{"id":4056,"date":"2018-03-27T17:04:19","date_gmt":"2018-03-27T22:04:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thecorkscrewconcierge.com\/?p=4056"},"modified":"2018-03-28T04:59:50","modified_gmt":"2018-03-28T09:59:50","slug":"must-visit-virginia-wineries-near-dc","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thecorkscrewconcierge.com\/2018\/03\/must-visit-virginia-wineries-near-dc\/","title":{"rendered":"Must Visit Virginia Wineries Near DC"},"content":{"rendered":"
I love Washington D.C. and have found myself there many times for business over the years. During all those trips, one thing I hadn\u2019t done was to take a day trip to visit Virginia wineries near DC. Virginia has produced wine since the colonial times and its oldest AVA, the Monticello AVA, known as the birthplace of the Virginia wine industry, was home to Thomas Jefferson.<\/p>\n
While the state has demarcated AVAs, it’s easier to search for wineries by the nine regions in which they\u2019re located within the state (e.g. Northern Virginia, Central Virginia, Hampton Roads, etc.). The folks at VirginiaWine.org<\/a> do a great job of providing info on the state\u2019s wineries and mapping out the various locations.<\/p>\n A variety of grapes are produced in the state, but the top 5 are Viognier, Chardonnay, Vidal Blanc, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc. In addition to its red varietal wines, Virginia has perfected the Bordeaux Blend comprised of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cab Franc, and Petit Verdot. The production of Petit Verdot, which gives wines its rich color and is also known to resist fungus and rot (quite important in the humid, rainy, wet region), is on the rise and increasingly being made into a varietal wine. Since it can be difficult to ripen Cabernet Sauvignon in Virginia due to its climate, Petit Verdot can often step in and provide tannic structure and backbone.<\/p>\n For a quick jaunt from D.C., the wineries in the Northern Virginia and the adjacent Shenandoah Valley \u2013 specifically, the wineries near the western I-66 corridor \u2013 provide easy access to the state\u2019s wine industry. This is such a beautiful area with lush green forests, the Blue Ridge Mountains, and quaint small towns.<\/p>\n If you can manage it, stay for two or three days, but a day trip will otherwise provide a nice introduction. So, whether you\u2019re in D.C. for the politics or the monuments, here are five must-visit wineries that should be on your list that you can get to in around an hour.<\/p>\n Located in Delaplane VA this was my first stop and set the tone for all the great wine to come. Arterra, which means \u201cArt of the Land\u201d is both winery and gallery. Winery owner Sandy Gray-Murray is also an artist and runs Hawkmoth Arts. So, while you\u2019re getting your wine on, you can also enjoy (and shop for) Sandy\u2019s beautiful art which encompasses a variety of media from ceramics to paintings to etched glass. Co-owner and winemaker (and husband to Sandy) Jason Murray is the ultimate terroirist and was an absolute joy to taste with. He is all about letting the land and the grapes do what they do with minimal intervention to craft authentic Virginia wine. I seriously got to get my geek on talking to him but he can certainly bring it down a notch when needed. He was just so laid back and so easy to talk to. Jason is committed to using Virginia fruit<\/span>1<\/sup><\/a><\/span> in his wines and only uses native yeast fermentation. These yeasts grow naturally on the grapes and produce distinct wines with a very different profile and mouthfeel that certainly reflect their terroir. These wines seem to have more depth, length, and width on the palate.<\/p>\n I tasted Jason\u2019s entire portfolio including Riesling, Chardonnay, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, Tannat, a Bordeaux Blend and even a couple of desert wines. And for you Ros\u00e9 fans, Arterra is adding a Ros\u00e9 crafted with Malbec and Petit Verdot to its lineup soon. Here are a few standouts.<\/p>\n The 2016 Chardonnay<\/b><\/span> because I\u2019m always surprised when I find one I like other than Chablis.<\/span>2<\/sup><\/a><\/span> The grapes are grown in a mix of coveted granite and greenstone soils, which gives the wines great minerality, depth of fruit flavor, and an added elegance. Jason\u2019s Chard sees neutral French oak, is aged sur lie, and then goes back into steel.<\/p>\nArterra Wines<\/i><\/b><\/span><\/a><\/h2>\n