Barboursville Vineyards - Barboursville, Virginia

Kirstin is over for a visit on her way home to London, so we took her winery hopping today.  We have some favorites, and I had come up with an ambitious list for the day.  Unfortunately, I’m such a lightweight I knew I would be asleep by the second winery and that we would never make it to everything on the list.  We got a late start…SQ has having some human technical difficulties coming up with the addresses.  Our first attempt was Linden Vineyards, but I stupidly didn’t call ahead of time and just assumed they would be open.  Bad assumption – we drove all the way there and they were closed.  We’ve been before, they have outstanding wine so I was a bit disappointed.

The next stop on our list was Pearmund Cellars, another outstanding winery in our opinion, which sits just a bit north of Warrenton.  They offer 3 options for tastings – Classic for $5, Reserve for $7, or both for $10.  We chose the Reserve, which included 5 wines.  I won’t cover all of them in detail, but my favorites were the 2007 Viognier (something Virginia wineries do particularly well) and the 2006 Petite Verdot, with the 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon coming in a close third.  The Viognier is well-rounded and very tropical, while the Petite Verdot is full of blackberry flavor and very earthy.

Barboursville Vineyards was our next target, after a brief run through McDonald’s for some french fries (a major weakness!!).  The setup here is a bit different – you pay at the front register for the tasting and pick up your glass, then move over to the tasting area.  They have everything set up so that you move from Whites to Reds to Dessert wine, and when they are busy it becomes a bit cumbersome.  Barboursville has a huge list of wines they produce, and while it’s not in my overll top 5 wineries in Virginia, they do have a couple of outstanding selections, and the grounds are incredibly beautiful.  The ruins of the old governor’s mansion are also on site, which makes for nice picnic setting in sunny weather.  Again, I won’t go through every wine they offer, but my favorites here were the 2007 Sauvignon Blanc (crisp, dry, a lot of pear flavor, and great for outdoor weather), the 2006 Barbera Reserve (hard to find in VA, medium body, earthy, and plum-y), the 2006 Cabernet Franc Reserve (my favorite wine here, with the exception of the 2004 Octagon; very classic VA wine, a lot of structure but not highly tannic), and the 2005 Nebbiolo Reserve (another Italian varietal that’s hard to find in VA; very smoky, complex, smooth, full-bodied, and will improve even more with some aging).

And last on our tour today, since it was getting later in the afternoon at this point, was Kluge Estate Winery and Vineyard.  The drive here is incredibly beautiful, some of the nicest land in Virginia, and it’s also just down the road a bit from Monticello.  I was expecting a packed house here, but it was so desserted I thought they were closed when we first pulled in.  SQ and I have been to Kluge a few times before, and it’s firmly in our Top 5 in the state, but the selection in the past has been small.  I don’t find that off-putting…usually the wineries offering a huge assortment sacrifice quality.  We were surprised to find that Kluge is now offering 12 wines and sparkling wines, which they serve as a tasting flight.  There are 2 options here – Albemarle Flight for $10 or Kluge Flight for $12, and we were told it might be a good idea to share as they pour quite a bit into the glasses.  We opted to do both flights for the three of us, and overall the Albemarle Flight had better options.  The standouts from that group included a 2006 Viognier (again, very Virginia, complex and tropical), 2006 Albemarle Rose (even you non-Rose drinkers will like this; dry, with vanilla and almond finish), and the 2004 Albemarle Simply Red (Bordeaux-style, aged in French oak).  I have to also mention the Cru Aperitif, which is a very distinctive, fortified Chardonnay that is aged in Jack Daniels barrels – sounds bizarre, but it’s one of the most interesting wines I’ve ever had.  The Cru Royale was also fun to drink – they blend the Cru with the Kluge SP Blanc de Blanc, and serve with a piece of orange peel…kind of tastes like a Mimosa…really refreshing!  From the Kluge Flight, the just-mentioned 2004 SP Blanc de Blanc was an outstanding sparkling wine made in the Methode Champenoise style.  I’m not particularly fond of sparkling wine, but this was very enjoyable, and I think I could really just sit and drink this even with no food.  The 2004 Kluge SP Blanc de Noir was also a favorite, made from 100% Pinot Noir, aged in French Oak, and definitive notes of cassis.  We have a bottle of 2001 Kluge Estate New World Red (still unopened…and waiting for K and James to make it back over the pond for a visit!), but the later vintages kind of fall flat.  The 2002 and 2004 are both included in the Kluge Flight, and I would almost put them at the bottom of everything we tasted today.

