Local Wineries Collect Ribbons at State Fair
Northern Virginia wineries, including several on Reston Limousine’s Public Wine Tours, are continuing to collect awards and recognition this summer at regional and international competitions!
At the 2009 State Fair of Virginia Wine Competition, for example, Chrysalis Vineyards, Pearmund Cellars, Sunset Hills Vineyard, and the Winery at La Grange took gold and silver ribbons in a blind tasting of 239 wines from 48 Virginia wineries.
Gold Ribbon
Pearmund Cellars – Ameritage 2007
Sunset Hills Vineyard – Reserve Cabernet Franc 2007
Sunset Hills Vineyard – Petit Verdot 2006
The Winery at La Grange – “Fletcher’s” Chardonnay 2007
Silver Ribbon
Chrysalis Vineyards – Mariposa 2008
Chrysalis Vineyards – Viognier 2008
Pearmund Cellars – Old Vine Chardonnay 2007
Other wineries on our Public Wine Tour also won in the label competition: Hillsborough Vineyards took 1st place for its Bloodstone label, and Notaviva Vineyards and Fabbioli Cellars took 1st and 2nd, respectively, in overall winery presentation. Sunset Hills Vineyard received an honorable mention in that category as well.
The competition, which took place in Montepelier, featured wine varietals of Chardonnay, Viognier, Cabernet, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Petit Verdot.
“We had the most wines entered this year than ever before, and it is nice to see the industry grow and really go forward even from just five years ago,” senior judge George Davis says. “National industry trends reflect lighter, less tannic wines and less use of oak. We saw more un-oaked wines this year and the submissions of un-oaked Chardonnay is a perfect example. Among the reds, the Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot wines had less oak exposure as well. They all were well-made wines.”
The State Fair of Virginia will announce the top winning wine – “Best in Show” – on Sept. 23. The winning wines will be displayed at the 2009 State Fair of Virginia, which returns September 24 through October 4 at The Meadow Event Park in Doswell, Virginia.
Ready for your own tastings of these and other award-winning wines? Visit www.restonlimo.com for a schedule of the wineries on our upcoming Public Wine Tours !
Wine Tour Destinations Win Top Awards
Congratulations to the Virginia wineries – including several destinations on Reston Limousine’s wine tours – that recently were honored in the internationally esteemed 2009 Decanter World Wine Awards.
This year’s results were announced at The London International Wine Fair, which took place May 12-14. A total of 10,285 wines and 2,240 companies submitted their products in this year’s Decanter competition, according to the monthly wine magazine’s Web site.
Following are our wine tour winners:
Pearmund Cellars’ Petit Verdot 2007 (red still)
Pearmund Cellars’ Viognier 2007 (white still)
Veramar Vineyard’s Chardonnay Reserve 2007 (white still)
Veritas Vineyard’s Kenmar 2006 (white sweet)
Veritas Vineyard’s Viognier 2007 (white still)
Want to taste award-winning wines from the 2009 Decanter winners? It’s as easy as booking a reservation on one of Reston Limousine’s wine tours!
Pearmund: Public Wine Tours on June 20, July 12
Veramar: Public Wine Tours on June 28, July 25
Veritas: Charlottesville Wine Tour June 20, July 19, August 15
