I decided to play “hooky” from work on a recent Friday so Minnie and I could enjoy the fall foliage at a few Charlottesville area wineries without having to deal with the large weekend crowds. Our original plan was to visit First Colony and Trump, but we were pleasantly surprised to have a third vineyard added to our itinerary. We started our visit by making a quick stop at the Trader Joe’s in Charlottesville in order to “re-stock” our wine supply. Our second stop was a quick “in and out” at Wineworks in order to fill our “growler” and to purchase a box of Chardonnay. The “growler” and box of Chardonnay offered at Wineworks are both excellent values. We purchased both for $65. A great deal when you consider this equates to approximately 7 bottles of great quality wine. Now on to a more detailed review of the wineries we visited:
First Colony has a real thatched roof, which I really enjoyed seeing on our visit.
First Colony
The tasting room is constructed with rough cut lumber, but is bright and airy. We were the only customers in the tasting room during our visit and were served by a very knowledgeable and friendly pourer. I did not catch his name, but he was very knowledgeable about the wines and was a great conversationalist. All in all, a very interesting guy. In my opinion, the pourer can make or break a winery visit and First Colony had an excellent pourer at the bar during our visit.
At the conclusion of our tasting, he told us about the Gabriele Rausse Winery which is located just down the road from Trump and Blenheim. We never would have noticed Gabriele Rausse Winery without his directions and recommendations.
The quality of the wines at First Colony certainly matched the competence of the pourer. In general, all of the wines were excellent. I found it to be one of the best vineyards in Virginia as far as wine quality.
- Rose’ 2014 – A very odd looking Rose’, almost yellow in appearance. It is very crisp, clean, and noticeably acidic. A very good wine. We purchased a bottle and are looking forward to drinking it soon!
- Chardonnay 2014 – As regular readers of our blog know, Minnie typically enjoys Chardonnays aged in oak barrels as opposed to stainless steel. With that being said, she loved this Chardonnay even though it is 100% aged in stainless steel. Very fruity and made with 100% grapes grown using the oldest Chardonnay vines in Virginia (planted in 1974 – a great year as it is also the year in which I was born!).
- Chardonnay Estate Reserve 2013 – I believe this to be Minnie’s all-time favorite Virginia Wine. You know what the means…buttery! This wine is full-bodied and 100% aged in American Oak.
We also tasted one other white wine, two reds, and three desert wines. All were good, but not quite as good as the Rose’ and both Chardonnays. First Colony is a great winery and I highly recommend it as a place to enjoy both great wine and a laid back atmosphere. It is just far enough from Charlottesville that you don’t have to wade through a crowd of drunken UVa students (are there any other kind of UVa students?), but close enough to be an easy drive.
This is what marks the entrance to Gabriele Rausse tasting room. That small wood side on the lift reads ‘tastings’
Gabriele Rausse Winery
As I mentioned previously, we had never heard of this winery and would never have noticed it from the road if we had not been given directions by the pourer at First Colony. As all connoisseurs of Virginia wine, we have heard of Gabriele Rausse and enjoyed his wine at Barboursville and other vineyards around the Commonwealth. However, we did not realize he now had his own winery. This winery is similar to Wineworks in that it is “all about the wine.”
In fact, they are not open on Saturdays and all of the pourers also help make the wine and in vineyard operations.
The tasting room at Gabrielle Rausse. It was nice and cozy and one of the more unique (and hidden) wineries we have ever visited.help to make the wine. The tasting room is beautiful, but very small and simply furnished. There are very few places to sit down. This place is definitely designed for a customer to partake of a tasting, purchase bottles of wine, and then go home to enjoy the wine.
A full tasting is $12/person and consists of 3 whites, one Rose’, and five reds. All of the wines were good to great, but the Dry Rose’ 2014 (Merlot and Cab Franc) and the Grenache 2011 were spectacular. We purchased a bottle of each and had the Rose’ with dinner after we returned home from our visit. This winery is a very neat and worth a visit. However, do not plan on spending an afternoon. Pop in, enjoy your tasting, purchase some wine, and move on to your next stop.
Trump Winery
We have visited this winery at least twice in the past when it was owned by Patricia Kluge’. However, we have not visited since the name has been changed to Trump and were interested in the changes put into place by “The Donald.” The architecture of the tasting room is less modern than before and has more of a “classic Virginia” look. Oak paneling, large wood trim, etc. They have also added seating to the exterior and cleared approximately a ½ acre of forest in order to open a spectacular view. Both changes were positive. Good job, Donald!
The ending to an especially good Un-Wine Friday in wine country
The wines have changed very little since our last visit. In short, they are all good, but not great. The two standouts are definitely the sparkling wines. My favorite is the Blanc de Blanc. We each purchased a glass of Blanc de Blanc after our tasting and enjoyed the view on a pretty fall afternoon. A great time. The only downside to this winery was the crowds. It is pretty close to both Jefferson and Blenheim. This makes a visit very convenient, but also leads to a packed tasting room. Trump is definitely much more commercial than First Colony and most other Virginia wineries south of the Leesburg area. The pourers were all very nice and seemed knowledgeable of the wine, but had not time for conversation or detailed descriptions.
I would encourage a visit to Trump as the view is beautiful and the wines are solid. However, be aware that it is likely to be crowded, especially on a weekend.
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