, fruity through the finish…elegant yet paired well with the rustic fair. We became instant fans of this vintage. Again, if you are unable to visit their tasting room, you can purchase this vintage from their website for $44.

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A big Thank You to Virginia wine.org for sending us these wonderful wines. You should plan a visit to Blenheim Vineyards or Ankida Ridge Vineyards soon and when you do, tell them Virginia Wine Time sent you!

Free Form Tasting

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https://transculturalexchange.org/fi3xfpi23h During the month of December, Linden Vineyards veered away from their normal tasting routine to do Free Form Tasting. For the Free Form Tasting, Jim Law selects wines from the wine cellar as well as current and new releases to taste during this time. This year Free Form Tasting took place on the two weekends before the holidays. We attended both weekends.

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How To Buy Real Xanax Online Yesterday we went to the Free Form Tasting at Linden. Of course we started with white wines. Jim introduced us to a new release. It’s called Wabi Sabi. It’s a blend of Vidal, Semillion, and the 2017 Boisseau Viognier. Warren wrote down dry, exotic, generous weight on the palate due in large part to the Viognier. We think this one would pair well with spicy dishes. We went on to taste the 2017 Boisseau Viognier on it’s own (which we had last weekend as well) and the 2018 Riesling. Both are wonderful wines anyone would enjoy.

https://www.clawscustomboxes.com/zlpgwvdzb2 We changed tasting bars to taste the red selections. We tasted the 2014 and 2016 Clarets. Last weekend when we tasted these we preferred the 2014 which has a bit more acidity but this weekend we both enjoyed the 2016. Before leaving this tasting bar we were treated to a tasting of the 1994 Cabernet Sauvignon. What a treat! We noted leather, cedar, sage and dark currants. Amazing how well it is holding up!

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Mexico Xanax Buy Online We then went into the side room for more reds. We tasted the 2016 Avenius Red along side the 2007 Avenius Red (which is not for sale). The 2016 is merlot based whereas the 2007 is petite verdot dominant. The 2016 presents plum, currants, dark cherry, tannic. We noted wet stone, ripe berry and tannins with the 2007. We enjoyed them both!

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Get Alprazolam Online The Free Form Tasting at Linden is done for this year. And they are now closed until the new year. But be sure to visit Linden in the new year because they have some changes coming to the Cellar Tasting and we’re sure the Free Form Tasting will return next December. And when you visit, tell them Virginia Wine Time sent you!

Twitter Tasting

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https://mandikaye.com/blog/vliasfnxm4 Last night we participated in the 57th #VaWineChat with several other people across the country and in Loudoun County. Visit Loudoun sponsored the tasting by providing us with the wines you see below. We followed along on Twitter as Frank Morgan from Drink What You Like interviewed most of the winemakers. Find out what we thought of the wines by the Tweets listed under each wine.

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2015 White Spark from Casanel Vineyards and Winery

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2017 Viognier from Walsh Family Wine

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https://sugandhmalhotra.com/2024/08/07/bsh3tkivn 2016 Genesis from Lost Creek Winery and Vineyard

2015 Meritage from Breaux Vineyards

2015 Aldie Heights Cuvée

Warren put out some wonderful foods for us to enjoy while conducting the tasting. We enjoyed all the foods and the wines. We feel so lucky each time we are able to participate in these tastings. Thank you, Frank!

The Last Cellar Tasting

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Last week when we got our Linden Vineyards newsletter in our email, we read that the cellar tastings were ending this past weekend until the new year. We decided we had to attend the last one of the year. On Saturday we headed to Linden to participate in the last cellar tasting of the year.

We arrived just in time for the cellar tasting to begin. The tasting started with the 2016 and 2017 Avenius Sauvignon Blancs. While we enjoyed them both, Warren and I preferred the 2017. Warren jotted down grassy, petrol, boxwood, mineral/graphite and lemon lime notes. Perfect for the end of summer.

We then compared the 2015 Hardscrabble Chardonnay with the 2015 Boisseau Chardonnay. Both of these wines are beautiful and have their place with different types of meals. Warren and I split on our favorite here. We may have been thinking of foods when making our decisions. Warren preferred the 2015 Hardscrabble. He described it as lush with pear notes, lean mid palate, fruit and spice on the finish. I preferred the 2015 Boisseau for it’s toasted ripe pear notes with a more rounded mouth feel. I thought you could have this one with food or just as a sipper.

