AUGUST NEWSLETTER 2024
IN THIS NEWSLETTER...
VIP Wines of the Month
Report from the Tasting Room
Report from the Cellar
Report from the Vineyard
Report from Locksley Farmstead Cheese
Note from Jenni
The heat rages on, but at Chrysalis Vineyards, our cool, refreshing wines are here to quench your thirst! From crisp Albariño Verde and aromatic Viognier to our delightfully refreshing Tximeleta rosé, we have a selection of chilled wines perfect for cooling off and enjoying the summer. Explore our offerings and find your new favorite for those warm, sunny days.
AUGUST MUSIC LINEUP:
August 3rd - Luke Andrews
August 4th - Robbie Límon
August 10th - Andrew Renner
August 17th - Melanie Pearl
August 24th - Anthony Semiao
August 31st - Joe Martin
*Reminder: During our Summer Music Series enjoy music at Chrysalis Vineyards every Saturday (and the occasional Sunday) from 2-5 PM.*
August Events:
August 18th - Wings & Wine (For all ages)
Join us at Chrysalis Vineyards for Wings & Wine on August 18th from 2-3 PM! Enjoy a butterfly release and wine experience with a talk by the Glass House Butterfly Farm about the importance and life cycle of butterflies.
Two ticket options:
- Wings & Wine (21+): Includes a flight of wine, event entry, a butterfly for release, and the opportunity to watch a mass release of 24 butterflies.
- Just Wings: For children, adults under 21, or those who prefer not to drink. This ticket includes event entry, a butterfly for release, and the opportunity to watch a mass release of 24 butterflies. (If this ticket is for a child, a parent or guardian must be present for the entire event.)
To purchase your ticket(s) today, click HERE.
August 29th - Book Club (For Adults 21+ ONLY)
Join us at Chrysalis Vineyards on Thursday, August 29th, from 5 - 6 PM for Book Club! This gathering will occur on the last Thursday of every month and is completely free to attend. If you haven't read the book beforehand, don't fret! Come for the discussion and stay for the announcement of the next book to read so that you can join in on the fun.
Interested in attending? Email Jill.Smedley@TheAgDistrict.com.
NOTE TO OUR VIP CLUB MEMBERS
We invite our VIP club members to join us on August 9th for an Albariño & Small Bites Pairing Pick-Up Party! Enjoy delicious small bites prepared by our own Chef Erik Foxx, of the Polished Foxx at The Ag District, paired with your favorite Albariño wines from Chrysalis Vineyards. Members must RSVP no later than August 6th by emailing TR-Manager@ChrysalisWine.com. Please include your name, number attending (up to 2 per membership), and preferred time (5:00 PM or 6:30 PM). When planning your visit, please remember that we close at 8:00 pm.
Not a VIP Club member yet?
Learn more about the benefits below and join the club today!
This month, our VIP Club members will enjoy the 2022 Private Reserve White as their white wine selection. This vintage of Private Reserve White is bursting with aromas of orange blossoms, white flowers, and coconut with delightful notes of stone fruit on the palate. This wine is the perfect chilled white to quench your thirst in this balmy August heat.
The red wine selection for our VIP Club members this month is the 2021 Barrel Select Norton. Our Barrel Select Norton has aromas of purple flowers, clove, and blackberries with notes of black current, mocha, and plum on the palate. This wine remains the truest example of Virginia's grape aged in Virginia's very own oak.
Cheers to another month of extraordinary wines for our extraordinary VIP Club members!
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.
NOTE: Please do not reply to this emailed Newsletter. Your email will not be handled in a timely manner or may even be lost.
REPORT FROM THE TASTING ROOM
HOT! HOT! HOT! The heat is on and we have the remedy!
How about a nice, chilled glass of white wine?
Join us in celebrating National White Wine Day on Sunday, August 4th! To mark this special occasion, we are offering an exclusive White Wine Flight for $15 per person for the general public, and complimentary for our VIP Members. This special tasting flight will be available on both Saturday, August 3rd, and Sunday, August 4th. Come and enjoy a curated selection of some of the finest white wines around in honor of National White Wine Day!
