DECEMBER NEWSLETTER 2025
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 holiday season has officially arrived, and The Ag District Center, home to Chrysalis Vineyards, Locksley Farmstead Cheese Company, and The Little River Bakehouse, is prepared to support all of your celebration needs. Whether you’re planning a festive meal or stocking up for holiday gatherings, the Ag District offers a full selection of wines, farmstead cheeses, pasture-raised meats, and locally sourced eggs to help make your holiday table both memorable and meaningful.
We’re also pleased to share that the Locksley Holiday Cheese Bundles are back in stock. Each $25 bundle includes three approximately one-third-pound cuts: Nottingham Gouda, Little John Cheddar, and Merry Men Manchego. To spice it up just a little more, we are adding in a Chrysalis Norton hot sauce made with juice from Norton grapes grown right here at The Ag District.
ANNOUNCEMENT
You may have noticed some exciting additions to The Ag District Center last month. Alongside our grass-fed Locksley Farmstead beef and farm-fresh eggs, we’ve expanded our offerings to include pasture-raised chicken. Be sure to check out the full selection next time you stop in. With a variety of cuts available, when your meal includes a little bit of Locksley Farmstead goodness, it’s going to be delicious, and proudly locally sourced.
DECEMBER EVENTS:
Live Music at the Ag District Center will return in May 2026.
December 5th at 6:30PM - Christmas & Holiday Trivia
Brush up on your Christmas and holiday knowledge, bridle your reindeer, and hop in your sleigh because it’s time for Trivia Night at The Ag District! Join us on Friday, December 5th at 6:30 PM for a merry evening of festive fun and friendly competition. How It Works:
Play solo or gather your most spirited friends and form a team of up to 4 people. No phones or smart devices are allowed, only brainpower and holiday cheer!
Bonus Points for Festive Spirit:
* +1 point for wearing a Christmas sweater or shirt
* +2 points for coming in costume (think Grinch, reindeer, elf, etc.)
* +5 points for a full Santa costume!
Those who come decked out in their holiday best will also be entered into our Christmas Swag & Costume Contest for extra bragging rights
*This event is for adults 21+ year or older*
December 18th 5 - 6pm - Book Club
Join us at The Ag District Center, home to Chrysalis Vineyards, on Thursday, December 18th, from 5 - 6 PM for Book Club! This monthly gathering is free to attend. We are delighted to have the wonderful team from Loudoun County Public Library leading the discussions.
We will be reviewing: Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen - which will be paired with Chrysalis Vineyards' 2022 Rubiana.
Haven't read the book yet for this month? Not a problem! Come and listen to the discussion and gear up with the rest of the club for next month's read!
*This event is for adults 21+ year or older*
Interested in attending? Reach out to Jill Smedley at
Jill.Smedley@TheAgDistrict.com.
NOTE TO OUR VIP CLUB MEMBERS
It’s our most requested club party of the year! Join us on Friday, December 12th, at 6 PM for our Holiday Cookie and Wine Pairing VIP Pick-Up Party. Enjoy four tasting stations, each featuring a carefully selected wine paired with a delicious cookie or specialty dessert crafted by the talented team at Little River Bakehouse. During the evening, we’ll also have live Christmas music to set the festive mood, along with a few fun surprises to keep the night lively and full of cheer. Don’t miss this opportunity to sip, savor, and celebrate the season with us!
We kindly ask members to RSVP to TR-Manager@ChrysalisWine.com no later than Sunday, December 7th to reserve your spot. RSVPs received after December 7th will be placed on a waiting list, and while we will do our best to accommodate everyone, entry to the event cannot be guaranteed. Please include your name and the number of people attending (2 per membership). Lastly, 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!
For December, our VIP members will receive the 2019 Borboleta and 2024 Albariño Reserve.
