A Brand New Winery....Maggie Malick Wine Caves

We had a last minute whim to go out to Loudoun county today. We had a wine pick-up to make at 8 Chains North, and we heard Padawan Pumpkin was on tap at Corcoran Brewery (spoiler alert, it wasn't). But, after a glass of wine, and a glass of beer we headed out on Harpers Ferry Road to try a new-to-us winery Cardamon Family Winery. I know, big surprise that isn't the winery in the title, and I promise our visit to Cardamon Family Winery is a blog for another day, but while enjoying a tasting and salsa there, the wine maker and owner Chuck told us his neighbor was having his grand opening today, and that if we had time we should visit Maggie Malick Wine Caves.

So after our tasting we took the right and headed north until we saw the open flags waving, and the sign saying last tasting starts at 4:45 PM. We found out later they plan on being open later, but they had an event to attend that night so were closing at 5 P.M. sharp that night. No worries for us as we got there by 3:45...1 hour early!

The current tasting room (pictured above), I learned from the owners Mark and Maggie, was originally built to be a storage facility that is a kit made in the ground building that reminded me of an old school weapons bunker I have come across during my Air Force career. Once inside though, you're greeted by a well laid out, ecologically friendly facility for making, storing, and more importantly serving their wines.

Since it was their first day, they featured all their wines, five whites and six reds. The husband and wife duo first planted in 2001 with Viognier, and expanded in 2009 to 20 acres and 10 varietals, with plenty of room to grow, which they fully plan on doing. Since most of their vines went in in 2009, all of their wines are from 2011 which was their first usable harvest.

As many of you know, 2011 in Virginia was very challenging year for grape growers and wine makers alike. With this in mind, my wife and I had tempered expectations of the wine we were about to taste, as we do with all 2011 wines we come across from Virginia. To our surprise Maggie, the wine maker, demonstrated her talent in wine making by having a line up of solid 2011's that were all on the lighter side, with good structure, and solid acid. Maggie uses primarily French and Hungarian oak for her barrel aged wines.











With eleven wines on the menu today, as pictured below, I won't go wine by wine through our tasting, however I will hit the highlights. There was one blend the Melange Blanc (Chardonay and Petite Manseng). The others are all varietal wines, but Maggie informed us most included some blending of other varietals to account for the less than stellar growing year. The Melange Rouge is a varietal wine of Grenache Tinto, a lesser known Spanish grape, that tastes greatly different depending on whether it is served chilled or at cellar temperature but both very interesting. Our favorites included the Petite Manseng, Merlot and the Melange Blanc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Tannat which came home with us as bottles.

Next time you're out in western Loudoun county and looking to try something new, I'd recommend visiting Mark and Maggie at Maggie Malick Wine Caves. They are picnic and animal friendly. They have a great seating area with views of rolling hills, ponds, and even some mountain views. Mark and Maggie are very friendly, passionate about what they are doing, and will gladly take the time to discuss there future plans for their winery and don't forget to mention you heard about them from me.

Exploring a Portuguese Legend

Touriga Nacional, It has been a favorite varietal of mine from the first time I tasted it a Unicorn Winery about 5 years ago. A standard for those of you who love traditional port, and one of the stand out grapes for those of you who enjoy wines from across the pond. However, I can honestly say I have never tasted a wine made of this grape from its native country so my love of it is solely based on the few wineries that are growing it here in Virginia.


Last year I made my first visit to Barren Ridge winery solely because the made a single varietal Touriga Nacional  I remember being smitten with it then, not because it was the best Touriga Nacional I have every tasted, but because it was a good wine. It surprised me because it was the 2011 vintage. As most serious VA wine drinkers know, 2011 was at best a challenging year, especially in the NOVA and Charlottesville region where 15+ inches of rain fell in a two week period that coincided with traditional harvest time for red wines. Many wineries lost full harvests of some of their red wines, and the ones that didn't had to fight off rot and other diseases. So to find a challenging grape, in a challenging varietal, in a challenging year that didn't taste like garbage was worth a buy.

Barren Ridge winery was first planted in 2007, and is the first winery in Augusta county. It features 10 acres of vines, and a winemaker who really knows what he is doing.

