Make your Picnic Special with Amazing Food & Wine Pairing at TWABR

Its quite easy to pair food with wine even if you don't have fair knowledge of the same. You can look into the tasting notes available on the labels of most wines for that purpose. Taking consultation from a proficient sales person present at a winery or a wine shop will help you in a better way. As far as packing food for a picnic is concerned, you may know it better that what food you like and so may pack the same accordingly. However, you may never know which wine you may get to drink at the picnic, unless you are a regular visitor at our winery. 

You need not care a bit for your next picnic as we have arranged picnic-focused food along with wine pairing guide to make things easier for you. We have divided all the wines in categories - reds, all whites, acidic whites, softer whites, and dessert/sweet wines. Merlot, Norton, Petit Verdot, and Meritage Reserve are the wines forming the Red category. Its good to pair protein based food like prosciutto, chicken, sausage, salami, and turkey with our reds. It might prove to be a protein heavy lunch for you. However, you will find that the fat in the meat complements nicely with our reds. 

Our Delaney, Pinot Gris, Petit Manseng form the acidic whites and are most suited with nuts and fruits. The wine taste is enhanced due to the acid contained in dry fruit. As for cheese, the creamier cheese & spreads will be quite suitable with the acidic whites. Our softer whites, Viognier and Chardonnay feature fruit & oak flavors and a less acidic nature. Breads, crackers and sharper cheese will pair quite well with these two. Any of our offered white wines pairs exceptionally well with hummus. The savory flavor of hummus enhances the flavors in white to a good extent. Fish, chicken dishes, and cold shrimp are some of the other protein based food pairing best with our whites. 

Our dessert & sweet wines category includes the Fort NV and Classic Blueberry. A port-like wine, Fort NV features vanilla, chocolate and dark fruit flavors. Chocolates & nuts form the best pairing with Fort. However, there are two other amazing matches for Fort that include chocolate or vanilla pudding and crunchy popcorn. The tasty flavors and creaminess of pudding bring out the best flavors in the Fort too. Similarly, our Classic Blueberry tastes best with brownies and chocolate chip cookies. You can enjoy this amazing food-wine pairing when you visit TWABR for your picnic. When you visit our winery, you can also get the opportunity to take tour of the best VA vineyards. So, come and join us at the winery.

Wine Making at TWABR is Somewhat Different From the Traditional Methods

Over the past centuries, the wine making process has not changed much. In the early 1600s, Virginia's first settlers tried cultivating grapes and followed a specific wine making process. Its only in terms of sophistication that the wine making process has changed these days, the basic process yet remains the same. As for the wine making process followed at TWABR, our grape stomping process is different from the one followed in the old days. We de-stem and then crush the grapes in our clean wine cellar. Further,we remove the stems from fruit and then place it in big size T bins. 

In these bins, the grape undergoes fermentation process and after some weeks, proper separation of skin and seeds occurs. Separated skin & seeds fall to the bottom of bin. After completion of this process, wine is clarified in a stainless steel tank and finally moved to the French Oak barrels where aging takes place. Its almost for a year that our Red wines age in the barrels. It simply means that the grapes harvested in a particular year are available for tasting the next year. When sufficient aging has occurred, the Red wine is ready for being bottled. Further, the wine is poured in attractive bottles carrying the TWABR logo. 

Merlot and Norton varieties of grape are extensively used for production of tasty wine. A wine grape used for varietal wines as well as blending, Merlot features a dark blue color. Wines made using Merlot are normally medium bodied and have hints of currant, plum and berry. Some of the most highlighted features of this grape are its softness and tendency to ripe early. Its on account of these features that Merlot is the preferred grape for blending with Cabernet Sauvignon, a later-ripening grape variety. As for Norton, this grape variety was grown for the first time in Richmond. Dr. Daniel Norton is credited with the development of this grape variety. 

Norton variety features a typical deep blue-purple color and red juice. Its naturally red juice enables making a wine that is jammy, fruit forward and has high content of anthocyanins. You will find our Norton wine to be quite rich & balanced in terms of taste & composition. Tastings are conducted on a daily basis in our nicely decorated tasting room. We charge a tasting fee of $12 that includes 9 tasty Virginia wines. Our winery is also the perfect site for arranging wine festivals in Virginia and so you have the liberty to participate in the organized festivals as per your convenience.

Going Back in Time to Know the Rich History of Norton Grape

Many people must be aware of the fact that Thomas Jefferson failed in his attempt to establish a vineyard at Monticello. However, many previous attempts from other people to plant vineyard in this new place didn’t succeed either. Virginia's wine producing history dates backs to the year 1619. In this year, Act 12 was passed by the the Virginia House of Burgesses. Under this act, each head in every household was supposed to plant ten wines and to attain the vineyard dressing experience.

After facing & recovering from a devastating period in life, Dr. Richard Norton managed to experiment in his home garden by cross-breeding a European grape vine with a wild American vine. Dr. Norton's experiment created the first grape that was able to grow successfully and also produced a tasty wine. As the news of Dr. Norton's experiment spread, people took deep interest in planting Norton grape all over the place. The extraordinary variety also bagged award at a wine competition held in Paris. 

Norton grape plantation was quite prevalent in Missouri before it got prohibited which further resulted in demolition of Norton grapes vines. In the 1990s, Dennis Horton, one of the preeminent winemakers of VA, brought Norton back from Missouri to Virginia. In an endeavor to tell the story behind Norton, we at TWABR brought the original plantings from Missouri to our property, when we opened. The people working at Monticello ate all the grapes produced at the location. 

Jefferson was told that the vines failed. However, the reason for the same is not yet clear. Quite possible that the people said so as they felt bad for consuming all the grapes or may be they produced really awful wines. Jefferson was quite similar to George Washington as he kept serving his country for a long time. Monticello is located on a large hill's top that offered him an ideal location. However, Jefferson's rootstock didn't work fine with the available soil & weather conditions. 

You will definitely like to try Norton after becoming aware of its rich history. At The Winery at Bull Run, we present to you heart-winning Norton wine that will impress you to the core. You can relish tasty wine and can also plan an event of your choice by contacting our event management team. Among the several birthday, wedding sites in VA, TWABR holds a special place due to the relaxing ambiance it offers to guests. So, you can make a booking at our winery without thinking twice.