In this last article on the 5th Annual Virginia Wine Expo, I’ll cover my last five of my old favorite wineries, all located around Charlottesville, from the last year and my favorite wine they were tasting at the Expo.

Blenheim Vineyards Petit Verdot 2010

  • Varietal: 100% Petit Verdot
  • Aroma: Spicy, jammy
  • Taste: Blackberry jam with nutty caramel
  • Price: $24
  • My thoughts: I’ve had the pleasure of getting to know winemaker Kirsty Harmon over the last year and I just love all her wines! So approachable & drinkable. It was great fun to taste through Blenheim’s line-up with her and introduce them to friends at the Expo. This wine is delicious and I can’t wait to open the bottle I got with my wine club shipment.

King Family Vineyards Crosé

  • Varietal: 100% Merlot
  • Aroma: Grapefruit and cranberry
  • Taste: Crisp citrus and tart berry
  • Price: $16.95
  • My thoughts: This wine made me smile! :) It’s a dry rosé named after the town where King Family is located, Crozet. About five years ago, this was the first Virginia winery I visited with friends while spending a weekend in Charlottesville. I knew the wines in Virginia were up and coming.

Veritas Vineyard and Winery Viognier 2011

  • Varietal: 100% Viognier
  • Aroma: Peaches and orange blossoms
  • Taste: Rich peach and apricot with a nice acidity
  • Price: $22
  • My thoughts: As Virginia’s official grape, this is a great example of it! I met winemaker Emily at the Wine Bloggers Conference… so nice and doing great work!

Afton Mountain Vineyards Cabernet Franc Reserve 2009

  • Varietal: 100% Cabernet Franc
  • Aroma: Rich red berry
  • Taste:Deep raspberry and cherry with hints of vanilla and cinnamon
  • My thoughts: This delicious wine, great example of Virginia Cab Franc, was a 2012 winner in the Virginia Governor’s Cup.

The last winery of my favorites was Gabriele Rausse’s Pinot Noir. Gabriele is the father of modern Virginia wine! I was so excited to meet him last year at the Wine Bloggers Conference and it was great to see him at the Expo. I was so caught up in talking to him and tasting his wines with him and my friends that I didn’t make copious notes to share here but can tell you I loved his Pinot Noir. You are not seeing a lot of Pinot Noir in Virginia yet. All his wines are hard to find unless you’re in Charlottesville.

That’s a wrap on the 5th Annual Virginia Wine Expo! Hope you enjoyed the series and found some wineries to visit / wines to seek out. All of us living in Virginia should be drinking some of these great wines!

Cheers to Virginia wine!