Unlike in other years, the 2011's from Virginia in my humble opinion are probably as good as they're going to get now. So save the 2010's, 2009's, and 2008's for future drinking at a future date, especially the 2010's, and enjoy 2011's now.

With that in mind, we set out to find a wine to pair with Sunday's dinner. We had a Cajun venison sausage with cheese planned with a fajita style salad featuring peppers and red onions with a balsamic dressing and accented with cotija, a salty Mexican cheese to balance things out. After reviewing the selection, we decided on the 2011 Touriga from Barren Ridge. We opened it and settled it in the decanter while we prepared dinner.

Although it was cool night, the Cajun sausage was grilled on our gas grill. It came out slightly crispy and delicious  and just about perfect. The salad was slightly sweet and salty, a good balance for the spicy sausage. The only question the remained was the wine. How would it be?

After an hour in the decanter, my wife and I agreed the nose showed earth with light cracked pepper. It featured a very light body with a light muted red fruit with a dry dusty finish. Paired with the spicy sausage the fruit became much brighter.
However, true to the characteristics of a good wine, even after a hour in the decanter the wine had changed prior to the second glass. The nose had settled and the black pepper had left. The fruit was still quite muted on the nose, but there was almost a hint of vanilla, no doubt imparted by oak aging. The pallet had not changed much however, the fruit was a little brighter and more pronounced. Overall, it balanced the spiciness of the the venison sausage. It represented the winery nicely, and has me excited for the 2012 that is still to be released.


If you have not visited Barren Ridge winery, I'd highly recommend it. It features a good line up of wine, and each is very good in quality. Great place to stop and have a picnic, and  I'm very excited for my next visit  to sample the next vintages.

A rare new release.....

Ok, so I have totally fallen off the map for blogging lately. It isn't that I’m not drinking great wine (beer too for that matter), but the actual writing of the blog has been a bit of a chore lately. I have lots of pictures, tasting notes, and even some draft blogs, but none of them seemed worthy, and so in the recycling bin they went.

Last weekend however, one of our personal favorite wineries did a pre-release. Something they don’t do often, and when they do, it is a worth while event. Chateau O’Brien was offering a pre-view of their 2010 Malbec, and released their 2010 Cab Sav. They were offering both on their cellar tasting side so after a quick trip out 66 (I know how unusual), my wife and I entered the tasting room and made the quick left into that side of their beautiful tasting room.

For those of you who have never been to Chateau O’Brien, the offer two non-reservation tastings. A classic collection ($10 per tasting) which is your standard white and red, and when available rose that displays great quality wine, and represents a good sample of their winemaker’s taste in wines.

There Cellar collection ($15 per tasting) is usually an all red collection of their higher end red wines that features their limited release and all estate wines. Today’s Cellar collection featured their limited release 2010 Malbec, 2010 Cab Sav, 2009 Petite Verdot, and their 2009 limited reserve Tannat, and a bonus they had a bottle of their 2009 late harvest Tannat for our sampling pleasure.

And finally for you who want a truly unique experience you can reserve a cellar tasting. They are conducted by the owner and mastermind behind Chateau O’Brien, Howard O’Brien. He lets you sample wines that are not available in the winery, and usually involves either library of very limited production wines. The cost is $50 a person, and I have never actually done one for myself, but for a true wine lover, I hear it is worth it.

The Cellar collection that day wanted to know which of their new release wines we liked better, the Malbec or Cab Sav. For me it was hands down the Malbec. A good fruit forward wine with a long lingering finish. It really struck my fancy. Malbec is not a grape that is grown all over Virginia, and a good one is even rarer. 

My wife however was much more into the Cab Sav. It was bright and had powerful fruity nose. It finish didn't linger like the Malbec, but it still was a great representation of what a Cab Sav should be.

After our tasting, My wife and I enjoyed their enclosed heated deck for a picnic and couple of glasses from their classic tasting before going back in to purchase two bottles of the Malbec and a bottle of the Cab Sav, and a bottle of Pinot Grigio taboot.

Unfortunately after last weekend, the Chateau O’Brien Malbec was heading back to the cellar so to get your hands on it will require you to do a cellar tasting, but all wines at Chateau O’Brien are made with care using only the highest quality practice and one of the few wineries that use native yeast. So if you traveling out west a 66 and you’re looking for an enjoyable wine experience, stop off and have glass, enjoy the views, and tell me what you think.

