News for October 2004

"What grape to keep its place in the sun, taught our ancestors to make wine?"

-- Cyril Connolly (1903 - 1974)

Our Tastings and Wine Dinners

Winemaker's Dinner November 5, 2004 - 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Fretwell's Cafe, 205 E. Main St., Front Royal, VA Reservations: (540) 622-6066		Winemaker's Dinner, $65 November 16, 2004 - 6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Blue Water Grill, Centreville, VA Reservations: (703) 803-1040

Winemaker's Dinner, $80, tax & tip, Menu November 20, 2004 - 6:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. Our Barrel Room Reservations: (540) 347-3475		Gourmet Wine Dinner, $50, Menu December 8, 2004 - 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Heritage Hunt Golf & Country Club, Gainesville, VA Reservations: (703) 743-5304

Our Products

If you haven’t been to the winery in recent months, we are sad to report that the 2002 Petite Verdot has sold out. But we recently released the 2003 Ameritage Reserve and the 2003 Cabernet Sauvignon to rave reviews. Both are now available in our Tasting Room.

The grapes from this year’s harvest are top quality despite the overall coolness and wetness this summer. The effect of Mother Nature on grapes is described in greater detail below. Now that the harvest is complete, we are busy finishing up the crushing process. Most of our grapes have been processed and transferred into barrels. If we could only bottle the smell of our Barrel Room, we’d call it “Eau de Vino.” The grapes will continue to ferment until early spring, then it will be time to blend the wines into your favorite Pearmund Cellars varietals.

Believe it or not, the holidays are right around the corner. If you’re looking for a unique gift, Pearmund Cellars has just the right present for that special someone on your list. Whether it’s wine, wine accessories, wine apparel, local artwork, or Virginia's finest gourmet food, we have the gift for which you are looking. New products for this holiday season include a Pearmund Cellars’ Christmas ornament, locally-made cheeses, hand-made chocolate, and travel mugs. If you can’t make it to the winery, our wines are available at retailers in DC, DE, FL, GA, IL, MD, NC, NJ, NY, SC, TN, and VA.

Are you interested in having your holiday party hosted by the winery? Discuss your ideas with Christopher Carpenter, our Private Tastings Planner. Contact him via (540) 347-3475 or tastings@pearmundcellars.com. He can help you create an elegant, unusual, or romantic tasting or wine dinner that your guests will remember for years to come.

Our Process

Many visitors have been asking about the quality of this year's harvest and the effect of weather on grapes. Mother Nature usually does a good job of helping us create top-quality grapes and wine:

Increased levels of rainfall cause grapes to swell and grow more leaves; less rainfall produces smaller berries and higher sugar content.
Grapes thrive in the sun’s golden rays, intensifying sweet flavors; however, intense heat can steal flavor and acidity.
In a nutshell, less rain is always better than too much rain and sunshine is always better than heat.

Even though this summer was cooler and wetter than average, rains were quick and heavy. We were lucky to have rain at the right times and sunny skies when we needed them most. The vines compensated for the amount of rainfall and balanced themselves to a certain degree. Our older vines in well-drained soil did best. Also, May's extra sunshine brought earlier than average flowering. We pulled leaves from the east side of each grape cluster to provide shielding for the hot summer months of July and August. These shading techniques kept our grapes up to 15 degrees cooler, resulting in better texture and flavor.

As a result, this year’s harvest produced very good quality grapes with great flavor and good sugar content. Sadly quantity was low, but we will always take quality over quantity. Sorry Fletcher, with the lower yield, there will be no Fletcher’s Chardonnay for 2004; instead, we will make a Chardonnay with the best of both styles.

Our People

We’d like to send a special thank you to all those who helped with the 2004 harvest! We were lucky to have two special people travel great distances to be with us: Treg Jones from Florida and Adrian Pearmund, Chris’ brother, from the Netherlands.

It is with great pride that we congratulate Nicole Sampson on the birth of her first child, Jake! Both Nicole and Baby Jake are doing great. For a few months, Nicole will be found only occasionally behind the tasting counter but is expected to return more frequently next year.

On a recent trip to the winery, you may have been greeted by some new faces. Brian Siewell joined us in September and is at the winery on a daily basis. You can find Brian helping with almost anything: tastings, grounds maintenance, crushing, barrel washing, etc. Brian’s dedicated work-ethic and friendly personality was a great addition during this year’s harvest. Also, Lisa finally convinced her friend, Niloufar Miller, to help us during her spare time. You will see Niloufar in our tasting room, stocking shelves, cleaning glasses, and greeting customers with a generous smile. When not at the winery, she is busy pursuing a nursing degree and raising two lovely children.

Our Industry

The American Wine Society (AWS) is a national, non-profit consumer organization devoted to educating people on all aspects of wine. Its members are wine novices, experts, grape growers, amateur and professional winemakers, restaurateurs, and anyone who wants to learn more about the appreciation of wine and food. Members learn about wines from all of the world’s wine producing countries and evaluate them for their quality. They travel in Society-sponsored trips to wine-growing regions, learn the latest in grape-growing methods, study to become certified wine judges, are knowledgeable about wine and food, and appreciate the responsible use of wine. AWS membership benefits are listed below. To learn more about the national organization, see their website. To learn about Virginia chapters, see the regional website. Email our webmaster for other regional contacts.

We appreciate your business and your feedback. What topics would you like to see covered in future newsletters?
Please send your comments to info@pearmundcellars.com, and please forward this newsletter to other wine aficionados.

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