Virginia Wine meets The Green Fairy

It was early December when I visited District Winery in Washington D.C. and posted an image from their tasting room. A comment had me a bit perplexed about a possible visit. Then I realized it was that time of year and Greg was coming home for the holidays.

He expressed interest in visiting the D.C. winery but I had other plans. To my “Rookie” mistake I had forgotten about the winter hours at most Virginia vineyards and had to make a late adjustment.

Linden Vineyards wasn’t open that Friday so I opted to take Greg to another vineyard not to far away, Arterra Wines.

Sandy and Jason are the owners and we were lucky enough to have Jason pour our wines. Here was the list and my notes along with Greg’s humorous feedback.

’16 Dry Riesling

Me: Herbaceous, light and bright with low acids. A touch of sweetness on the palette with a subtle dry finish.

Greg: D.U.I made easy (drink with great care).

’15 Chardonnay

Me: Soft golden colors, a touch of minerality on the front of the mouth with buttery textures to round out the finish.

Greg: Not Cali – But still has the fornication.

’15 Cabernet Franc

Me: Dark red fruit on the nose, black currants and stone fruits on the back of the palette with a touch of white pepper on the finish.

Greg: Relax campfire wine to talk to a bunch of woulda been coulda been.

’15 Petit Verdot

Me: My favorite varietal! Bright concentrated fruit with a hint of leather on the nose. Bold rich fruit flavors with a cigar smoke on the finish. This is the perfect deck/porch sitting wine.

Greg: Official seal of Virginia! Seriously run with this one! Thomas Dolby reading Edgar Allen Poe!

’14 Reserve

Me: A blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Tannat, Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc. An intense nose with dark fruit flavors. Gorgeous tannins with a bright finish. Another true deck/porch sipping wine.

Greg: The Harold Baines, Coco Crisp and Johnnie Damon All-Star Team wine.

’15 Tannat (bonus pour)

Me: Robust dark fruit essence on the nose. A well rounded mouth flavors of stone fruits – great balance. Bright acid with nice tannins on the finish. Beautiful wine!

Greg: Mystery Wine – Ask Coop! Joan Jett, Rage Against The Machine and Beatles Mash-up.

Blueberry Apple Wine

Me: This wine reminds me of the old field party days drinking fruit wines of my childhood. Bright berry and fruity flavors with a soft acidic finish. Refreshing flavors.

Greg: Not cobbler, Thank You, Thank You, Thank You!!!

Apple Wine

Me: Refreshing fruit flavors from start to finish.

Greg: What really hit Sir Issac Newton on the head and made him giggle. Strong gravitational pull!

Overall wonderful wines and Greg truly enjoyed them.

Lunch at the Hunters Head Tavern followed. French Dip Sandwiches and craft beer were paired with the meals (Greg, Legends Brown Ale Me, Devils Backbone Black Lager). Then I mentioned that Absinthe was being made a few miles down the road and Greg was on board to visit with the Green Fairy.

Off to Mt. Defiance Cidery & Distillery we went.

To his surprise Virginia is making top notch Absinthe as well, or as he put it:

From the moment I entered this fine establishment I knew… I just knew… on the bar it was there. The fountain of the Green Fairy herself. My inner child of La Belle Époque knew I had a chance for a moment of real Steampunk Van Gogh in the Shenandoah Valley.

The slow drop of this magical fountain set the stage for the suspense and anticipation to build. Indeed… could this magic potion bring me somewhere near Aix-en-Provence?

With the first sip it was indeed the kiss of the Green Fairy… adding a new bit of surrealism to my expanding Absinthe Adventures.

Absinthe began as an all-purpose patent remedy created by Dr. Pierre Ordinaire, a French doctor living in Couvet, Switzerland… to this day I’m not sure what it really cures, but I can say this glass I found under this magic fountain made me quite happy to have the appropriate disease.

Thus far he has not been disappointed with any of the Virginia watering holes I have introduced to him.

His next visit I’ll try to get Greg to the Godfather of Virginia wine, Jim Law at
Linden Vineyards.

Until next time my friend…Cheers! Prost! Slainte! Cin Cin! And my favorite…Bottoms Up!

 

The End – June 3, 1983

 

By the way I am dressed, there’s no wonder I was a walking wedgie!

I spent my last day of school mowing the yard and getting the car loaded for the evenings celebration. The graduation ceremony was held indoors because of the early Virginia summer, it was hot and humid. Having to wear a shirt and tie along with the ceremonial gown was making a brother sweat. As the time approached, we were lined up on both sides of the hallway, I glanced down to see all of my classmates have smiles on their faces and out of a doorway came a group in similar outfits but in black. It almost look like a covenant of witches walking down the hall. The first face I saw was Mr. Hodson our Principle.
My Cousin, feeling his oats addresses Mr. Hodson as “J.D.” and proceeded to call all the teachers by their first name but one…Coach Proctor. To this day I refer to him as Coach or Mr. Proctor.

 

We were in and out in about 2 hours. As we exited the gymnasium and I began to hear the sounds of girls sobbing. Little did I know one those sobbing just so happened to my Cousin. Tears flowed and hugs were everywhere. As we met up with our families, we handed them our diplomas caps & gowns. I went and changed cloths and was told that if I was going to consume to stay at the field. I informed them that I would see them at sun up.