Waiting out Sandy....

After a particularly eventful day waiting for Sandy the Hurricane winner of 2012 that involved an early trip to work, hydroplaning and wrecking my car, and then a mandatory afternoon nap, it was finally time to unwind. To start the unwinding process, my wife and I decided we'd make one of our favorite appetizers, a big bowl of guacamole.

The question came up was what to pair with our delicious appetizer? I had recently taken a trip back home northern PA to harvest a doe for the freezer this year, and while up there I stopped by my favorite wine store to pick up some great Finger Lakes wine. For you regular twitter followers, search #FLXwine and you'll see all the popular spots to go in the finger lakes. Some of our particular favorites are Dr. Frank's, Goose Watch Winery, Shalestone Winery, and Atwater Estate. On our most recent trip to the Finger Lakes we noticed that like Virginia, local micro breweries are starting to pop up in large numbers give the more established wineries a run for their money.

After quickly running down the inventory, we were informed by our youngest kitty Gus that the winner was our  Red Newt Cellars 2010 Semi-Dry Riesling  Quickly, it went to the freezer to cool down, while I got into the process of mashing avocado's  toasting garlic, and slicing and dicing the ingredients for the delicious guacamole.

Red Newt Cellars is on the East Side of Seneca lake and has attached restaurant with a great view. They are known for making solid wines that rival any made in the finger lakes, and as you'll see below this one did not disappoint.

Before totally tearing up our appetizer, we took the time to enjoy our wine. Our thoughts included light floral notes, tropical fruits of lychee and mango were prevalent on the nose. The wine was a light to medium body with a great balance of fruit and acid. The predominant fruit was ripe Asian pear and a lasting lingering fruit that left the mouth with clean mineral effervescent feel that lasted long after the wine was no longer present on the pallet. It paired well with our afternoon snack, and was a delicious sipper to watch Sandy as she threw her best at us. If you are reading this, we won, Sandy lost, and we kept power...yeah.

Doing it even when you shouldn't....

I'm on day two after a small surgery...nothing life threatening, but something that needed to be done. With all surgeries, drinking and pain pills don't mix. Being the good patient I am, I have taken only a few pain pills (non-narcotic) since getting out, and have been "taking it easy." However, when the wife discussed dinner tonight and it involved Cabernet burgers, I couldn't resist just one glass of local Cabernet franc wine. Knowing that I'd only be drinking one, I wanted it to be good one. Reviewing out selection, we settled on a 2007 Cab. Franc from Ingleside Plantation Winery. Ingleside Plantation winery is one of the oldest in the state of Virginia with its roots going back to 1970.

As most Virginia wine fans know, 2007 was hot dry summer perfect for Virginia Red Wines. It was highly anticipated and many reserve and special red wines came from the local wine makers. Since 2007, there has been only one year that has come close to 2007, and that was 2010. It was even hotter and drier, and I know my wife and I are a chomping at the bit for the better red wines to be released from 2010.

Back to tonight's wine though, I quickly opened it and started decanting it a full two hours before we would even think about having any. I poured the half cup my wife would need for the burgers, and set the rest to the side to be enjoyed with our burgers.

Although it is a Cab Franc, like most good Virginia wine, there are few other wines blended in to add structure, and flavor. This wine is blended with 7.1 percent Cab. Sav, 7.1 percent Merlot, and 7.1 Malbec.




To accompany our burgers would be some roasted beets in a salad involving rainbow chard and a delicious Gorgonzola. Additionally, in the burgers would be a  black mountain cheddar cheese that is a sharp yet creamy cheese with an earthy flavor of mushrooms. In a phrase, full of yumminess. Even though I hadn't had a large appetite since my surgery, the thought of tonight's dinner had me salivating.








My wife helped herself to a pre-dinner beer, and of course I got talked into a sample. It was Wild Blue, a blueberry larger that was advertised a great summer fruit beer from BlueDawgBrewing in Baldwinsville, NY. I'm a little torn on fruit beers, some I like other's I don't. True to its name there was a light blueberry smell on the nose.







It was more that color of a dark pinot noir rather than beer. However that taste was a mild blueberry flavor with a good crisp bight to round out the flavor profile. I agree that this cold would be good summer sipper while sitting on the beach or lake on a hot August afternoon.
















