Virginia wine
Virginia wine refers to wine made primarily from grapes grown in the commonwealth of Virginia. Wine has been produced in the area since the early days of European colonization in the 17th century. Virginia has hot humid summers that can be challenging to viticulture, and only within the last twenty years has the industry developed beyond novelty status. By tonnage, Vitis vinifera varieties represents 75% of total production. French hybrids varieties account for nearly 20% of total wine grape production in the commonwealth, while American varietals make up only about 5% of the total. As of 2012, the top 5 varietals produced are Chardonnay, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Vidal blanc and Viognier.[2]
As of 2016, the commonwealth has approximately 2,600 acres (11 km2) under cultivation, with a total harvest of over 6500 tons. The commonwealth ranks fifth in the nation for both bearing acreage and grape production.[3] The central and northern Virginia counties, in particular those located just east of the Blue Ridge Mountains, account for the significant majority of the commonwealth's production.[2]
History
Virginia has a history of wine that dates back to the colonial era. In 1619, at the meeting of the first representative assembly in English America, the burgesses sitting in the Jamestown church passed “Acte 12” which required Virginia colonists to plant vineyards.[4]
Around 1807, Thomas Jefferson, considered one of the greatest patrons of wine in the United States, had established two vineyards in his south orchard. His goal to make wine from his Virginia Monticello estate was met with the unsuccessful cultivation of the classic European grape varieties due to the inability to control black rot and the destructive aphid-like root louse called phylloxera.[5][6]
In the early 1900s, Charlottesville's Monticello Wine Company and its Virginia Claret Wine were so well-regarded that the city declared itself to be "the Capital of the Wine Belt in Virginia."[7][8]
The rebirth was led in part by the investment of the Zonin family of Italy in a new vineyard in Barboursville in 1976. Barboursville Vineyards served as a catalyst in the 1970s, alongside the now defunct Oakencroft Vineyards. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, many other vineyards and wineries joined the mix and by 2009, over 163 wineries were operating in Virginia. By 2012 there were over 230 wineries operating in Virginia. Almost all of these are small, family-owned vineyards and wineries, and only the very largest have developed distribution networks. As a result, the wineries rely on wine tourism and direct sales for most of their revenue. To encourage visitors, they often play host to special events with music, food, and other activities.[9] As Virginia wines sold in Virginia have the requirement that the majority of the grapes used must be grown in Virginia, and since Virginia is not growing enough grapes to support the number of wineries, one Floyd County winery has expanded its operation in a five-year contract to export its wines to China. Chateau Morrisette, with the help of Governor Bob McDonnell's office, will be exporting its Merlot to China, and plans to add other wines later.[10]
Wine industry
A growing number of for-profit and non-profit organizations have been established since the 1980s to help promote Virginia Wine. Two of the more well known organizations are the Virginia Vineyards Association (VVA) and the Virginia Wineries Association (VWA). The state of Virginia has taken an active role in helping promote the wine industry in the state even to the extent of managing a state wide distributor company for Virginia wineries called Virginia Winery Distribution Company (VWDC) that was established by the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.[11] The intent of the VWDC is to provide wholesale wine distribution services for Virginia farm wineries, many of which are too small to manage on their own.
The number of vineyards and wineries in Virginia grow each year. As of 2019 there are over 250 registered vineyards and wineries in the state.
| Virginia Vineyards/Wineries [12] |
|---|
| 2 Witches Winery and Brewing Co |
