Cana Vineyards; Middleburg, Virginina - Saturday, January 05, 2013 According to the Gospel of John, the first miracle performed by Jesus was at the Wedding of Cana in which at the request of his mother, he turned six stone containers of water into wine. Biblical scholars can debate the fact or allegory of the story, but  Cana Vineyards and Winery, a new northern Virginia winery, celebrates the histo View more....

Boxwood Winery; Middleburg, Virginina - Saturday, January 05, 2013 coming... View more....

Brooklyn Brewery; Williamsburg, Brooklyn, New York - Sunday, December 23, 2012 As tradition has it, my family once again asked for a trip to New York City to partake in the Christmas lights and festivities throughout Manhattan and the other boroughs. This year I agreed, with one stipulation; we allocate enough time to visit Brooklyn Brewery - located in the now trendy Williamsburg industrial area. And this visit was easily hand View more....

Due South Brewing Company; Boynton Beach, Florida - Friday, November 23, 2012 In all the years I've lived or visited south Florida, I have always been disappointed in the deficiency of local beer options in the West Palm Beach area. Until now. Earlier this year, Due South Brewing Company,opened their 15 BBL brewhouse in Boynton Beach - just off Route 95 and very close to our Florida destination. On Black Friday we visited duri View more....

Palaia Vineyards; Highland Mills, New York - Wednesday, October 10, 2012 coming... View more....

Weeping Radish Farm Brewery; Jarvisburg, North Crolina - Saturday, July 14, 2012 A few years ago I read an article called 50 beers to drink before you die and recognized a brewery I'd seen while driving to the Outer Banks, the Weeping Radish Farm Brewery. Their Black Radish (Schwarzbier) was listed and I had tried this dark Germ View more....

The Winery at Bull Run; Centreville, Virginia - Sunday, July 08, 2012 Last week I visited northern Virginia's newest winery, The Winery at Bull Run, located adjacent to the Manassas National Battlefield Park. And this proximity to the park is what would draw history buffs as well as wine lovers to Centreville. View more....

Fenwick Wine Cellars; West Fenwick, Delaware - Thursday, July 05, 2012 While driving along Rt54 into Fenwick Island Delaware, I noticed a parcel of vines planted in very sandy soils about 3 miles from the ocean. Looking around I saw a sign for Fenwick Wine Cellars across the street in a small shopping center. Could this be Delaware's third winery? Yes and no. Yes, the proprietors have planted Con View more....

Burley Oak Brewing Company; Berlin, Maryland - Wednesday, July 04, 2012 On the 4th I took time off from the beach to visit a new micro-brewery - Burley Oak Brewing Company - located in Berlin, Maryland only a few miles from the beaches in Ocean City. The brewery takes its name from local history. The name of the town is a shortened version of a local tavern "Burleigh Inn" - derived from the Bur View more....

Ox Eye Vineyards; Staunton, Virginia - Sunday, May 13, 2012 coming.... View more....

Cross Keys Vineyards & Estates; Mt. Crawford, Virginia - Sunday, May 13, 2012 coming.... View more....

Prince Michel Winery; Leon, Virginia - Saturday, May 12, 2012 coming... View more....

Keel And Curley Winery; Plant City, Florida - Monday, April 02, 2012 While the family was enjoying Legoland, in Winter Haven Florida, I snuck out to visit the nearest winery, Keel And Curley Winery. The winery is just outside of Tampa Bay and provides residents and tourists an opportunity to taste local fruit wine as well as live music on occasion. Blueberry farmer, Joe Keel, View more....

Tampa Bay Brewing Company; Tampa, Florida - Monday, April 02, 2012 Coming... View more....

Delaplane Cellars; Delaplane, Virginia - Sunday, February 19, 2012 Coming... View more....

DC Wine & Food Festival; Washington DC - Thursday, February 16, 2012 Last week we attended the 13th annual Washington DC International Wine & Food Festival primarily because friends from the Finger Lakes Wine Country were pouring. In addition, this is always an opportunity to find interesting and unique wines and spirits from regions throughout the globe. But let's start in New York. The Finger Lakes is home to Riesli View more....

North Gate Vineyards; Purcellville, Virginia - Monday, January 16, 2012 Being a little stuck inside stir crazy, we headed out for a short trip to Loudoun County to visit North Gate Vineyards. North Gate is owned and operated by Mark and Vicki Fedor, who were working the tasting bar on our arrival. They've been tending fines in Loudoun fo View more....

Hiddencroft Vineyards; Lovettsville, Virginia - Monday, January 16, 2012 From North Gate we headed through Hillsboro to Hiddencroft Vineyards after not having visited the winery in a number of years. We did get a chance to sample their Gold winning 2009 Cabernet Franc, which was in the running for last year's Governor's Cup. On arriving at the winery we were briefly disorientated View more....

Applewood Winery; Warwick, New York - Sunday, September 04, 2011 Ever since our visit to Foggy Ridge Cider for the MyJoogTV Episode 9: Reverend Peyton's Big Damn Band @ Foggy Ridge Cider episode, we've been on a hard cider kick. And what better way to feed that habit, but through a tour of apple country in New York's Hudson Vall View more....

Vynecrest Winery; Breinigsville, Pennsylvania - Friday, September 02, 2011 While visiting family in New York, we took a slight detour on our travels to visit Vynecrest Winery, located in Breinigsville Pennsylvania, just outside of Allentown in the Lehigh Valley Wine Trail. Why Vynecrest? Well, the winery is one of the few East Coast producers of < View more....

Mead & Music in Maryland: Orchid Cellar Winery & Sugarloaf Mountain Vineyard; Middletown, Marlyand - Sunday, June 26, 2011 We've been neglecting our northern brethren for a while so we scheduled a trip near Frederick to restock our mead collection. Yes, we are fans of honey wine and decided to sample the wines from Orchid Cellar Winery, located a little northeast of Frederick View more....

Wine & Food Festival; National Harbor - Saturday, May 14, 2011 Under overcast skies and threatening rain we attended the 2011 National Harbor Wine & Food Festival. What makes this event different than most festivals at National Harbor is that it utilizes the piers in addition to the parking lot so it has a more marina feel. And those with VIP tickets were able to enjoy the Belgium beer tent surrounded by water. This year we didn't have the time to hone our cooking skills; but had plenty of time to sample new b View more....

Corcoran Brewing Company; Waterford, Virginia - Friday, May 06, 2011 Quick Question. Why do we like best the festivals that serve both beer and wine? Obvious, right? More choices for everyone. Well now our friends at Corcorcan Vineyards, Waterford Virginia, have brought that concept to their winery by opening Corcoran Brewing. Want to taste wine, turn right; taste beer, turn left. It's that easy. Now the new operation is a true nano brewery; that means its small, very small. They brew just once a week in an old barn next to the winery. Yet for such a small operat View more....

Port City Brewing; Alexandria, Virginia - Saturday, April 23, 2011 We started a little Wednesday tradition at the day job, sort of a team building exercise, by sharing a growler of craft beer. Our first brew was crafted locally in nearby Alexandria by Port City Brewing Company; the unfiltered Belgian Wit Bier: Optimal Wit. This beer is brewed with raw wheat and oats, and steeped with co View more....

Capital Vineyards; Delaplane, Virginia - Saturday, April 09, 2011 While in Delaplane filming some live music for Virginia Wine TV, we stopped into the grand opening of yet another new northern Virginia winery, Capitol Vineyards. This winery is significant for two reasons. First, it is owned and operated by a pair contributing to the View more....

Hungarian Wine Tasting; Hungarian Embassy, Washington D.C. - Tuesday, February 15, 2011 On the heels of tasting some fabulous eastern European wines at the Washington D.C. Int'l Wine Festival, we were invited to attend a special trade tasting of just Hungarian wines held at that country's embassy. There was an expanded selection from those presented at the festival which gave a fuller picture of the styles of wines produced primarily from Tokaji and Villány. Tokaji is located in the northeast View more....

2011 Washington DC Int'l Wine Festival; Washington D.C. - Saturday, February 12, 2011 This weekend we attended the 12th Annual Washington D.C. International Wine & Food Festival and spent the majority of time tasting wine produced in Eastern Europe and the Finger Lakes. Yes, other wine regions were well represented, but on the heels of our article, Blue Frankish - A Great Wine By Any View more....

Crushed Cellars; Purcellville, Virginia - Saturday, January 08, 2011 This evening while scanning through our wine cellar I came across the Crushed Cellars Seyval which we had purchased at a winery visit a couple weeks back.And sadly, we prompted forgot to publish a winery visit. Fortunately Dezel from MyVineSpot has all the details from his View more....

Fabbioli Cellars; Leesburg, Virginia - Saturday, November 06, 2010 coming... View more....

8 Chains North; Hamilton, Virginia - Sunday, October 17, 2010 On the second day of the Loudoun Farm Tour, we were able to escape to the country in attempt to visit Corcoran Vineyards. We had heard rumors that Jim and Lori had released two new wines during Virginia Wine Month. However, while traveling on Route 9 we were sidetracked after seeing the Open sign for View more....

Afton Mountain Vineyards; Afton, Virginia - Sunday, October 10, 2010 The weekend of October 9th-10th was a very entertaining weekend. We had planned to attend the inaugural music festival, The Festy, held at the fairgrounds at Devil's Backbone Brewing Company. At this event we filmed most of the performers, particularly Travis Book of The Infamous Stringdusters, his wife Sarah Siskind, and View more....

Cardinal Point Vineyard & Winery; Afton, Virginia - Sunday, October 10, 2010 The weekend of October 9th-10th was a very entertaining weekend. We had planned to attend the inaugural music festival, The Festy, held at the fairgrounds at Devil's Backbone Brewing Company. At this event we filmed most of the performers, particularly Travis Book of The Infamous Stringdusters, his wife Sarah Siskind, and View more....

Flying Fox Vineyard; Afton, Virginia - Sunday, October 10, 2010 The weekend of October 9th-10th was a very entertaining weekend. We had planned to attend the inaugural music festival, The Festy, held at the fairgrounds at Devil's Backbone Brewing Company. At this event we filmed most of the performers, particularly Travis Book of The Infamous Stringdusters, his wife Sarah Siskind, and View more....

Devil's Backbone Brewing Company; Roseland, Virginia - Sunday, October 10, 2010 The weekend of October 9th-10th was a very entertaining weekend. We had planned to attend the inaugural music festival, The Festy, held at the fairgrounds at Devil's Backbone Brewing Company. At this event we filmed most of the performers, particularly Travis Book of The Infamous Stringdusters, his wife Sarah Siskind, and View more....

Wintergreen Winery; Nellysford, Virginia - Saturday, October 09, 2010 The weekend of October 9th-10th was a very entertaining weekend. We had planned to attend the inaugural music festival, The Festy, held at the fairgrounds at Devil's Backbone Brewing Company. At this event we filmed most of the performers, particularly Travis Book of The Infamous Stringdusters, his wife Sarah Siskind, and View more....

Wild Wolf Brewing Company; Nellysford, Virginia - Saturday, October 09, 2010 The weekend of October 9th-10th was a very entertaining weekend. We had planned to attend the inaugural music festival, The Festy, held at the fairgrounds at Devil's Backbone Brewing Company. At this event we filmed most of the performers, particularly Travis Book of The Infamous Stringdusters, his wife Sarah Siskind, and View more....

DelFosse Vineyards & Winery; Faber, Virginia - Saturday, October 09, 2010 The weekend of October 9th-10th was a very entertaining weekend. We had planned to attend the inaugural music festival, The Festy, held at the fairgrounds at Devil's Backbone Brewing Company. At this event we filmed most of the performers, particularly Travis Book of The Infamous Stringdusters, his wife Sarah Siskind, and View more....

Mountfair Vineyards; Crozet, Virginia - Saturday, September 11, 2010 Our friend Dezel, from My \Vine Spot has been touting Mountfair Vineyards for a year now so we finally took his advice and visited the winery during a trip to Afton. The drive to the winery was quite interesting as we bailed out of route 29 and took the back roads from Madison, twisting and turning alo View more....

