Kurt Jensen and his wife, Carol, invited us to attend a fundraiser to benefit a youth program that is sponsored by their church, the Fairfax Unitarian Universalist Church. The program is the Fairfax Unitarian Universalist Summer Experience, or FUUSE, and it allows “youth to live out their values in the larger community.” Internship positions provide interns with an opportunity to expand their knowledge of social justice and to therefore heighten their connection to their local community. Young interns are placed with such organizations as the Alzheimer’s Family Day Center, Our Daily Bread, Northern Virginia Therapeutic Riding Program, and the Herndon Senior Center. To raise funds for the program, Kurt and Carol organized a tasting of Virginia wines that featured pours from Keswick Vineyards, Chester Gap Cellars, King Family Vineyards, White Hall Vineyards, and many others.
Paul and I met a number of newbies to Virginia wines at the event, and overall, the wines were very well received. Of course, tasters brought with them their own individual palates; therefore, favorites differed. Which were our favorites? I will list the wines here and note our favorites with an asterisk.
White Wines
Viognier
*Keswick Vineyards 2010, DuCard Signature Viognier 2010, Chester Gap 2009 Reserve
Chardonnay
*King Family 2009, Rappahannock Cellars 2009, 29 Vines Reserve 2009
Vidal Blanc
Crushed Cellars 2009, Vintage Ridge 2009 Summer Night, *Catoctin Creek 2010
Rose/Blush
North Gate 2010, *Hume 2010
Red Wines
Bordeaux-style Blends
Narmada Melange 2009, *Montfair Wooloomooloo 2009, Cobbler Mountain 2009 Meritage
Cabernet Franc
*Corcoran Vineyards 2009, Miracle Valley, 2008 White Hall Vineyards, Capitol Vineyards 2009
Chambourcin blends
Gadino Cellars Imagine, Pippin Hill Farm Winemaker’s Select Red, *Delfosse 2007 Cuvee Laurent
Dessert:
*AmRhein Ruby, Corcoran Cello, Lost Creek Courtney’s Christmas
Contributing to a good cause while sipping good wines always make for an enjoyable evening. We had a wonderful time, and Kurt and Carol did an amazing job organizing the event. Kudos to them! If readers want to know more about the FUUSE program, send e-mails to uucf@uucf.org.
Of course, we know that we will be meeting Kurt and Carol Jensen on the wine trail soon. In the meantime, visit the wineries listed above to sample their latest pours. Mention that Virginia Wine Time sent you.
My friend Jacki has Multiple Sclerosis. Every year she organizes a team to participate in the Challenge Walk for the National Capital Chapter of the Multiple Sclerosis Society, Jacki’s Determined Soles. For the last three years we have hosted a wine tasting featuring wines from local wineries to help raise money for her team.