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Our Tastings and Wine Dinners |
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Our Products |
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| For you Riesling lovers, your long
winter wait is almost
over. We will be bottling our 2006 vintage on April 23rd. The
wine promises to
be as enjoyable as our previous vintages, with about 1% residual sugar,
balanced acidity, and a floral fruit aroma reminiscent of freshly
squeezed limes. In the meantime, ... Our last newsletter mentioned our new varietal: Sauvignon Blanc. We have had many questions about its composition and flavor so here are more details. Our fruit came from Volturno Vineyards, located on Virginia’s Northern Neck. Fermented in stainless steel and aged in neutral French Oak barrels, the wine is styled in the tradition of a Pouilly Fumé or Fumé Blanc. It is aromatically blended with 15% Viognier to exhibit lemon grass and gooseberry flavors in a crisp, tart wine. Excellent for warm-weather enjoyment, the wine is begging to be paired with seafood. Don't wait until summer to try it, or you'll count the days you lost! This year, Pearmund Cellars will conduct barrel tastings and futures sales on three weekends: March 10th - 11th, 24th - 25th, and April 21st. The price of $25 includes pre-release 2006 vintage samplings of Riesling, Viognier, Chardonnay, Petit Verdot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and Merlot; heavy hors d’oeuvres and gourmet cheeses; discussions with Chris and Rick, the winemakers responsible for these fine Virginia vintages; and the opportunity to purchase cases of these future wines at discounted pricing. Join us between 11:00 a.m. to 4 p.m. No reservations are necessary for groups smaller than 10 people. Speaking of savings, Pearmund Cellars, in conjunction with its sister, the Winery at La Grange, is celebrating Saint Patrick’s Day with a two-for-one offer. Enjoy a tasting flight at either winery and obtain a shamrock, then drive to the other winery for a complimentary tasting flight and commemorative wine glass. Erin Go Bragh! Pearmund Cellars is proud to invite you to an evening with Thomas Jefferson, crafter of the Declaration of Independence, America’s third president, and first secretary of state. As we celebrate Jamestown’s 400th anniversary, it is important to note that although truly a Renaissance man in every sense of the word, Mr. Jefferson listed his occupation as farmer; and promoted Virginia agriculture throughout his life. He cultivated many new and experimental fruits and vegetables in his gardens, and after serving as minister to France, acknowledged that wine is truly part of a good meal. While his experiments with growing grapes and making wine in Virginia were not successful, his journey through French wine making country was the first documented review of the great chateaus, and laid the groundwork for the French appellation controlee system. 264 years after his birth, Virginia is a leading producer of quality wines, having learned the art, science, and technology necessary for Thomas Jefferson’s dream to become reality. Sign up now for our Jeffersonian wine dinner on April 21st from 6:30 - 10:00 p.m. and enjoy a historic menu hosted by our third president. |
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Our Process |
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| Working for a vineyard is not just
growing, picking, and processing grapes, and working for a winery is
not just serving customers and selling wine. Those are the things that
we really enjoy doing, but we also need to handle environmental
issues, legislative issues, and a host of other tasks
that involve lots of paperwork and many hours of talking on the phone
or meetings with local officials. In our December newsletter, we discussed the challenge we faced with Dominion Power. Happily, Dominion decided to use their existing right-of-way for their new power line. Apparently only a relatively small portion of this right-of-way cuts through Fauquier's northwestern tip, but it then crosses the Rappahannock River into Rappahannock County for several miles before re-entering Fauquier near Opal. That compromise is a start in the right direction, but it's still not clear that the new power line is needed, and it is certain that the power won't be used by Virginia residents for many years. To stay informed on this issue, follow the bills listed in Delegate C. L. "Clay" Athey's newspaper article. In our January newsletter, we talked about self-distribution and land-use restriction bills. The passage of a bill restoring the right of Virginia's farm wineries to deliver wines without a commercial distributor acting as an intermediary illustrates the art of compromise. By creating a non-profit corporation within the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services to serve as a virtual wholesale distributor, the legislation preserves the existing three-tier system while allowing small wineries to return to self-distribution. Of course, what we believe is truly needed is free trade for both in-state and out-of-state wineries, but we'll try this solution first. Regarding land-use restrictions for wineries, local ordinances can no longer exceed state regulations unless there are substantial impacts on the health, safety, or welfare of the public. We'd like to thank all of you who wrote letters in support of the bill that passed both the Virginia House and the Senate. Another legislated, yet creative, issue that we haven't previously mentioned is label approval. Pearmund Cellars recently finished the lengthy approval process on a label which our wine dog, Redmund, loves. It includes a playful picture of himself on the front, with his paw print as his signature, and a list of all his favorite activities on the back. On April 7th, Redmund would like to invite all wine dogs to bask in the sun, frolic between the vines, chase frisbees, and receive doggy treats. Since the winery is using his label to release fun, unpretentious table wines honoring a wine dog's love of life, owners (and dog lovers) can come IF they are well mannered, play nicely with others, and clean up after themselves. Redmund will greet everyone, pose for pictures with his favorite artist, Linda Hendrickson, and ask for donations to his favorite charity. A second creative task nearing completion is a new "look and feel" for our website. Mary Anne Wassenberg, our webmaster, has been hard at work with Bethany Sikaras, the graphic artist behind Cat's Eye Design. Our new pages will soon be available at our normal link, but if you would like to review our work in progress, yet understand there are a few Cascading Style Sheet (CSS) issues to be resolved, use Internet Explorer to open http://www.pearmundcellars.com/index.shtml. By the way, Bethany specializes in innovative, clean, and straightforward designs that comply with the latest W3C standards and Section 508 guidelines. Her designs focus on both visual impact and how the total web site is put together. Contact Bethany if you need a new look for your logo or website. |
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Our People |
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| Pearmund Cellars has a new General Manager,
George McDonald! He comes to us after managing complex
catering centers at the Kennedy Center, the District of Columbia
Convention Center, and Disney World. Aren't we lucky that he wanted to
"retire" and "relax" at Pearmund Cellars! Of course, he may not
realize that we have been known to host a wine dinner immediately after
a tornado struck, or tried hunting lost peacocks at neighboring farms.
