Fall 2020 Wine-Share
We’re excited to release the last wines of the 2018 vintage, our first varietal bottlings of both, and we have the added bonus of two versions of Petit Manseng. We’ve included our notes below.
Tim, Gray, Ben Jordan
NOTES2018 Petit Manseng - dry, Mount Airy Vineyard, Shenandoah Valley
2018 Petit Manseng - dry, Mount Airy Vineyard, Shen. Val., zero adds (wax top)
We are likely the only winery in Virginia (maybe the world?) bottling the same Petit Manseng in two different ways. Both bottlings were treated identically, with nothing added until bottling, when the “normal” wine received a small (very small: 20ppm) addition of sulfur dioxide. Our take on Petit Manseng is unique in that we do full malolactic, age the wine on the lees for 22 months, and bottle unfiltered. The fermentation spanned 20 months, where the yeast populations grew and declined over the course of three distinct periods. Both have ample acidity and richness and are marked by their long fermentations and extended lees contact, with a yeasty, baked bread character. At bottling, the two versions were very different, but over time, bottle age has brought them closer. We are excited to share the results of this exploration.
What should I use this wine for? In the Shenandoah Valley, Petit Manseng truly brings the acidity, along with ample richness. The result is not a cocktail wine. It craves the warm, rich food of fall and winter months. This is also our most contemplative wine, especially since we have bottled it two ways (you’re welcome, fellow wine nerds), so there’s a best-case scenario that involves a fire lit room, a blanket, a cheese plate, and no screens in sight.
2018 Blaufränkisch, Mount Airy Vineyard, Shenandoah Valley
We are excited by the potential of this grape in the Shenandoah Valley, and we have one of the first plantings in the state. We incorporated 25% whole cluster to compliment the inherent black and white pepper character of the grape. It aged in 500L French oak puncheon barrel until unfiltered bottling. The result is medium bodied, layered, and distinctively aromatic.
What should I use this wine for? This wine will be highly flexible across the holiday table and winter months, but also throughout the year. Because of its compelling aromatics and soft tannins, it can be enjoyed on its own, but it will truly shine with the complex flavors of your family’s recipes of the seasons.
*Please note that both wines were bottled unfined and unfiltered, and while all wines should be carefully stored over time, it is important to keep these wines from extreme temperatures, especially heat.