Old House: Vidal Blanc 2011

Opened a Vidal Blanc 2011 tonight.  It was alright, but nothing to write home about. 

Back to Old House Vineyard

 

I had an opportunity to stop in for another tasting at Old House Vineyards.  This is always exciting, because the staff is great, the vineyards are gorgeous, you are not rushed to leave, and the wine is fantastic.  Does the combination get any better?  Well, yes it does!  In fact, during the tasting the host and I were conversing over their Chambourcin Dessert Wine.  This is a red dessert wine aged in bourbon barrels and is made from the vineyards own Chambourcin grapes.  To achieve the "port" like quality, the wine maker uses brandy, which is distilled from their own Chambroucin grapes--Out of this world!  Anyways, the host had informed me that the vineyard owner has plans for a distillery to be built on the vineyard.  This is great news, because this opens up an opportunity for the vineyard to offer a wider selection of types of drinks.  The host couldn't comment on what the distillery would be used to produce or when, but it is in production.  Also, being added to Old House is a brick oven.  Hmmmm...what could that be used for, maybe PIZZA!  I don't know, but I can't wait to see what they do with the oven. 

Looking across the vine and out to the pond.

Looking back at the Old House tasting room.

 

 

 

This tasting included "Petillante".  This is a new addition and may not be permanent. Petillante is a sparkling wine.  It is 100% Chardonnay, with a splash of Cognac. Unbelievable!









The wine list:

• Petillante: A 2011 sparkling wine made from 100% Chardonnay, with a splash of Cognac.
• 2011 Clover Hill:  This is a dry crisp white wine.
• 2012 Chardonnay: This is a barrel fermented wine, with light oak and butter components.  You are fronted with tropical fruit overtones.
• 2011 Vidal Blanc: A semi-sweet, white summer wine.  This is your picnic wine.
• 2012 Rosie's Rose: This is Old House's lush Rose', made from Cabernet Franc.
• 2010 Cabernet Franc: Aged in French Oak, bringing full character to the palate and spicy notes to the nose.
• 2012 Wicked Bottom: This is their Chambourcin Reserve.  This is a barrel aged wine with a fruity character and oak structure.  
• 2010 Bacchanalia: This is a full bodied wine.  It is a blend of barrel-aged Cabernet Franc, Tannat, Petit Verdot, and Chambourcin.
• Arctica: This is a very sweet dessert wine, made from deep-frozen post-harvest Vidal grapes.  This is a very rich dessert wine.  The recommendation to try this on ice cream was passed and I think I will do it.
• Chambourcin Dessert Wine: This is a red dessert wine, aged in bourbon barrels.  The wine is made from their Chambourcin grapes and fortified with wine spirits.  Anyone got a cigar?

 

 

 

 

Tasting At Old House Vineyards

About the Vineyard: Old House Vineyards offers 75 acres of beautiful country scenery at the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains.  As this is my first experience at Old House, I am going to refrain from providing too much information.  The experience at Old House was wonderful.  It is off the beaten path of Route 29 and outside of the Culpeper hustle and bustle.  The grounds contain a beautiful tasting room, which used to be a home.  The grounds also include other features such as a fireplace and patio, next to their lake.  While our day was outside was impacted to the weather, we did take a stroll through the vineyards and along the lake.  Old House has provided a bridge, which goes out to a small island in the lake.  This island is used for events, such as weddings.   After reading about Old House later, I discovered that they have a tradition of lovers hanging padlocks to the Love Lock chains at the dock off the wedding island.  After which time, the lovers throw the keys into the lake in a gesture of undying love.  This is actually a tradition born from Rome, which you can read more into on the Old House website.  

My Tasting Experience: Old House offered some of the best wines I have tasted in Virginia.  The hosting staff was very accommodating, knowledgeable, and focused on providing the best wine tasting experience.  One of the reasons I All of their wines on selection was Estate wines, at the time of my tasting.  There were 10 wines to taste, but I missed out on Rosie’s Rose because it was out of stock.  Again, I am going to refrain from discussing the wines too much until I do my next tasting.  I will comment on our top two choices, which were the Chardonnay and the Arctica.  I favor wines that are aged in oak, due to the buttery taste.  I certainly got that experience with this Chardonnay.  The Artica is one of the best late harvest wines I have tasted.  If you are looking for a rich dessert wine, this will definitely satisfy that need.  Let me end with the note that these two wines happened to jump out at us during this tasting, however all their wines are fantastic and it was a very hard choice.  Next time we may favor a different wine depending the mood of the day or our taste buds.  If you really want to find out about their wines, go taste for yourself and share your experiences back with me, on this blog.

Key observations I have taken away from my tasting:  I have found that the hosting staff of vineyards prides themselves in their knowledge of wine, the craft of making wine, their vineyard and often times the industry.   I have often noticed that people refrain from asking questions during tastings and at times hosts may be too busy to entertain many questions.  However, I enjoy wine tasting because I am offered an opportunity to learn about Virginia, to learn about a craft and understand the environment around me.  I have found that the best tastings are the ones where I can share dialogue with the hosts about the vineyard and wines.  Sure, going to a vineyard is about the wine, but it’s also about discovery and being a part of something.  Don’t be afraid to ask questions.   There is no right or wrong question and don’t forget it also part of the hosts job to steer conversations into a productive dialogue about their industry.  That opportunity will not arise until to take the first step. 

Website: http://www.oldhousevineyards.com/