This 100% stainless steel–fermented Albariño is medium-bodied and bursting with bright, lively flavors. Aromas of orange zest, honeydew, and grapefruit lead to a palate of nectarine, ripe peaches, and citrus fruits, perfectly balanced with crisp acidity. Classic stone fruit and tropical notes make this wine refreshing and expressive, a perfect companion for holiday gatherings and festive meals.
The red selection this month is the 2019 Borboleta. Our Borboleta is another showcase of Norton’s finesse through its expression of a traditional port-style wine. Borboleta is best enjoyed next to a warm fire on a cold night or with your favorite chocolate dessert. The aromatics lean into a smooth mocha and black cherry nose. The palate becomes filled with a soft warmth that easily carries ripe cherry, a hint of coffee, and a creamy dark cocoa finish. The perfect wine to top off a Christmas celebration.
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 haven't been able to visit for a while and need to pick up more than 3 months of wine selections please call at least a day in advance of your visit so we can have them ready for you.
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
Brrrrrrrrrrr! There’s definitely a damp chill in the air, so it must be Old Man Winter knocking at the door!
This chilly season is the perfect time to cozy up around one of our outdoor heated tables or next to a fireplace at home. The next thing you’ll need is a great glass of wine in your hand, and we here at the Ag District Center, home to Chrysalis Vineyards, are ready to help you find the perfect pour to pair with a chilly evening. Join us for a glass of our December Wine of the Month, the 2019 Borboleta. This wine offers aromas of mocha, black cherries, and raspberries, with notes of cocoa, ripe blackberries, and tobacco on the palate. It’s the perfect wine to top off your evening.
With the holiday season in full swing, we have just what you need to stock up on wine. Join us this Friday at the Ag District Center for our Black Friday – 12 Wines of Christmas Case Sale. We’ll have pre-wrapped red wine cases and mixed wine cases (featuring white, red, and rosé) ready for you to take to your holiday celebrations or to restock your cellar. Each case is fully sealed, so all the wine surprises stay tucked inside.
Enjoy incredible reserve wines from vintages past at this special holiday pricing:
- Red Wine Case for $250
- Mixed Wine Case for $150
Please note:
- You must be 21+ with a valid ID to purchase.
- All cases are final sale.
- This sale applies only to preselected, wrapped cases.
- Retail wines of current vintages in the tasting room are not included, and custom case building is not available.
Merry Christmas and Happy Holiday— we willl see you in the Tasting Room!
- Lori Tate, Tasting Room Manager
REPORT FROM THE VINEYARD
I think Freddy and I are just about done with 2025, which is good, because the year is almost over. The growing season was extremely challenging, and to top it off, the vineyard went dormant a bit early, which is unusual. I know that many of my recent newsletter reports have commented on the ‘weirdness’ of the year, but let’s be honest, it wasn’t just weird, it was hard, though it did come with some reprieves.
Since your last update on the vines, outside of harvest news, temperatures dropped into the high 30s in early October. Within a week, the leaves on the vines began to drop, and before long, the vineyard was entirely bare. This isn’t necessarily a concern; it actually makes harvesting a bit easier. However, it’s something that we need to keep in mind when caring for the vines, as it signals that dormancy could be approaching, and we need to be vigilant about temperature fluctuations.
Heading into the colder months, we’ve seen a slight rise in temperatures, averaging in the 40s during November, and we will be starting December in the mid-50s. This increase can raise disease pressure, which is why we added a dormant spray to the schedule.
Another concern with these temperature fluctuations is the potential for vines to break bud early next season. The average temperature during dormancy should stay within the 40–50-degree range. While an early bud break is highly unlikely, this is Virginia, and if you’ve lived here for any length of time, you know the commonwealth is full of seasonal surprises that keep us on our toes. This year certainly offered an example of that during the growing season.
Freddy and I continue to monitor the vineyard, walking the rows, repairing trellis systems, squashing spotted lantern fly eggs, and discussing what we can do better next year. Freddy and the crew have slowed a bit for winter, but they continue to look for ways to push the limits of the vineyard. It’s truly a pleasure to work with folks who care about the vines as much as I do.
