We were pleased to see the Virginia wine trail featured in this month’s Travel and Leisure magazine’s article on “5 New Wine Regions You’ll Love.” The wine trail is located adjacent to my home town, and though we’ve heard rumors of its growing popularity, the recent article confirmed those rumors. As we often frequent the area to see family, Cactus decided last Thanksgiving that we simply had to make the effort to begin sampling some of the wineries close by. In addition to the mere intrigue of discovering new wines, a northern Virginia wine tour also provides for beautiful scenery (even in November), filled with bucolic landscapes, antebellum plantations, and rolling hills. Additionally, most of the venues feature regular events, picnic space, and live music.
Our Thanksgiving trip concentrated on hitting the most prominent wineries that were grouped in the area closer to my home. The two major wineries that I had heard of prior to reviewing the Virginia wine trail guide were Breaux Vineyards (Purcellville) and Tarara Winery (Leesburg). We also visited the smaller Lost Creek Vineyard and its sister property next door (whose name is escaping me right now). After flights at all the wineries, we felt that the strength of the Virginia wineries tended to lie in their white blends (which tended to be reasonably priced), rather than the heavy-hitting reds (which were more boutique-priced), many of which tended to be on the overly tannic (should I say tea-bag?) side. We were pleasantly pleased with the oaky balanced character of the Lost Creek Chardonnay, and Breaux’s sweet Vidal Blanc blend, "Chere Marie," went undoubtedly well with spicy Thai food, as Cactus had suspected. We were most impressed by the overall strength of selections offered at Tarara (though it should be noted, that we did basic flights at each winery rather than the more expensive “reserve” flights). Tarara’s “Chaval” was a pleasant unoaked Chardonnay blend, and their “Cameo” single-handedly made us reconsider our thoughts on rosé. We also fell victim to their dessert red, whose blackberry notes are slated to pair excellently with chocolate.
Our Thanksgiving trip concentrated on hitting the most prominent wineries that were grouped in the area closer to my home. The two major wineries that I had heard of prior to reviewing the Virginia wine trail guide were Breaux Vineyards (Purcellville) and Tarara Winery (Leesburg). We also visited the smaller Lost Creek Vineyard and its sister property next door (whose name is escaping me right now). After flights at all the wineries, we felt that the strength of the Virginia wineries tended to lie in their white blends (which tended to be reasonably priced), rather than the heavy-hitting reds (which were more boutique-priced), many of which tended to be on the overly tannic (should I say tea-bag?) side. We were pleasantly pleased with the oaky balanced character of the Lost Creek Chardonnay, and Breaux’s sweet Vidal Blanc blend, "Chere Marie," went undoubtedly well with spicy Thai food, as Cactus had suspected. We were most impressed by the overall strength of selections offered at Tarara (though it should be noted, that we did basic flights at each winery rather than the more expensive “reserve” flights). Tarara’s “Chaval” was a pleasant unoaked Chardonnay blend, and their “Cameo” single-handedly made us reconsider our thoughts on rosé. We also fell victim to their dessert red, whose blackberry notes are slated to pair excellently with chocolate.
Breaux – tasting fee, basic wines range from $10-$28
Tarara – tasting fee, basic wines range from $12-$45
Lost Creek – tasting fee waved with purchase
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