IN THIS NEWSLETTER...
VIP Pickup Party... at the ADC
Creative Mankind Painting and Wine
First Friday (September)
Report from the Tasting Room
Report from the Vineyard
Report from the Cellar
Report from the Farm
Note from Jenni
VIP PICKUP PARTY…
at the AG DISTRICT CENTER
Saturday, August 11th
7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
at The Ag District
(RSVP REQUIRED)
With all the craziness that comes with the spring and early summer at the Ag District, new wine releases and the focus on preparing our bread oven for production we really haven't put enough attention on making our loyal customers aware of our other new product.... CHEESE!!! Yes, after years of planning, building, and testing, our sister company, Locksley Farmstead Cheese Company, is now producing artisan cheeses from our own farm fresh milk. You may have noticed our first release, Friar Tuck, in the retail refrigerator. Friar Tuck is a spreadable fromage blanc similar to cream cheese. It is available plain or incorporated into spreads that are produced in our kitchen. Last month we released our Maid Marian, a camembert-style cheese that is simply delicious. Rich, creamy and intensely flavorful it has quickly become a favorite among staff and customers alike. Our Nottingham, a Gouda, is just about finished aging and will be released soon. Those of us that have been allowed to do "taste tests" can't wait for it to be available for sale. So... next time you are at the Ag District don't forget to try some cheese.... the most recent addition to our farm to table vision!
Don't forget.... we have live music at the Ag District Center every Saturday from 2:00-5:00 pm (August 4th, 11th, 18th, and 25th). Chrysalis Vineyards wine and live music... no better way to spend a summer day!
Remember to check out our website at ChrysalisWine.com. It's full of great information about Chrysalis Vineyards and the Ag District Center and for those of you who don't have time to get out for a visit, now you can purchase your favorite Chrysalis Vineyards wines online!
Our VIP Pickup Party this month will be held on August 11th from 7:00 pm until 9:00 pm (Please note the time!). This event is FREE for our members (2 attendees per membership), but does REQUIRE advance RSVP no later than August 8th. To RSVP please send an email to VIP-Club@ChrysalisWine.com. Verbal RSVP’s and voice mail responses cannot be guaranteed confirmation.
IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT FOR OUR VIP CLUB MEMBERS
Chrysalis Vineyards' Annual VIP Appreciation Party will be held on September 15th from 7:00 pm to 10:00 pm. Reserve the date on your calendars and watch for details in next month's newsletter!
Our spring and summer hours began on April 1st and we are open 10am - 6pm Monday through Thursday and 10am - 7pm Friday through Sunday. Please remember… as always, our last full tasting will start an hour before closing. Last call for purchases of open bottles or glasses will be 30 minutes before closing!
The red wine selection for our VIP Club members this month is Chrysalis Vineyards 2015 Rubiana. The 2015 vintage is a blend of 50% Tinta Cão, 30% Fer Servadou, and 20% Norton. Rubiana opens with notes of violets, cranberry, cherry and pepper. Sour cherry, cranberry, rose petals and violets, and pepper follow and pair with medium tannins, tobacco and dark chocolate, making this an very food-friendly blend. Try it with an entrée of venison roast or a dark chocolate based desert.
Our white wine selection for August is Chrysalis Vineyards 2016 Viognier. Viognier is Chrysalis Vineyards flagship white and is produced with 100% Viognier, the state grape of Virginia. The immediate impression is of a mélange of white flowers - orange blossoms, wisteria and lily of the valley - with a definite undercurrent of white pear. Upon gustation, peach comes to the forefront, along with notes of citrus and limoncello, a touch of honey, and vanilla. Our Viognier will pair perfectly with a nice round of Locksley Farmstead Cheese Company's Maid Marion, a camembert-style cheese made right here at the Ag District!
As a reminder to our members, all VIP wine is available for pickup at the Ag District Center tasting room anytime during regular business hours. If you can’t make it out to pick up your wines on a monthly basis, we will hold them for you. Due to storage limitations, however, we do ask that you pick them up once you accumulate a case (6 months). We can also arrange for wine to be shipped to most locations, at your request.
Also, please remember that you can always find your paired recipes and detailed tasting notes at www.ChrysalisWine.com in the Private VIP Club Area. Pairings and tasting notes are available for wines dating all the way back to 2007 (especially useful for any of those with older, aged vintages). Also check in with us or follow us on Facebook for updates and announcements.