Adams County Winery; Orrtanna, Pennsylvania - Saturday, August 28, 2010 For the past couple years we've been following the Skyla Burrell Blues Band - seen them in Florida and Baltimore - but never at a regular stop in their touring schedule: Adams County Winery. Perfect for MyJoogTV View more....

Hauser Estate Winery; Biglerville, Pennsylvania - Saturday, August 28, 2010 We intended to head to Appalachian Brewing Company in downtown Gettysburg - but saw a sign for Hauser Estate Winery. Why not. This is another new winery w View more....

Reid's Orchard & Winery; Orrtanna, Pennsylvania - Saturday, August 28, 2010 Since we don't make it out to Adams County too often we left before the second set to explore two other wineries in the region. The first was Reid's Orchard & Winery - new to the wine business but an operating orchard for the past 35 years. Some of the grape varieties were similar to those at View more....

Appalachian Brewing Company; Gettysburg, Pennsylvania - Saturday, August 28, 2010 We finally made it into Gettysburg and rolled in right next to General Lee's Headquarters. That's the location for the Appalachian Brewing Company. We had intended to head north into Harrisburg to their main brewery - but decided a shorter trip was more prudent. And the beers are the same - brewed in Harrisburg and shipped View more....

September Oaks Vineyards; Ridgeland, South Carolina - Saturday, July 10, 2010 While traveling north along I-95 in Georgia we searched Wine-Compass.com for a winery adjacent to the highway and found a candidate just north of the border in South Carolina. In fact, September Oaks Vineyards is situated only a few miles off I-95 in Ridgeland, South Carolina. The winery is owned and operated by Grady Woods (and his family), who started the ven View more....

Big Bear Brewing Company; Coral Springs, Florida - Sunday, June 20, 2010 While returning from the Keys we took a slight detour to Coral Springs in order to sample the many beers produced by the Big Bear Brewing Company. Greg Wentworth opened the brewpub almost fifteen years ago and named the facility after the dwindling Florida Black Bear population. In fact there was once 12,000 black bears living throughout Florida; but now the View more....

Schnebly Redland's Winery; Homestead, Florida - Friday, June 18, 2010 While planning a trip to the Keys, we noticed that one of our favorite south Florida blues bands, IKO-IKO, was scheduled at America's southernmost continental winery, Schnebly Redland's Winery. And with this being the only true opportunity to "View more....

Barren Ridge Vineyards; Fishersville, Virginia - Friday, May 21, 2010 We starting our summer travels by traveling down the Shenandoah Valley in order to visit a winery that has been in our radar for quite some time: Barren Ridge Vineyards. We were most familiar with the winery, not because of their wines, but because they offer live music the third Friday of every month and tonight Jimmy O was scheduled. That led to a visit. < View more....

Catoctin Creek Distilling Company; Purcellville, Virginia - Saturday, May 08, 2010 This past Saturday (May 8th) we visited Catoctin Creek Distilling Company, Loudoun County's first family-owned distillery since prohibition, to witness a bottling day. Becky and Scott Harris had recruited about a dozen volunteers to manage the bottler, cap, label, and stock cases of Catoctin Creek Organic Roundstone Rye. This whisky is made from 100% organica View more....

RagApple Lassie; Boonville, North Carolina - Sunday, May 02, 2010 Its difficult spending three days in the Yadkin Valley without visiting a winery and that's usually the case during Merlefest. However, on Sunday morning I ventured only a half dozen miles from my hotel room to visit one of the most popular in the region: RagAppl View more....

Delaplane Cellars; Delaplane, VA - Thursday, April 29, 2010 After the 2010 DrinkLocalWine.com two fellow bloggers, MyVineSpot and Anything Wine visited Delaplane Cellars and enjoyed their stay. A few days later I had a chance to follow their fo View more....

DrinkLocalWine.com Virginia Conference; Landesdowne, Virginia - Sunday, April 25, 2010 We just finished the Twitter Taste-off where participants tweeted about wines they just tasted. The premier wineries from Virginia and Maryland were pouring and even more importantly the winemaker\proprietor was available to discuss their products. Each winery poured a red and a white and not surprisingly Viognier was a common white varietal. There were also a couple Chardonnay, the View more....

Dry Mill Vineyards & Winery; Leesburg, Virginia - Sunday, March 21, 2010 This weekend we finally visited Dry Mill Vineyards & Winery, another infant winery located just outside Leesburg, Virginia. Actually, the winery is only a year old, but the Vanhuss family has been growing grapes in their Lovettsville vineyard for over a decade. Many of these grapes have gone into making Naked Mountain's award winning Chardonnay. When the View more....

2010 South Beach Wine Food Festival; South Beach, Florida - Friday, February 26, 2010 Yes, we haven't focused much on the wine that was served at the South Beach Wine & Food Festival - mainly because there are so many other choices. But wine is an integral part of the event, starting with The Celebrate France! Pavilion held in the Village. Attendees didn't have to wait for the Grand Tasting tent to open in order to sample nice wines. Inside the tent were wines from obscure regions such as Languedoc, sparkling w View more....

11th Annual International Wine & Food Festival; Washington, D.C. - Saturday, February 13, 2010 Saturday the 13th, we attended the 11th Annual International Wine & Food Festival held at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center and quite frankly it was a it disappointed. The primary deficiency was that there was not nearly as many participants as previous years; there was so much open space where wine vendors should have been. I guess the economy has taken its toll. The main attraction were wines from the Kingdo View more....

Paradise Springs Winery; Clifton, Virginia - Sunday, January 31, 2010 After some winter hibernation, we finally ventured outside our domain and visited the latest, and closest, winery - Paradise Springs Winery. Located in historic Clifton, Virginia; this establishment is about 20 minutes, without traffic, from the Capital Beltway. Jane Kincheloe and her son Kirk Wiles have been planning its conception for View more....

Franklin’s Brewery; Hyattsville, Maryland - Saturday, December 26, 2009 For some reason the day after Christmas I was craving beer so I headed to a local microbrew on the other side of the beltway: Franklin’s Brewery in Hyattsville, Maryland. The venue is located in a historic area that is somewhat on the decline, but from what I discovered, customer travel frequently from Washington D.C., nearby College Park, as well as local neig View more....

St. Augustine Wineries; St. Augustine, Florida - Friday, November 27, 2009 On our frequent trips along Route 95 in Florida, we most likely take a detour into historic St. Augustine to either see the sites or stop in at San Sebastian Winery. This winery has a great roof top terrace where we have enjoyed their wines made from unique grapes grown from their Clermont, Florida Vineyard. We are talking about Florida Muscadine, Blanc Du Bois View more....

Old Town Food & Wine Festival; Alexandria, Virginia - Sunday, October 11, 2009 On October 11th we attended The Old Town Food & Wine Festival, held at various locations in historic Alexandria Virginia. For two days visitors were able to attend wine seminars and dinners as well as sample Virginia wine at several stations throughout the city and at two grand tasting locations. This is a great concept, were people can grab a glass of wine and stroll the streets as long as they entered a neighboring establishment. Plus hav View more....

Nassau Valley Vineyards; Lewes, Delaware - Saturday, October 03, 2009 While attending the Dewey Beach Music Conference we visited one of the local tourist attractions, Nassau Valley Vineyards. Peg Raley and her father, Bob Raley planted vines near the seashore over two decades ago and since Delaware prohibited farm wineries, Ms. Raley had to actually draft the legislation in order to permit wineries to legally operate in the stat View more....

16 Mile Brewing Company; Georgetown, Delaware - Saturday, October 03, 2009 During our visit to the Dewey Beach Music Conference 2009 I allocated time to visit 16 Mile Brewing Company, a new brewery located in nearby Georgetown Delaware. We mean new, as in two months new. The brewery is owned and operated by Chad Campbell and Brett McCrea, who were View more....

Dogfish Head Craft Distillery; Rehobeth Beach, Delaware - Saturday, October 03, 2009 Most people are aware of the unique and savory beers produced by Dogfish Head Craft Brewery at their Milton Delaware location, but you may not be aware that they distill a line of spirits at their Rehoboth Beach Dogfish Head Disti View more....

West-Whitehill Winery; Moorefield, West Virginia - Sunday, July 19, 2009 It is becoming common knowledge that some form of wine is produced in every state and within scenic West Virginia about 15 wineries call home. The eastern section of the state, the Potomac Highlands, contains the South Branch Valley which is a small micro climate. Called a Rain Shadow, the area receives little precipitation and low humidity because they are located on the leeward side of the Allegheny Front. (See picture below for more information.) For almost thirty years, West-Whitehill Wine View more....

Mountain State Brewing Company; Thomas, West Virginia - Saturday, July 18, 2009 While traveling to Thomas, West Virginia to listen to music at the Purple Fiddle, we discovered that the area was populated by two micro breweries: Mountain State Brewing Company and Blackwater Brewing Company. We spent more t View more....

Shenandoah Vineyards; Edinburg, Virginia - Friday, July 17, 2009 Nestled among farms and cattle ranches are the dozen or so wineries comprising the Shenandoah Valley Wine Growers Association.The oldest of these, which makes it the third oldest in the state, is Shenandoah Vineyards, located just off Interstate 81 in Edinburg Virginia. Known as the "breadbasket of the confede View more....

DC's Wine Country - Food and Wine Festival; Bluemont, Virginia - Saturday, July 11, 2009 On Saturday July 11th, we attended the first annual DC's Wine Country - Food and Wine Festival, not as an attendee, but as a volunteer. Good thing, because that evening was completely sold out - 1,500 people had purchased tickets. They had prepared to travel to beautiful Bluemont Virginia and enjoy about a hundred different wines from Loudoun County wineries. Along with fellow blogger Dezel from View more....

Sugarleaf Vineyards; North Garden, Virginia - Sunday, June 28, 2009 On a recent trip to Scottsville we stopped into Sugarleaf Vineyards, a boutique winery located in the heart of the Monticello Wine Trail. - producing wines from primarily estate grown vinifera grapes. I would recommend visiting their website to read about the winery's history, but in brief, Sugarleaf Vineyards i View more....

Beer Bourbon, and BBQ; National Harbor, Maryland - Saturday, June 20, 2009 The world's best bourbon was on display at the 2009 Beer Bourbon, and BBQ at National Harbor, as well as Tennessee whiskey, rye whiskey, rum, tequila, and cognac. Then there was beer - from local brewers to California and all the way from Thailand. If that wasn't enough, there were informative seminars regarding these products as well as music and an entertaining bean eating contest. But for us, the focus was bourb View more....

The Food & Wine Festival at National Harbor®; National Harbor, Maryland - Saturday, June 06, 2009 On June 6th, we attended the The Food & Wine Festival at National Harbor® with a twist, accompanied by a four year old. This is one of the few such festivals that even allow children and in fact, actively court them, by providing content specific seminars for youngsters. Good for them. Oh yea, there's still plenty of food, wine, beer and spirits for the adults. We started the day talking to the View more....

2009 Wine in the Woods Festival; Columbia, Maryland - Sunday, May 17, 2009 On May 17th I attended the 2009 Wine in the Woods festival held in Columbia Maryland. I had two motives, one to try wines produced by the half dozen and more new wineries and two, to volunteer for one of these new wineries: Terrapin Station Winery. Terrapin Station is located just north of Elkton, close to View more....

Laurel Gray Vineyards; Hamptonville, North Carolina - Friday, April 24, 2009 During our drive down to Merlefest we visited our first Yadkin Valley winery: Laurel Gray Vineyards. The Yadkin Valley is situated between the Blue Ridge and Brushy Mountains and is slowly becoming an important wine producing area on the east coast. There are over 25 wineries in the valley with some being old tobacco farms converted to vineyards. This practice is not a View more....

Burgundy Wine Expo; French Embassy, Washington, D.C. - Thursday, April 23, 2009 On Thursday April 23 we were invited to a Burgundy Wine Tasting held at the French Embassy and hosted by the Burgundy Wine Board (BIVB). As expected, the expo provided fabulous Pinot Noir and Chardonnay wines as well as a nice overview of the Burgundy region. Wine has been produced in this region for over 2,000 years, which is remarkable since many the the ancient wine growing regions are no longer producing wine. We also learned about the five vignob View more....