The final comparison was between the 2014 and 2015 Hardscrabble Reds. The blends are different with the 2014 being mostly Cab Sauv and the 2015 including a good bit of Cab Franc. Both Warren and I preferred the 2015 blend. Lots of cherry and spice with a more rounded mouth feel made Warren think of several dishes he could pair this with.

The cellar tasting ended with a taste of the 2012 Late Harvest Vidal. A delicious way to end the tasting. It’s aging well and can be enjoyed for many years into the future.

If you missed the last cellar tasting for the year, be sure to return to Linden in the new year when the cellar tastings begin again. And when you do, tell them Virginia Wine Time sent you!

The sunflower garden at Linden Vineyards

25th Anniversary

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On Saturday I attended the 25th Anniversary celebration at Gray Ghost Vineyards. Twenty five years ago on July 9th Al and Cheryl Kellert opened the doors to Gray Ghost Vineyards. They were only tasting one wine on that day, a Vidal.

The day began with an opening reception. Amy Payette, Virginia House of Delegates from the 18th district Michael Webert, Richard Leahy and Al Kellert all spoke during the reception.

Following the reception there were events that took place all day. You could enjoy a tasting of their current release of wines (even the limited release 2017 Merlot). The wine library was open tasting four vintages of library wines. The barrel room was also open for tasting of the 2016 Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon (first time a reserve barrel as been opened!). There was also beautiful music in the barrel room from harpist Tess Miller. If that wasn’t enough, you could also take a vineyard tour, winery tour and enjoy live music around the grounds at Gray Ghost. And if you got hungry Talk of the Mountain Seafood was on hand to fill that hunger.

It was an amazing day. The events continued again on Sunday. We have been part of the Gray Ghost family for many years. We want to congratulate them on reaching their 25th year. We know they will continue on into the future with great success. And we of course will continue to visit Gray Ghost, help in harvesting and enjoying their wines for years to come. Congratulations Gray Ghost!

Before I left, I bought a case of the limited release 2017 Merlot. If you haven’t been to Gray Ghost Vineyards, it’s one winery in Virginia that you must visit. And when you do, tell them Virginia Wine Time sent you!

Early Release!

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On Saturday we went to Gray Ghost Vineyards to do a tasting and pick up a few cases of wine. Of course we enjoyed all the wines on the tasting, especially the reserve chardonnay.

Winemaker Al Kellert conducted out tasting so of course we learned more about the wines than usual. Al also informed us that the 2018 Cabernet Franc would be released next weekend on Father’s Day weekend. Unfortunately, we won’t be able to return to Gray Ghost next weekend so Al let us secretly buy a bottle of the 2018 Cabernet Franc before the release next weekend!

We decided to bring the bottle of 2018 Cabernet Franc to dinner at our friends’ house. We had steaks and burgers on the grill…delicious of course. We decided to open the Cab Franc to see how it paired with the burgers. Al’s 2018 Cabernet Franc was perfect with the burgers! It’s a classic Virginia cab franc. It’s a light bodied, smooth wine with notes of cherry , vanilla, and black pepper. We thoroughly enjoyed this cab franc.

Of course we’ll return to Gray Ghost in the near future to secure some more bottles of 2018 Cabernet Franc. If you happen to visit, be sure to try the 2018 cab franc and tell them Virginia Wine Time sent you!

NEW Virginia Wine Travel Journal

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Virginia Wine Country fans will love the new Virginia Wine Travel Journal! Buy it online now and get free shipping with promo code: VAWINETIME

The book includes 25 new wineries and cideries, Wine Getaway Weekend itineraries, peeks behind the scenes of Wine Country, and Winery VIP Experiences.

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East Coast Wine Chat

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On Sunday we had the opportunity to join in on the East Coast Wine Chat on Twitter. For this month’s chat we were tasting wines from Dr. Konstantin Frank located in the Finger Lakes region of New York. The three wines they sent us to taste were the 2013 Blanc de Blanc, the 2016 Eugenia Dry Riesling and the 2017 Rkatsiteli.

Frank Morgan of Drink What You Like led the discussion on Twitter. There were two members of the winemaking team at Dr. Frank who helped answer questions submitted by the tasters on Twitter. Below is what we tweeted about each of the wines.

 

 

 

 

We enjoyed all three wines and the Twitter discussion. It’s a great way to learn about new wines we may not be familiar with. We hope to visit Dr. Frank’s winery sometime in the future. If you happen to visit Dr. Frank’s winery, tell them Virginia Wine Time sent you!