If only I paid more attention to what I was reading. ‘’Virginia is the third largest wine producing state in the US. Most of its wine is only available directly in the local wineries. It’s a really unique opportunity to check out the wine from the region, because it’s hard to come by outside of the state.” – I was earnestly trying to convince my friends during our trip to Washington DC and New York. In my head, a perfect day trip plan to unWined had been hatched already. The second fact turned out to be correct, but although Virginia places in the top ten with regard to wine production in the USA, it’s still a far cry from leading California or Washington State. Luckily, either my doubtful wine facts or just a convenient excuse to escape a boiling city during a scorching day have done their magic and everybody was on board with the idea. We jumped in a mini SUV (the smallest option in a rental place full of Monster Truck-like cars) and shortly after we were on our way to explore Virginian ‘’spring’’.
Certainly, it would be a stretch to compare Virginia to the likes of Tuscany or Bordeaux, but in fact it has a long wine-growing tradition dating back to 1607. Four centuries ago settlers from Europe brought with them the first vine plants and the local viticulture started. One of the esteemed Founding Fathers, Virginia-born Thomas Jefferson, helped to kickstart wine production in the region. Unfortunately, up untill the 1980s the industry struggled, mainly due to extreme weather events and vine diseases. The situation improved since international vine varieties were introduced, accompanied by some modern growing techniques. The interest of some big names like Donald Trump, who has a winery there, helped to put the area on the wine map as well. 60% of the wine produced in Virginia is sold directly at the vineyard door. Although it’s technically “most” of the wine, for some reason my dubious research had led me to believe it was closer to 80%. Chardonnay, Vidal Blanc, Viognier, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot are the most popular varieties grown here. This should be interesting!
The added bonus was a scenic route we decided to take through Shenandoah National Park and its Skyline Drive. We were really excited to have a chance to spot a black bear, one of the Park’s inhabitants, and of course enjoy the panoramic views of the nearby Blue Ridge Mountains. Our destination was Monticello AVA – one of seven appellations in Virginia (more info about the American appellation system here). Shockingly, bears were nowhere to be seen at this quite busy car route in the middle of the day. The views – nice, but nothing special to write home about. Despite that, we were having a great time driving slowly through the hills with Take me Home, Country Roads on the speakers. John Denver might be reminiscing about the neighbouring state of West Virginia in that song, but that day was definitely not about keeping to hard facts! After close to two hours we arrived at our first stop, Hark Vineyards.
This winery is a small family business, beautifully situated in the middle of the Virginian countryside. On our way there, we passed a lot of typical, big, plywood American houses on large plots of land. No fences anywhere. All very neat and lushy green – a picture of a lovely May day. The tasting venue was quite informal: outdoor tables and benches overlooking precise rows of vines, a small wine kiosk for the staff and mobile toilets. Definitely, a cosy, small scale operation. We felt very rustic indeed, when we saw bewildered faces of the staff who couldn’t believe we were visiting all the way from Poland. They immediately started to “discreetly” chat behind the counter: “But why would they come here”? – we overheard them asking incredulously. When we said we are from Warsaw, I hoped they knew we did not mean a town in Indiana…Cultural observations aside, it was time to try some wine! The tasting menu comprised 7 wines with a typical in the region skew to white wines. Little tasting jugs turned out to be not so little, so we could really indulge. Sadly, the wines we tasted weren’t very compelling, but at least we could enjoy gorgeous views and sunny weather as a consolation.
The majority of white wines: Sauvignon Blanc, Fuse or Virginia Verde (both made from Vidal Blanc) were rather simple-structured with mainly citrus notes. The oldest wine on offer, 2019 Petit Manseng, was standing out slightly because of its interesting exotic fruit aromas, in particular a pineapple. Still, it was quite a straightforward wine. The reds, composed of Bordeaux blends, tasted disappointingly flat. These wines, for sure, are a nice option for the locals to stock up on some decent everyday bottles. But we were more impressed with the views of the hills and the sheer alcohol uptake rather than the craftsmanship. We said goodbye to the still surprised farmers and headed to our next stop.