| 50 West Vineyards |
| 612 Vineyard |
| 8 Chains North Winery |
| 868 Estate Vineyards |
| Abingdon Vineyards |
| Afton Mountain Vineyards |
| Albemarle CiderWorks |
| Altillo Vineyards |
| American Way Country Wines |
| AmRhein's Wine Cellars |
| Ankida Ridge Vineyards |
| Arterra Wines |
| Ashton Creek Vineyard |
| Aspen Dale Winery at The Barn |
| Barboursville Vineyards |
| Barrel Oak Winery |
| Barren Ridge Vineyards |
| Beliveau Estate Winery |
| Blacksnake Meadery |
| Blenheim Vineyards |
| Blue Ridge Vineyard |
| Blue Valley Vineyard and Winery |
| Bluemont Vineyard |
| Bluestone Vineyard |
| Bodie Vineyards |
| Bogati Winery |
| Bold Rock Cider |
| Boxwood Estate Winery |
| Breaux Vineyards |
| Brent Manor Vineyards |
| Bright Meadows Farm |
| Brix & Columns Vineyards |
| Brooks Mill Winery |
| Burnley Vineyards |
| Byrd Cellars |
| Cana Vineyards and Winery of Middleburg |
| Capitol Vineyards |
| Cardinal Point Vineyard & Winery |
| Caret Cellars |
| Carroll Vineyards |
| Casanel Vineyards & Winery |
| Castle Glen Estates Winery |
| Castle Gruen Vineyards and Winery |
| Castle Hill Cider |
| Cave Ridge Vineyard |
| Cedar Creek Winery |
| Chateau MerrillAnne |
| Chateau Morrisette |
| Chateau OBrien at Northpoint |
| Chatham Vineyards on Church Creek |
| Chester Gap Cellars |
| Chestnut Oak Vineyard |
| Chisholm Vineyards at Adventure Farm |
| Chrysalis Vineyards at The Ag District |
| Cobbler Mountain Cellars |
| Cooper Vineyards |
| Corcoran Vineyards & Cider |
| Courthouse Creek Cider |
| Creek's Edge Winery |
| CrossKeys Vineyards |
| Crushed Cellars |
| Cunningham Creek Winery |
| Davis Valley Winery |
| Delaplane Cellars |
| DelFosse Vineyards and Winery |
| Desert Rose Ranch & Winery |
| DeVault Family Vineyards |
| Doukénie Winery |
| Dry Mill Vineyards & Winery |
| DuCard Vineyards |
| Early Mountain Vineyards |
| Eden Try Estate Winery |
| Effingham Manor & Winery |
| Elk Island Winery |
| Fabbioli Cellars |
| Fincastle Vineyard & Winery |
| Firefly Hill Vineyards |
| First Colony Winery |
| Five Oaks Vineyard |
| Fleetwood Farm Winery |
| Flying Fox Vineyard |
| Foggy Ridge Cider |
| Fox Meadow Winery |
| Gabriele Rausse Winery |
| Gadino Cellars |
| Gauthier Vineyard |
| General's Ridge Vineyard |
| Giles Mountain Vineyard & Winery |
| Glass House Winery |
| Glen Manor Vineyards |
| Good Luck Cellars |
| Grace Estate Winery |
| Granite Heights Winery |
| Gray Ghost Vineyards |
| Grayhaven Winery |
| Greenhill Winery & Vineyards |
| Greenwood Vineyards |
| Guilford Ridge Vineyards |
| Haley's Honey Meadery |
| Hamlet Vineyards |
| Hammerstone Cellars |
| Hampton Roads Winery |
| Hartwood Winery |
| Hickory Hill Vineyards |
| Hidden Brook Winery |
| Hiddencroft Vineyards |
| Hill Top Berry Farm and Winery |
| Hillsborough Winery, Brewery & Vineyard |
| Honah Lee Vineyard |
| Horton Vineyards |
| Hunters Run Winery |
| Hunting Creek Vineyards |
| Ingleside Vineyards |
| Iron Heart Winery |
| Jacey Vineyards |
| James Charles Winery & Vineyard |
| James River Cellars |
| JBR Vineyards & Winery |
| Jefferson Vineyards |
| Jump Mountain Vineyard |
| Keswick Vineyards |
| Kilaurwen Winery, LLC |
| King Family Vineyards |
| Knight's Gambit Vineyard |
| Lake Anna Winery |
| Lazy Days Winery |
| Leo Grande Vineyards & Winery |
| Lexington Valley Vineyard |
| Little Washington Winery |
| Loving Cup Vineyard & Winery |
| Lovingston West |
| Lovingston Winery |
| Maggie Malick Wine Caves |
| Magnolia Vineyards & Winery |
| Maidstone Meadery |
| Marceline Vineyards |
| Mattaponi Winery |
| Mediterranean Cellars |
| Meriwether Springs Vineyard |
| Mermaid Winery |
| Michael Shaps Winery |
| Miracle Valley Vineyard |
| Misty Mountain Meadworks |
| Molon Lave Vineyards |
| Monroe Bay Vineyard |
| Morais Vineyards & Winery |
| Moss Vineyards |
| Mountain Cove Vineyards |
| Mountain Run Winery |
| Mountain View Vineyard |
| MountainRose Vineyards Inc |
| Mountfair Vineyards |
| Mt Vale Vineyards |
| Muse Vineyards |
| Naked Mountain Winery and Vineyards |
| Narmada Winery |
| New Kent Winery |
| North Mountain Vineyard & Winery |
| Notaviva Vineyards |
| Oak Crest Vineyard & Winery |
| Old Hill Cider |
| Old House Vineyards |
| Otium Cellars |
| Ox Eye Vineyards |