Part of the reason our customers enjoy Pearmund Cellars so much is we
swiftly change Pandemonium Cellars to Peaceful Cellars and make it look
easy. George is a welcome addition to our staff in making this
happen. We won't let him sing "it's a Small World," though. Our
motto is, "Drink locally. Think globally! " Since Chris Pearmund has already learned the first half of our motto, we are promoting him to Managing Partner and letting him perfect the second half. He's still our winemaking expert, but his new job will be creatng innovative winery experiences here and abroad (see "Our Industry" below). He is also handling activities that cross multiple winery boundaries, like policy making and account management. If you have interesting ideas for winery growth and/or want to be an investor, call Chris at his new phone number, 540-3GRAPES, or email him at chris@pearmundcellars.com. Our growing family of wineries is successful due to the quality of our staff, our products, and our partners. |
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Our Partners & Retailers |
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| Partner: Filled with
in-depth articles and fascinating
facts about Virginia wineries and the wines they produce, as well as
information on people, places, and events supporting the Commonwealth's
wine industry, the Official Virginia
Wine Lover quarterly magazine includes detailed maps,
listings
of festivals, wine recipes, wine pairing suggestions, and much
more!
The magazine also has a monthly newsletter which you can join by
emailing info@vawinelover.com.
Look for the March 2007 issue which features Pearmund Cellars. Wine Store: The Galloping Grape is probably the most unique store you will see within an hour of the District. On the one hand, it is a quality saddle shop with both Western and English tack and is filled with Stetson hats, Justin Boots, wonderful gift items, home decor, jewelry, dinnerware, home furnishings, candles, and glassware. On the other hand, it is a wine, cheese, and cigar store with a large selection of both Virginia wines and wine from around the world. Plus, their gourmet selections, displayed in a buckboard wagon, are hard to beat. We found that customer service is their specialty; they are fully committed to your happiness and high expectations. Restaurant: Offering only the finest cuts of artisan meats, game, fish and fowl, prepared in Palmer’s progressive American style, Charlie Palmer Steak also features a notable wine cube housing over 3,500 bottles (over 10,000 on the premises) of exclusively American wines from every U.S. state. In addition, restaurant offers a unique opportunity for patrons: three private dining rooms, and a rooftop terrace for events for up to 400 guests, with spectacular views of the Capitol. Pearmund Cellars varietals are a great match for most selections from Executive Chef Bryan Voltaggio's innovative menu. Inn: Set amidst stately architecture, abundant scenic beauty, and a rich history that blends harmoniously with today's active lifestyles, Greenbriar Resort guests enjoy over 50 recreational activities including three championship golf courses, indoor and outdoor tennis courts, a 40,000-square-foot spa, and more. Reopening on April 2, 2007, after exciting renovations, they will debut 63 luxury guest rooms, a new entertainment venue, and exciting global cuisine. Make your reservations for Spring 2007, and be among the first to experience Pearmund Cellars wines at the new Greenbrier. |
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Our Industry |
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| Located geographically and stylistically between
Europe and the West
Coast of the U.S., Virginia is one of the most diverse and successful
wine producers in the United States. In particular, Virginia is
considered to produce
the best Viognier in North America, and its Cabernet Franc,
Chardonnay, and elegantly balanced Bordeaux blends are also strong
contenders. The re-introduction of Norton,
the native Virginia grape, has created many fans for a fruit-forward,
zinfandel-like wine that is
unique to the East Coast and Midwest of the United States. Critical
acclaim has
come in recent years from top awards in major national and
international wine competitions as well as from wine writers like Michael
Broadbent, Dan Berger, and Wilfred Wong. Unfortunately, although the establishment of a wine industry was so vital to the directors of the Virginia Company that page 265 of Acte Twelve of 1619 compelled all male household heads over age 20 to plant and cultivate 10 grape vines per acre for the purpose of making wine, the news of our success has not crossed the great Atlantic. Therefore, to coincide with the 400th anniversary of the founding of the Jamestown colony in 1607, the first English-speaking settlement in North America, the Virginia Wine Experience in London will start with a VIP tasting at the Hampden House on April 30th. Afterwards, a general wine trade and media tasting will be held at Vinopolis on May 2nd. Both tastings will feature the 65 best wines from Virginia, the state that was "first in wine". Generously sponsored by Farm Credit, Virginia winemakers and winery owners will attend both London tastings to explain their winemaking styles and answer questions. Chris and Lisa Pearmund will be showcasing eight wines from Pearmund Cellars and the Winery at La Grange. For a complete list of the wines that will be featured and a description of how those wines were chosen, see the Virginia Wine Experience in London website. |
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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. To be added to our mailing list, just complete the brief form accessible from the Contact Us page of our website: http://www.pearmundcellars.com. If you would like to be removed from this mailing list, please reply to webmaster@pearmundcellars.com. |
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Open Daily 6190
Georgetown Road |