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April 2007 Newsletter
If you'd like to translate this newsletter into French, Spanish, German, Japanese or more than twenty-five other languages, please visit Babel Fish Translation. You simply copy the text and paste it into the translator. It's not perfect, but it's a good approximation. |
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| Melissa's Message |
Hello and Happy Spring, at last!
by Melissa Stephen |
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 We're ready, here at La Grange for a festive Springtime and hope that you will all come visit to enjoy our beautiful property and delicious wines.
The upcoming Barrel Tasting on April 28 & 29 is a must for your calendar this month. What better way to spend an afternoon than tasting wine right out of the barrel with our expert staff guiding you through the experience. Our winemaker's have worked hard and I have to say that our 2006 wines will not disappoint you! This event is also your opportunity to buy these limited production wines at drastically reduced prices before they are bottled and released.
Next time you visit be sure to check out the new wine related merchandise in our sales room. We have some gorgeous Port Wine Glasses and decanters, some really cool Wicks that you can use to turn your empty wine bottles into oil lamps and Kitchen Trivets made with La Grange corks. Great Gifts for you or someone you love!
We're also expanding our food offerings to include baskets of prepared foods that are perfect for a picnic on the grounds. We have four "themes" to chose from; French, Mediterranean, Italian and American. They'll be stuffed with all kinds of regional goodies and perfect for 2 or more people. Bring a blanket, let us open your favorite bottle of La Grange wine and enjoy the day admiring the beautiful view of Bull Run Mountain!
Thanks to all of you who made our first Seasons at the winery so much fun. Now, we look forward to Spring and Summer and seeing you all again.
See you all at the winery! |
| Fletcher's Twist |
| by Fletcher Henderson |
With spring upon us the vegetation at La Grange is sprouting back to life, converting the property into a colorful garden spot once again. We are being rewarded everyday for all of the work that went into restoring the estate's manor house and grounds by our patrons who are constantly telling us that enjoying themselves at La Grange is as difficult as searching for chop sticks in Chinatown.
Amidst the beauty of the rebirthing season we are busy polishing our 2006 vintage wines in preparation for bottling. The first week of April we bottled our 2006 Pinot Grigio. Now we are preparing the other white wines, then our red beauties that include our Snort. If you're curious about how our 2006 vintage wines are maturing join us on April 28th and 29th to taste them for yourself directly from barrels and our Hungarian oak vats.
As you undoubtedly recall from the last month's Newsletter, 65 Virginia wines qualified to be shipped to London, England where they will be blind tasted and reviewed by the British wine press in May for Virginia Wine in London. Both the Winery at La Grange and Pearmund Cellars had all four of their submitted wines accepted!! Our Executive Winemaker, Chris Pearmund, received this past week a communiqué from the London wine judging panel. They previewed the Pearmund Cellars 2004 Ameritage and this is their comment; "It impressed the members of the tasting team. It was full of rich fruit cake aromas and flavors. Still smooth and soft, the spicyness of the malbec element shone through the red and black forest fruit flavors."
Aside from Mother Nature painting the countryside a kaleidoscope of colors our grape vines are coming out of hibernation too. Up until the second week of April the weather was ideal. We did have a freeze that week, but our vineyards in No. Va. weathered it well and we are still enthusiastically optimistic about the 2007 vintage grape quality.
Preparations are underway for our May 26th Memorial Day week end, Wine Makers Dinner that will be held in our barrel room. Seating is limited so contact the La Grange staff to confirm your reservations early!
"Who loves not wine women and song, remains a fool his whole life long." J.H. Vos
2005 La Grange Merlot
A rich, full, well rounded wine that is rustic and dense with a smoky tobacco sweetness and undertones of dried fruits and earthen essences like barnyard.
Merlot, as a single varietal bottling, was unjustly slammed by Miles in the hit movie, Sideways. It was interesting to me how strongly he reacted against the soft rich California style of Merlot after he was asked what the favorite wine in his cellar was, to which he rapturously replied, a 1961 Cheval Blanc. That chateau is in the Pomerol region of Bordeaux and it is 100% . . . MERLOT! To me that was a statement about personal preference of wine style. At any rate, here is a savory recipe to serve up with La Grange Merlot.
Pot - Roast Veal
6 servings
Ingredients;
3 pound boneless veal shoulder roast, tied
1 garlic clove cut into 12 slivers
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon extra virgin (there we go again :-)) olive oil
1 medium onion, cut into ½" slices
½ teaspoon herbs de Provence
½ cup water
With a sharp knife pierce the top and sides of the veal roast in 12 evenly spaced places and insert the garlic slivers. Season the roast with sea salt and ground black pepper. In a medium sauce enameled cast-iron casserole, melt the butter in the olive oil until sizzling. Add the veal roast and cook over moderate heat until browned all over, about three minutes per side. Scatter the onion and herbs de Provence around the roast. Add the water and bring to a boil. Cover the casserole partially and gently simmer the roast over low heat for 1 hour 45 minutes, turning once. Remove from heat and let the roast rest (render) for 15 minutes. Transfer the veal roast to a carving board and discard the strings. Strain the pan juices in a glass measuring cup and skim off the surface fat. Reduce one pint of La Grange Merlot by half, add to pan juices. Season the pan juices with sea salt and ground black pepper. Carve the veal roast into ½" thick slices, top with pan juice wine sauce and serve with a smile.
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| Springtime Special - Claret |
La Grange is currently having a Springtime Special! Our 2005 Claret is now being offered at $15 for a bottle (normally $19), 3 bottles for $39.99 (normally 3 for $57), and a case for $139.99 (normally $182), offer good thru May 31st.
Enjoy this European-style red with hearty dishes. |
| Last Chance to Reserve Your Virginia Wine License Plate! |
Calling All Virginia Wine Lovers:
Download an application for the new Virginia wineries license plate. This plate not only celebrates Virginia wineries and vineyards but also commemorates our 400-year-old wine-making tradition!
Before the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles can release the plate to the general public, we must receive 350 prepaid applications for the plate by July 1, 2007. Virginia residents can purchase it for $25 plus normal registration fees. Personalized plates cost an additional $10.
All Virginia residents are encouraged to continue to support our industry through this initiative. Please use the application form to order your Virginia wineries license plate today! Make checks payable to the Virginia Wineries Association or pay by credit card, which will be run only once 350 applications have been received. Return your completed form and payment to:
Virginia Wineries Association
515 King Street, Suite 420
Alexandria, VA 22314
Fax: (703) 684-6048 | |
Winery Staff
The Winery at La Grange
703-753-9360
Opened Daily 11am to 6pm
4970 Antioch Road - Haymarket, VA 20169
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