Quattro Goomba’s Winery; Aldie, Virginia - Sunday, March 22, 2009 Today we finally had an opportunity to listen to live music at a winery so we headed out Route 50 to Quattro Goomba’s Winery (QGW) - a winery with a completely different business model than its neighboring wine colleagues. QGW was officially formed by three friends - Jay DeCianno, David Gaetani, and David Camden - in the fall of 2006. DeCianno and Gaetani we View more....

Corcoran Vineyards; Waterford, Virginia - Saturday, February 28, 2009 Planning a Spring birthday party enticed us to visit Corcoran Vineyards, one of our favorite Virginia wineries. Not only are the proprietors, Lori & Jim Corcoran, our friends, but they craft excellent wines. Just look at their medal collection. With a tasting room built in the 1750's, a pond, and rolling vineyards; we thought this would be a great venue for View more....

Food Network Wine & Food Festival; Miami Beach, Florida - Saturday, February 21, 2009 For the third year in a row, WineCompass was invited to attend several events associated with the South Beach Wine & Food Festival this past February 19th-22nd. Primarily sponsored by the Food Network, Food & Wine magazine, Whole Foods, and Southern Wine and Spirits of America; the festival is a fundraiser for the Florida International University 's School of Hospitality and Tourism Mana View more....

Washington D.C. Food & Wine Expo; Washington D.C. - Saturday, February 14, 2009 Washington D.C. Food & Wine Expo which showcases wines made in practically every region of the globe. When entering the expo it wasn't difficult to start with wines from close to home since Loudoun County was allocated a prime location. Among others there was a fruit forward Cabernet Franc from Corcoran Vineyards View more....

Blenheim Vineyards; Charlottesville, Virginia - Sunday, February 08, 2009 We started the second day on our Monticello Wine Tour at Blenheim Vineyards, the domain of the Matthews family: Peter, Kathleen, and Dave. The winery is located in historic Blenheim, an area first granted in 1730 to the John Carter - the Secretary of the Colony of Virginia. Different properties were built and inhabited on the property - with the oldest being t View more....

Jefferson Vineyards; Charlottesville, Virginia - Sunday, February 08, 2009 From the moment the first colonist arrived in Jamestown, there has been a concerted effort to grow grapes in the new world - either from the English's desire to compete with France - or from the colonist's desire to reproduce life in the motherland. The early colonial governments encouraged planting vineyards by deeding property contingent on planting vines and even passing quotas on individual winemaking. The most famous colonial vintner was Thomas Jefferson who with the assistance of Italian View more....

Keswick Vineyards; Keswick, Virginia - Sunday, February 08, 2009 Our final stop on the tour was Keswick Vineyards, situated on the historic 400-acre Edgewood Estate. This track of land has seen its share of history - being the site where Colonel Tarleton extended his breakfast which allowed Thomas Jefferson and the Virginia Legislature to escape capture. (Thanks to Jack Jouet and Dr. Thomas Walker.) During the Civil War the View more....

White Hall Vineyards; White Hall, Virginia - Saturday, February 07, 2009 Our final stop on the first day on the Monticello Wine Trail was White Hall Vineyards, home to one of our favorite Virginia wines, their Petit Manseng. This wine has been a staple in our wine cellar after finding it in the discounted wine box at Norm's Beer & Wine. Evidently someone had ordered a case and failed to pick it up. And we capitalized on that mis View more....

King Family Vineyards; Crozet, Virginia - Saturday, February 07, 2009 Our second stop on the Monticello Wine Trail was King Family Vineyards, the apparent winery of choice for University of Virginia students. For when we arrived, there were approximately 200 filling the tasting room and the patio. Who needs a keg party when a winery is close by - particularly on the first warm day of the year. Location, Location, Location. And Da View more....

Veritas Vineyards; Afton, Virginia - Saturday, February 07, 2009 Our first stop on the Monticello Wine Trail was Veritas Vineyards, located just southwest of Charlottesville at the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Andrew and Patricia Hodson planted their first vines about a decade ago and opened the tasting facility in 2002 - selling wine from the 2001 vintage. They named the winery after the Roman historian, Pliny the View more....

Sunset Hills Vineyard & Winery; Purcellville, Virginia - Saturday, January 31, 2009 Most new wineries open just after planting their first vines, in which they must first produce wine from fruit purchased from other vineyards. This process must continue until their vines mature enough to produce quality grapes. Not so Loudoun County's Sunset Hills Vineyard & Winery. About a decade ago Diane and Mike Canney planted grape vines - particularl View more....

Zephaniah Farm Vineyard; Leesburg, Virginia - Saturday, January 24, 2009 The smallest bonded winery in Loudoun County, and perhaps the entire state of Virginia, is Zephaniah Farm Vineyard. Located just south of Leesburg, the family operated operation is also situated in possibly the oldest structure hosting a winery: an 1830 manor house. In fact, the building was constructed by William Benton, who also built James Monroe's Oak Hill View more....

Vintage 50; Leesburg, Virginia - Wednesday, January 14, 2009 For the past six months we have been trying to find a suitable replacement for the Old Dominion Brewing Company's Ashburn brewpub - which closed suddenly last year. We enjoyed visiting the brewpub since it provided good food, better beer, was within range for lunch outings, and was close to the bike path. A perfect stop while\after biking. We recently learned about View more....

Materella Winery; Warrenton, Virginia - Wednesday, January 07, 2009 For a couple years we've been negligent in not visiting Materella Winery, located just north of Warrenton Virginia. Luckily business brought us to the region and we allocated a few hours to visit this boutique winery. Kate Marterella first planted vines about eight years previously in her vineyard. She started with Vidal Blanc, Cabernet Franc, and Chambourcin and la View more....

Stone Villa Wine Cellars; Acme, Pennsylvania - Friday, January 02, 2009 During another trip to Seven Springs, we visited the closest winery from the West, Stone Villa Wine Cellars. The winery is a short 20 minute drive from the resort and is a nice alternative when the legs get tired or the lift lines too long. Stone Villa opened 8 years ago, after Randy and Debbie Paul planted vineyards on the surrounding hillsides. The winery and tasting View more....

Casanel Vineyards; Leesburg, Virginia - Sunday, December 28, 2008 On an unseasonably warm day, we drove out past Leesburg to visit one of several new wineries in that area, Casanel Vineyards. Beforehand we learned from their website that the winery was started by Casey and Nelson DeSouza - hence “Casanel”. The couple had many successful years operating DeSouza Construction in the Washin View more....

A. Smith Bowman Distillery; Fredericksburg, Virginia - Thursday, December 18, 2008 Fresh off our research of American Rum Distillers, we decided to pay a visit to a local craft bourbon distiller, A. Smith Bowman Distillery. Yes, it is entirely accurate to question designating this distillery as a micro-distillery - but after several years of producing large scale expor View more....

Glades Pike Winery; Somerset, Pennsylvania - Saturday, November 29, 2008 While driving from Somerset to Seven Springs Mountain Resort we've always passed Glades Pike Winery on Route 31, but have never stopped in. Until this past weekend. We won't pass the winery without stopping in again. Glades Pike has been open for almost 15 years and makes unique wines that are View more....

Black Ankle Vineyards; Mt. Airy, Maryland - Saturday, November 15, 2008 We have been receiving reports lately about the Grand Opening of Black Ankle Vineyards, but really took interest when we learned that the winery was awarded the Maryland Governor's Cup in their first vintage. The winery was founded by Ed Boyce and Sarah O'Herron, who decided to craft their own wine after years of being consumers. They research grapes, the wine-making p View more....

Barrel Oak Winery; Delaplane, Virginia - Sunday, October 26, 2008 After many months of delay, we finally visited Barrel Oak Winery, another new winery in Fauquier County. Sharon and Brian Roeder officially launched the winery in May 2008 and we have been lax in visiting - even after several friends and fellow bloggers had favorable impressions after their visits. This weekend the winery was hosting a Pumpkin Decorating for the Kids! View more....

New York City Wine & Food Festival; New York City, New York - Saturday, October 11, 2008 This past weekend we attend two days of the New York City Food & Wine Festival, a northern replica of the popular Food Network South Beach Food & Wine Festival. This festival ran from October 9th through 12th – four days of wine, spirits, and food demonstrations. Most of the events occurred in the modernized Meatpacking neighborhood in Chelsea – a district of outdoor cafes – r View more....

Epcot International Food & Wine Festival; Orlando, Florida - Monday, October 06, 2008 For anyone traveling to Orlando, or are looking for a reason to, Epcot at Disney has been hosting their annual International Food & Wine Festival since September 26. The event lasts until November 9th and integrates smoothly into Epcot's region theme. Want to try a Canadian wine - try the Chateau des Charmes Riesling or Ice wine. In addition, there's View more....

Hill Top Berry Farm & Winery; Nellysford, Virginia - Friday, September 12, 2008 We have a goal of visiting the several Virginia meaderies so we traveled to Nellysford in order to visit Hill Top Berry Farm & Winery - home of dozens of excellent honey and fruit wines. And we mean dozens - and there selection continues to expand as the proprietors craft new and interesting blends. The winery started a decade ago when Marlyn and Sue A View more....

Rose Bank Winery; Newtown, Pennsylvania - Sunday, August 17, 2008 After a day playing at Sesame Place, it was time for the adults to have some fun, so we ventured only a few mile north to visit Rose Bank Winery. A member of the Bucks County Wine Trail, the winery first opened in 1984 as In & Out Wine View more....

Villa Appalaccia Winery; Floyd, Virginia - Sunday, July 27, 2008 Another benefit that we found while attending FloydFest is that Villa Appalaccia Winery is located right next door, literally a five minute walk. On Sunday, we set aside enough free time to visit the winery and discovered that it is only one of only two wineries in Virginia to produce wine from predominately Italian varieties. One of the reasons is that t View more....

Blacksnake Meadery; Dugspur, Virginia - Saturday, July 26, 2008 While attending FloydFest in southwest Virginia I wanted to take the opportunity to visit a few wineries and the first on my list was Blakesnake Meadery. The meadery had assisted us in an early article on Honey Wine and Colony Collapse Disorder so I wanted to pay ou View more....

Chateau Morrisette; Floyd, Virginia - Saturday, July 26, 2008 The FloydFest organizers selected the Château Morrisette festival parking lot as the general parking area for their festival. This made it rather easy to visit the winery during the event and we had arranged to meet one of the festival’s performers, Oneside, at the wi View more....

Lexington Valley Vineyard; Rockbridge Baths, Virginia - Friday, July 25, 2008 While passing through Lexington, we took the opportunity to visit another recently opened winery in Virginia, Lexington Valley Vineyard. The Hale family had been growing grapes on the property since 2000 and selling the produce to neighboring Rockbridge Winery. However, several years later, as time permitted – from commuting to the University of Missouri View more....

Stag's Leap Wine Cellars; Napa, California - Friday, July 04, 2008 Today we started the last day of our trip and our only full day in Napa on the Silverado Trail. This road runs parallel to Highway 29, is less crowded, and most importantly is home to many excellent wineries. One of these is Stag's Leap Wine Cellars, where we intentionally started the day. If you have been keeping track of our tour, you will not be surprised View more....

Chimney Rock Winery; Napa, California - Friday, July 04, 2008 While driving to Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars we passed an Alamo-ish villa painted exclusively white so after that tasting we backed tracked to visit Chimney Rock Winery. The winery was founded by the Anthony Terlato in 1980 with the goal of producing artisan wines of "first-growth structure, style and taste". Since the geography of the Stags Leap District View more....

Mumm Napa; Rutherford, California - Friday, July 04, 2008 Being regular sparkling wine drinkers, we had neglected this style since our excursion to J Vineyards. We decided to head directly to Mumm Napa, where we knew a wide array of sparkling wines would await us. We had tried several of these wines at this year’s South Beach Wine & Food Festival and thought that many of their wines were great values priced at $2 View more....

Peju Province Winery; Rutherford, California - Friday, July 04, 2008 While cruising Highway 29, we frequently passed an interesting line of trees bending over a driveway with a chateau inspired building in the rear. Our curiosity was finally relieved when we drove under the Sycamore tress into Peju Province Winery. Without even tasting the wines Peju became one of favorite destinations. The grounds are awesome, with multi View more....

