On Sunday the wine club went to Breaux Vineyards. It was a beautiful day and Leah has already captured the mood of the afternoon very well.

After doing the tasting I grabbed a bottle of Chere Marie, which was a great match forthe sun and the conversation. I also grabbed a bottle of the Layfayette and can't wait to come up with a meal to match it. Pictures below:

Monticello Wine and Food Fesitival

Getting a jump on WWAs for this weekend: The Monticello Wine and Food Fesitival is this happening Saturday and Sunday. Advanced tickets are $15 and there will be 25 wineries present. The festival is at the intersection of 29 and 33 in Ruckerville. So, if you are going to be in Charlottsville this weekend make sure you stop by.

Bordeaux futures week recently passed. For those of you who could not be there in person JJ Buckley has a great video blog. Check it out.

The Great Grapes festival was a lot of fun. There were a number of nice wineries represented as well as the booths that usually follow the wineries. The festival was well-laid out and the lines were very short for the tastings.




Some highlights:

Lake Anna had an excellent 2004 Cabernet Franc. Very peppery with solid Earth tones, it was a great example of Virginia Cabernet Francs.

Peaks of Otter had two very unique wines. The first, called Chili Dawg is 97% Apple wine blended with 3% Chili Pepper wine. They serve it with a touch of Cheese Whiz and it really does taste like a Chili Dog. The second wine is not really a drinking wine, except on a dare. "Kiss the Devil" is made from 30 different Chili Peppers and it is H-O-T. This is really a spicy wine :). They have you follow it up with a shot of Apple wine just to cleanse your palette.

Veramar did not have their Cabernet Franc out, but they did have their Rooster Red, which is a light, well-balanced wine. Very enjoyable. They were also offering their famous mulled-wine, which was perfect for a drizzly afternoon.

I have not been very good with my WWAs lately, but with Spring and Summer upon us that will have to change.

This weekend's WWA is The Reston Great Grapes Festival held at Reston Town Center. Admission is $25 at the festival, $20 in advance. Wineries in attendance include: Rockbridge, Lake Anna, Peaks of Otter, Stone Mountain, Horton (how can such a big winery have such an ugly website?) and Veramar (I can't wait to pick up a bottle of their Cabernet Franc).

It looks like a lot of fun!

The second part of my trip to Indiana...

Saturday afternoon i visited Easley Winery in downtown Indianapolis (downtown being very loosely defined, it is about 10 blocks from the center of Indianapolis). Walking into a winery in the middle of Indianapolis was kind of strange. The building blended in with the other buildings in that part of town, if it weren't for the signage announcing the tastings I would have never known it was a winery.

The vineyards for Easley were first planted more than 35 years ago near the Ohio River in southern Indiana. The area where the grapes are grown appears to be conducive to a wide range of varietals. Easley offers a wide range of wines from Chardonnay and Vidal Blanc to Merlot and Concord.

There were a couple of standouts, their Reggae Red is made from Concord Grapes, which makes a sweet red that is easy to drink and very light. They also have a nice Chambourcin, a grape that I don't normally think of as a stand-alone wine, but this was pretty good.

The tasting room was nicely laid out and the people doing the pouring were very knowledgeable about their own wines as well as the local wine scene, which was nice.

That night we had dinner with my friend's parents where we shared a bottle of 2002 Brane Cantenac and a bottle of Christopher Creek Reserve Petite Sirah. I had not tried anything from Christopher Creek prior to this wine and I was very impressed. it was a fruity wine, slightly tannic with a long finish.

Bumpersticker I saw this morning, "Virginia makes wine, Napa makes auto parts"

It appears that Sonadora and Leah have not posted about last night yet, so I will attempt to go first. The wine club met at Piola's for happy hour and half-priced wine. I was intrgued by their house wine, Rosso Piola a blend of Merlot Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon. The blend was smooth and the wine was supple. It had hints of dark cherry and chocolate and was very easy on the palette. The wine went over so well that the group wound up sharing 3 bottles of it, in addition to individual glasses.

I am bummed that I was not able to grab a bottle on my way out. I'd love to know more about where the wine is grown and if it is their own vineyard or if they re-bottle someone else's.

Overall, the wine list was small, but large enough to complement the selection of food. The food itself was very good, and they have a large number of unique pizzas.

I promise the second round of my Indianapolis trip is coming soon. In the meantime check out Sonadora and Leah for thoughts on last night's wine club happy hour at Piola. I'll post more tonight.