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| Walking up to the tasting room. |
If you are looking for something off the beaten path, check out
Cobbler Mountain Cellars. I stopped by for my first tasting today. Afterwards I took a moment to absorb the beautiful view. Cobbler Mountain is best reached from 66, but I decided to take a Sunday drive and weave through the back roads off Rte 211. If you enter from 211, be prepared to take your car down at least 1 single lane, gravel road.
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| A beautiful view! |
Cobbler Mountain Cellars is owned and operated by Jeff and Laura Louden. They are a husband and wife team. You will know when Jeff and Laura are behind the bar, because they greet every customer that comes in for a tasting. I walked in right as Jeff was finishing telling his story about the cellar and how it came to be, but there is a great article by Betsy Parker featured in the August 2013 issue of
Middleburg Life that talks about the Jeff and Laura' s venture (page 28).
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| The wine cat. |
The reason I stopped by Cobbler Mountain Cellars today was not for wine at all. I was looking for a good locally made hard cider. Unfortunately, the closest place I have found to Northern Virginia to buy some Virginia hard cider (such as
Foggy Ridge Cider) is the store in
Early Mountain Vineyards, in Madison County. Upon seeing hard cider for sale on the website, under
Varietals, I decided to stop in. Unfortunately, Jeff and Laura were sold out of cider today, but I found so much more offered at Cobbler Mountain than I expected. There were two types of tastings available at this tasting event. Available today was the "New Releases" wine tasting and the "Bubbles & Port-Style" tasting. I went for the "New Releases" today, because it had more wines listed and I wanted to get a wider sense of what the cellar had to offer. I will be upfront and go ahead and say that I really wanted to try the Bubbles & Port-Style list, but that will have to wait until I go back.
The "New Release" sheet had the following varietals: (I will include the quick description straight from their tasting sheet; however, you need to experience them for yourself and determine if you agree. I don't always agree with the what is written on the tasting sheets, but I think they did a good job of characterizing the wine.)
Whites:
2012 Chardonnay (Vanilla on nose; tropical palate)
Because Chardonnay is my favorite white and I am really picky about how it is aged, I need to capture a little more information on this varietal. The 2012 Chardonnay was aged for 4.5 months in oak and 4.5
months in stainless steel. Jeff said that he produced his first Chardonnay from the vineyard on Cobbler Mountain in 2009. His website does list a 2010 Chardonnay, but I was not informed as to whether it was for sale or not.
2012 Vidal Blanc (Honeysuckle on nose; melon palate)
2012 Cobblestone White (orange blossom on nose, apricot on palate)
I enjoyed this white. It is a Vidal and Riesling blend and is aged in stainless steal for 8 months.
2012 Cobbler Rose (Cranberry on Nose, jolly rancher palate)
Reds (all aged in French Oak):
2011 Merlot (Spicy on nose, "feisty" palate)
2011 Meritage (Clove on nose, fig palate)
2011 Cabernet Sauvignon (Smoked wood on nose, walnut palate)
2011 Cabernet Franc (Violet on nose, raspberry palate)
I can't comment on the reds much. The Merlot was good and tasted as described by the host and on the tasting sheet. The tastings on the remaining reds were too small for me to evaluate. I like to have at least two tastes before I can get a sense of the wine; but I wasn't able to do that on this trip, because it was just too busy in the tasting room.
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| Some of their wines |
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| Some of their awards, I think I see a couple Gov Cups (Merlot and Petit Verdot) |
The "Bubbles & Port-Style" wines for tasting today included the following: (I did not taste these wines and cannot add any of my own experiences. I would really love to go back an try these unique wines.)
2012 Semi-Sparkling Vidal (Nectarine & Oak on nose, brut-palate)
2009 Sparkling Chardonnay (Citrus on nose, off-dry palate)
French oak barrel fermented. Aged 24 months on lees.
2012 Sparkling Hard Apple Cider (Apple & honey on nose, semi-sweet palate)
2012 Maple Reserve Amber (Vanilla & Sherry on nose, caramel palate)
2012 Maple Reserve Special Dark (Brandy on nose, butterscotch palate)
Aside from the Chardonnay's and the Cider, the Maple Reserves are definitely exciting. I really, really look forward to trying them and wanted to do so today. I heard Jeff talking about them with other customers ahead of me and was trying to get some background on them. I did notate down that the maple syrup was home grown and provided by Jeff's sister, from her farm in Vermont. this sounds exciting and is definitely something new to try. Sounds like this would be great on a nice cool evening, by the fire place.
Notes:
Jeff did say that more cider was being produced and would be offered soon. So if you are like me and looking to purchase some cider for the upcoming Fall season, stop back later (or maybe friend them on their Facebook page to watch for new releases).
Their website is out-of-date and they are in process of updating it now. I hope they get the new information up soon, because they have so much to offer. I hope they include awards. Something else that I would like to see, which is not offered on any winery sites that I know of, is a way to search their libraries. If you notice the Chardonnay, Cab Franc and the Cider are listed as estates. This is important to me, because that is what I prefer to buy. I asked Jeff what other varieties he was growing on the vineyard. Of the several that he called off, I was able to capture Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cab Franc, Chardonnay, and Viognier.
Here is the description they currently have posted on their 2010 Chardonnay:
2010 Estate Chardonnay: Shimmering notes of pear and crisp apple. Aged 20% in Oak & 80% in stainless tanks yields playful citrus effects for a refreshing cocktail at the end of a long day. Delicious paired with simmered Lemon Chicken & Capers, or Halibut with Cream Sauce. The clusters of champagne colored berries were saturated by Summer floods during their infancy, nearly buried in the Blizzards of '09 and later thrived during the droughts of record-high temps of late Summer. Meanwhile, Mother Nature sent Robins to nest and start new life inside the green canopy and heavy trellis. This refreshing Chardonnay remembers a past and pours the gifts of sunshine, mountain and the winemaker's care into your glass. (Source: Cobbler Mountain Cellars)