Silver Oak Cellars; Geyserville, California - Friday, July 04, 2008 After a fulfilling late lunch at Taylors (try the meatball sandwich and coconut milk shake), we explored the back roads of Howell Mountain in order to allow someone to sleep in the car. After an hour driving, we got the urge to visit another winery before the 5:00 o’clock closings. While driving from the Silverado Trail to Route 128 we came upon a sign for Sil View more....

Alpha Omega Winery; Rutherford, California - Friday, July 04, 2008 After leaving Silver Oak, we decided to drive once more along Route 29 near Rutherford, before finishing our last day in Napa. Along the way we noticed that Alpha Omega Winery was still open. Why not one more. The winery is a little over a year old and the permanent tasting facility is still under construction. We walked around the front after our tasting View more....

Sterling Vineyards; Calistoga, California - Thursday, July 03, 2008 We started our day by crossing over the mountains for our first wine venture into Napa. We had visited Calistoga the previous evening to see the Old Faithful Geyser and Petrified Forest and to explore the northern Napa area. We came upon Castello di Amorosa - an immense castle hidden from St. Helena Highway. The Open sign was still displayed on the highway View more....

Chateau Montelena Winery; Calistoga, California - Thursday, July 03, 2008 A Sterling Vineyard tram operator had recommended that before leaving the Calistoga area we needed to visit the Chateau Montelena Winery in order to view the Chinese inspired gardens. Perfect for a Kung Fu Panda obsessed youth. The winery was already on our list to visit since it was recorded as one of America’s top 40 wineries in the Paul Lukacs book " View more....

Lytton Springs - Ridge Vineyards; Healdsburg, California - Thursday, July 03, 2008 We had an early afternoon appointment at Ridge Vineyards - Lytton Springs so we headed north on State Road 128 crossing back into Sonoma County and traveling through some of the nicest countryside we had seen: the Knight and Alexander Valleys. Don’t miss this drive – its one of the best in the area. We arrived and were greeted by David Gates, the winery’s View more....

Bella Vineyards and Wine Caves; Healdsburg, California - Thursday, July 03, 2008 While driving to Bella Vineyards we got our first look at Dry Creek Valley and its narrow roads, hilly terrain, and vineyards throughout. A great area to bike. We knew nothing about our destination, except for oral directions. Afterward we learned that during the 1990s, Scott and Lynn Adams toured the wine country frequently, got married in the area, and View more....

White Oak Vineyards & Winery; Healdsburg, California - Thursday, July 03, 2008 Since we enjoyed the drive through Alexander Valley, we decided to return to Napa via that route and if possible visit another winery. We had previously spotted White Oak Vineyards & Winery and its Mediterranean-style buildings and arrived just minutes before closing. The tasting room employees merrily greeted us and as we tasted the wines, we learned mor View more....

Foppiano Vineyards; Healdsburg, California - Wednesday, July 02, 2008 We have been fans of Foppiano Vineyards since we tasted there wines and heard their unique history at the 2007 Washington D.C. Food & Wine Festival. For Foppiano Vineyards is Sonoma County's oldest continually owned family winery, having operated View more....

J Vineyards & Winery; Healdsburg, California - Wednesday, July 02, 2008 Leaving Foppiano, we headed a couple miles south on Old Redwood Highway to J Vineyards and Winery. This winery was founded by Judy Jordan, whose family also founded Jordan Vineyard & Winery. J View more....

Limerick Lane Cellars; Healdsburg, California - Wednesday, July 02, 2008 Our final winery visit of the day was to Limerick Lane Cellars, the only American producers of Furmint wine. The winery has also built a respectful reputation producing zinfandel wines. Plus, Limerick Lane is located in the same southern Healdsburg local as the first two wineries. The winery started over twenty years ago when Michael and Tom Collins and View more....

Martin Ray Winery; Santa Rosa, California - Tuesday, July 01, 2008 We started our first day in Sonoma overwhelmed, staring at the Russian River Valley winery brochure and its listing of over 100 wineries. We eliminated the wineries which were open by appointment only - but still had quite a few to choose from. We decided to start at the closest open winery to our hotel in Sebastopol: Martin Ray Winery. The winery is histo View more....

Martinelli Vineyards; Windsor, California - Tuesday, July 01, 2008 From Martin Ray we traveled a couple miles to Martinelli Vineyards for no other reason that it was close and open. We quickly learned that the Martinelli family has been growing grapes in Sonoma County since 1887. In that year Giuseppe and Luisa Martinelli planted a small vineyard on a 60 degree slope, which later became known as Jackass Hill vineyard, because only a j View more....

Hook & Ladder Vineyards & Winery; Santa Rosa, California - Tuesday, July 01, 2008 Our final stop for the day before heading to Safari West, was Hook & Ladder Vineyards & Winery. In 1975 Cecil and Christine De Loach began producing wine after seeing other wineries produce award winning wines from their old vine Zinfandel. For the next thirty years they make wine View more....

Point Reyes Vineyards; Point Reyes Station, California - Monday, June 30, 2008 Today, June 30th, we finally ventured out of San Francisco and headed north to wine country. We traveled over the Golden Gate bridge and headed west to the Point Bonita Lighthouse at the mouth of the San Francisco Bay. Overlooking the intersection between the bay and the ocean, this lighthouse offered excellent views of the rough seas, seals sunning on the rocks below, the Golden Gate bridge, and San Francisco. Our next destination was View more....

Biltmore Estate Winery; Asheville, North Carolina - Monday, June 16, 2008 We were surprised to learn that the most visited winery in the United States is not located in California, nor in New York, but in Asheville, North Carolina: The Biltmore Estate Winery. Considering that the Biltmore Estate is the second most visited residence in the country - after the White House - this fact should not be surprising. The history of the estate and the View more....

Countryside Vineyards & Winery; Blountville, Tennessee - Saturday, June 14, 2008 When we detoured off I-81 after seeing Corey Ippolito Winery, we found another winery: Countryside Vineyards & Winery. Surrounded partly by the Appalachian Mountains and hidden from nearby I-81, Countryside looks View more....

Corey Ippolito Winery; Blountville, Tennessee - Saturday, June 14, 2008 While traveling through Tennessee on I-81, we saw signs and then the chateau for Corey Ippolito Winery and quickly exited. We learned that the winery is the newest in Tennessee, yet the vineyards have been producing grapes since 1999. In fact, Corey Ippolito Vineyard was the first vineyard to successfully grow Traminette, in which the state is now taking a View more....

Hiddencroft Vineyards; Lovettsville, Virginia - Saturday, June 07, 2008 After a day spent hiking and fishing at Cunningham Falls State Park, we returned home via Brunswick into the Loudoun Wine Trail. Our intended destination was the newly opened Notavina Vineyards. However, View more....

Notaviva Vineyards; Purcellville, Virginia - Saturday, June 07, 2008 From Hiddencroft Vineyards, we headed to our initial destination, the newly opened Notaviva Vineyards. We have been following the winery's progress, along with hundreds of others, from the winery's View more....

Vintage Virginia; Centreville, Virginia - Saturday, May 31, 2008 Despite some nasty weather, on Saturday May 31st we were able to enjoy wine and music at the 27th annual Vintage Virginia festival. The festival highlights the growing Virginia wine industry - and over 50 wineries participated - pouring over 350 different wines. Virginia is best known for their Viognier and Cabernet Franc, but there are also excellent examples of Norton, Chambourcin, Chardonnay, Sparkling wines, fruit wines, and mead. Besides the wines, each year Across-the-Way Productions bring View more....

Moonrise Bay Vineyard; Knotts Island, North Carolina - Monday, May 26, 2008 While traveling home from the Outer Banks we detoured off the beaten path to Knotts Island, via the Currituck Ferry. Our objective was the two wineries operating on the island: Moonrise Bay Vineyard and Martin Vineyards. Our first stop was Moonrise Bay Vineyard whi View more....

Martin Vineyards; Knotts Island, North Carolina - Monday, May 26, 2008 Coming... View more....

Smokehouse Winery; Sperryville, Virginia - Saturday, May 17, 2008 In conjunction with our article on Honey Wine and CCD we traveled to Sperryville Virginia in order to taste the Mead products of Smokehouse Winery. The winery is located at the Blue Ridge Foothills and the drive along Rt. 211 is one of the most scenic that you will View more....

Gadino Cellars; Washington, Virginia - Saturday, May 17, 2008 While travelling home on Route 211, we realized we had time to visit Gadino Cellars, located just outside historic Washington Virginia, the oldest of the 28 cities\towns with the name of Washington in the United States. In fact, the town’s current layout was surveyed by then 17 year old George Washington in 1749. Gadino Cellars is owned and operated by the View more....

Land Rover America’s Polo Cup; Leesburg, Virginia - Friday, May 09, 2008 On Friday May 9th we attended the opening celebration for the Land Rover America’s Polo Cup in historic Morven Park, Leesburg Virginia. The main event features the American and Italian Polo teams competing on Saturday, followed by a concert by the Gypsy Kings and Huey Lewis and the News. On Friday night, attendees were View more....

St. Michaels Wine & Food Festival; St. Michaels, Maryland - Saturday, April 26, 2008 On Saturday, April 26th we attended perhaps the best wine festival in terms of location and presenters, the St. Michaels Wine & Food Festival. Held in the small harbor village of St. Michaels, the festival encompasses several days of wine dinners, cooking demonstrations, wine and spirits presentations, and of course, three days of tasting. The festival’s organizers are congratulated for inviting several winemakers and View more....

St. Michaels Winery; St. Michaels, Maryland - Saturday, April 26, 2008 At the St. Michaels Wine & Food Festival I was able to taste a few wines from St. Michaels Winery and since the winery, itself was within walking distance, we visited the winery afterwards. I had actually heard about the winery the night before when Joe Ely drank a glass of their Gollywobbler Red while performing and we enjoyed th View more....

Beer, Bourbon & BBQ Festival; Timonium, Maryland - Saturday, April 05, 2008 On Saturday April 5th 2008, we attended the 2nd Annual Beer, Bourbon & BBQ Festival held at the Timonium Fairgrounds, Maryland. We intended to spend a day away from wine and sample various craft beers and America's native spirit: Bourbon. Our first task was to learn more about this spirit so we headed immediately to the first seminar of the day: "The Wonderful World of Bourbon" - hosted by Wild Turkey Distillery's Master Distiller Jimmy Russell. Mr. Russell has worked at the distillery since View more....

Washington D.C. Wine & Food Festival; Washington D.C. - Saturday, March 01, 2008 On Saturday and Sunday, March 1st and 2nd we attended the 2008 Washington D.C. Wine & Food Festival held at the Ronald Reagan Int’l Trade Building. The organizers of this event do a tremendous job presenting wines from across the globe. In the past three years we have tasting wines from Napa, Sonoma, Lodi, Paso Robles, South America, South Africa, the Finger Lakes, Long Island, and Virginia; and wineries from these regions were again represented. The organizers also fea View more....

2008 South Beach Food & Wine Festival - FIU School of Hospitality and Tourism Management; South Beach, Florida - Saturday, February 23, 2008 The major benefactor of the South Beach Food and Wine Festival is Florida International University’s School of Hospitality and Tourism Management. This is one of the country’s top hospitality management schools and attracts students from across the United States and over 90 countries. Graduates pursue careers in obvious choices such as restaurants and hotels, but also marketing, cruise lines, and even the wine industry. The school’s View more....

8th Annual Food Network South Beach Wine and Food Festival; South Beach, Florida - Saturday, February 23, 2008 We were fortunate to count ourselves among the 35,000 attendees to the 8th Annual Food Network South Beach Wine and Food Festival. We participated in the Friday Trade Tasting and the Saturday General Tasting. There were hundreds of different types of wine, beer, and spirits to taste as well as cooking classes given by the Food Network’s personalities. Even though the festival runs over four days and nights – there is still not enough time to adequately attend each event. This year we View more....

2008 South Beach Food & Wine Festival - Chris Lilly; South Beach, Florida - Friday, February 22, 2008 One of the highlights Friday was the chance to sit down with Chris Lilly, the reigning Food Network barbecue expert. He was in the middle of the twelve hour smoking process for that evening’s Moet & Chandon Champaign Party, when he took a break to meet with us. It was a very enlightening conversation. Lilly’s culinary achievements are extremely impressive – you can view his bio and awards below – and it was a privilege learning a few barbecue tips. For novices like us – the best pork barbec View more....

