Gov's Trade Mission Puts Barboursville on Fast Boat to China

The Virginia Wine Dogs were first to tweet the barking news on Monday.

Barboursville Vineyards has signed an agreement with Tianjin Tewoo Group to export their wines to China. The deal is a result of Governor McDonnell's trade and marketing mission to Asia in May and is believed to be the first commercial transaction between a Virginia winery and a Chinese importer. Barboursville and other Virginia wines have also hit the London market.

Munchkin and Pomeroy were not surprised. The Wine Dogs traveled to Barbours-ville in 2009 and sampled the award-winning wines. The winery is located in Orange County, Virginia, on the farmland of James Barbour, the 18th governor of Virginia, and includes the ruins of the manor house designed by Thomas Jefferson. Barboursville is one of the oldest wineries in Virginia, founded in 1976.

At the North American Wine Bloggers Conference in Charlottesville, viticulturalist Gabriele Russe talked about defying expectations to found a thriving vineyard in Virginia. And the bloggers who toured Barboursville were all a-twitter about Octagon. Created only in exceptional vintage years, Barboursville's premier Bordeaux blend is proof that Virginia can make world-class wines with the structure and balance to age gracefully.

This work of art is lovingly crafted by Barboursville's winemaker and general manager, Luca Paschina, currently celebrating his 20th anniversary at Barboursville. Munchkin caught up with him at Monticello, where she was treated to a sample of the 2002 Octagon.

Mr. Jefferson would be proud!

More Gold for VA in Atlantic Seaboard Competition

#VAWines claimed 14 of the 37 golds awarded at the Atlantic Seaboard Competition, and best-of-breed (Category) honors for:

Blush/Rose Hybrid/NA
2010 Gulabi by Narmada Winery, VA
Bordeaux-Style Red Blends
2007 Octagon by Barboursville Vineyards, VA
Other Red Vinifera Varietals
2008 Sangiovese by Ingleside Plantation Vineyards, VA
Other White Vinifera Varietals
2008 Petit Manseng by Horton Cellars Winery, VA
Petit Verdot
2009 Petit Verdot Reserve by Barboursville Vineyards, VA
Seyval Blanc
2010 Seyval Blanc by Barrel Oak Winery, VA
Sparkling Vinifera Wines
NV Scintilla by Veritas Winery, VA
Vidal Blanc
2010 Cold Harbor White by James River Cellars, VA
Viognier
2009 Viognier by Lazy Days Winery, VA
White Vinifera Blends
2009 Reserve d'Oriane by DelFosse Winery, VA

Other Virginia Gold Medalists were:

2009 Cabernet Franc Reserve by Afton Mountain Vineyards, VA
2009 Cabernet Franc by Fabbioli Cellars, VA
2008 Cabernet Franc by Flying Fox Vineyard, VA
2009 Reserve Chardonnay by Gray Ghost Vineyards, VA
2006 Petit Verdot by Ingleside Plantation Vineyards, VA
2009 Petit Verdot by Keswick Vineyards, VA
2008 Johann by Notaviva Vineyards LLC, VA
2010 Viognier Reserve by Potomac Point Vineyard & Winery, VA
2007 Meritage by Rockbridge Vineyard, VA

The Atlantic Seaboard Competition was held July 23-24. 564 wines from 11 states competed.

Wine Bloggers Get Big Welcome from Virginia Governor

Official welcome for the Wine Bloggers Conference from Governor Bob McDonnell (Wine Dogs are big fans!). Munchkin is packing her bags for Charlottesville.

Commonwealth of Virginia
Office of Governor Bob McDonnell

Virginia Welcomes National Wine Bloggers Conference
– 330 wine bloggers from across the country to converge in Charlottesville this weekend –

RICHMOND – Governor Bob McDonnell today welcomed 330 national wine bloggers to the annual North American Wine Bloggers Conference taking place this weekend in Charlottesville. The three-day symposium brings top wine bloggers from across the country to taste local wines, visit wineries and discuss the intersection of wine and new media.

Virginia, home to almost 200 wineries across the state, is the fifth largest wine producing state in the nation. The Virginia Wine Board, the Virginia Tourism Corporation and the Charlottesville Albemarle Convention and Visitors Bureau are working in partnership to host the event, which is organized by Zephyr Adventures. Eric Asimov, chief wine critic for the New York Times, and Jancis Robinson, world-renowned Master of Wine, will be special guest speakers.

Speaking about this weekend's conference, Governor McDonnell remarked, "Virginia is honored to be hosting the Wine Bloggers Conference and excited to showcase our local wines to this national audience. The conference locating in the Commonwealth this year is yet another indication of the Virginia wine industry's growing reputation in domestic and global marketplaces, and it also furthers my goal of making Virginia the East Coast Capital of wine and wine tourism."

Virginia's theme for the conference is "A Commonwealth of Wine," highlighting the fact that Virginia has wineries in nearly every region of the state. Virginia has nine distinctive wine regions and six federally-recognized American Viticultural Areas.

Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry Todd P. Haymore added, "The Virginia wine industry is an important part of our agricultural and tourism efforts to employ thousands of Virginians, preserve working farmland and promote buying locally grown products. I commend the Virginia Tourism Corporation, the Charlottesville/Albemarle Convention and Visitors Bureau, and the Virginia Wine Board Marketing Office for their work in bringing the Wine Bloggers Conference to central Virginia and for helping to promote our burgeoning wine industry."