With Dinner prepared it was time to pour my one glass of the night, no worries, the rest of the wine is not going to waste.










It was a lovely rich red color and displayed characteristics of raspberry and wood on the nose. My wife noted black pepper. The flavor of warm red fruit, ultra smooth with mid tongue light tannins. It also has really earthy lingering finish. This wine is wonderful right now. It paired well with the creamy Gorgonzola, but equally well with the burgers. A versatile wine for red wine food. The great part is you can still get it for just under $20 a bottle at Ingleside or on-line through their wine store. Something that is rare at other wineries, selling wine that is five years old that is.

Virginia Blogger is richly rewarded...

In my last blog, I shared our Friday evening dinner, and is per the norm, we finished our bottle of wine with our dinner. Not ready to turn in for the evening, we decided it was time for dessert. Friday's dessert was a special treat from another winery we visited over Easter weekend, and so I sent my wife downstairs to pick out a good wine to go with our chocolate.

For those of you who have not visited Glass House winery, come prepared. They offer a variety of common Virginia varietals, but also their owner, Michelle Sanders, is an exceptional chocolatier who makes delicious chocolates on the premises. On our most recent visit, we weren't particularly impressed with their current vintages, but were impressed that they have moved to all glass corks for their bottles. It will be interesting to see if more wineries go that route. We ended up sharing a bottle of their Pinot Gris with our lunch there, but were drawn into buying some there delectable chocolates.

Our choice of chocolates for Friday's dessert was their Earl Grey Tea chocolate. My wife selected another bottle we had picked up on our Easter weekend wine trip. It was from a fairly new winery, and one we had not visited since their pre-opening in 2010.

Our initial visit to Duccard Vineyard had us most impressed with their viognier releases. Viognier is one of those wines that can be very bad if not done properly so for a new winery to have hit one out of the park off the bat left us thinking they showed great promise.

On this visit, the Viogniers were still very delicious, but it was their 2010 Norton release that had most impressed us. Norton is a grape that we have really enjoyed from VA made into wine. We are very excited and we can get a good release so when my wife popped the cork out of one of the bottle we have brought back from Duccard, I couldn't wait for glass to pair with my chocolate.

The initial nose was a classic Norton, blackberries and earthiness with hints of nutmeg and cassias. The wine was a dark inky purple with good legs. This Norton exhibited warm red fruit and light tobacco. It was very dry and left the mouth with velvety feel. It had firm mid-tongue tannins, but did bottom out a bit on the finish, however you wouldn't know based on the lingering full mouth feel.

Unfortunately, the wine kind of over powered the earl grey tea chocolate but by itself the chocolate was smooth with hints of fresh tea leaves that linger after eating. Overall both the dessert and the wine were very enjoyable by themselves. Even if they weren't a rock star pairing.

Crowds Flocking from near and far for Virginia wine….Literally.

Arriving at the second of three new wineries we planned to visit on recent weekend wine trip, we found we had not done enough scouting and were greeted by a closed sign at Capital Vineyards. Not wanting to lose the time slot, the wife and I headed to one of our favorite locations for a glass on an extraordinary enclosed heated deck before heading to our last stop on our Saturday wine tour.

Chateau O’Brien is known for its great wine, engaging owners, and unfortunately it can also be known for its crowds. Based on the car already parked in their lower parking lot, we were glad we weren't going to be doing a tasting. However, after reaching their primary parking lot we realized that it wasn’t that crowded.

Entering through the front door, we were greeted by Howard O'Brien the winery owner. Howard told us that the deck was closed today because it is too cold to keep the heat up warm using the the gas space heaters, but invited us to enjoy the fireplace room which was warm and cozy. The wife and I agree that we needed a glass of wine so we quickly purchased a bottle of his Padlock red and headed for fire place. Since the fire place wasn't lit, we were lucky to snag the two seats right in front of the it to enjoy our glasses of wine.

This one is one of my favorites from Chateau O’Brien. It displays a rich full mouth feel, firm by not over powering tannins. It has dark fruit flavors with a slight leathery earthy finish. It will pair well with most red meats, but is equally good by itself for an evening sipper.