We were all starving at this point, and Syd has been such a trooper today putting up with our wandering around from winery to winery, so it was time for dinner.  I had a couple of options in mind, but we ended up at one of our favorite pizza places – Mellow Mushroom, right on the campus for University of VA.  It’s a southern pizza chain, I think based in Georgia, and Charlottesville is about as far north as they go.  Very hippy atmosphere, and it was filled with college students, but we were early so no problem finding a place to sit.  Any pizza you get here will be good, but I can’t comment on anything else on the menu as pizza is all I’ve ever eaten at Mellow Mushroom.  We split a BBQ Chicken pizza (yum!) and a sausage and pineapple pizza (weird, I know…but I’m addicted to this particular combination).

There are about 140 wineries in Virginia at last count – I think everyone can find something they like in this state.  What is being produced here is very, very Virginia, and there are wine varietals that the state does incredibly well.  I didn’t drink Chardonnay before I started trying it here.  You will find some very good wine and some very bad wine here, and a lot of in-between, so go drive around and give it a try.  A  good site to start with is virginiawine.org.  And don’t tell me you don’t drink anything but California wine….

Iron Bridge Wine Company

Syd is still in Ohio visiting her grandparents, so we decided to take another opportunity to check out a few wineries we haven’t visited before.  Well, one that we’ve been to before…but it’s been a really long time.  We actually started our day with lunch in Warrenton at a very hip place called Iron Bridge Wine Company.  It’s located on a corner in the downtown area, and it’s really part wine store and part restaurant.  We were on the early side for lunch, so ended up being the first ones in.  The waiter/host told us just to sit anywhere so we chose the elevated window table (clearly the space had previously been some kind of shop that displayed things in the window….).  So now we were on display, and it served to bring more people in because by the time we left the two waiters really couldn’t keep up with all the patrons.  SQ and I split a glass of Vignerons Rose, then I ordered the Ahi Tuna Club.  The tuna was seared perfectly rare, and was dressed with lettuce, heirloom tomato, applewood smoked bacon and lemon aioli.  They could really re-think the bread choice as it got a little soggy from the aioli, but otherwise was excellent.  The sandwich was served with a choice of mixed green salad, potato salad or herbed fries – I chose the green salad and wasn’t disappointed.  The dinner menu seems to consist of soups, salads, seafood and small plates to share….would make for a fun evening out with a group.  The upside to this place is that since they sell wines as a wine store, you can order a bottle, which is much cheaper than what most restaurants charge, and pay a small corkage fee to enjoy it with your food.  The service was a bit slow since they were understaffed that day, but it was very friendly, and the atmosphere inside is kind of upscale feeling without being pretentious, and prices aren’t ridiculous either.  We would definitely go back.

After lunch we took off for Philip Carter Winery, which apparently used to be Stillhouse Vineyards, located in Hume.  I hadn’t heard much about them so I didn’t really know what to expect, but the drive to get there was stunning…more gorgeous Virginia horse country.  We went into the tasting room and it just went downhill.  They were very disorganized, and the person pouring the wine for us didn’t seem to know anything about it.  She kept describing everything as ‘a really good wine’ and had nothing more to add.  I can’t really comment positively about anything that we tried.  Overall, this winery has a lot of work to do.