NOTE: Please do not reply to this emailed Newsletter. Your email will not be handled in a timely manner or may even be lost.
Creative Mankind Painting and Wine
Saturday, August 11th
1 pm – 4 pm
at the
Ag District Center
39025 John Mosby Highway
Middleburg, VA 20117
Creative Mankind will be hosting a “paint and sip” event at Chrysalis Vineyards on Saturday, August 11th. (From their website: Creative Mankind is an art company that offers art classes and hosts parties and events for all ages. Our motto is “Everyone is a Creative Genius!” It's just a matter of people reconnecting with their creative self. Our mission is to enrich our community with art education and culture in a fun and accessible way.)
So... beat the heat and spend a fun afternoon laughing, listening to music, creating your own masterpiece, and sipping your favorite Chrysalis Vineyards wine! This 3 hour event is just $40 and includes all art supplies, an awesome staff, and a lot of fun. No experience is necessary. For additional information please contact Creative Mankind at 571-403-1912 or go to their website listed below. [Editor's Note: cut and paste this long link if it doesn't activate by clicking on it. Thanks.].
https://sites.cimplebox.com/events/registration.aspx?s=5329&c=3146&eid=411071&r=0.2129513
First Friday
Friday, September 7th
6 pm – 9 pm
at the
Ag District Center
39025 John Mosby Highway
Middleburg, VA 20117
Have you been looking for that fun Friday activity? First Fridays will include gallery walks of local artists in the Northern Virginia area, and will occur every first Friday of the month. "First Fridays” started as events in 1987 that provided urban professionals an opportunity to socially network and share ideas on professional, educational, political and social issues. Since then, First Fridays have evolved into social meetups focused around the community and its artists, bringing together all walks of life. Our debut First Friday event will be on September 7th, from 6pm-9pm. We will have live music and food and wine available for purchase, so grab some friends and come out to enjoy an evening of great wine while supporting our local artists.
REPORT FROM THE TASTING ROOM
This month's Report from the Tasting Room comes from one of our veteran Tasting Room Associates, Hannah O'Hara.
After successfully finishing my first year of college as a film student at Virginia Commonwealth University’s School of the Arts, I have had the pleasure of returning to Chrysalis Vineyards for my third summer. It is so nice to be back at The Ag District, enjoying the beautiful sunflowers that have bloomed at the entrance as well as partaking in trying the new cheeses and wines that have come out this summer, including our newest release... Chrysalis Vineyards 2017 Tximeleta.
Tximeleta is a small-batch wine that we first produced back in 2014, but did not produce again until the 2017 vintage. It is a delicate rosé made from 100% percent Fer Servadou. It has a beautiful color similar to pink peonies, and tastes crisp and bright like a salted watermelon with hints of honey suckle, perfect for the warm summer days in Northern Virginia. Tximeleta pairs perfectly with Maid Marian, a camembert-style cheese produced right here on the farm. I personally love to enjoy a glass of Tximeleta on my grandparents' front porch in Round Hill, with a big bowl of strawberries, and a stunning late July sunset in the sky.
For now, Tximeleta is only available to our loyal VIP Club members. Our club members always have access to newly released wines before we release them to the public. Some of our small-batch wines are so popular with our members that we never get to release them to the public! Just another reason to join the club!
We look forward to seeing you all in the Tasting Room soon! Cheers!
Hannh O'Hara, Tasting Room Associate
REPORT FROM THE VINEYARD
Okay. Just stop! Enough already. I know I promised a couple of months ago that the rain we had been having would go away at some point, and it did, for awhile. In July we experienced an extended stretch of stifling heat and humidity and many dry days in a row. But as I sit here writing this that is only a fond memory. Intense periods of heavy rainfall have returned. And at a most inopportune time. We are currently entering veraison and the grapes are still especially susceptible to all the major fungal disease that can destroy what we have been vigilant in trying to stave off for the last several months, what with all the rain we experienced in May and June. Veraison is the time of year when the grapes enter the last phase before harvest. Berries began to change color-green/yellow/maybe even pinkish for Whites, and red/purple/black for the Reds. There now begins a massive increase in the amount of sugar in the fruit, which will eventually be converted into ethyl alcohol in the cellar. There is also a massive decrease in the total acidity in the berries, as malic and other organic acids in the grapes are converted into other compounds which fill out many of the sensory characteristics we end up finding in the finished wines. All of this requires extended periods of sunshine and warm weather. And those are things that don’t appear in the extended forecast.
