Tag: Delaplane Cellars

Virginia Wines of Summer 2023

/ Warren / Leave a comment

The end of summer is upon us now, and it finishes with quite a bang as the area finally gets its own dose of excessive heat. Paul and I visited a few wineries instead of a real vacation, and I recap some of our favorite wines of the 2023 summer.

Glen Manor always tops our list of wineries to visit, and I was particularly interested in sampling its 2022 Vin Blanc, a blend of Sauvignon Blanc and Petit Manseng. Its fruity aromas and bright, fresh palate paired well with a warm summer day and dragonflies that flitted about outside. The Sauvignon Blanc consistently earns my top marks, and the 2022 vintage was no exception. This vintage presented tropical fruit notes and seemed destined to be enjoyed with shellfish. We frequently attend concerts at Wolf Trap and, several days later, brought along a bottle of Glen Manor’s 2022 Morales Rose to sip as the sultry vocals of pianist Diana Krall serenaded us.

Another day, we completed a club member pick-up at Delaplane Cellars; of course, we tasted the current releases offered at the winery. The non-oaked 2022 Chardonnay offered a light touch on the palate with pear and citrus flavors. It was perfect with light cheeses that we brought along for the afternoon tasting. The 2020 reds in Virginia seem fruity and accessible, and this was the case for the 2020 Rusticity. Buy this one now to enjoy with grilled fare and an al fresco dinner.

Finally, Paul and I journeyed to Capstone Vineyards, and we restocked on its sparkling wine and the 2022 C2 blend of Chardonnay and Chenin Blanc. We also purchased a bottle of the 2022 Vintner’s Blend, a wine that unleashes a pleasant fruity, berry assault in the mouth—-buy to enjoy now or savor in the fall. However, with the Capstone Sparkling Wine, we officially said our goodbyes to summer on Labor Day, and I made one final toast to my retirement, which formally began on July 1 of this year. Our last clink of the flutes signaled a new beginning for me!

What were some of your favorite Virginia wines this summer? Let us know. Plan a visit to the wineries mentioned here; of course, tell them Virginia Wine Time sent you!

Happy New Year!

/ Paul / Leave a comment

We are back after a short holiday break. It’s a new year and time for some new wine adventures. On Saturday, we started the new year by returning to the last winery we posted about in 2022, Delaplane Cellars.

We elected to do a regular tasting which consisted of the 2021 Rosé, the 2021 Viognier, the 2020 Adjacency and the 2020 Piedmont Station. We enjoyed all the wines and think they are very well made. We particularly enjoyed the 2020 Adjacency. We noted cranberry and currents and the smooth ending…just like we had back in December.

After our tasting, Matt brought us a taste of the 2020 Quorum. We were not familiar with this wine. Matt explained this wine came from a special blending session for club members (and some members of the public) and is only available to those who attended the blending session. He also explained the wine is mostly cab franc and merlot but the winemaker is the only one who knows the final blend. We thought the blend was beautiful! We are club members at Delaplane but haven’t taken full advantage of the events available to members. We’ll need to keep an eye out for the next blending event. A big thank you to Matt for sharing the 2020 Quorum with us. We enjoyed it!

After our special taste, we ordered the Virginia Sampler and enjoyed it with a bottle of the 2020 Adjacency. We checked out the views while nibbling on the sampler and sipping the wine. It was a beautiful afternoon. We didn’t have any wines to pick up during this visit so we said our goodbyes and told Matt we’d be back in the near future. If you haven’t been to Delaplane Cellars lately, plan a visit soon and tell them Virginia Wine Time sent you!

Visiting Wineries with Friends

/ Paul / Leave a comment

Recently we met our friends Steve and Joe at Delaplane Cellars for a wine club pick up event. As I have mentioned before, there are benefits to being club members.

We began our visit with a tasting of their current lineup of wines. We tasted the Rosé, the Viognier, the Adjacency and the Piedmont Station. As part of the club event they served food to pair with the wines. We found the Viognier paired nicely with the chicken meatball. We thought the Adjacency went well with eh beef meatball. Finally we enjoyed the Piedmont Station with the harvest salad. And of course the Rosé was a nice way to begin the tasting. We enjoyed all the wines and the food pairings!

After our tasting we decided to share a bottle of the 2020 Adjacency while enjoying the views. This red blend is 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 34% Cabernet Franc, and 6% Petit Verdot. We noted cranberry and currants, and enjoyed the smooth ending. We thought this wine would pair nicely with pasta with red sauce, pizza, and almost any light meal.

Before leaving we picked up our club wines and a few others to take home.

After our visit to Delaplane Cellars, we decided to go to Arterra to taste their current lineup of wines.

We opted to sit outside since it was a nice afternoon. The views were beautiful. I selected the self guided tasting that consisted of their Chenin Blanc, Dry Rose, Cab Franc, Petit Verdot and their red blend Crooked Run.

We ordered some snacks to enjoy with our tasting. I enjoyed light, bright notes of the 2021 Chenin Blanc. I also really enjoyed the 2020 Petit Verdot. I noted bright fruit, fresh note, and the round mouth feel.

We all agreed the wines were well made and we’d have to take some home. Before leaving we bought some of our favorites. If you haven’t been to Delaplane Cellars or Arterra Wines plan a trip soon. And be sure to tell them Virginia Wine Time sent you!

Remembering Summer 2021

/ Warren / 1 Comment

We continued to celebrate reunions and meetings with friends and family throughout the summer of 2021.  As we look forward to the golden leaves of autumn, I thought it would be appropriate to recall our fun times with family and friends during this past summer.  Of course, Virginia wineries were our gathering places!

Paul and I were excited to catch up with our friend Bob who lives on the Northern Neck of Virginia.  Bob introduced us to two new wineries in that area, and we were able to add two new wineries to our growing list of wineries that we visited.  These included Monroe Bay Winery and Backporch Vineyard.  In addition to tastings at those wineries, Paul and I were also able to sneak in a tasting at Ingleside Vineyards and The Hague Winery.

Monroe Bay Winery

Backporch Vineyard

Ingleside Vineyards

The Hague Winery

Williams Gap Vineyard has quickly become a favorite winery of ours, and we scheduled a tasting that introduced our friends Steve and Joe to their well crafted wines.  Bridgette Smith skillfully guided us through our tasting as we nibbled on charcuterie and cheeses.  In turn, Steve and Joe invited us to join them at a tasting of one of their recent favorite wineries, Forever Farm and Vineyard.  This was also a new winery visit for us, and we enjoyed our tasting with live music!

Williams Gap

Forever Farm and Vineyard

My parents were able to escape the chaos of Hurricane Ida after she blew through New Orleans, and a trip to Delaplane Cellars offered the perfect opportunity to view lovely mountain scenery as we tasted some excellent wines.  We also used the occasion to toast their 61st wedding anniversary!  We finished our afternoon of wine tasting with a visit to Barrel Oak where we were treated to a sample of their current lineup of wines and their excellent dessert wine.

Delaplane Cellars

Barrel Oak

Now we look forward to seeing the gold and crimson colors of fall leaves as they decorate the autumn skies.  We know that we will include Virginia wineries in our afternoon excursions to appreciate the gorgeous season.  Please decorate your fall wine collection with visits to the wineries mentioned in this post, after all October is Virginia Wine month! Be sure to mention that Virginia Wine Time sent you!