What We are Drinking - Italian Red from Puglia

The wine is Marchese di Borgosole Salice Salentino Riserva. It is from Puglia, Italy. We found it at Total Wines for about $13 and it turned out to be a great buy and a very nice wine. Of course with coupons, it can be bought for less.

Chris served it with salmon, asparagus, and Caesar salad. It was a perfect compliment to the meal.


The grape was a new one for us--we are closing in on about 300 different wine grapes. This one is the Negroamaro. According to wine searcher, Negroamaro is a dark-skinned grape variety that has been associated with the Puglia region in southern Italy for at least 1500 years. Most commonly found in a blend, alongside Primitivo, Malvasia Nera, Sangiovese or Montepulciano, Negroamaro is valued for its deep color, medium-full tannins and dark berryfruit flavors. The variety can also add earthen tones that can cross over into slightly medicinal flavors. It is mildly aromatic and can produce complex wines that show characteristics of ground brown spices such as clove, cinnamon and allspice.

The wine went very nicely with dinner and food. It was well balanced with just the right amount of complexity to compliment, but not overpower the food. 

We made a conscious decision to begin working through a variety of Italian wines before our upcoming trip to Italy. While we are more focused upon Tuscan wines for our trip, we picked up this red to give it a taste. And we were not disappointed. 

-- Bob And Chris Doan, Elkridge, MD

What We Are Drinking - Willamette Valley Vineyards Pinot Gris

During the cold winter months, people often turn their tastes towards full-bodied red wines to fight off the cold. But, sometimes there are good reasons to enjoy a nice white wine, even during the winter months. 

Willamette Valley Vineyards Pinot Gris is one of those wines that can stand upon to the cold by adding a splash of excitement to the tastebuds. The wine retails for about $17 per bottle--I have seen it advertised from $15.99 to $19.99. The 2017 vintage is still available in some areas, but the 2018 is the current vintage and more widely available. 

The wine makers notes for the 2018 vintage:

Aromas of nectarine, tangerine, lime zest and elderflower lead to a medium-bodied palate revealing fresh flavors of green apple, lychee, honeydew and pineapple. The wine features a beautiful balance between fruit flavors, refreshing acidity and a satisfying crisp, lingering finish.

So, don't be afraid to change things up and try a white, even during the winter months. It will bring some excitement to your palette.

-- Bob and Chris Doan, Elkridge, MD

Wine of the Week - August 23, 2017

We are going to revive our blog and do a better job documenting the wines that we enjoy. In addition to the vineyards and wineries we visit, we are going start designating a wine of the week.

The wine of the week is a 2009 Keswick Cabernet Sauvignon Estate Reserve. 

We chose this bottle because it is now 8 years old and we decided it should be at the peak of flavors.

It was, The color was a rich ruby with no hint of brown around the edges. It was clear and bright. The nose was rich with currants and dark fruit and hints of leather and oak. The mild mature tannins were a joy in the mouth and the wine was a complete mouth experience. It is such a pleasure to experience a mature wine with well rounded flavors.

This wine still has a few years left before it will be over the hill and that is why we lay wines down, so that we can experience truly good wines at the peak of their flavors!

-- Bob and Christina Doan, Elkridge, MD

3rd Annual Fauquier County Wine Tasting and Competition - Winner's

As an update to our blog about the Fauquier county Wine Tasting and Competition, the winners were announced and the list is presented below. It can also be found on the wine competition's Facebook site.

Congratulations to the winners.

Fauquier County’s Third Annual Wine Tasting & Competition attracted 500 wine connoisseurs and 14 local wineries to Airlie on Saturday, February 25th. Attendees tasted wine & food pairings and voted for their favorite wines in the "People's Choice" Competition. During the public event, three certified wine judges tasted those same wines, and voted for their own favorites.
THE RESULTS ARE....

....PEOPLE’S CHOICE AWARDS....

• BEST RED
Chateau O’Brien Winery
2012 Limited Reserve Tannat

• BEST WHITE
Blue Valley Vineyards
2015 Estate Sauvignon Blanc

• INDUSTRY/WINE BUYERS BEST
Blue Valley Vineyards

• BEST IN SHOW
Chateau O’Brien Winery
2012 Limited Reserve Tannat

....PROFESSIONAL COMPETITION....

• BEST IN SHOW
Chateau O’Brien Winery
2012 Chateau O’Brien Limited Reserve Tannat

• BEST WHITE WINE
Desert Rose Ranch Winery
2016 Desert Rose “Uncork the Cure” Cancer

• HONORABLE MENTION - BEST WHITE
Vint Hill Craft Winery
2015 Vint Hill Traminette

• BEST RED WINE
Chateau O’Brien Winery
2012 Chateau O’Brien Limited Reserve Tannat

• HONORABLE MENTION - BEST RED
Aspen Dale Winery
Non-vintage Parris Country Blend Merlot

• BEST ROSE’
Blue Valley Vineyard
2015 Blue Valley Rose’

-- Bob and Christina Doan, Elkridge, MD

3rd Annual Fauquier County Wine Tasting and Competition

From the Program for the
3rd Annual Fauquier County Wine Tasting
and Competition

For the second year in a row, we attended the now 3rd Annual Fauquier County Wine Tasting and Competition held at the beautiful Airlie Hotel and Conference Center in Warrenton, Virginia.

The Food in the Upper Ballroom

It was a beautiful mid-Springlike day at the end of February and the drive from near Baltimore was easy. 

Like last year, the venue is superb with two floors of the conference center devoted to the tastings. Coupled with two timed sessions, the crowd size is manageable and it was easy to visit the tables of each vendor and converse with the winemaker about their wines and experiences. 

Desert Rose Ranch & Winery
Uncork the Cure

The light food fare and music on each floor add to the ambiance and made for an enjoyable early afternoon. We attended the 12:30 -3:00 PM session. 