During the event the wine bloggers will attend seminars, taste wines from nearly 60 Virginia wineries from across the state, tour more than 20 area wineries and visit area attractions including Thomas Jefferson's Monticello and downtown Charlottesville. Attendees also are taking a pre-conference tour of Loudoun County wineries.

"We're proud to be the host city for the 2011 Wine Bloggers Conference," said Kurt Burkhart, Executive Director of the Charlottesville Albemarle Convention and Visitors Bureau. "We see this conference as the perfect complement to Vintage: The Winemaker's Year, which clearly shows that Virginia wines have arrived."

Attendees will use social media sites including Facebook and Twitter to share impressions and discoveries about Virginia's wines and travel experiences as well as blogging from the event.

Alisa Bailey, president and CEO of the Virginia Tourism Corporation, noted, "This is an incredible opportunity to showcase Virginia as a wine travel destination to thousands of potential travelers across the country through social media. We are excited to be a part of this event and look forward to welcoming the wine bloggers to Virginia."

Allan Wright of Zephyr Adventures stated, "We are thrilled with the response Virginia has shown us once we decided to bring the conference to the state. This is our fourth conference but our first on the East Coast and we feel we made the right decision in picking Virginia as the host."

Visit http://winebloggersconference.org/america for more information or keep up with the conference action on Twitter @Winebloggerscon #WBC11. Follow Virginia's wine and tourism industries on Twitter @vawine, @visitVirginia and @vatourismpr.

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VA Wine is Golden

Congrats to the Gold Medal winner (41 strong) at the State Fair of Virginia wine competition.

The competition drew 193 wines from 43 wineries. The gold-ribbon winners:

Afton Mountain Vineyards: Festa Di Bacco 2009, Gewurztramier 2009;
Annefield Vineyards: Cabernet Franc 2009, Cabernet Sauvignon 2009;
Barboursville Vineyards: Octagon 2007, Cabernet Sauvignon 2009, Sangiovese Reserve 2009;
Barren Ridge Vineyards: Meritage 2008;
Casanel Vineyards: Batucada Cabernet Sauvignon 2008;
Delfosse Vineyards & Winery: Cabernet Sauvignon 2008;
Democracy Vineyards: Velvet Revolution 2009, Forum 2009;
Flying Fox Vineyard: Viognier 2010;
Gray Ghost Vineyards: Reserve Chardonnay 2009, Vidal Blanc 2010; Ingleside Vineyards: Cabernet Sauvignon 2005, Merlot 2006, Petit Verdot 2006, Sangiovese 2008;
Keswick Vineyards: Petit Verdot 2009;
Lake Anna Winery: Enigme NV, Totally Red NV, Morgan Merlot 2008; Pearmund Cellars: Cabernet Franc Pan D'OR Vineyard 2009;
Rockbridge Vineyard: Meritage 2007, Chardonnay Reserve 2009, Dechel Riesling 2008, Merlot Reserve 2007;
Sugarleaf Vineyards: Vidal Blanc 2009;
Sunset Hills Vineyard: Viognier 2010;
The Hague Winery: Meritage 2009;
The Winery at La Grange: Meritage 2008, Cabernet Sauvignon 2009; Veritas Vineyard & Winery: Cabernet Franc 2010, rosé 2010; Foggy Ridge Cider: First Fruit Cider 2010, Serious Cider 2010, Sweet Stayman Cider 2010; Reynard Florence Vineyard: Petit Manseng 2009;
Sunset Hills Vineyard: Nettare di Tramonto 2008;
Veritas Vineyard & Winery: Petit Manseng 2009.

Wine Dogs Celebrate Love in a Glass

We're not talking puppy love, here. March 18-27 is Wine Week in Virginia. What a great time to fall in love with the fabulous wines being produced in the Old Dominion.

Over 300 restaurants and wine shops across the Commonwealth will be featuring elegant Virginia wines and special food pairings that will have you begging for more. You'll find a full list at the

VirginiaWine.org website.

“Virginia Wine Week: Love by the Glass offers visitors the best of our culinary experiences: restaurants offering local wines and food as part of their menus and hotels that make it easy to plan and visit our scenic countryside and wineries,” said Virginia's First Lady, Maureen McDonnell. “In addition, many of the white wines from our previous harvest are being released at the wineries during that time, an excellent time to get out and visit.”

Keep an eye out for Munchkin and Pomeroy.

Wine Dogs Congratulate Foxy Friends

UPDATE: Munchkin and Pomeroy popped into Fox Meadow on Sunday to give give their neighbors a personal "paws up" and pick up a bottle of the award-winning Le Renard Rouge to taste for themselves.
Grrrr-eat!


Fox Meadow Winery
Linden, VA

The Virginia Wine Dogs congratulate our Blue Mountain neighbors, Dan and Cheryl Mortland, winners of this year's Governor's Cup for their Fox Meadow Vineyards Le Renard Rouge. The award was announced at the Virginia Wine Expo on Friday Night.

Sixty Virginia wineries submitted 196 entries in this year’s cup competition. Other Gold Medal finishers are Afton Mountain Estate Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, Barboursville Winery 2008 Petit Verdot, Cooper Vineyards 2008 Norton, Hiddencroft Vineyards 2008 Cabernet Franc and Keswick Vineyards, 2009 Cabernet Franc.

Fox Meadow is celebrating the Chili Days of February this weekend. Warn up with a bowl of chili, bread and a glass of award-winning wine. The extra "fixings" are provided to make your chili the way you like it. No reservations needed. $14.00.

Les Chiens Vin reviewed Fox Meadow in 2007. Read our review here.