On the last day of spring break, I went with my family to visit Chateau Morrisette. Having seen bottles in stores for years but never having made it out to to the winery itself, we were curious and looking forward to getting to taste out the wines for ourselves.
We arrived shortly before a tour was scheduled to begin, so we proceeded to the lobby before our tastings to meet our tour guide. After hearing a little bit of history about its founding in 1980 by David Morrisette, we were taken on a tour of the production facility, including the barrel room and bottling areas.
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| Our tour guide introduces us to Lucy and Ethel, the winery's pressers. |
A view of where the wine waits as it ages. On the left, the wine is undergoing the process of cold stabilization.
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| Inside the barrel room, my father inspects some of the barrels. He noted that he found it interesting that the red from the wine was visible, bleeding through the wood. |
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While we were not able to go inside, our guide showed us a view into the bottling area.
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Although it had been our tour guide's first tour that she had given in a number of months, she was a pleasant host and her passion for the winery and the wine it produces really shined through. Once we had finished up our tour, we headed back into the tasting room to try the wines.
2017 Vin Gris: This wine did not particularly stand out among the bunch. It was light and fruity, but not particularly memorable.
2014 Nouveau Chien: This was my favorite of the white wines we tried. It was a bit more dry and crisp, which is more my style.
2016 Viognier: A wonderful grape in Virginia, this viognier had nice acidity and would be nice to have on a hot day with some seafood.
My mother, who only tasted the white wines because tannins give her migraines, was a little bit disappointed to find that the wines tasted of chemicals to her; I myself didn't notice that.
2013 Merlot: Out of the list of reds, this was my father's favorite. It was plummy and dark, and was pretty much your typical Merlot.
2015 Petit Verdot: Being that this is one of my favorite varietals, I was pleased to see this on the tasting list. It had a nice earthiness to it balancing out the dark fruit.
The Black Dog: My dad declared that this wine tasted like Christmas to him; I didn't taste that myself, but it was still pleasant.
Our Dog Blue: There is a reason this wine is so iconic, being one of the top wines people associate with Chateau Morrisette. It was just the right amount of sweet.
Sweet Mountain Laurel: While I could taste that this wine would be good to someone else, it was just too sweet for me.
Red Mountain Laurel: This wine was also teetering on too sweet for me, but it was alright. The aroma was wonderful and grape-y.
Sweet Mountain Apple: Not much to say except that when an apple wine is done well, it is always a treat to taste.
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| My sister (and her husband behind her) trying one of the wines. |
After trying out the wines, my dad spotted a bottle of Cabernet Franc - his favorite wine - and was able to have a taste of it as well, and he then declared it the best Cabernet Franc he had ever had (though it may be worth noting that sometimes, the most recent beer/wine he's had is declared his favorite of all time).
Overall, Chateau Morrisette isn't my favorite winery that I have ever been to, but it has a good variety of wines and it would be a wonderful place to spend an afternoon in the summertime, bringing our golden retriever and black lab along.
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| Me and my dad during our tasting (featuring my sister openly judging us). |