Linden Vineyards was our next destination, and though we’d been before it has been a few years.  Linden is actually the second winery we visited in Virginia, and we thought highly of it but have since been to others that we felt were better.  We were really pleasantly surprised at how much better the wine here has become.   We were also surprised that they weren’t very busy, but found out why after talking to some of the employees.  Laurie told us that it was starting to get overrun with groups out touring in limos, so they no longer accept groups larger than six.  They also now limit their food and deck area (with fabulous views of the vineyard and mountains) to club members.  Today they were tasting a 2007 Seyval (crisp, acidic, would be great with grilled fish or seafood), a 2006 Chardonnay (steel-barrel aged which gave it a bright, clean taste of citrus and vanilla), a 2004 Claret (medium-bodied, flavor of raspberry and plum), and 2005 Petit Verdot (very European tasting, earthy, finished with gripping tannins).  All of them were worthy of purchasing, but we opted for the Seyval today.

We weren’t really sure where we were going to go next, but Laurie suggested Chester Gap Cellars, located right outside Front Royal.  The tasting room is still somewhat under construction, but this winery has what is probably the most stunning view of any that we’ve been to.  It sits on the side of a mountain, and is completely surrounded by mountain views…really breathtaking.  If I wasn’t so dizzy at this point I think I could have just sat on one of their picnic tables for the rest of the afternoon staring at the trees.  So, the wines – the standouts here were the 2006 Sauvignon Blanc (grassy Loire-style wine, crisp and dry) and the 2006 Viognier (floral, peach, fermented in stainless steel).  They also produce a Viognier Reserve which is aged in French Oak, and normally I like that oak-y flavor, especially in Chardonnay, but here I preferred the Viognier aged in steel.  We took home a bottle of the Sauvignon Blanc…SQ tried to talk me into pan-searing some scallops for dinner, but I really just needed a nap after all the wine drinking.

We ate at Blue Duck Tavern in DC last night with our friends Kirstin and James. They came to visit after a trip to New York, before heading home to England. If you get the chance to eat here…GO!!! Seriously, make your reservation now. This is one of the best meals we’ve ever had in town. It is connected to the Park Hyatt Washington, and you might almost go right by it if you aren’t paying attention. The atmosphere is dark, cool and not pretentious at all. We were wearing jeans, but you would feel just as comfortable, maybe more so, wearing something a bit more upline than that. We were there on a Sunday evening, Fridays and Saturdays may be a bit more dressy.

The waiter brought a plate of Concord Grapes to try, and I almost forgot about the bread these were so good. And I don’t even normally like grapes. I started out with the Pumpkin Bisque soup, which had a tiny square of gingerbread covered with ham in the center of the bowl. It was creamy and not too sweet. I devoured the whole bowl. We had ordered a bottle of Byron Pinot Noir, and I’m not sure if this went well with everyone’s meal or not but I didn’t care. Pinot Noir is my favorite wine, and this was a very good bottle. SQ ordered the Crab Fritters as his starter and I swiped a bite. They were crispy on the outside and incredibly creamy on the inside, very fresh tasting.

I ordered the Maine Scallops for my main dish and they were perfect, nicely browned on both sides. The side dishes here come family style, so we went a little crazy and ordered Chanterelle mushrooms, Sweet Potato Grits, Mashed Potatoes, and Sweet Potatoes done like wedge fries. I don’t care for Sweet Potatoes, so I can’t comment on those but everyone else seemed to like them. The Mashed Potatoes were really smooth, not lumpy at all, and the Chanterelles were cooked nicely and not mushy. We were onto our second bottle of the Pinot, so I was getting quite full…but there’s always a little room for dessert.

SQ wanted the chocolate cake with flaming bourbon, so I shared some of that with him. James ordered Chocolate Smores Ice Cream. This had all the actual smores ingredients in it, very yummy.

The whole concept of this restaurant is freshness, quality and working with a lot of farms. They source through several in Pennsylvania. The menu changes seasonally, and they even post on the menu where your food is coming from. The options should also make anyone happy. If you can’t find something on the menu you like, you don’t like food.