The atmosphere that day at Chateau O’Brien was a mixed lot. There were several small groups enjoying wine along with both the classic and reserve tasting bars full of people sampling the full selection that Chateau O’Brien has to offer. I usually recommend Chateau O’Brien to anyone looking for all the good a Virginia winery can be. Plus if you only want to visit one, this a location you can go to enjoy two distinctly different types of tasting and have great views along with a place to have a picnic for those of you who are like us and enjoy packing a lunch with you on the Virginia wine trail.

Wine enthusiast versus Wine Fan....It comes down to storage.

Taking a Break from wine drinking due to some medical concerns, I’m sorting through tasting notes, reviewing old pictures, and concerned that this blog that I have created will slowly fade into just a distant memory. I mean what is a person supposed to blog about on a wine blog when he can’t drink wine? Thankfully some of my fellow wine bloggers provided me an opportunity to blog about something that doesn’t involve tasting delicious Virginia wine, Wine storage.

After viewing pictures of the cellaring and storage techniques of some the other wine bloggers I follow (Virginia Wine time, Cellar Blog, SwirlSnipSnark, WineaboutVirginia), I think I have finally deciphered the difference between a wine enthusiast and people like me who are more like casual wine fans. It comes down to the wine collection. Don’t get me wrong, I love my wine, but even at peak capacity six cases of wine is my capacity for wine cellaring. However, even with that restriction, I’d like to think I’m able to keep a diverse variety of wines available around the house. Wine enthusiasts on the other hand, have storage capacity to survive a small nuclear holocaust. See other bloggers for good examples. Then there are a few who are just starting their adventure like JulesVine.

My storage system is fairly simple. My cellaring wines go in this electric wine “fridge.” My wife and I received this as a wedding gift. Its functionality kicked the bucket two years ago, but as it is always in the basement of my home where the temperature is mostly stable and cool, I’m not missing it. It houses all red wines. These are those bottles that only get brought out on special occasions, and must be at least 4 years old before they are even considered. Right now it primarily filled with 2007 VA red wines, with a few ‘06s hanging around for good measure. Additionally a pair of French stowaways are hiding within. They were gifts I received when I graduated college.

Next to that I have basic case storage of nicer wines that we wouldn’t mind hanging around a while, but will drink if it has been a tough week or will pair well with a nice dinner we have made.

On the wall we have our day to day wines. These are the wines that get cycled through our inventory. On the left are the whites, and on the Right are the reds.

In addition to the wall we have two additional case wine holders that sit on the floor that hold overflow. Usually that means day to day wines, with an occasional nicer one that is waiting for a place in the cellar.

As you can see, our storage area is quite full, and with my timeout from wine drinking I have been forced to take, it should stay that way, at least for a couple months until I am able to return to light wine drinking.

Route 9 Barrel Tasting: Sunset Hills Vineyard

When our group headed out for the Route 9 Barrel tasting, the plan had always been to end at Sunset Hills. It made sense, first my wife and I are wine club member so we get to use the upper level for the lunch we had pack with us. Second because we have been addicted to their 2010 Viognier which we wanted to let our friends try, and last because it has a great tasting room and a nice place to relax after a hard day of Va wine tasting.

So when we walked in the door and were pretty much directed down stairs to their private tasting room and production facility, we smiled because it had got a little later in the day than we had planned, and we were all really hungry. We have done the standard tasting many time, so my wife and I took it easy waiting to be pointed back to the barrel room. When the door opened up to the barrel room and the group exited there was about 10 or so of us ready to enter and talk to Nate Walsh Sunset Hills wine maker about what we were about to sample.

In the room were two barrels and a sign talking about futures for chardonnay so I expected chardonnay to be the white wine from the barrel to be tasted. However surprise, Nate walked around with a sample of the next vintage of viognier. It had the typical tropical flower and fruit nose that is associated with a viognier, but lacked a little of the balanced the explosion of fruit I have grown accustom too with their 2010 vintage. Overall it was well balance and probably will develop more until it is ready to be bottled.