A nice selection of Fauquier County wineries and one cidery were represented. The wines showcased some of the best produced in Fauquier County. 

The wineries and cidery competing in the competition this year:

Anterra Wines
Aspen Dale Winery at the Barns
Barrel Oak Winery
Blue Valley Vineyard
Chateau O'Brien Winery
Cobbler Mountain Cellars
Desert Rose Ranch & Winery
Molon Lave Vineyards
Mountain Run Winery
Naked Mountain Vineyard
Narmada Winery
Pearmund Cellars
Philip Carter Winery
Vint Hill Craft Winery

One winery participated in the event, but did not have any wines in the competition: 

Effingham Manor Winery

The exciting part of the day was voting for our favorite red and white wines.

Limited Reserve Tannat
Chateau O'Brien
2011 Vintage Pictured

Our favorite white was Uncork the Cure a white blend from Desert Rose Ranch & Winery. With a price point of $22 this newly released wine, complete with a donation to a cancer society to be determined was light, bright and with good mineralogy and acidity.

The favorite red was the 2012 Limited Reserve Tannat from Chateau O'Brien. With a price point of $79, it is definitely not an everyday drinking wine. The wine was deep and dark. No light escaped. The layers of black fruit flavors rolled over the tongue with a silky texture and it had a nice long finish. 

As we write this, we have been unable to determine which wines actually won the competition. Hopefully they will be posted to the Facebook page soon.

We highly recommend this event and will definitely plan on attending the 4th Annual event next year.

-- Bob and Chris Doan, Elkridge, MD

Back on the Wine Trail

We have been away from blogging for a bit--but that does not mean that we have stopped drinking or appreciating wine. 

During 2016 we visited many new wineries and have made many great new friends--on both coasts. 

Breaux Vineyards
Waiting for Summer to Return

As we have been out, we have collected a great deal of information about wine and winemakers and are going begin getting the information published. 

Let us begin with our most recent adventure. Just the other day we accomplished a three winery excursion within one hour of our home near Baltimore, MD. 

For a fun afternoon of wine tasting we recommend:

Big Cork Vineyards in Rohrersville, Maryland
Maggie Malick Wine Caves in Purcellville, Virginia
Breaux Vineyards in Purcellville, Virginia

Important safety tip: 

During the winter months be sure to check to operating hours of the wineries and vineyards because they may not be open every day of the week and their hours may be reduced.

Black Cap Port

Big Cork Vineyards

Big Cork is, in our opinion, one of the very best vineyards in Maryland. They have a wide variety of wines and continually develop new blends to delight the palette. During our recent visit we found an exceptionally tasteful dessert style wine named Black Cap Port which won a double gold in the 2016 Maryland Governors Cup Competition and also won Best in Show. It was luscious and enjoyable and well worth the $46 per bottle price.  

From Big Cork, a short 20 minute drive brought us to the Loudon County, Virginia, wine region and we had time to visit two vineyards.  

Maggie Malick Wine Caves 

Maggie Malick Wine Caves was a delightful stop and an introduction to some very interesting wines. The tasting room also serves as the barrel room. The drive to the tasting room is, fortunately, well marked. While the tasting room is not as glamorous or elegant as either Big Cork or Breaux Vineyards, Maggie Malick's represents a hobby turned business that produces very nice wines. We tasted all 10 of the wines currently on the tasting sheet and were also treated to the 2014 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve which is just being released. The 2014 Cabernet Sauvignon is exceptional and represents some of the very best in Virginia wines. The price point for these wines is excellent and we found that the 2014 Melange Blanc was an exceptionally enjoyable wine and a great buy. 

Breaux Vineyards

Our final stop of the afternoon was at Breaux Vineyards, which is an exceptionally large and beautiful tasting room. Driving onto the property through the vineyards is an enjoyable experience even during the winter months when the vines are leafless. The scenic vista is enjoyable and we will definitely revisit the vineyard during the spring and summer months to enjoy the view and the outside seating. The wines are very enjoyable as well. We found a very nice Rose--the Equation, which was a delightful wine. The 2013 Heritage was the star of the tasting and it won a Gold Medal in the 2016 Virginia Governor's Cup competition.

For a winter holiday afternoon visiting wineries is a great way to capture that summertime feeling. We highly recommend getting out and doubt--weather permitting!

-- Bob and Christina Doan, Elkridge, MD

Saving the Grapes

Keswick Vineyards Preparing for the Cold

During our recent early April weekend to the Charlottesville, Virginia, area; home to the Monticello AVA, we discovered the extreme measures to which vineyards resort in an effort to save the vines in advance of freezing temperatures.

Fire Breathing Machine

All too often, we as wine drinkers forget that wine making is agriculture and as such the growers are subjected to the extremes of the environment and the weather. When adverse weather arrives, without intervention, the crop might be lost. That would be catastrophic for many wineries. In that case, desperate measures are adopted. 

Propane Windmill

Helo over Keswick Preparing for Nightfall

As oenophiles become more knowledgeable about the difficulties facing grape growers, we can appreciate the final product more and understand that great wine is neither an assured outcome nor an accident.

On the Battle Lines Combatting the Freeze

We want to thank Keswick Vineyards for giving us the insight into the hard work that it takes to try to protect the vines from frost damage. The owners and staff pulled a number of "all-nighters" as did the owners and staffs of many other wineries in the region to save the wines. 

We found it interesting that just 90 miles north, bud break had not occurred and the vineyards were not particularly worried about the cold weather. What a difference a few miles can make.

Hopefully the too cold weather is over and we will be able to enjoy some very nice 2016 vintage Monticello AVA wines in the future.

-- Bob and Christina Doan, Elkridge, MD