8 posts
behind the cork
The Virginia Wine Governor’s Cup® Winning Red Wines As noted in a previous blog, a qualified team of judges sampled over 620 of the best Virginia wines, ciders and meads from across the Virginia Commonwealth. The Virginia Governor’s Cup Competitio...
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Aging wine on lees (also known as sur lie aging) is a winemaking technique that can play a role in shaping the flavor, texture, and complexity of a wine—especially whites like Chardonnay, Champagne, and Muscadet, but also increasingly in reds and eve...
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behind the cork
2021 King Family Vineyards Mountain Plains Monticello Red Blend ($85) King Family Vineyards is a family-owned and operated winery. They’re known as one of the best wineries in Virginia. They specialize in the production of premium wines that showc...
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Another aspect of the art of wine making is knowing when to top off oak wine barrels during the winemaking process. Winemakers need to routinely do this during barrel aging. Here’s why… 1. Evaporation Through the Barrel While the oak staves in t...
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behind the cork
50 West Aldie Heights Cuvée ($70) 50 West is a farm vineyard located on Route 50 just past the historic town of Aldie in Middleburg, Virginia. (39060 John Mosby Highway). First used by Native Americans as a route to move their migrating herds, Rout...
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Just before the wine is bottled, it may go through one of several processes to remove any remaining sediment. The processes for removing sediment from wine include (1) racking, (2) fining or (3) filtering. Let’s take quick look at each of these proc...
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behind the cork
2017 Barboursville Vineyards Octagon ($95) This Barboursville Vineyards wine was named to celebrate the estate’s diverse connections with the legacy of Thomas Jefferson, symbolized in the central octagon drawing room in his design for Governor Barbo...
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Blending of wines plays a large role in the art of wine making. The main reason that winemakers produce blends is to make the best wine possible. Blending different grape varieties is useful in accentuating a particular grape’s virtues. But winem...
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