| Paradise Springs Winery |
| Peaks of Otter Winery |
| Pearmund Cellars |
| Philip Carter Winery |
| Pippin Hill Farm & Vineyards |
| Plum Creek Winery |
| Pollak Vineyards |
| Potomac Point Winery |
| Potter's Craft Cider |
| Preston Ridge Winery |
| Prince Michel Vineyard |
| Pungo Ridge Winery |
| Quattro Goombas Winery |
| Quievremont |
| Ramulose Ridge Vineyards |
| Rappahannock Cellars |
| RdV Vineyards |
| Rebec Vineyards Inc |
| Revalation Vineyards |
| revalationvineyards.com |
| Reynard Florence Vineyard |
| Rockbridge Vineyard |
| Rogers Ford Farm Winery |
| Rosemont Vineyards |
| Rural Retreat Winery & Vineyards |
| Sans Soucy Vineyards |
| Sassafras Shade Vineyard |
| Saudé Creek Vineyards |
| Seven Doors Winery |
| Sharp Rock Vineyards |
| Shenandoah Vineyards |
| Skippers Creek Vineyard |
| Slater Run Vineyards |
| Spinning Jenny Vineyard |
| Spring Run Vineyards |
| Stanburn Winery |
| Star in the Valley Estate Winery |
| Stinson Vineyards |
| Stone House Meadery |
| Stone Mountain Vineyards |
| Stone Tower Winery |
| Sunset Hills Vineyard |
| Tarara Winery |
| Terra Nebulo Vineyards |
| The Barns at Hamilton Station Vineyards |
| The Briede Family Vineyards |
| The Dog and Oyster Vineyard |
| The Hague Winery |
| The Homeplace Vineyard |
| The New River Vineyard & Winery LLC |
| The Vineyards & Winery at Lost Creek |
| The Wine Reserve at Waterford |
| The Winery at Bull Run |
| The Winery at La Grange |
| Thistle Gate Vineyard |
| Three Fox Vineyards |
| Three Sisters of Shiney Rock |
| Tomahawk Mill Winery |
| Trump Winery |
| Turk Mountain Vineyards |
| Twin Oaks Tavern Winery |
| Two Twisted Posts Winery |
| Upper Shirley Vineyards |
| Valerie Hill Vineyard & Winery |
| Valhalla Vineyards |
| Valley Road Vineyards |
| Vault Field Vineyards |
| Veramar Vineyard |
| Veritas Winery |
| Villa Appalaccia |
| Village Winery |
| Vincent's Vineyard |
| Vint Hill Craft Winery |
| Vintners Cellar Winery of Yorktown |
| Virginia Mountain Vineyards |
| Webster C Hall Vineyards |
| West Wind Farm Vineyard and Winery |
| Weston Farm Vineyard and Winery |
| White Hall Vineyards |
| White Rock Wines, Vines & Brews |
| Whitebarrel Winery |
| Wilderness Run Vineyards |
| Williamsburg Winery |
| Willowcroft Farm Vineyards |
| Winchester Ciderworks |
| Winding Road Cellars |
| Winery 32 |
| Winery at Kindred Pointe |
| Wineworks Extended |
| Wisdom Oak Winery |
| Wisteria Farm & Vineyard |
| Wolf Gap Vineyard & Winery |
| Zephaniah Farm Vineyard |
References
- Appellation America (2007). "Virginia: Appellation Description". Retrieved Nov. 16, 2007.
- "2012 Virginia Commercial Grape Report". Virginia Wine Board Marketing Office. March 18, 2013.
- "Governor McDonnell Announces Sales of Virginia Wine Reach New All-Time High". Office of the Governor of Virginia. January 14, 2013.
- "Romancing the Vine in Virginia". Colonial Williamsburg, Charles M. Holloway. Retrieved June 8, 2019.
- "The Vineyards". Monticello and Thomas Jefferson Foundation. Retrieved June 8, 2019.
- "At Historic Vineyard, A Historic Harvest". NY Times, Howard G. Goldberg. Retrieved June 8, 2019.
- Leahy, Richard (February 19, 2008). "Virginia Wine: Nearly Four Centuries and Counting". Retrieved November 30, 2008.
In Charlottesville, the Monticello Wine Company, operating with grapes grown by co-op members, won a major international award in 1873 at the Vienna Exposition for a "Virginia claret" based on Norton.
- "Historical Highway Markers: Monticello Wine Company". Virginia Department of Historic Resources. Retrieved November 30, 2008.
- "Realising Jefferson's Wine Vision" (PDF). Sommelier India. Retrieved April 5, 2013.
- The Roanoke Times, July 7, 2013
- "Index | VWDC". www.vwdc.org. Retrieved July 7, 2019.
- "All Wineries | Virginia Wine". www.virginiawine.org. Retrieved July 4, 2019.
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Vineyards in Virginia. |
- Virginia Wine Marketing Office
- Virginia Wineries and Breweries, Official Tourism Website of the Commonwealth of Virginia
- Virginia Vineyard Association, Membership association of viticulturists and wineries.
- Logan Ward, "Jefferson's Virginia: America's hottest new wine country", Southern Accents magazine, October 5, 2006