My aunt, who is not a big drinker, wanted to visit a winery. She was actually more interested in the whole process, how the grapes grow, how the wine is made, bottling etc. Rather than try to fumble my way through something she would like, I contacted Virginia Wine Adventuress with a very specific request: We want a full tour of one vineyard.

Deidra and I exchanged several emails and we finally decided on Tarara, and we were not disappointed. We started the day off in the vineyard as Deidra explained where the different varietals were grown, how they are harvested, the steps the winemaker takes to ensure the vines are protected without endangering humans (to prove this point, she popped a grape off the vine and ate it :)).

The next step was the cave. I've been through the cave before, but Tarara has since closed it off to tours, Deidra managed to get us in and we got to watch some of the harvest being processed, which was very cool.

After the cave we did the standard tasting and then retired to the patio for a really nice lunch Deidra had prepared for us.

Overall, it was a great day and everyone had a lot of fun. I realize that our tour was not typical (in fact, next week when the wine group was at La Grange we ran into Deidra again, this time with a bride and her bridesmaids out on a tour), but it was still a lot of fun.