Virginia Wine Showcase; Dulles, Virginia - Saturday, February 09, 2008 After a brief network hiccup, Dezel from My Virginia Vine Spot and I are finally online at the Virginia Wine Showcase's Bloggers Corner. Throughout the day we will be posting highlights of the showcase and the wines. There are a number of Virginia wineries that traveled a great distance to be here including Davis Va View more....

Burnley Vineyards; Barboursville, Virginia - Saturday, January 05, 2008 For the first time we finally took the time to visit one of the oldest vineyards and wineries in the Charlottesville area: Burnley Vineyards. The Reeder family harvested their first grapes in 1980 and sold them to other Virginia wineries until 1984. At that time they started their own farm winery. They have gradually expanded operations where they currentl View more....

Vintage Ridge Vineyards; Rectortown, Virginia - Saturday, December 01, 2007 Today we visited one of Fauquier County's newest wineries, Vintage Ridge Vineyards. The winery is located in the historic village of Rectortown, which still contains many 100 + year old houses - and was where General McClellan was camped when relieved as commander of the Army of the Potomac. The vineyards are hidden from the main road; but once you drive up the drive View more....

Miracle Valley Vineyard and Winery; Delaplane, Virginia - Sunday, November 04, 2007 Today we traveled out to the beautiful rolling hills of Virginia horse country to visit another of the state's newest wineries: Miracle Valley Vineyard and Winery. The winery and vineyard are located on a former cattle pasture and the tasting room is situated in a hundred and twenty five year old restored farm house. Its always enjoyable driving through co View more....

Christensen Ridge; Madison, Virginia - Saturday, October 20, 2007 On a recent trip to the Graves Mountain Lodge Apple Festival we snuck into nearby Christensen Ridge, located a few miles south on Route 231. While driving to the winery, you pass through rolling hills of cattle pasture and even drive through a working farmyard – before reaching the secluded winery View more....

Boxwood Winery; Middleburg, Virginia - Thursday, October 11, 2007 While driving through the small village of Middleburg, I noticed that Boxwood Winery's long anticipated satellite tasting room had finally opened. Boxwood's winery complex is only open by appointment only so they opened a tasting room in the middle of Middleburg, convenient for local residence and tourists. Boxwood produces Bordeaux style wines with the co View more....

Bluemont Vineyard; Bluemont, Virginia - Saturday, September 29, 2007 Today we visited the newest winery to open in Virginia, Bluemont Vineyard. Located in Loudoun County the winery is located between Berryville and Leesburg off Route 7. For those who are familiar with Great Country Farms, the winery is directly across from the farm, half way up the slopes of the Blue View more....

National Norton Festival; St. Louis, Missouri - Saturday, September 08, 2007 On Saturday September, we were fortunate to attend the First Annual National Norton Festival in St. Louis Missouri. Organized by the Missouri Wine Country, the event provided the general public a chance to sample a wide array of Norton wines from 25 wineries from Missouri, Illinois, Georgia, Texas, and Virginia. This tasting was the culmination of activities that began in August, at the 2007 National Norton Wine Competition and ended View more....

Cove Point Winery; Lusby, Maryland - Saturday, August 18, 2007 Frequent readers of the Wine Compass Blog, Compass Tours, and Wine 101 are familiar with our fascination with different grape varieties. They would also appreciate our yearning to visit a winery that makes wine from over twenty different grapes - in this case, Cove Point Winery. The winery started like most small family owned wineries – as a hobby – that View more....

Solomons Island Winery; Lusby, Maryland - Saturday, August 18, 2007 Returning from Solomons Island, I stopped quickly into neighboring Solomons Island Winery, a 5 year old micro-winery operated by Ken & Ann Korando. I've tasted their wines at previous Wine in the Wood festivals where I came to admire their Marytage - a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Malbec. On this trip I was interested in trying View more....

Rebec Vineyards; Amherst, Virginia - Sunday, August 12, 2007 While driving home from North Carolina – I decided to avoid congested I-95 and drive scenic Route 29 instead. This allowed me avoid the traffic plus visit Rebec Vineyards, conveniently located right off the highway – just north of Amherst. I was familiar with Rebec from various state festivals and from their Wine and Garlic Festival advertising. But I co View more....

Mountain Cove Vineyards; Lovingston, Virginia - Sunday, August 12, 2007 Continuing on towards Charlottesville, I stopped at Virginia’s oldest winery, Mountain Cove Vineyards. Located half way between Lynchburg and Charlottesville, the winery is situated within the Blue Ridge Mountains and adjacent to the Fortunes Cove Preserve, a large Nature Conservancy property. In 1973, Al and Emily Weed planted several varieties of hybrid View more....

A Secret Garden Winery; Pikesville, North Carolina - Saturday, August 11, 2007 North Carolina wine growers plant grapes depending largely on the geographic location of the vineyard. Viniferia and hybrid grapes require warm days but cold nights; so these grapes are planted primarily in the mid to western parts of the state. On the other hand, muscadine grapes have thicker skins and can survive the warm nights which occur frequently in the eastern part of the state. As a result, there are several eastern NC wineries that specialize in muscadine wines, one of which is View more....

Chatham Hill Winery; Morrisville, North Carolina - Saturday, August 11, 2007 Leaving A Secret Garden, I traveled along route 70 to Raleigh in order to visit Chatham Hill Winery. This winery is one of the increasing number of urban wineries, in this case, the owners purchase grapes from variou View more....

Potomac Point Winery; Stafford, Virginia - Saturday, July 14, 2007 Today we attended the Grand Opening of Potomac Point Winery, the only winery in Stafford County Virginia. Although they unofficially opened in early June, this weekend the winery planned a three day event to introduce themselves to area residents. This event included a winery tour, sampling of their wines, music, food, a moon bounce, and grape stomping; a View more....

Linganore Wine Cellars - Swingin' Blues Wine Festival; Mt. Airy, Maryland - Saturday, June 23, 2007 Today we attended one of Maryland’s best wine events, Linganore Wine Cellars’ Swingin’ Blues Wine Festival. This event included music by local legends the Kelly Bell Band and The Nighthawks as well as tours of the winery, crafts, seafood, and wine View more....

Laguna Canyon Winery; Laguna Beach, California - Sunday, June 17, 2007 Description coming.... View more....

Witch Creek Winery; Carlsbad, California - Saturday, June 16, 2007 While driving along scenic Highway 101 we noticed the Carlsbad tasting facility for Witch Creek Winery. After a quick u-turn, we entered the tasting room to discover that the winery makes several excellent wines from grapes grown throughout California. Out of close to 20 wines available, we sampled six. The reds were outstanding, smooth yet full bodied View more....

Vintage Virginia; Centreville, Virginia - Saturday, June 02, 2007 Today we attended the 2007 Vintage Virginia festival, which featured wines from over fifty wineries from throughout the state. We wanted to use this event to sample the latest vintages of Norton and find out which wineries were going to participate in the first annual National Norton Festival in September. This event also enabled us to sample wines from wineries we had not visited, particular those in central and southwestern Virginia. View more....

Deep Creek Cellars; Friendsville, Maryland - Saturday, May 19, 2007 Today I decided to avoid the crowds congregating in Front Royal and Columbia and venture out to Maryland’s most western winery, Deep Creek Cellars. Located on the extreme panhandle, the winery is minutes from West Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Deep Creek Lake, the later which drives most traffic to the winery from its spring through autumn visitors. Deep Creek Cellars is owned and operated by Paul Roberts, who started the first vineyard in Garrett County in 1997, by planting Cabernet Franc and Vi View more....

Forks of Cheat Winery; Morgantown, West Virginia - Saturday, May 19, 2007 From Deep Creek Cellars, I headed west into Morgantown West Virginia, to visit one of our favorite wineries, Forks of Cheat Winery. We first tasted their wine at last year’s Berkeley Springs wine festival and fell in love with their fruit wines and the Foch based - Black Jewel Port. Today the winery was hosting Red Wine Tasting and Sales event which included entertainment from the bluegrass group, Weedhawks. Forks of Cheat is owned and operated by Jerry and Susan Deal, and their son Eric. The View more....

Linden Vineyards; Linden, Virginia - Saturday, April 28, 2007 Over the past three years we had heard several Virginia wine enthusiasts recommend a visit to Linden Vineyards. We were told that the winery provided excellent views of the surrounding hillsides and that the wine was some of the best produced in the state. We had previously tasted their Hardscrabble Chardonnay – and were instant fans - and were eager to try their other offerings. Linden is located just off Route 66 close to Front Royal – about 40 minutes from the Beltway. Once you exit Route 6 View more....

Great Grapes; Reston Virginia - Saturday, April 14, 2007 On Saturday April 14th several Virginia wineries participated in the inaugural Reston Great Grapes wine festival. The day was overcast with scattered showers which, although a little nuisance, kept the crowd lighter than expected. This allowed attendees to sample wines without waiting in long lines – the usual case at these events. The organizers of Great Grapes arranged quality musical acts that performed throughout the day. The Martha Basse View more....

International Wine & Food Festival; Washington D.C. - Sunday, March 11, 2007 On Saturday and Sunday, March 10 & 11th we attended the 2007 Washington D.C. International Wine & Food Expo, held at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center. The sponsors of the Expo promised that the 280 wineries on hand, pouring over 1,100 wines would provide loads of fun for everyone. Based on the size and positive assessments from the participants – I think they succeeded. These 240 wineries represented wine regions from North and South America, Europe, Sou View more....

2007 South Beach Wine and Food Festival; Miami Beach, Florida - Saturday, February 24, 2007 On February 23rd-25th, Wine Compass editors participated in the 6th annual Food Network South Beach Wine and Food Festival. Held in South Beach, Miami, this three day event stretched across several blocks of fine sand on the breath-taking beach. The tremendous turnout was expected, since tickets were sold out weeks in advance. The three days were filled with wine, spirits and food tasting accompanied with food demonstrations by popular Food Network personalities like Emeril, Rachael Ray and Davi View more....

Hartwood Winery; Hartwood, Virginia - Sunday, January 28, 2007 Today we decided to attend our first winery event of the New Year, by visiting Hartwood Winery’s Barrel Tasting Weekend. For this event, the winery opened their cellar to visitors to try their 2005 red wines and 2006 white wines. Hartwood Winery is located off Route 17, about six miles north of its intersection with Route 95. When we arrived at the winery, it appeared that the cold winter weather was not deterring others from attending the event. There were already several cars in the parking View more....

Rogers Ford Farm Winery; Sumerduck, Virginia - Sunday, January 28, 2007 Close to two hundred years ago, prospectors panned for gold along the Rappahannock and Rapidan Rivers in southeastern Fauquier County, Virginia. This area is part of the 200 mile long Virginia gold belt, which stretches across the state from the Maryland border southwest into North Carolina. Before gold was discovered in California, Virginia and several other southern states were the major gold mining region in the United States, producing over $1,000,000 per year. Within Fauquier County, the View more....

Frederick Cellars; Frederick, Maryland - Saturday, December 02, 2006 While pausing in Frederick Maryland during the mid 1800’s, riders of the first stagecoaches traveling west on The National Pike were met by artisans who lived and worked in Shab Row. Later, the Everedy Company opened in the same location and for 50 years produced its famous Everedy Bottle capper as well as a line of kitchenware. After the Everedy Company relocated, the area slowly declined until private investors redeveloped it in the 1980’s. Today Shab Row is the home of Frederick Cellars, Mary View more....

Gray Ghost Vineyards; Amissville, Virginia - Saturday, November 18, 2006 From January 1863 until the end of the Civil War, John Mosby and his volunteer rangers operated in northern Virginia, attacking Union supply lines and raiding outposts. His unit was so successful that General Grant allocated 25,000 troops from the Army of the Potomac to guard Washington and the surrounding garrisons. In one such raid Mosby captured several Union officers, including a Brigadier General at the Fairfax County courthouse. Mosby’s frequent attacks and successful escapes led President View more....