Nate was curious about the group’s experience out during the route 9 Barrel tasting. It was toward the end of the day, and he was surprised that no one in the group and made it to all five wineries participating. Like ourselves, most people there had made it to four of them and for a few this was just their second stop, but they had said they planned on taking full advantage of the second day of the barrel tasting. I believe the two day event was the way to go. Trying to squeeze in that many wine tasting would bound to lead to trouble, especially because the wineries through in a their standard tasting which means a glass of two of wine at each winery visited. Although I didn’t say it there, I’ll admit it here. My pallet was pretty trashed even after four, something I’ll remember going into next year if we do this again. And we had only done part of the standard tastings at the other three wineries we visited.

After a big lead in, we found out the other wine we would be sampling the cellar was Nate’s Petite Verdot. It was right what we were expecting a smooth blend of fruit, oak and balanced tannin. I had found the nose a little over barring but coming from the barrel that was not so unusual. I’m excited to taste the final product when it is released, even if that isn’t in the foreseeable future.

The Petite verdot signaled the end of the barrel tasting, my wife and I caught up with our friends upstairs in the member’s only area for some delicious lunch. We opened a bottle of their 2010 Viognier and enjoyed conversation and some laughs and memories of the day’s experience.

Route 9 Barrel tasting Loudon Valley Vineyard

The third stop on our route nine barrel tasting was a place that has branched out into the world of food. By day, it is a bustling little winery. By night, at least on the weekends, it is a mysterious and exotic tapa restaurant. Additionally, it offers warm soup and baguettes on the weekend for anyone who is hungry after a hard day on the Loudon county wine trail. For those of you who haven’t guessed yet, our third stop was Loudon Valley Vineyards winery with our host and wine maker Bree Moore. We first heard of Bree on a trip to Unicorn winery back in 2007 where she used to be the winemaker and last time we checked still does the wine consulting with.

We started by going to their standard tasting upstairs while waiting for the next trip to the barrel room tasting. The highlights of the standard tasting were the Vinifera white, 2008 Cab Franc, and the 2008 Syrah. However before we could finish Bree came up from the spiral stair case ready for the next group to taste the treats she had in barrels below.

We started off with a Pinot Grigio, It came out a bit cloudy and for me, well, it had a funky smell. However, having been to a barrel tasting or two, I knew not to judge a wine by its color or nose, unfortunately the funky nose carried over into the wine. I thought it might be just me, but when others went for the dump bucket, or tried to give it to their tasting partner and were turned down, I knew that it might be the wine.

Next up was the next vintage of Route 9 Red, a chambourcin wine. It again had an insignificant nose, but at least it did have some fruit on the pallet but the tannins over powered the flavor. I guess once this is in bottle and has some time settle it could be better, but it will take a tasting to determine if that is the case.

Last on the barrel tasting adventure was something we were excited for. It was the next vintage of her Syrah. It is one of the wines we like the best from Loudon valley. This was different from our previous experiences in the barrel room. This wine displayed great fruit and earthiness on the nose. It followed by a well balance wine with light tannins and soft earth fruit pallet with a lingering finish, just what we would want from a good Syrah.

Our experience at this stop in the barrel tasting was less than stellar, but the standard tasting was pleasant and well, we needed a small break from our barrel tasting adventures. So after getting our friends up, it was time to head off to our last stop on our Route 9 Barrel Tasting adventure.

Oil Tyco0n or Condiment on Hamburger?

I’m all about exposing people to wineries they don’t know about, and this year’s FLX wine tour included some places we had never been. One of those new places for us was a random stop J.R. Dill Winery .

Overall, we had a great visit at this winery. Their pourers were very entertaining, however they weren't producing the type wines my wife and I really enjoy, but they did produce some fun sipping wines that are great by themselves or with light summer fare.

After enjoying a quick evening out in VA wine country (Loundon County to be specific), the wife and I decided we were ready for easy evening drinking wine while enjoying an evening of sports and “Diners, Drivers, and Dives.” We decided to open up our bottle of Lake Glass Red.

This non-vintage blend of popular Finger Lakes red grapes has a green earthy smell. Not quite moldy, more like sniffing around the roots of a green pepper plant. The wine was a real fruit bomb. Raspberry was the predominant taste but balanced with a little green pepper, and burning sharp tannins on the back of the tongue.

This wine was not something I’d want every day but in the right situation with a juicy grilled meat, or tangy bar-b-que sauce this wine is a great compliment, or a sipping wine to top off a great evening on the start of a holiday weekend. Either way, it is fun and a signal of things to come from this winery.