Details
Cuisine: American
Price range: $8 – $17
Locally-based? No
Reservations? Yes
Kids menu? Yes
Vegetarian dishes? Yes
WiFi? Yes
Smoking? No
Hours: Su – Noon to 9pm, M-Th – 11am to 10pm, F-Sa – 11am to 10:30pm

M-Ones Cut-to-the-chase Summary
Did we enjoy it? Not really
Would we go back? Already did, so we’ve probably exhausted that path
Worth the money? Not even at the price
Rating: 1/2 an M out of 5 MMMMM

Pearmund Cellars - Broad Run, Virginia

Pearmund Cellars
6190 Georgetown Road, Broad Run, VA 20137
540.347.3475
www.pearmundcellars.com

I had heard a lot of good things about this winery, but why we waited so long to try them out is still a mystery. SQ and I were trying to decide what to do on this Friday, Syd was at school, and we wanted to get out for a new adventure. I suggested driving here, then heading over to their sister winery, The Winery at La Grange. After a forgettable burger at the Five Guys in Warrenton (I apologize to those of you who worship this now mega-chain), we drove out to Pearmund. The gravel driveway taking you back to the tasting room snakes through what seems like endless rows of grape vines. We were shocked that there were others already there, it was only noon. I took this as a good sign that the wine would probably have some merit. Pearmund offers a couple of tasting options – you can run the course of their ‘Classic’ wines for $5 per person, or you can do the Reserve tasting for $8 per person. We opted for the Classic, but as we stood there talking to Mark, who was doing the pouring, he ended up giving us some of the Reserve wines to taste. Smart guy…we ended up buying several bottles from that list.

Pearmund was voted Virginia’s Favorite Winery this year, and I think with good reason. They have a good selection and the wines are very balanced. They are also producing some really creative wine, most notably the Ameritage, which is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec and Petit Verdot. Mark was very knowledgeable with the wines and wasn’t afraid to offer opinions and suggestions for food pairings. I would comfortably say that Pearmund is in our Top 5 Virginia Wines.

So, what did we buy? The 2005 Ameritage Reserve was my absolute favorite, consensus of 3 1/2 stars with SQ so we bought two bottles. We also purchased the 2005 Petit Verdot (also on the Reserve list), the 2006 Sauvignon Blanc, 2005 Estate Chardonnay (my other favorite, 3 1/2 stars!), and the 2004 Cabernet Franc. Pearmund also does winery tours, but we opted out for today. If a picnic at a winery is your thing, bring it with you…they have tables under a covered patio, or you can spread out your yummies in the grass. You can crack open the bottle you just purchased, or buy wine by the glass while you’re there.

If you can get out to the Warrenton area, try to stop by…they are open daily, and the visit will really be worth it.

I have mixed feelings about Blue Ridge Grill. I don’t like the location, and it’s rather awkward to get to it. The atmosphere is bland and suburban, and people flock to it as if there is no other option in Leesburg. There are other options, there just don’t happen to be a lot of good ones. However, the food here is fairly consistent and good quality. What they are trying to do is certainly a good cut above the TGI Friday’s just down the street.

On this visit I opted for the Luau Steak, which is a nicely marbled ribeye marinated, grilled, and topped with a pineapple-teriyaki glaze. The steak quality was good, and it was cooked rare exactly as I asked for it. This is sometimes very hard to get, grill cooks more often than not want to overcook red meat, regardless of how you order it. The baked potato was fluffy on the inside just like it should be. The food here is not overly creative, but it is fresh and not overpriced. It’s a good casual place to go with your family as it’s very kid-friendly, and much better than most of the options in the area.

Back in the Tampa area after our overnight outing to Siesta Key. This restaurant is actually in Clearwater, hiding behind some trees on Clearwater Largo Road. It’s very cute on the outside, and it’s exactly what it says on the inside – a friendly neighborhood restaurant. There are so many of us we seem to take up the entire mid-section of the restaurant, but they aren’t very busy at 2:30pm on a Sunday. We order a couple of Toasted Raviolis and some Antipasto prior to our pizzas. The ravioli is incredibly good, very crispy on the outside, and served with a side of marinara sauce. SQ, Syd and I decide to split Syd’s most favorite pizza – sausage and pineapple. It’s a bit weird, but actually pretty good. This pizza is great – the dough is hand-tossed, crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside. The toppings are very fresh, and I think the pineapple is actually not from a can. Pastino’s does have several other Italian dishes on their menu, but how could you pass up the pizza? I really liked this place, very casual and comfortable with reasonably priced, really tasty pizza.