Mark Patterson, Winemaker
REPORT FROM THE CELLAR
It’s all about the upcoming harvest in August. Despite all of the rain we experienced in May & June, and again with the rain we’re experiencing in late July, I still anticipate that our first grapes will be brought in before the month is done. Of course, this will be the Albariño for our perennial favorite Albariño Verde! We currently have an excellent crop of this Galician grape but the weather is a concern. The Albariño grape has relatively thick skins, which can sometimes lead to some bitterness in the finished wine, but it is unusually susceptible to Downy Mildew in the Mid-Atlantic Region. Humid and damp weather provide the perfect conditions for this fungus to take hold and devastate a crop even at this time in the growing season, which we are working to avoid. As it stands, I am hoping to be able to devote a sizeable portion of the crop to the production of Albariño Verde in the cellar, as it has become one of our best sellers, and for good reason, in the relatively short period of time we have been producing it at Chrysalis Vineyards. Fingers crossed that the current monsoon won’t negatively impact the further development of this grape. I know I want more!
Mark Patterson, Winemaker
REPORT FROM THE FARM
Hi Friends ! --
Those of us keeping up with current events are probably aware of the movement popular among mothers today that strives for lactation awareness and freedom. As lactation specialists, I fully believe the organizers of this movement have an untapped base of support among all dairy farmers and I would like to take a moment to piggyback on their enthusiasm with a bit of education about a dairy cow’s lactation cycle.
First, a cow must give birth (a.k.a. “come fresh”) in order to begin lactation. Most lactation cycles are around 305 days. Cows will rapidly increase milk production from birth to a peak at around three months post calving. During this period we attempt to rebreed cows in order reset the cycle with another calf every 365 days. After lactation peaks, milk production slowly declines until the cow is “dried off” 60-80 days prior to the next calf being born. This allows mammary tissue to rest and regenerate, and for the cow and her growing calf’s nutritional needs to be met. Grazing management, supplementation, reproductive management, herd health and many other factors must come together like clockwork for everything to happen year after year.
I’m not sure if this educational piece makes our readers more able supporters of the lactation movement at large, but I do hope that next time you come out to eat some cheese you have a healthy respect and awareness for the love and effort that goes into bringing you the best!
Eric Hilgartner, Estate Manager
Over the years I’ve had what I thought were some pretty cool ideas that I often shared with you, but which, for one reason or another, never happened, or at least happened in a different way than I originally planned (e.g. – finding a “sister” winery in the UK that that we could swap wines with, and bring a sparkling wine into our fold. Well, instead, we made a sparkling wine: Buttorfleoge). But anyway, the truth of the matter is that that embarrasses me, and I apologize. It’s part of my core psyche to do what I say I’m going to do, but sometimes the time and resources just don’t muster without creating bigger problems than those they solve. Farming is a very challenging endeavor.
On the flip side of this coin is something I’m exceedingly proud of, which is the coming to fruition, after many years of forced delays and barriers, to bring artisan cheese and bread to you, our friends and customers. From all quarters, we’re receiving praise for our first cheeses; Maid Marian (Camembert), Friar Tuck (fromage blanc) and soon to be released, Nottingham (made in the Gouda style). (You get it, right?... Locksley Estate… Robin and his merry men and women?).
Think about it… where else can you come to one place, smack dab in the middle of some of the prettiest land on earth, to enjoy outstanding handcrafted wines, cheeses and breads, all produced on the same land by the same team of dedicated artisans. I don’t know of any other. Let me know if you do.
Come share this with us. YOU are what make all our hard work so worthwhile. Thank you for your continued support.
Jennifer McCloud
Chrysalis Vineyards at The Ag District
39025 John Mosby Highway (Tasting Room)
23876 Champe Ford Road (Winery/Offices)
Middleburg, VA 20117
McCloud@ChrysalisWine.com
Office: 540-687-8222
www.ChrysalisWine.com
Facebook.com/ChrysalisVineyards