The flight will be the following wines:
2022 Albariño Verde
Aromas: Banana, Pineapple, Citrus
Palate: Lemon Rind. Lime Zest, Grapefruit
2022 Albariño
Aromas: Honeydew, Pineapple, Grapefruit
Palate: Nectarine, Citrus Fruit, Yellow Peaches
2022 Viognier
Aromas: Tropical fruit, Tangerine, White Flowers
Palate: Ripe Peaches, Sweet Kumquat, Mango
2021 Sarah’s Patio White
Aromas: Honey Suckle, Tropical Fruit
Palate: Melon, Yellow Peaches
We hope that you will join us and enjoy any of our white wines while listening to our delightful lineup of musicians!
*Pavillion Rentals - Consider renting one of our beautiful pavilions and spending an afternoon at Chrysalis Vineyards to enjoy our wines, cheeses from Locksley Farmstead Cheese Company, and our picturesque views. Every occasion calls for some delicious food to make it memorable, and the Polished Foxx at The Ag District is here to assist you in choosing the perfect options. Our pavilions are located in family-friendly areas, so children are welcome as well. Our weekend Outdoor Bar is now open on Saturdays and Sundays (weather dependent) for flights, glasses, and bottles. This bar is located conveniently next to the pavilions for easy access for your guests.
Email TR-Manager@Chrysaliswine.com to rent your pavilion today!
*Events - Our team is working hard to put together events that you'll love, so stay up to date on all the happenings at Chrysalis Vineyards with our event calendar!
*Large Groups – We're ready to make your visit sensational! So, mark your calendars and set the date because it's time to visit us at Chrysalis Vineyards! Remember to reach out to us – TR-Manager@Chrysaliswine.com - when you’re coming to visit with a group larger than 8 ppl.
- Lori Tate, Tasting Room Manager
REPORT FROM THE VINEYARD
Last month I said it was hot and guess what? It’s actually hotter. Despite the heat, the vines are doing fine thanks to our irrigation system. We are on the cusp of harvest and it’s certainly looking to be a great one.
The growing season began with cooler temperatures, weekly rains, and windy days—conditions that are ideal for disease pressure. However, thanks to our vineyard crew’s hard work, there has been zero disease presence. In fact, I’m excited to tell you that as of this newsletter, we have sprayed only three times and are projecting just two more sprays.
I would love to say we are doing great things and we’ve cracked the code to growing perfect fruit but, in truth, the present heat, lack of rain, and heavy evening winds has helped us reduce the number of sprays. It’s just too hot and too dry for even the diseases to do anything! Things like black rot, downy mildew, and powdery mildew actually require temperatures less than 92 degrees to grow. In order for them to move around, they actually need moisture and a bit of air movement.
These current growing conditions mean we are on track for an early harvest, which is great because we are all anxious to get started. The overall fruit quality is looking to be exceptional with potential for elevated alcohols this year. This is because the fruit will lack a bit of water content preventing dilution of sugar. I’m not sure I’ve ever heard anyone complain about more alcohol though.
Every year, the vineyard crew works a little harder, learns a few more techniques and evolves their quality of work. We certainly appreciate them continuing their excellence in this heat.
- Jake Blodinger, Winemaker
REPORT FROM THE CELLAR
In my previous report, I mentioned that we had a roundtable involving other Norton producers throughout the state. We tasted several Norton wines, each one unique and exciting. This wasn’t just a roundtable, though; it was the gathering of many great Virginia producers gathering to discuss Norton and its future…
If you have been paying attention to our social media, you have probably seen the announcement of the Norton Network. This is a group of producers and advocates focused on elevating the quality of Norton wine and finding exciting ways to put those wines in your hands.
To do this, we have put together a Norton Wine Tour that will showcase all the great producers of Norton wine throughout Virginia. These wineries will host their own Norton Day event or a weekend Norton promotion highlighting their Norton wine(s) and the story behind it. We want to pull back the curtain and show you the people behind those wines and their passion to create a sensational wine utilizing Virginia’s native gem. We're going to introduce you to producers that are new, producers that you know, and show you the history and versatility of Norton.
The tour will be broken up over 4 weekends starting October 18th and go until the weekend of November 10th. Each weekend will feature different clusters of wineries in different parts of Virginia giving you the opportunity to explore a part of our beautiful state that you may not have explored before while enjoying some of the finest wines around. We want you to bring your friends, your families, or just yourself to these exceptional producers and try their Norton wine.
There are even more exciting things planned and many more announcements to come. At the end of the day, our mission has always been about the homecoming of Virginia’s native gem and this is one more step in showcasing one of the finest varieties in the world.
