On our way home from Sharp Rock a few weeks ago, we stopped at Gadino Cellars to see what was new. We were lucky enough to have Stephanie conduct our tasting. Stephanie is the assistant winemaker and tasting room manager. She’s always so informative and helpful when she conducts our tasting.

We started with the whites. We tasted the 2007 Barrel Select Chardonnay, the 2008 Sunset, and the 2008 Moonrise (which is actually more of a rose’). Our gold star went to the 2007 Barrel Select Chardonnay with it’s hints of apple and pear and nice nutty finish. Stephanie informed us the 2009 Pinot Grigio, the 2009 Viognier, and the 2009 Barrel Select Chardonnay will be released soon. The 2009 Pinot Grigio is already in the bottle. She let me buy one but I promised not to open it until July. I have it in the fridge waiting for July. I’ve been a fan of the Pinot Grigio for a long time so I’m really looking forward to this one.

We then tasted the reds. We tasted the 2008 Cab Franc, the 2007 Petit Verdot, the 2005 Reserve Merlot, and the 2008 Imagine, which was new to us. Even though the Imagine has 3% residual sugar you’d never know it. It’s a blend of chambourcin, cab franc, and cabernet sauvignon. Our gold star went to the 2005 Reserve Merlot. It has a nice cherry nose, smoother tannins which are integrated well. This is another of my favorites. I still have one bottle on my rack that I’ll be holding on to for awhile.

After our tasting and chatting with Stephanie, we decided to enjoy a glass of the 2007 Barrel Select Chardonnay on the deck. It was an unusually warm day for early May. The cool chardonnay hit the spot. Believe it or not, I was so caught up in the tasting, I didn’t take any photos! Next time I’ll be sure to snap some photos. Plan a stop at Gadino soon and tell them Virginia Wine Time sent you!