Unicorn Winery; Amissville, Virginia - Saturday, November 18, 2006 Also located in Amissville, is Unicorn Winery. In the mid 1990s, Dave Whittaker began growing grapes on his property overlooking the Rappahannock River. Towards the end of the decade he expanded the property to include a building to accommodate the winery and tasting area. With the help of Chris Pearmund, they created a suite of eight wines using grapes from Unicorn’s vineyard, Seyval from Breaux Vineyards and Chardonnay from Pearmund's Meriwether Vineyard. To their credit, the 1999 Inaugural View more....

Fox Meadow Vineyards; Linden, Virginia - Saturday, November 18, 2006 From Unicorn Winery, we ventured northwest to the Blue Ridge Mountains to visit, Fox Meadow Vineyards. Five years ago, Cheryl & Dan Mortland visited Virginia and decided the time was right to fulfill a lifetime dream, to open a winery that not only produced great wine, but also provided a scenic and enjoyable environment. They chose a parcel of land, located on the east slope of the Blue Ridge Mountains in Linden, Virginia that was once part of a hundred year old orchard. Even though today was View more....

Chateau O'Brien; Markham, Virginia - Saturday, November 18, 2006 While traveling east on Route 55, after our visit to Fox Meadows, we came upon Markham, a tiny intersection with state wine signs directing travelers to Chateau O'Brien, only a short distance from the highway and Route 66. Why not one more. Howard O'Brien opened Chateau O'Brien after a lifetime of travel sampling the world’s finest wines. After a long search he chose the Northpoint site and planted Viognier, Chardonnay, Tannat, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot, Malbec, View more....

Kugler's Vineyard; Lawrence, Kansas - Wednesday, October 18, 2006 From our outstanding visit to Davenport Winery a couple months ago, we planned a visit to another small-family owned Kansas winery further west on Route 10, Kugler's Vineyard. The Kugler's have been growing wine grapes and making homemade wine since 1996. They have won several amateur wine making awards including Best in Show for their Concord. In 2004, they turned “professional” and received their commercial wine license from the state of Kansas. Over the past two years, the customer base ha View more....

The Winery at La Grange; Haymarket, Virginia - Sunday, October 15, 2006 There are plenty of autumn activities for family enjoyment in Northern Virginia from Cox Farms in Centreville to the Corn Maze in the Plains. And practically in between is the perfect rest stop for adults: The Winery at La Grange. Located in Haymarket, this winery is the culmination of Chris Pearmund’s desire to build a boutique winery in Prince William County. Taking his experience in operatin View more....

Dry Comal Creek Vineyards & Winery; New Braunfels, Texas - Monday, September 18, 2006 We were very pleased to visit our first Texan winery, Dry Comal Creek Vineyards & Winery, home to “Texas-Style Fine Wines”. Located outside of historic New Braunfels, the winery is the vision of Franklin Houser, an attorney who started making home-made wine and soon expanded to a full scale winery. When determining which grapes to grow, Texas wineries must consider the deadly affects of Pierce’s Disease on vinifera grapes. This disease is stimulated by the hot, humid Texas environment in which b View more....

Loughlin Vineyards; Sayville, NY - Sunday, September 10, 2006 This week we decided it was time to start exploring the well documented wineries in Long island, New York. However, as we researched the wineries, we turned our attention to a lesser known winery, Loughlin Vineyards – the closest winery to New York City. The winery is located in Sayville, a small town situated on the Great South Bay. Within Sayville, Loughlin Vineyards is situated in the grounds of the historic Meadow Croft estate, once home to members of the Roosevelt family. Apparently, Theo View more....

Tarara Vineyard & Winery; Leesburg, Virginia - Saturday, August 26, 2006 While reading Virginia Vine Spot last week, Dezel reminded me of one of Virginia’s best re-occurring events: Tarara Winery’s Sounds of Summer Concert Series. Each Saturday night, from June through September, the winery provides a new band and free wine tasting at their lakeside stage. This evening the entertainment was provided by Jeff Watson & Downtown, whose excellent blues-soul sou View more....

Davenport Winery; Eudora, Kansas - Monday, August 21, 2006 What makes wine touring really enjoyable is when you find a gem when least expected. This happened to us while visiting Davenport Winery; a small family owned and operated vineyard and winery outside of Lawrence, Kansas. The winery is owned and operated by Greg and Charlee Shipe, who decided to grow grapes because Mrs. Shipe thought that grapes hanging on a trellis “looked pretty”. After growing seedless grapes, along with the orchard’s U-pick peaches, pears, and apples, Mr. Shipe replanted win View more....

Farfelu Vineyard; Flint Hill, Virginia - Sunday, August 20, 2006 After trying several Farfelu Vineyards wines at various Virginia wineries, we were eager to visit the winery, which was the first winery licensed in Virginia after Prohibition. The winery was launched in 1967 by Chuck Raney, a former naval fighter pilot. In 2000, the vineyards and winery were purchased by Caroline and John Osborne. The couple restored the winery, expanded the vineyard, and created an atmosphere called, Serious Wine for Un-Serious People, i.e. wine should be fun, not snobbish. View more....

Stillhouse Vineyards; Hume, Virginia - Sunday, August 20, 2006 From our disappointment in Farfelu, we traveled through quiet Hume to Stillhouse Vineyards; another Virginian family owned and operated vineyard and winery. The winery is situated amidst rolling cattle and horse pastures along scenic route 688. We had heard that Stillhouse produces very good white wines, but we were as impressed with their reds – the Cabernet Franc. This grape is finding a home in Virginia, a point that was solidified during our next stop at Naked Mountain Vineya View more....

Naked Mountain Vineyard; Markham, Virginia - Sunday, August 20, 2006 From Stillhouse Vineyards, we traveled north on scenic route 688 a few miles to naked Mountain Vineyards, one of the oldest wineries in Virginia. This vineyard and winery has operated a couple miles north of Route 66 for 31 years. Like many other family-owned and operated wineries, Naked Mountain started as a hobby of Bob and Phoebe Harper. After a few years making wine at home, the couple planted vinifera grapes in 1976 and established the winery in 1981. The winery specializes in Chardonnay View more....

Sugarloaf Mountain Vineyard; Dickerson, Maryland - Sunday, July 30, 2006 After a day picking blackberries at Butler’s Orchard (www.butlersorchard.com), we ventured a short distance to Sugarloaf Mountain Vineyard, one of the many new Maryland wineries that have or will open in 2006. The 85 acre vineyard and winery is located at the base of Sugarloaf Mountain, about 35 minutes outside of Washington D.C. Sugarloaf Mountain is a Registered Natural Landmark that was made possible by the insightfulness or Gordon and Louise Strong, who purchased the tracts which comprise View more....

Prairie Berry Winery; Hill City, South Dakota - Saturday, July 08, 2006 Over the years we have come to appreciate the large number of excellent wineries operating in the eastern United States. Last week we were able to witness this reality in Colorado and today we found a gem in Hill City South Dakota: Prairie Berry Winery. This family owned winery has a long tradition of winemaking; the Vojta family has been making wines privately in South Dakota since 1876. Prairie Berry Winery is now run by fifth generation winemaker Sandi Vojta, with assistance from her fathe View more....

Plum Creek Cellars; Palisade, Colorado - Saturday, July 01, 2006 After our visit to Minturn Cellars, we were excited to visit the Palisade and Grand Junction area, located in western Colorado. Known as the as "The Banana Belt”, this area is perfect for fruit and grape growing. Winds move through the Debeque Canyon and are compressed and warmed. This warm air is spread throughout the valley and prevents crop killing frosts in the spring. The mild climate creates a 182-day growing season, with sunshine on average 78%. Along with irrigation canals from the Col View more....

Carlson Vineyards; Palisade, Colorado - Saturday, July 01, 2006 Based on their recommendation, we left Plum Creek Cellars and traveled a few miles across the Grand Valley to Carlson Vineyards. This small, family owned winery also uses only 100% Colorado grown, sun-ripened fruit and grapes and is a local favorite among the Palisade’s residents. Operating since 1988, the winery produces wines from traditional vinifera grapes as well as several excellent fruit wines. One of the winery’s best selling wines is the Prairie Dog Blush. This wine is made into a sem View more....

Minturn Cellars; Minturn, Colorado - Friday, June 30, 2006 We began our Colorado wine tour in the historic mining and railroad town of Minturn, home of Minturn Cellars. Minturn geography attracted earlier settlers in the late 1800s originally because of farming opportunities provided by the confluence of Gore Creek and the Eagle River and subsequently from the mining and railroad industry. By the early 1900s, Minturn was a booming railroad community. However, during the past century, as the mines and railroads closed, Minturn transformed from the “Ol View more....

Washington D.C. International Wine & Food Festival; Washington, D.C. - Saturday, June 24, 2006 This weekend, one of the best wine festivals we’ve attended was held at the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington D.C. The expo consisted of seminars featuring experts such as Mark Oldman, from Every Day with Rachael Ray, the Wine Spectator's Gloria Maroti Frazee, Robert Mondavi’s Ted Allen, and Food Network's, Napa Style, Michael Chiarello as well as international and domestic wineries pouring over 1,200 wines. And the wine selection was incredibly comprehensive. We tasted Californian Zinfandels View more....

Blacksmiths Winery; South Casco, Maine - Tuesday, June 20, 2006 We finished our short tour of Maine wineries at Blacksmiths Winery, located in South Casco on Sabago Lake. The winery opened six years ago on property once owned by William Watkinsan, a South Casco blacksmith in the mid-late 1880s. Blacksmiths Winery produces the largest selection of wines in Maine (20 different wines) and the wines are available in over 80 retail outlets in the state. In fact, we purchased a bottle of their Sparkling Cranberry in a wine store in Portland. This purchase initiate View more....

Cellardoor Winery; Lincolnville, Maine - Saturday, June 17, 2006 We started our tour of Maine wineries at Cellardoor Winery, located just outside the picturesque harbor town of Camden. The drive from Camden is terrific, almost worth a visit itself. The road meanders along the Camden Hills and Megunticook Lake. Once you arrive at the winery, you immediately notice the scenic vineyards with the mountains in the distance. The tasting room is located in a 1790’s vintage barn, which gives the entire property a rustic atmosphere. A perfect location for a summer pic View more....

Savage Oakes Vineyard and Winery; Union, Maine - Saturday, June 17, 2006 Situated 20 minutes from Cellardoor Winery in nearby Union, is Maine’s newest winery, Savage Oakes Vineyard and Winery. The planning for the winery began over four years ago, as Elmer and Holly Savage looked for ways to augment income from their Barrett Hill Farm. While principally raising Belted Galloway cattle, the couple also sold blueberries that grew wild in their fields. Since they had a natural source of fruit, Mr. Savage spent 4 years researching wine making and grapes that excel in nor View more....

Stonehaus Farms Winery; Lees Summit, Missouri - Thursday, June 08, 2006 Residents and visitors to Kansas City have no excuse for failing to visit the closest winery to the city, Stonehaus Farms Winery. Located in Lee’s Summit, just 20 minutes from the city, the winery offers a great selection of wines, plus a peaceful setting to enjoy these wines. Opened in 1997 by Ken Euritt, the winery produces wines from hybrid and native grapes grown in the local vineyard as well as fruit, obtained from surrounding farms. We traveled to Stonehaus Farms in order to try their View more....

Schnebly Winery; Homestead, Florida - Monday, May 29, 2006 Description to follow..... View more....

Bynum Winery; Lone Jack, Missouri - Thursday, May 25, 2006 Bynum Winery is the antithesis to the continued growth of corporate ownership in not only the wine industry, but also the American agriculture industry. This literal Mom and Pop operation illustrates that a small establishment can still succeed and hopefully thrive in today’s marketplace. And Bynum Winery is easily the smallest operation we have visited. This is a no frills operation. The winery’s only advertisement comes from the state of Missouri’s tourist agency’s wine brochure and web site View more....

Wine in the Woods; Columbia, Maryland - Saturday, May 20, 2006 Maryland wine has arrived - at least based on Saturday’s attendance at the Wine in the Woods Festival in Columbia Maryland. A record crowd attending this event and these attendees experienced good food, great entertainment, and awesome wine. This tournout is even more impressive considering that the festival competes directly with the Preakness and wine festivals in nearby Virginia. Unfortunately, the large attendance did produce a few problems. First there were longer the usual lines at the ta View more....