- Jake Blodinger, Winemaker
REPORT FROM LOCKSLEY FARMSTEAD CHEESE COMPANY
July and August are the traditional vacation months when everyone escapes the heat to cool off at beaches and pools. Unfortunately, the girls in our dairy herd don’t get vacation time so we have to find other ways to keep them cool during these crazy heat waves.
On some farms you might see the cows wading into a farm pond to cool off. Here at Locksley Estate our waterways, Hungry Run, Little River, and the small springs and streams that run into them, are all part of the Chesapeake Bay watershed, so we take extra care to protect the water quality. All of our streams are fenced to prevent the cows from wading in them. This keeps them from increasing erosion by destroying the banks and introducing bacteria from urine and manure into the waterway. Our waterways have been tested by the Goose Creek Association and have proven to be some of the cleanest streams in Loudoun County!
Since our cows can’t go for a swim, we have large fans that keep the air moving in the barn as well as water misters that help to lower the air temperatures as much as 10˚F. After the early morning milking they like to retreat to the shade and cool off in the mist.
The high summer temperatures affect our milk production, as well. The heat stress that our herd experiences generally reduces the volume of milk that the cows produce and also decreases the fat and protein content. This doesn’t affect the quality of our delicious farmstead cheeses, but it does lower the yield. When our cows are on fresh spring grass and the temperatures are more comfortable we can get as much as 12% yield when making our Little John Cheddar (12 lbs. of cheese from 100 lbs. of milk).
As the summer heat creates stress in the cows, our yield goes down to around 10-10.5% for the same cheese. The other notable difference that we see at this time of the year is the color of the milk. The carotenes in the spring grass create a rich golden color in the milk. When the grass dries in the heat the milk tends to be a much brighter white color. While this does affect the color of the cheese somewhat and can create some slight seasonal changes in flavor, it still produces delicious cheese year-round.
When you’re heading to your favorite vacation spot this summer, don’t forget to stop by The Ag District to pick up some Locksley Farmstead Cheese and Chrysalis Vineyards wine to enjoy while you’re relaxing!
- Teri Scott, General Manager
Obviously, the depth of summer is the perfect time of year to enjoy refreshing white wines. And, IMHO, the king of crisp and refreshing white wines is the Albariño. This noble grape is the ultra-premium white grape of Spain, grown in the humid northwest region of Galicia, the entire length of which is butted up against the Atlantic Ocean. We’re proud to have established the first planting of Albariño in the United States (and maybe the Americas… I’m not sure.)
If you’ll recall, in my Note from Jenni from our May, 2024 newsletter, I wrote of the passing of Alan Kinne, my friend and mentor, who introduced me to the Albariño grape. “Many of you have heard me talk about my trips to Spain and Portugal in the mid ‘90s, where I was introduced to the fantastic Albariño grape. It was Alan Kinne I traveled with and whose lead I followed.” Every time I open a bottle of Albariño, I’m reminded of Alan and his significant contributions to not only Virginia wines, but American wines, in general. Thanks again, Alan.
Anyway, I keep a constant supply of Albariño Verde, Albariño Reserve and Farfalla (sparkling Albariño) in my refrigerator. (Poor Jake Blodinger is constantly being asked to bring cases of these wines to the Manorhouse for my “family wine”, which is an actual entry in the report form from the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, or TTB as we call it, the entity that collects the excise taxes on our “vices”).
Galicia has an unusual climate for Spain. Much of Spain is characterized by hot, dry summers, but because of the oceanic influence of the Atlantic, Galicia is much like Virginia in summertime. Perfect for a refreshing white grape that has naturally developed resistance to the mildews and fungi that thrive in warm, humid environments. Consequently, Albariño remains the “cleanest” fruit throughout the growing season (with the exception, of course, of Norton which is THE most disease-resistant bunch grape in the world). This great grape produces fresh, crisp and fruity white wine that reminds one of the cool breezes that come in off the ocean. Delicious and perfect for this time of year!
Come and get it!
Take Care,
Jennifer McCloud
Chrysalis Vineyards at The Ag District
39025 Little River Turnpike (Tasting Room/Creamery/Kitchen)
23876 Champe Ford Road (Winery/Milking Center/Offices)
Middleburg, VA 20117
McCloud@ChrysalisWine.com
Office: 540-687-8222
www.ChrysalisWine.com
Facebook.com/ChrysalisVineyards