Winery Visit - "Beliveau Estate"

Today we had our Spring Banquet for Pi Sigma Epsilon, my coed business frat, at Beliveau Estate near Tech! Our Banquet is kind of like Formals for social frats/sororities. We can bring a date, get to have a nice dinner, take a lot of pictures, and then do superlative awards for all the brothers!

Beliveau is a small winery and bed & breakfast that also grows lavender! They have a great selection of wine, often on the sweeter side, and they've only been open 2 years. They've won lots of awards for Western VA and Blue Ridge Country though and we had a lot of fun! Since today was also Fork and Cork in Blacksburg, a festival for local restaurants and wineries to do tastings, Beliveau was almost empty, just our group and the owner and chef. Joyce Beliveau and her husband, Yvan own the estate and he makes the wine. Joyce actually welcomed us when we got there and was our host/bartender for the tasting. She was really nice, gave great descriptions for any level of wine consumer, and was eager to discuss our opinions and answer questions. We discussed oaking and which grapes are imported (like Zinfandel from California) and got to try 7 wines for $5, even some of their nicer Reserve labels.

Panorama of Beliveau Estate

Joyce gave us a copy of their tasting list and told us which wines we were trying as she poured, giving us some descriptions but also saying that we should try to see what we pick up on our own without reading the tasting notes from the list first. As we were tasting, we also walked around outside before the sun set to take some pictures and looked around the winery, which had a nice open barn feel with lofted areas and huge doors to the patio.

Tasting List

White Wines

Red Wines

Reserve Wine List

I don't remember everything we tasted, but I know we had Destiny 2012 and Portal 2012 from the Reserve list. Destiny was nice to start with, and Portal was one of the last ones we tried, but the peppery spice from that was crazy. I've never had a wine that popped like Portal, alternating multiple times between light fruit and intense spice on the tongue. It was incredibly distinct and exciting. One of the brothers also bought a bottle of Afternoon Delight, so I got to try that.
For the whites, I think we tried them all except for Discovery, which I ended up buying a bottle of and really enjoying. Everyone really liked Lover's Quest because it was so sweet, but I actually really enjoyed Reflection 2012, especially after recently trying a Gewurztraminer.
I also think we tried Sweet Surrender under the reds, that I really liked. I don't often drink reds because of the dry, bitter qualities that often come up, but this had none of those. It's name is very accurate and I loved the blend. Plenty of flavor and sugar, but not overwhelming! Also, for one of the reds, Joyce had an aerator spout on the bottle as she poured, so I asked about it because I hadn't seen that specific kind. She mentioned that she had only opened the wine an hour ago, so the aerator would help open it up. I think some of the brothers who didn't know how it worked found it really interesting!

A couple of brothers at the tasting with Joyce Beliveau

Then we had a delicious dinner with a Salad, Chicken Cordon Bleu, Signature Cheesy Potatoes, & Sautéed Snap Peas and Triple Chocolate Cake with Cherry Reduction! Definitely one of the best meals I've had at school and the wine was fantastic.

Good Food, Good Friends

My friend and I on the balcony of the winery!

Check out more about Beliveau Estate at their website (http://www.beliveauestate.com/index.html)

I definitely recommend visiting and trying some wines, plus the people are really nice.

Tasting - "Lone Birch Riesling"

Name: Lone Birch Riesling
Variety: Riesling
Region: Yakima Valley, Washington
Country: USA
Year: 2011
Price: $9.99

Winery Review: "Lone Birch has a light straw color, a delicate perfumed floral bouquet on the nose, and a light-bodied palate with flavors of white peach and citrus fruit."

My Review: I actually liked this Riesling quite a bit. I'm curious to see what it might taste like over the next few days too. I thought I noticed a very faint green apple scent with some lilac and flower notes. As for the taste, it started off smooth and surprisingly creamy, then finished with an acidic backbone that lasted a while. I think I also picked up a good amount of citrus that were pleasant with the creaminess.

Tasting - "The Honey Pot"

Name: The Honey Pot
Variety: Sauvignon Blanc 79%, Semillon 13%, Viognier 8%
Region: Stellenbosch
Country: South Africa
Year: 2012
Price: $11.99

Winery Review: "Lovely yellow green tinged color with brilliant reflection of light. Nose of Papaya, melon and litchi. Palate is smooth and creamy with soft, tropical fruit notes of papaya, litchi and mango and ends with a fresh, long finish."

