Fall Food & Wine on TV

What a pleasure it was to be interviewed on FOX 5 Morning News with Holly Morris.  We actually discussed and tasted our Apple Wine, at 9:00 am, hey why not??  I always say that our Apple Wine pairs perfectly with your breakfasts food like pancakes and eggs.  But this year it will be added to our Turkey and made into a delicious gravy.  Ummm, can't wait! 

Trick or Treat??

It's FALL and that means lots and lots of candy is headed our way...what wine shall we pair with them??  I have two personal favorites... Milk Chocolate with Peanut Butter pairs great with our Chambourcin (or a Pinot Noir) with little to no tannins.  And Dark Chocolate with or without Carmel pairs great with our Cabernet Franc with light spicy tannins.  But we must never forget our dessert wines, remembering that the dessert shouldn't be sweeter than the wine.  I hope you enjoy your evening with tricks or treats??

Brrrr......

Brrr...there is a chill in the air and that means we are ready to switch to red wine!  As our meals change to richer, more heartier type foods, they tend to pair best with red wine like Cabernet Franc or Chambourcin.
Look for a new red wine to be available at Corcoran next month, Petit Verdot!!
Cheers!

The Herb Experience

At Corcoran we had "Wine and Herb Pairings" and now we have "The Herb Experience", a self guided (with QR Reader) herb tasting with wine recommendations along with some food pairing ideas.  Come by for a taste!  Cheers!

Fermenting Wine

Here is our 2012 Viognier, fermenting happily in a chilled tank....

Birds Eye View...

Could be a Falcon or maybe a Hawk but definitely a bird of prey and is looking after our grapes!
This time of year we will take all the help we can get protecting our fruit.  Crows love ripe grapes as does some other birds so we appreciate it!!

Grapes are coming....grapes are coming!!

 It is that time of year when I get to go out and test the grapes for the degree of Brix or the amount of sugar which converts to alcohol and the pH.  Here is a picture of my first ever harvest of some local Virginia Pinot Noir grapes.  I am very excited to harvest these grapes, they taste delicious and should make some very good wine!  Stay tuned!!

Cheers!

Hot Summer Days

Now that we are having some very hot days, it is more important than ever to protect that wine that you just purchased at your local winery.

Even if it doesn't seem too hot outside, remember that your car temp is often much hotter.  Just like we don't store our wine in the direct sunlight, we should not store our wine in a hot car, damage to your wine will happen silently. 

So when the temp rises outside, pack a cooler to keep your wine in!

Cheers!

Chile....

Chile...I have always been fascinated with their wine, Carmenere in particular.

I had a wonderful opportunity that I just couldn't pass up so I packed my bags and headed to the beautiful country, Chile.

My friend and I were feeling adventurous, we rented a car without GPS and hit the countryside running. We did have some guidance (thank goodness).
We started off just outside Curico where we had a blast helping harvest Sauvignon Blanc. Of course we were the "Gringas" and that was alright, we were there to help! And help we did (for a few hours anyways)!  Next we got to assist one of the winemakers taste the juice that was processed the day before and help him determine if it was Sauvignon Blanc or Chardonnay. And what style of wine would it make? Now this was fun!! Since I don't produce a Sauvignon Blanc it was new to my palate, in the juice stage. Very interesting, I was expecting quite a bit of acidity in the Sauv. Blancs and more apples in the Chard...but they were all quite different and will make some really nice wines!
After a our days in the bodega we travelled to several other wine regions from Casablanca to Colchagua and experienced some phenomenal wines.  All the wineries were absolutely gorgeous. For a relatively young wine country, I am now more convinced than ever that they have some spectacular wines that need to be enjoyed one bottle at a time!
Cheers!

YUM!

It is Girl Scout cookie season and that makes me want to pair them with wine every time. Last year I paired them with our Malbec and Chambourcin, well this year I will pair them with our new dessert style wines. I know tough job, but someone has to do it :)
First up is our house favorite, Samoa...with its rich chocolate and caramel taste pairs wonderfully with our USB (port-style) wine.
Second would be the Tag-A-Longs...milk chocolate with a peanut butter center goes great with our new BlackJack wine, Chambourcin fermented with blackberries.
Third is the original Thin Min...although it has a hint of mint, the dark chocolate icing and cookie pair very well with our RAZ wine, Merlot fermented with raspberries.
Our last dessert style wine (but not least) is our Cello, Petit Manseng infused with lemon zest, goes great with the butter cookie, Trefoil or their new lemon cookie, Savannah Smiles.
Enjoy!
Cheers!

Wine TOO Cold!

People tend to serve white or Rose' wines too cold and red wines too warm. Pulling a white or Rose' straight from the refrigerator is way too cold. This wine will actually taste more acidic and nearly tasteless, but letting it warm up for about 20 minutes, all the fruit or true grape flavors come out.

So...the bottom line is 20 minutes...it takes about 20 minutes out of the frig for a white or Rose' wine to express its true flavors or 20 minutes in the frig for a red wine if it is too warm. Plain and simple...properly chilled wines do taste better.

Cheers!