Kluge Estate Winery; Charlottesville, VA - Sunday, May 14, 2006 Located along historic Carter’s Mountain Road, Kluge Estate Winery is worth a visit both for their wines as well as a drive through Virginia’s rolling countryside. The vineyards overlook Monticello and are situated close to the historic Albemarle House estate. Founded in 1999 by Patricia Kluge, the winery provides an upscale setting for Charlottesville’s elite. The winery specializes in the traditional Bordeaux varietals Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Chardonnay. The red grap View more....

First Colony Winery; Charlottesville, VA - Sunday, May 14, 2006 From Kluge, we traveled a few miles south on Route 20 to a more casual environment at First Colony Winery. Randolph McElroy, Jr., a descendant of George Washington’s Attorney General, Edmund Randolph, established the winery in late 2000 in order to continue his family’s historical vocation in winemaking. The winery specializes in classic European vinifera wines that have earned dozens of awards at various state, national, and international wine competitions. First Colony grows their Cabernet F View more....

Montpelier Wine Festival; Orange, Virginia - Saturday, May 06, 2006 A little over a dozen central Virginian wineries assembled at the Montpelier Wine Festival, held at the family estate of James Madison Jr. As one of this country’s founding fathers, James Madison was extremely influential in the writing and ratification of the Constitution as championing the addition of the Bill of Rights shortly thereafter. He served as Thomas Jefferson’s Secretary of State, and then succeeded Jefferson as the country’s fourth president. Located outside of Orange, about 30 m View more....

Williamsburg Winery; Williamsburg, Virginia - Sunday, April 30, 2006 Today we visited Virginia’s largest winery, Williamsburg Winery. The winery is situated on a 320-acre farm, known as Wessex Hundred and has a winemaking past that dates back to the earliest colonial settlement. In 1619 the House of Burgesses passed the Twelfth Acte, which mandated that each settler must plant at least 10 vines on his land for the purpose of making wine. Over the years the property was bought and sold periodically, until 1983, when Patrick and Peggy Duffeler purchased the propert View more....

13th Uniquely West Virginia; Berkeley Springs, West Virginia - Sunday, April 23, 2006 Today we attended our first festival of the year, the 13th Uniquely West Virginia: Celebration of Wine & Food held in historic Berkeley Springs, West Virginia. The two-day festival attracts visitors because it not only highlights the unique characteristics of West Virginia wineries, but also allows tourists to visit one of the most popular mineral springs on the east coast. According to the Travel Berkeley Springs website, Berkeley Springs was a fountainhead of warm mineral waters frequented View more....

Heimhof Winery; Leavenworth, Kansas - Wednesday, March 22, 2006 Today we visited the oldest winery in Kansas, Heimhof Winery, which opened 15 years ago - just outside of historic Leavenworth. Leavenworth is known as the first city in Kansas and is home to Fort Leavenworth, the oldest continuously active Army fort west of the Mississippi River. Founded in 1827, Fort Leavenworth provided security and supplies to settlers heading west. Today it is home to the U.S. Army Combined Arms Center (CAC). The Army lead Richard Heim and his wife Francis to Leavenworth, View more....

Pirtle Winery; Weston, Missouri - Saturday, February 25, 2006 Today we traveled to historic Weston, Missouri in order to visit a growing family owned and operated winery, Pirtle Winery. Weston is a small port located on the Missouri River, which in its heyday, was the second largest port on the river, rivaled only by St. Louis. Lewis and Clark first surveyed the area surrounding Weston and it rapidly grew as a supply depot for pioneers heading west. By 1850, its population was greater than Kansas City. Eventually floods, fires, and the effects of the Ci View more....

Holy-Field Vineyard & Winery; Basehor, Kansas - Saturday, February 18, 2006 Today we were fortunate enough to visit our first winery in the Midwest-Plains, Holy-Field Vineyard & Winery. Located less than 30 minutes from Kansas City, the family owned and operated winery produces several uniquely American and hybrid wines from grapes cultivated in adjacent vineyards. The first vines were planted twenty years ago and after the winery opened in 1994, Holy-Field has been producing award winning wines for the past decade. In particular, the last two years Holy-Field has won View more....

Mediterranean Cellars; Warrenton, Virginia - Sunday, February 05, 2006 Today we traveled out to the rolling hills of northern Virginia to visit Mediterranean Cellars; a winery operated by the Papadopoulos family. For over 40 years, Louis Papadopoulos has been making wine; he started in his homeland of Greece making traditional Greek red and white (Retsina) wines. Once the family relocated to Virginia, Mr. Papadopoulos continued to produce homemade wine using local varieties of grapes. In 1993, the family expanded this “homemade” production to the present Mediterr View more....

Tomasello Winery; Hammonton, New Jersey - Friday, February 03, 2006 Like last Friday, this evening while traveling through New Jersey we stopped late at another New Jersey winery, this time Tomasello Winery. The winery has one of the latest closing hours – 8 PM on most nights - which accommodated our late travel. Tomasello also produces one of our favorite wines, Rkatsiteli, that is vinified by only a handful of wineries in this country. (See our article on Rkatsiteli in the Wine 101 section.) Unfortunately on arriving at the winery we found that their 2004 ver View more....

Alba Vineyard; Milford, New Jersey - Friday, January 27, 2006 While traveling across northern New Jersey we decided to visit Alba Vineyards, in particular, to try their award winning Delaware Dolce dessert wine. The winery is located in the small village of Finesville, near the Pennsylvania border and is situated in a 190 year old rustic dairy barn. Seeing the barn itself is worth the visit; the stone walls and oak beams provide a certain amount of character that is missing in modern architecture. The tasting room (also located in the converted barn) pro View more....

Silver Decoy Winery; Robbinsville, New Jersey - Saturday, January 14, 2006 Today we learned that regardless of the weather conditions, it is well worth visiting a new winery. During a cold, damp, miserable drive on the New Jersey Turnpike, we decided to take a break and visit Silver Decoy Winery, located in central New Jersey, near the small town of Hightstown, Exit 8 off the turnpike. Upon arriving at the winery, we saw the proprietors grilling ribs outside, drinking beer and wine from large red wine glasses, and making the best of the conditions. Our spirits were View more....

Warwick Valley Winery; Warwick, New York - Friday, December 23, 2005 Today we traveled to the small village of Warwick, NY - located in the foothills of the Hudson Valley - to visit Warwick Valley Winery, a small family owned operation that specialized in hard ciders as well as Vinifera and Labrusca grapes. The family purchased the original apple orchard as a real estate investment, but began experimenting with ciders to give to friends. In a few years their hard cider was so well received that they obtained their NY State Winery license in 1993. Since then, they View more....

Demarest Hill Winery; Warwick, New York - Friday, December 23, 2005 Traveling back towards Warwick, we quickly stopped into Demarest Hill Winery, which is located about a mile from the village. The winery is owned and operated by Francesco Ciummo, who obtained his winemaking skills from his family vineyards in Molise, Italy. Upon settling in this country, he began experimenting with small amounts of wine production. Eventually, in 1994, he opened the winery with initial production of Chardonnay, Zinfandel, and Chenin Blanc. Since only a handful of wines are li View more....

Brotherhood America's Oldest Winery; Washingtonville, New York - Thursday, December 22, 2005 We were very excited to travel to Washington, New York to visit America’s oldest continually operating winery, Brotherhood America's Oldest Winery. Located at the base of the Catskills, the winery is only an hour from New York City. It was founded in 1839 and survived Prohibition by selling sacramental wine. The winery has been internationally famous since the 1900 Paris Exposition when their Brotherhood Champagne won a Gold medal. This status continued under Cesar Baeza, who became the wine ma View more....

Cream Ridge Winery; Cream Ridge, New Jersey - Tuesday, December 20, 2005 We decided to visit a New Jersey winery and choose Cream Ridge Winery initially because of its proximity to the New Jersey Turnpike and secondly because the winery was the recipient of the inaugural New Jersey Winery of the Year award. This award is given to the New Jersey winery that receives the most quality awards in New Jersey wine competitions. In 2005, the winery received 14 awards in New Jersey wine competitions, including the Governors Cup for their Cherry Wine (Ciliegia Amabile) and Gol View more....

Rappahannock Cellars; Huntly, Virginia - Friday, December 16, 2005 Today we traveled to Rappahannock Cellars in order to try their current Norton vintage. Rappahannock Cellars is a member of the BlueRidge Wine Trail and is located between Chester Gap and Hume Virginia. The winery is becoming known for making award wining vinifera wines. In particular their Viognier Reserve was recognized at a recent New York/Virginia comparative tasting sponsored by the Virginia Wine and Food Society and was voted the “Best Wine of the East” by the 2005 Atlanta International Wi View more....

Oasis Winery; Hume, Virginia - Friday, December 16, 2005 From Rappahannock Cellars, we traveled a short distance to Oasis Winery, the largest wine producer in the state of Virginia. The winery started in 1977 when Oasis planted some of the first Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot vines in Virginia. Since that time Oasis has produced consistent medal winning wines such that it is rated on of the Top 10 in the World. In addition to vinifera wines, Oasis is known for producing international award winning sparkling wines, which are produced in the View more....

Pearmund Cellars; Broad Run, Virginia - Friday, November 11, 2005 Happy Veterans Day. Today we traveled the last local winery, Pearmund Cellars, which is located in Broad Run - about 45 minutes west of Washington D.C. We were both disappointed and pleased with our trip: disappointed that we waited so long to visit and pleased that we found a new favorite winery. Pearmund’s selections are incredible; they produce a small amount of whites, but their large selection of reds will persuade us to return. The vineyard that Pearmund is situated on was planted in th View more....

Willowcroft Farm Vineyards; Leesburg, Virginia - Sunday, October 23, 2005 Today we traveled to the southern end of the Catoctin Mountains to Mt. Gilead and Willowcroft Farm Vineyards. The vineyards and winery are situated in an old orchard and horse farm and provides spectacular views of the Blue Ridge Mountains. When arriving at the winery you immediately notice the rustic nature of the vineyards as well as the brightly colored red barn that houses the winery. Inside the barn, Willowcroft has retained the comfortable farm setting. See pictures below. The first vin View more....

Piedmont Vineyards; The Plains, Virginia - Saturday, October 22, 2005 Today we traveled back to Virginia Hunt Country to visit Piedmont Vineyards, the second oldest winery in Virginia. Located just south of Middleburg, Piedmont is situated in the rolling countryside of northern Virginia on a pre-revolutionary estate called Waverly. The manor house was originally constructed around 1755 and is now a Virginia Historic Landmark. The site operated as a diary farm from 1942 until 1973, when it was converted into a winery. For the past thirty years, Piedmont Vineyards h View more....

Hidden Brook Winery; Leesburg, Virginia - Monday, October 10, 2005 Today we traveled to two wineries located along Route 15, north of Leesburg, Virginia. Our first stop was at Hidden Brook Winery, a small family owned operation which opened in September 2002. The winery’s tasting room is located in an early-American style log cabin which provides ample space and comfort to sample their wines. Hidden Brook specializes in Chambourcin, blending the varietal with Vidal Blanc to create a very good Rose and using it to produce an ice wine-style dessert wine (Sweet View more....

Lost Creek Winery; Leesburg, Virginia - Monday, October 10, 2005 From Hidden Brook which traveled next door to their neighbors, Lost Creek Winery, which is owned and operated by their parents, Bob and Carol Hauck. Lost Creek’s tasting room is located in a large building with a picturesque patio, which provides comfortable indoor and outdoor seating. Although related by blood, the two wineries offer two distinct wine styles. As with Hidden Brook, Lost Creek produces Chardonnay, Vidal Blanc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Chambourcin, but each varietal is p View more....

22nd Annual Maryland Wine Festival; Westminster, Maryland - Saturday, September 17, 2005 On Saturday we traveled to the Carroll County Farm Museum in Westminster, Maryland to attend the 22nd Maryland Wine Festival. This is a very popular festival because wineries from each corner of the state participate in this event, from Deep Creek Cellars in western Maryland to Little Ashby Vineyards and Tilmon's Island Winery in the Eastern Shore. In addition, the winners of the Governor’s Cup competition (a state competition to determine the best wines produced in Maryland) are announced at t View more....