My Review: This wine was interesting, so I'm glad I tried it, but I wish there had been less Sauvignon Blanc and more of the other varietals, but oh well. I definitely noticed the tropical and citrus scents on the nose, but there was something I struggled to name. It had a mustier sort of scent and maybe some lavender?  I really had a tough time picking it out. The taste was also a little tricky. I went back and forth on the acidity and the finish was a little steely for me. I did get the tropical, papaya, and citrus flavors though. After reading the winery review, I took a few more sips and decided that litchi/lychee might actually be there and I hadn't noticed it before! I don't think I've had lychee in a wine before.

Tasting - "Gewürz"

Name: Gewürz

Variety: Gewürztraminer
Region: Mendocino County, California
Country: USA
Year: 2013
Price: $9.99

Winery Review: "This wine will fool you with sweet floral aromas. The 2013 has the classic floral, sweet aromas of stone fruits, pear, rose and a hint of wet stone minerality. The flavors are similar to the aromas highlighted by tropical, spice and grapefruit flavors."

My Review: I wanted to try a Gewürztraminer and found this one, relatively cheap at Whole Foods. I wasn't thrilled, but I think if I found a sweeter one from Germany, I might really enjoy it. This wine was dryer than I anticipated, even with a thicker viscosity. The nose had some nice rose petal, orange blossom, and pear notes, but the diesel/petrol smell I get from a lot of whites came through too. The feel was pretty smooth, but it had some acid and a bitter aftertaste. I was surprised that it sort of coated my tongue and then left a dry sensation. The floral notes on the nose were not really on the tongue, but there was definitely a mineral, steely taste that may have overwhelmed anything else. Overall, not a bad wine for the cost, but not one I'd purchase again.

Tasting - "Dachshund Riesling"

Name: Dachshund Riesling

Variety: Riesling
Region: Rheinhessen
Country: Germany
Year: 2012
Price: $10.99

Winery Review: "The wine is full flavored with both pear and citrus fruit aromas. Stimulating on the palate, as well fresh and fruity it has a nice sweetness balanced with the typical crisp Riesling acidity and a long- lasting finish."

My Review: Obviously I bought this wine for the bottle, who doesn't love an adorable dog? But I also quite like Riesling and wanted to see what was going on behind the label. The smell was pretty standard Riesling in my mind; some petrol, strong citrus, and hints of peach and pear. The taste was curious. It took me a while to decide what I was picking up, which was a crisp acidity and spiciness on the finish. The spiciness is what threw me off. The finish was pretty long with a nice mouth feel. I also felt that there was a lot of citrus and tartness like a green apple. I'd like to see what I think of it later, because I couldn't decide if I liked it or not.

Tasting - "Shoofly Buzz Cut 2009"

Name: Shoofly Buzz Cut 2009
Variety: Viognier 38%, Riesling 27%, Verdelho 24%, Semillon 6%, Chardonnay 5%
Region: South Australia
Country: Australia
Year: 2009
Price: $8.99

Winery Review: "A wildly aromatic blend of Verdelho, Viognier, Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling, Chardonnay and Semillon. The fruit is sourced from McLaren Vale, Adelaide Hills and Langhorne Creek, fermented in stainless steel and bottled fresh and young for immediate enjoyment. It's a lush blend showing juicy, tropical flavors, exotic perfume and a refreshing, structured palate."

My Review: This wine was surprising, but I didn't really like it. The nose was oddly "red" with a lot of dirt, cigar box, leather, and gasoline scents. Then the taste had some of the dirt, but a lot of mineral notes and a heck of a lot of alcohol. 13.5% for a white is beyond me. All that alcohol brought the heat and the firm tannins couldn't remedy it.

Tasting - "Woodpecker Premium Cider"

Name: Woodpecker Premium Cider
Variety: Apple Cider
Region: Hereford
Country: England
Year: Not Stated
Price: $2.00 (individual bottles at Vintage Cellar)

Cidermaker Review: "The use of the English bittersweet apple provided Woodpecker® with a distinctive taste and refreshing drinkability. A crisp semi-dry finish, amber hue with a lightly sparking appearance, sweet fruity aroma and a slight toffee-apple note."

My Review: The nose was great; sweet honeysuckle and pear. The taste was difficult to pick up and very thin, but it was suitable. At first I noticed a sweet finish, but the more I drank the stranger the aftertaste seemed to get. I'm not sure I would buy it again, but it's by Bulmer's so I had high hopes.