Sunday, February 17, 2019

Out On the Wine Trail




Big Cork Tasting Room
February 16, 2019
Yesterday was a day to get get back out onto the Wine Trail. Chris and I joined with friends and drove about an hour west of where we live to the wine region of Maryland and Northern Virginia. The specific places we went were very close to the Antietam battlefield. We have been to the battlefield on a couple of occasions, but yesterday was devoted to wine and wine tasting. 

James Britton on the Guitar
Big Cork Winery
February, 16, 2019
We visited Big Cork Winery. We enjoy visiting Big Cork and we had a wine shipment to pick up. As members of the wine club we get to visit and pick-up our periodic shipment then enjoy tasting the wines and, like yesterday, listen to some live music. James Britton was playing the guitar. We bought a bottle of wine to enjoy with the lunch we had packed. We enjoyed live music as we drank wine and ate lunch. What could be better?

From there, we visited two other wineries, both in Loudoun County, Virginia, that we had not yet visited. The first was Doukenie Winery. We had a very enjoyable visit there tasting some very nice wines. Scrolling through the list of the recent Virginia's Governor's Cup Gold Medal winners we found one of Doukenie's wines listed there which we were able to sample. The winery is situated on a beautiful lake and even though it was February, the scene was pleasant. I  enjoyed the conversation around the fire pit after the tasting. 
Doukenie Winery
February 16, 2019

The final winery of the day before returning home was Two Twisted Posts. Another very enjoyable stop where we enjoyed the tasting room and the pourer at least as much as the wines. And we enjoyed the wines, bringing a few home to add to our collection. As the sun began to set over the vineyards it was time to make our way back home. Fortunately the drive home was made short due to the conversation among the four of us in the vehicle. It is amazing how quickly time passes when we are engaged in discourse.

During the day, I was reminded that winemaking is an art form. The winemaker is presented with the raw materials--grapes, which are different each year because of the weather and the season. The challenge is to turn the raw material into great drinking wines. Yet, it is not a mechanical endeavor because the process requires talent and artistry to create the perfect drinking wine.

-- Bob Doan, Elkridge, MD

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