On Saturday we went to Barrel Oak for a special pre-opening party. We last visited Barrel Oak at the beginning of April. The tasting room was close to completion. When we arrived on Saturday the tasting room was much farther along and only has a few more items to complete. Brian and Sharon plan to have it ready by the official opening day on May 23rd.

We toured around the tasting room facility and marveled at the changes that had taken place since our last visit. Here are a few pictures from the tasting room.

We were very pleased to see an old friend working the tasting bar. Rick Tagg has joined the team at Barrel Oak as the assistant winemaker. At the tasting bar we were able to taste the Bowhaus Red and the Bowhaus White. We tasted the Bowhaus Red during our last visit and thoroughly enjoyed it but the Bowhaus White was new to us. It’s an 80/20 % blend of vidal blanc and sauvignon blanc. This one got Paul’s gold star.

While we were enjoying a glass of wine, we ran into another old friend, Ellen Crosby. You might know her from her books The Merlot Murders and The Chardonnay Charade. Her next book, The Bordeaux Betrayal, will be released on August 5th. Here’s a picture of Ellen Crosby with Rick Tagg.

We enjoyed our time at the Barrel Oak pre-opening party. Brian and Sharon have created a wonderful experience with their wines and their tasting room. We look forward to visiting them many times in the future. If you find yourself at Barrel Oak on Memorial Day weekend or anytime in the future, be sure to tell them Virginia Wine Time sent you.