Hours after the event, my classmates were still hugging and tears still flowed. A few made plans to visit Ocean City, Md. the following week. I was scheduled to work at 8:00 Monday morning, so I maintained my composure and partied the night away.

A few of my classmates were only going to relax and enjoy their new freedom for just a short period. Uncle Sam called their number and they were heading off to basic training. Those who went to college, we would run into each other in town on the weekends and we would gather some where to talk.

Over time, some got married, some moved away, some stayed close, and some never left. But it so funny how we can go months even years and not see each other yet we live only 5 to 10 miles from each other. So much for the small town mentality.

When it was time for our 5 year reunion, I knew our class lacked funds to pull off renting a venue. Somehow, we were able to scrap enough together to rent the VFW in Strasburg and get crazy just like we did back in the day. The most important thing was…we still were a tight knit group and I can only hope in 25 years we are still that close.

Wine + Reunion Week = Debauchery!

Earlier in the week was busy. I was able to secure some complimentary tastings from a few vineyards for the Decade & a half reunion for this coming Saturday evening. My travels for the week were going to be limited.
I knew Saturday was going to be bat crap crazy so I decided to visit the few vineyards on the north end of Orange county.

I waited until 10a.m. to head down to my first stop of the day. My schedule was going to be tight as I had planned on going to the homecoming game and then drinks with classmates at the Old Mill Grill.

After relying on a cell phone voice giving me wrong directions, I finally arrived at Honah Lee Vineyard.

Just outside of Gordonsville, is this quaint boutique vineyard and tasting room. I was surprised to see a limo parked out front. Either a Birthday party or Bachelorette party, the latter. It wasn’t even noon before I started tasting and these girls were drunker than 10 monkeys.

The owner an ex-law man, kind of shook his head at the way those crazy kids were acting.

As for the wine…

’13 Chardonnay, golden in color. The nose was dominated by a big stick of butter! Then came a surprise, crisp, tart citrus flavors on the palate. Succulent honeysuckle notes on the finish, make this a very nice Chard.

’13 de la Merce, a red blend of Merlot and Chambourcin. Fruity notes of cherries on the nose. A softened flavor of leather and tobacco coat the mouth. This medium bodied wine finished with black raspberries and soft tannins. This would be a great everyday red. Pasta, pizza and red meat plates would help this wine shine.

So now, I have to travel about 15-20 miles to the next stop. I have my trusty map ready since I will be traveling into the hills to reach Kilaurwen Winery.

Nice winding roads to reach this locations and there were a few cars visiting from out of state.

The owner/winemaker explained the name of the winery. It was named after his three daughters. That’s kind of sweet.

Situated against the mountain, I was hoping to taste something good.

’12 Riesling, apricots and pineapple on the nose. Bold citrus flavors of lemon on the palate. A clean finish with essences of melon. Oysters on the half shell or shrimp scampi would go well with this wine.

’12 Cabernet Franc, a medium bodied wine with a gorgeous ruby color. Earthy aromas on the nose. Cherry, currants and smoky flavors on the palate with bold spicy tannins on the finish. A true steak wine.

So my travels took me to 2 and that would bring my total to 137 for the year.

Once I returned home, I got a few texts telling me they wanted to start the party early. I arrived at the Old Mill around 6. I had set up one of those “Events” on Facebook and invited all of my classmates who grace the social media giant.

Then of course, I have those friends that are in my contact list who I send messages too when an event like this is planned. Texts were sent and it was going to be a wait and see who shows up.

Deb was the first one there and I told Abe, the owner of the Mill, to stock up on Corona’s because I have seen her drink bars out of the Mexican Cerveza. Our last outing, she shared a quote with me that I have say is one of the funniest sayings I have ever heard:

“Beer is Great, Sex is Free, We’re the Class of ’83!”

I Love This Class!

We had a good turn out. About 10 showed up, some I haven’t even seen in 30+ years. A lot of alcohol was poured…including shots which we did not need and stories were told. We got the party started early and rolled out at midnight.

On Saturday, I went and purchased wine at Glen Manor Vineyards so Tish and I enjoy good Vino. I knew they were pouring Boone’s Farm but I wasn’t that interested in going down memory lane. Memories of bad hangovers on that stuff still linger after all these years.

We arrived early like the promoters suggested, we didn’t expect to be standing in line freezing our butts off. Everyone and their sister was there. I saw friends I hadn’t seen since I was 13 years old.

Margo visiting from Portland, Oregon.

Good Ole T.B.U. representing with Dave, The Fat Man & Clark. Old friends indeed!

I knew my boy Dave was suppose to be there, but I never saw him until late and by then the alcohol had my head spinning. I saw my prom dates and homecoming date. Of course, there were the hard cores, those Class of ’83 members who rarely make an appearance. Todd & Chewy. This night could get RIGHTEOUS and there was talk about visiting the “West Virginia Ballet”.

Chewy is a trip!

Todd never changes…Dammit!

The only details I can share are…good times were had by all and some were feeling quite ill the following day. We’re not teenagers anymore and we can not party like Charlie Sheen. Although I try my best!

As for my wine tour, Next week Tish leaves for the beach and I will consume a lot of meat along with beverages.

Visits to Loudoun and back to the Culpepper area to finally check off some of those wineries.

I’ve decided to see how many I can actually visit. This trip is coming to an end quick.

I leave you with one last pick from the reunion. This group was just looking for trouble.

Mel, Me, Roger & Rich. We included Mel to keep us out of jail, I’m too pretty for prison.