Three Fox Vineyards; Delaplane, Virginia - Sunday, September 11, 2005 Today we took a break from watching football to visit Three Fox Vineyards, a winery that we have passed many times on our travels, but have never been able to visit. We had heard good reviews of their Sangiovese and were looking forward to tasting it, only to find that the winery had sold out of this varietal during an extremely busy Labor Day weekend. Our disappointment did not last long however, since Three Fox Vineyards offers several other good varietals as well as an extremely relaxing and View more....

San Sebastian Winery; St. Augustine, Florida - Sunday, September 04, 2005 On Labor Day weekend, Wine-Compass traveled to one of our favorite destinations in the United States: St. Augustine, Florida. Besides being a terrific historical destination, St. Augustine is home to Florida’s most visited winery, San Sebastian Winery. It was a shrewd business decision to open a winery in a popular tourist destination, and from the crowds we witnessed, a very profitable one. In order to accommodate the large influx of visitors, San Sebastian provides a self-guided tour of the View more....

Seven Springs Wine and Food Festival; Seven Springs Mountain Resort, Pennsyvania - Saturday, August 27, 2005 Seven Springs Mountain Resort is not only a great ski resort, but also a terrific seasonal destination. Each year the resort offers concerts or festivals almost every weekend throughout the year. One of these festivals is the annual Wine and Food Festival which features wine from about two dozen Pennsylvania wineries as well as great German\Polish influenced cuisine. Saturday was an extremely soggy day, but the turnout was remarkable, with lines forming at every tent – even through the mud pi View more....

Chrysalis Vineyards; Middleburg, Virginia - Sunday, August 14, 2005 Today we decided to take a short trip through Virginia horse country and visit two wineries near Aldie and Middleburg. Our first stop was at Chrysalis Vineyard, which like many Virginia wineries provides a comfortable environment to spend the day picnicking in a country setting. In fact, most visitors we conversed with had or were planning to spend several hours at the winery. Chrysalis is located off Route 50 between the small village of Aldie and Middleburg and is the closest Virginia winery View more....

Swedenburg Estate Vineyard; Middleburg, Virginia - Sunday, August 14, 2005 From Chrysalis, we traveled a short distance west on Route 50 to reach Swedenburg Estate Vineyards, which is only one mile east of Middleburg - a designated National Historic District. Swedenburg Estate Vineyards was started by Junita Swedenburg and her late husband, Wayne in the 1980's. The first vines were planted in 1980 and the first wine was bottled in 1985. Currently, the winery produces around 2000 cases a year and sells nearly 100% from the winery. Mrs. Swedenburg, now in her late 70s, View more....

Village Winery; Waterford, Virginia - Saturday, August 13, 2005 Today we traveled through the Route 9 section of the Loudoun County Wine Trial. Our first stop was at Village Winery, which opened this summer for tasting. Before reaching the winery, we passed through the historic village of Waterford, once the 2nd largest town in Loudoun County and now a National Historic Landmark District. Once at the winery, you first notice the 160 year old barn that the proprietors plan to eventually use as a tasting center. Village Winery planted their first vineyard in View more....

Waterford Vineyards; Waterford, Virginia - Saturday, August 13, 2005 From Village Winery, we traveled back through Waterford and along a few dusty roads to reach Waterford Vineyards, another newcomer to the Virginia wine industry. Waterford planted their first grapes in late 2000 - early 2001 and opened their tasting room last year. Currently the tasting is conducted out of the owner’s private residence while their permanent tasting room is being renovated. Regardless of the tasting venue, your experience at the vineyard will not change because Waterford Vineya View more....

Windham Winery; Hillsboro, Virginia - Saturday, August 13, 2005 Our next stop along the Route 9 corridor of the Loudoun Wine Trail was Windham Winery. Windham is a perfect example how the Virginia Wine industry is transforming from a retail business to a leisure industry. Located on the east side of Short Hill Mountain, Windham provides a relaxing environment to sip wine amongst the ducks at their pond or on their deck gazing up at the mountain. In contrast to the newcomers on our first two stops, Windham has been producing award winning wines for a decade; View more....

Hillsborough Vineyards; Hillsboro, Virginia - Saturday, August 13, 2005 From Windham Winery, we traveled to another winery that provides an extremely comfortable environment: Hillsborough Vineyards. Hillsborough is located on the south side of Short Hill Mountain and provides amazing views of the valley to the Catoctin section of the Blue Ridge Mountains. In order to get to Hillsborough, you pass through another historic town, Hillsboro, whose claim to fame, is that it was the home of Susan Koerner, mother of Orville and Wilbur Wright. Upon arriving at Hillsboroug View more....

Breaux Vineyards; Hillsboro, Virginia - Saturday, August 13, 2005 Our next stop was at our Breaux Vineyards, which was hosting their annual Jazz Festival. Despite the stifling heat, a consistent stream of wine drinkers and jazz lovers arrived to hear local jazz artists and taste Breaux’s large selection of wine. We were looking forward to this visit since we have never been able to try Breaux’s wines primarily because at other festivals the lines at the Breaux tent were too long. Breaux is located on the west side of Short Hill Mountain (almost directly behind View more....

Loudoun Valley Vineyards; Waterford, Virginia - Saturday, August 13, 2005 Our last stop of the day was at Loudoun Valley Vineyards, which is actually located back in Waterford directly off Route 9. We arrived at the winery just in time for a combined happy hour – rush hour. It seems that half of the Route 9 traffic decided to visit at once. The vineyard’s staff quickly opened a second tasting area to accommodate the large horde of wine tasters. Part of the crowd was a group who had spent the day tubing around Harpers Ferry, then spent the evening relaxing on Loudoun View more....

Veramar Vineyard; Berryville, Virginia - Saturday, August 06, 2005 Relaxing… This was the consensus synonym to describe Veramar Vineyard. Located near the Shenandoah River and surrounded by the Blue Ridge Mountains, Veramar’s tasting room provides one of the prettiest and most scenic views of Virginia. Although the view is worth a visit in itself, Veramar production of extraordinary wines is also a powerful lure. In five years of operation, their wines have won 81 awards in international competition; mostly recently their 2003 Reserve Chardonnay won a medal View more....

Hinnant Family Vineyard; Pine Level, North Carolina - Sunday, July 10, 2005 While traveling along I-95 in North Carolina, we noticed signs for the Hinnant Family Vineyard and decided to pay the winery a visit. The winery is located in Pine Level, only three miles from I-95 so a detour will not disrupt any travel plans. Hinnant Family Vineyard is a father-son operation that maintains the largest muscadine vineyard in the state. The winery opened commercially in 2003 and derives a majority of their sales from I-95 traffic; although their wines are also available at retail View more....

Rosa Fiorelli Winery & Vineyard; Bradenton, Florida - Friday, July 08, 2005 From Fort Meyers, we traveled north to Sarasota and Bradenton in order to visit Rosa Fiorelli Winery & Vineyard. This winery is located about 12 miles east of I-75 in Manatee County, and worth every mile traveled; they have a large, excellent selection of very interesting wines. We broke our budget at this winery by purchasing a bottle of almost every type, so when visiting be forewarned. Rosa and Antonio Fiorelli started the winery from a handful of vines supplied from the beverage distributor View more....

Eden Vineyards; Alva, Florida - Wednesday, July 06, 2005 Today Wine-Compass visited Eden Vineyards a small family operated winery, located in Alva, Florida (about 10 miles east of Fort Meyers). Eden Vineyards is not only Florida’s oldest winery, but also it’s most southern. Eden Vineyards produces a small collection of wines made from hybrid vines initially created by the University of Florida to resist disease. Driving into Eden’s driveway, you notice a pleasant country setting, hidden from the road. The driveway circles around a pond and part of the View more....

Swingin' Blues Wine Fest; Linganore Wine Cellars - Sunday, June 26, 2005 The thought of seeing two of our favorite local bands (the Kelly Bell Band and the Nighthawks) appear at the same event lured us to Linganore Wine Cellars for their Swingin' Blues Wine Fest. What a treat. Linganore hosts several music festivals over the summer that include arts and craft vendors, food, and, of course, plenty of wine. Linganore produces a variety of very good grape and fruit wines and we enjoyed tasting all, from the dry Bacioni to the sweet Mountain White. The fruit wines are ma View more....

Elk Run Vineyards; Mt Airy, Maryland - Sunday, June 26, 2005 We took a break from Linganore’s Swingin' Blues Wine Fest to visit Elk Run Vineyards, another small family-run winery. And what a find. We concentrated on their dry reds and loved their Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon. The 2002 Elk Run Liberty Tavern Cabernet Sauvignon was the 2004 Gold winner of the Maryland Governors Cup. But the major discovery came while sampling their dessert wines: the Vin de Jus Glace and Lord Baltimore Port. The ice wine was both crisp and sweet; but the cabernet View more....

Loew Vineyards; Mt Airy, Maryland - Sunday, June 26, 2005 We took a break from Linganore’s Swingin' Blues Wine Fest to visit Loew Vineyards. Loew Vineyards is a small family-run operation and we are big fans of their Cabernet Sauvignon. We couldn’t miss the chance to try their other varietals. Today Loew was pouring their classic grape wines as well as their specialty wines such as Raspberry in Grape and Apples & Honey. The latter is similar to regular Mead – but refreshingly lighter. For the first time we tasted their selection of white wines and co View more....

Catoctin Winery; Brookville, Maryland - Sunday, June 05, 2005 Catoctin Winery is a perfect pit stop after a day of biking or fishing at the Triadelphia Reservoir. This small winery produces a large variety of outstanding wine. Their 1999 Cabernet Sauvignon was the recipient of the 2004 Governor's Cup, a state award for quality. In addition to the Cabernet Sauvignon, we also enjoyed their Riesling and Mer De Glace, a dessert wine. View more....

24th Annual Vintage Virginia Festival; Millwood, Virginia - Saturday, June 04, 2005 Wine-compass.com attended the 24th Annual Vintage Virginia wine festival at historic Long Branch Farm in Millwood Virginia. This is a great festival: well organized, excellent food, music, crafts, and most importantly, Virginia wine. Combine these ingredients with a very friendly crowd and you wind up with a terrific day. Although we normally prefer red wines, we used the hot weather as an excuse to concentrate on tasting refreshing whites. And Virginia provides plenty. We enjoyed for the firs View more....

Memorial Day Celebration; Tarara Winery, Virginia - Monday, May 30, 2005 Wine-Compass traveled to Leesburg, Virginia to visit Tarara Winery during their Memorial Day Celebration. Tarara Winery is located near the banks of the Potomac River and the winery is situated within a 6000 square foot cave. We were unable to walk the many trails to the river due to mid-afternoon rain, but were able to tour the wine-making facilities in the cave. For Memorial Day, Tarara supplied live music on their patio and sampling of their current releases for $5. The Meritage and Cabernet View more....

19th Annual Front Royal Wine Festival; Front Royal, Virginia - Saturday, May 21, 2005 Wine-compass.com visited historic downtown Front Royal to attend the city's 19th annual wine festival. 15 Virginia wineries particpated in the event. A few of the great wines we tasted were Stonewall Vineyard's Regiment, Stone Mountain Vineyard's Cabernet Franc Reserve, Horton Cellar's Rkatsiteli, and Cooper Vineyard's Sweet Louisa. We spent the remainder of the day eating crab cakes and enjoying a bottle of Oasis Dogwood Chardonnay while listening to the music of Souled Out. View more....

Wine in the Woods Festival; Columbia, Maryland - Sunday, May 15, 2005 Wine-Compass attended the Wine in the Woods festival and based on the attendence, the wine industry is thriving in Maryland. All Maryland wineries participated and each winery patiently served long lines of tasters. In many instance, the lines to purchase wine were longer than the tasting lines. The festival organizers also provided excellent food vendors as well as live jazz and blues music. Watching Deanna Bogart live is, in itself, worth the price of admission. After tasting several varieties View more....