- Jake Blodinger, Winemaker
REPORT FROM THE CELLAR
I am happy to share that despite the challenges we faced during this year’s growing conditions, we have made some truly delicious wines. As with any vintage finale, we now wind down the year by cleaning the cellar, putting our harvest equipment to rest, and tasting through the wines we crafted this season. During these tastings, we often talk about the ideal time to release each wine. Specifically with wines that require a bit of aging, typically reds, we base our decision on how we expect the youthful flavors and characteristics to develop into the wines you know and love in the tasting room.
The wines from 2025 are still very young; however, they are already showing great character. But to help give you a better idea of what to expect with a young wine, most freshly made wines have very pronounced fruit characteristics, sharp acids, and prickly tannins. Interestingly enough, the wines we produced this year are softer, more elegant, and present more reserved flavors. These reserved flavors are referred to as “secondary” flavors, which are something more common in mature wines. Think more spices, dried fruit, and barrel notes, and also tannin (the tactile sensation that binds your saliva and creates that drying sensation).
Wine nerds and winemakers are guilty of using this term quite frequently to refer to the flavors resulting from winemaking techniques applied to the wines rather than the characteristics resulting from the fruit itself. This vintage was tough and definitely a “winemaker’s vintage,” meaning much more technique needed to be applied to the fruit as opposed to letting the fruit make the wine. You know me, I prefer low-intervention winemaking, but there is a time and place to break out some tricks from my winemaking toolbelt, and this year definitely called for it. I know I say this about every vintage, but I am expecting great things from 2025. These wines are already complex at such a young age, which is exciting, and I cannot wait for you to try them.
- Jake Blodinger, Winemaker
REPORT FROM LOCKSLEY FARMSTEAD CHEESE COMPANY
We WON!! Locksley Farmstead Cheese is proud to announce that our Merry Men Manchego-style cheese was selected as one of just 20 products crafted in Virginia to be recognized in the Virginia Living 2025 Made in Virginia Awards! A panel of expert judges selected the winners in 4 different categories, with our Merry Men Manchego-style cheese being one of just five products chosen to be honored in the Food category. According to Virginia Living, “Each winning product tells a story of passion, artistry, and innovation,” and the award focuses on “spotlighting the makers whose creativity and craftsmanship continue to define Virginia’s entrepreneurial spirit”. Our vision at Locksley Farmstead Cheese is to carry on the legacy of Virginia’s agricultural heritage… protecting our land while producing the highest quality local agricultural products. Look for us in Virginia Living’s December 2025 issue and stop by The Ag District to try some of our delicious cheeses. They’re a beautiful addition to any holiday meal or the perfect gift (if you can bear to part with them!).
- Teri Scott, General Manager
Now that Thanksgiving is just about in the rearview mirror, our focus moves onto the rest of the Holidays. It can be such a great time of year… if we make it so. It’s time to focus on friends and family... laughing and loving with those we maybe don’t spend enough time with during the year. Especially those that come from afar to be with us.
I really look forward to making and baking those fun seasonal foods, and setting aside for a few days those dietary and other life restrictions to just enjoy ourselves and revel in the company of our workmates, friends and family.
With all those holiday sweets and goodies, there’s a great wine we make to complement those… Petit Manseng. As you may know, this “sticky” is America’s first varietally labeled P-Man, since I did the petition to the ATF back in 2002 to get it added to the “List of Prime Names for American Wines”. We owe, yet again, thanks to Alan Kinne who recommended I save the vines that Tony Wolf was removing from the Virginia Tech experimental vineyard in Winchester to make room for another variety. Alan told me he thought Petit Manseng would make a top-flight dessert wine for Virginia. He was right!
From all of us at Chrysalis Vineyards, may your Christmas be filled with joy and peace. And to our friends celebrating Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, or other traditions this season, may your days be equally bright and meaningful, and your celebrations be full of love, laughter, and good wine!
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