This is a continuation of our B&B wine weekend (see previous post).  On Saturday after we had a wonderful breakfast and a nice mile walk, we headed out to visit more wineries around Orange, Virginia.  Our first stop was Blenheim Vineyards.  This is Rocker Dave Matthews’ winery.  I just got this email from the daily sip by bottlenotes yesterday and find it suiting to this post and where the title of this post came from.  😉

This winery has spectacular mountain views and a lovely deck off of it’s a frame shape.  It was our favorite of the 7 we visited this trip.

The lovely view from the deck.

Next up was Trump Winery, (yes owned by the Donald Trump) which is just down the road from Blenheim and was formerly Kluge Estate and Vineyards.  Wine tasting is done by flight.  This was something new to both Mitch and I.  Encyclo wine defines:

Tasting flight is a term used by wine tasters to describe a selection of wines, usually between three and eight glasses, but sometimes as many as fifty, presented for the purpose of sampling and comparison.

Glasses used in tasting flights are usually smaller than normal wine glasses, and they are often presented on top of a sheet of paper which identifies each wine and gives some information about each grape or vineyard. This format allows tasters to compare and contrast different wines.

An extended tasting will typically consist of several flights, each with a theme. For example, several wines from the same region and vintage would comprise a flight, or several wines from the same variety but different regions. It is typically the responsibility of the tasting organizer to select flights that offer maximum illumination of similarities and differences, while at the same time making sure the progression of flights is appropriate.

A tasting flight can be compared with wine by the glass, which is intended for drinking.

We sampled only three and the cost was quiet expensive, we thought.  $18 to sample just three!  The wine was okay but not worth the price.

There is a large patio just outside the tasting room (below) with a tasting bar and lots of tables.

Next, we stopped at First Colony.  This winery was super busy.  We managed to squeeze into a spot at the tasting bar.  We liked their whites but did not care much for their reds.

We thought the Groome Transportation van (right side of the pic) was a good idea and one we may use in a future wine trip.  😉

As the day went on taking pictures became……errr……..challenging for me.  Next we visited Jefferson Vineyards.

Info from their home page on their website:

Thomas Jefferson brokered the sale of our land to a Florentine Viticulturilist, Filipo Mazzei, inviting him to become his neighbor and to help in realizing Jefferson’s dream for the native production of wine in Virginia. First plantings of European vinifera varieties were in 1774 – in full view of Monticello. Unfortunately the Revolutionary War interrupted this venture and it was not until 1981 that planting vineyards here again regained favor.

Jefferson Vineyards is one of the first to introduce quality, modern viticulture to Virginia and at long last help realize Thomas Jefferson’s dream. Through thirty years of experience, this modest farm winery offers select wines of superior quality. We produce between 6000 and 8000 cases annually.

Also an interesting tid bit about the most expensive bottle of wine ever sold, which I am currently reading the book about (The Billionaires’ Vinegar).

After tasting wine at 5 wineries, we were wiped out and very hungry.  We grabbed a quick lunch at a local BB&Q before heading back to the B&B for a much needed nap.  🙂