Virginia white wines: Time to shine

In June, big news shook the Virginia wine world: the Bouygues family, owner of Bordeaux second-growth Château Montrose, bought RdV Vineyards, marking its first acquisition outside of France.

RdV Vineyards, named for the founder Rutger de Vink, stood in as a ‘first growth’ for Virginia, with a small production of highly allocated wines each costing close to £200.

Not only does the deal testify to the triumph of the state’s quality Bordeaux varieties, but it also reflects the fine wine market’s belief in the future of Virginia viticulture.

Scroll down for tasting notes and scores of 20 Virginia white wines

While much of the state’s acclaim has focused on its reds, many winemakers are betting on whites as the next success story. Having tasted through nearly 100 bottles myself, I feel the industry has good reason to feel optimistic.

A ‘Petit’ surprise

In newer wine regions, Bordeaux varieties often get planted first. Global pricing and prestige for Cabernet Sauvignon and, to a lesser extent, Cabernet Franc and Merlot, entice winemakers with the promise of grape brand recognition. However, when it comes to whites, Bordeaux varieties don’t always suit the site.

Sauvignon Blanc has found its footing in many places in Virginia (and plantings continue to grow), but grapes that have prospered commercially and qualitatively run the gamut. Chardonnay and Viognier have been fruitful for the longest time, but a grape variety of relative international obscurity has rapidly risen to the top: Petit Manseng.

White grapes comprised 38% of the state’s plantings, with a significant jump in Petit Manseng since 2015 of more than 40 hectares. In 2022 Petit Manseng saw a 8.5ha (12%) increase in plantings over 2021 alone.

From the foothills of the Pyrenees in southwest France, Petit Manseng migrated across the Atlantic Ocean to alight in Charlottesville. Tony Wolf, a professor of viticulture at Virginia Tech, brought the grape from Jurançon in 1987 to test its suitability in the state’s humid, wet weather.

Today, on a plateau of a western slope of the Blue Ridge Mountains, Jeff White of Glen Manor likes the variety for its small, thick-skinned clusters, likening the resulting wines to Vouvray, made from Chenin Blanc.

A fit for the climate

‘Though it has different aromas, its high acidity and big flavours plus a little sweetness, for me, suggests that Virginia Petit Manseng can age similar to Vouvray – around 10 to 20 years,’ he says.

White believes it’s a great climate-proof grape for the state. ‘It fits Virginia well with our humidity and usual overabundance of rain. Tiny berries, loose clusters and tough skins hold up well to our environment. It’s the only variety I grow where I haven’t seen botrytis develop,’ he says.

Indeed, in my 20 recommended wines below, five are single-varietal Petit Mansengs and a sixth features it in a blend. In the past decade, winemakers have not only figured out best practices for farming it but also how to make compelling, complex wines.

Virginia Petit Manseng ranges between 14% and 15% ABV, tasting of pineapple, ripe peach and apricot, and finishing with a distinct salted caramel tang. Some even develop a Sherry-like nuttiness through micro-oxygenation during maturation in barrels.

Chardonnay can still shine

While Petit Manseng has developed a signature Virginia taste, Viognier and Chardonnay express site and winemaking more transparently.

Several knockout Chardonnays made my list. While Chardonnay has traditionally fared well in Virginia, quality and style have been uneven enough to avoid anointing it the state’s flagship white. In fact, Chardonnay plantings have gone down.

The likely reason ties to the site’s specifics: soil, climate, and exposure. While Chardonnay was long seen as capable of growing anywhere, great Chardonnay requires unique conditions to thrive. With years of trial and error, several wineries have nailed that formula; others have replanted with different grapes.

‘Identifying the right vineyard for each variety is key,’ says Early Mountain winemaker Maya Hood White. ‘Chardonnay benefits from well-drained soils and good exposure. But it is also very sensitive to frost and is usually the first variety hit in those years,’ she says.

Jim Law of Linden Vineyards is often considered the father of the state’s top Chardonnay. ‘Chardonnay becomes more interesting in cooler regions, notably higher-elevation sites found in the Shenandoah Valley and around the Blue Ridge Mountains,’ he says.

Law believes in extended bottle ageing before release. The current vintage for his Avenius Chardonnay is 2020.

However, Law remains deeply attuned to climate change. He shares email updates with members on his climate change trial plantings. Of 22 varieties, Fiano has grabbed his attention.

‘Fiano consistently produces stellar fruit. I have also been impressed with Barboursville’s Fiano. We are debating taking Fiano to the next level by planting a commercially sized block,’ he says.

Climate change and varietal adaptation

To his point, Barbourville’s Fiano also made my top 20 list. The winery has staked a claim with Italian varieties – unsurprising given it is one of the estates in the Veneto-based Zonin1821 portfolio. Barbourville’s winemaker Luca Paschina is also a third-generation winemaker from Alba in Piedmont.

In addition to an elegant Fiano, the winery produces an excellent Vermentino, another grape being trialled in warm regions for its adaptability to drought conditions.

Though Virginia is a mid-Atlantic state prone to downpours, especially during hurricane season, it also suffers long spells of heat and water scarcity, seen both this year and in 2023.

Many winemakers recognise the urgent need to adapt over next few decades. Grapes falling out of favour for some, though still capable of excellent wines, include Viognier.

Two decades ago, Viognier might have been approaching flagship status, but given its propensity for lower acidity, it’s become a site-sensitive variety, too.

While Virginia, like the rest of the world, must adjust to more erratic weather conditions and possibly a new climate paradigm, the state’s whites have never been better. Site-driven Chardonnay, rich Petit Manseng, bright Sauvignon Blanc, and a clutch of increasingly impressive Italian white grapes all demonstrate the state’s breadth of sites and winemaking talent.

Virginia white wines: 20 to try

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