We arrived at Moss Vineyards soon after. Unlike the previous place situated in the mostly flat terrain, Moss Vineyards is tucked away in the midst of the nearby hills. This truly picturesque location is stunning, which made us linger for a bit with a glass in hand after the tasting was over. Moss offered 5 wines and an apple cider in its tasting package. Except for 2018 Architettura Riserva made from a Bordeaux blend, the wines were similar to the ones we tried in Hark winery. 2017 and 2018 Viognier were simply abhorrent, while Rose and 100% Cabernet Sauvignon were just ok. The way the tasting was run was quite bizarre as well. We were asked to stand in a line in front of the bar inside with our backs turned to the beautiful panorama, although there were no other guests and tables and terrace were free. The young gentleman who was taking care of us was equally shocked to hear where we are from. He was filing our glasses with really large portions, each wine in turn with no spit bucket. Then, he was looking at us in silence until we managed to finish each glass. “Maybe he is new in the business?” – I thought.
We got restless and a bit bored after a couple of glasses and tried to enliven the atmosphere with some chat about the area and interesting places to visit. So, we asked our host if the road we had seen driving there is this famous “Route 66”. Maybe we showed our ignorance, but in the end we were tourists and only starting our USA adventure. “Famous 66 – never heard of it, what’s that?”, was his answer. Luckily, the tasting was done, we grabbed a glass of riserva and made our escape to the terrace, smiling a little. And people say that Poland is a backwater! We were just glad that this trip had some extra fun, because so far the wine was pretty disappointing.
We finished the day in Early Mountain Vineyards, a big complex with a large restaurant, wine bar and a few tasting rooms. The winery can be booked for wedding receptions as well. The vibe reminded me more of a visitor centre in a famous tourist spot more than any other tasting venue we had visited. The place was packed, probably thanks to wider recognition – tasting in this vineyard has been selected as the best one in the entire country! Professional staff managed to find a table for us and explained our options. Because we had not booked in advance they could only offer us wine by the glass plus some nibbles. Shame we missed the famous tasting, but we were happy to have a chance to try anything. The restaurant ran like clockwork: in the 5 minutes we spent inside, we talked to three different staff members, each with a different role designed to make your experience as smooth as possible. Everybody had a big smile on their faces and they treated us in a typical American outgoing and open way. This time, we focused on red wines: 100% Cabernet Franc i 100% Cabernet Sauvignon – both made in 2019. On top of that, we had 2020 Foothills, a blend of five varieties typically associated with Bordeaux. Finally, our efforts to find something exciting paid off! Every subsequent wine, not unlike the winery itself, was precise and represented the character of the variety well. We savoured the notes of red fruit, cherries and raspberries, intertwined with chocolate, vanilla and cloves. We also ordered a plate of local cheeses to go with these proper wines. My friends and I agreed that our venture in Virginia was a fun adventure, but in terms of wine, Early Mountain decidedly saved the day. Now, I am not that sorry that Virginian wine is hard to get outside of the state.
Time for some reflections. In summary, in the “typical” American countryside we were met by borderline rudeness, ignorance and general indifference. Virginia can be proud of its long wine growing history, however the wine it offers today is rather mediocre compared to other American regions and globally. The best experience and wines came from a fully commercial operation. Politeness of the staff felt forced and was definitely trained rather than genuine. A 30% tip was suggested…. Usually, I try to avoid such a corporate approach opting in for a smaller and more genuine type of business where you often get a chance to meet the owner. Unfortunately (or maybe rather luckily this time), the formal business approach to winemaking won this time, both in terms of tasting experience and definitely in terms of the quality of wine. Virginian small, famer-run wineries still need to learn a lot from the industry gurus like Early Mountain to be able to proudly compete with the best. In my previous visits to countries such as Italy, Spain or France, I observed the opposite trend. Small scale operations often distinguish themselves with craft, high quality products on the level or even superior to big players. I wonder if this might be a US thing? It’s definitely difficult to say after just one visit. I have very little data to make this kind of statement. But somehow I could not shake off that feeling during the long journey back to our remote motherland in Central and Eastern Europe…
Shenandoah National Park: https://www.nps.gov/shen/index.htm.
Hark Vineyards winery: https://harkvineyards.com.
Moss Vineyards winery: https://www.mossvineyards.net.
Early Mountain winery: https://www.earlymountain.com.
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