Like the Wine; Love the Space

Veritas Vineyards and Winery was a new to us visit for Grape Envy Guy and me.  We’re definitely glad we made the decision to stop here.  Our first impression as we pulled into the parking area was that the location was gorgeous.  There’s a beautiful picnic area in a wooded area and a nice grassy clearing suitable for picnicking or to allow kids to run off some excess energy.  As we moved into the tasting room, the positive impression continued.  It’s a large space filled with distressed wood tables and comfortable leather couches and chairs.  It was definitely a space where I’d enjoying spending an afternoon.

I also got a peek into the function space, and I was impressed there as well.  Usually these large function rooms leave me cold as they tend to have a generic look and feel.  This space was warm and welcoming.  I particularly liked the lighting fixture surrounding the disco ball.  I don’t see any large events in my future needing such a space, but this is definitely one I’d recommend for those in the market.

As always, we came for the wine, so let’s get to the heart of the visit…  Veritas offers two tasting flights: a white flight and a red flight.  While each flight has its own tasting fee, they do credit one tasting fee per bottle purchased.  We opted to work through both flights, and I’m glad we did.  Normally I gravitate towards the red wines, but I actually preferred the whites here.

I enjoyed both versions of the sauvignon blanc, although I did prefer the more complex flavors and lasting finish of the reserve.  They offered three different chardonnays differing in their levels of oak contact.  While I didn’t love any enough to take one home, I through they were all enjoyable, and I appreciated the subtle oak taste in the Harlequin chardonnay, the most oaked of the bunch.  The viognier was nicely fruity (I particularly picked up on the peach notes).  I do think this is a wine that would benefit from being paired with some food….perhaps some spiced pecans a la Vintage Ridge Vineyards and some dried fruit.  The Kenmar 2006 desert wine rounded out the white flight.  This wine is made from traminette grapes, a relative of gewürztraminer.  It was complex, but I didn’t really care for the spicy sweet combo.

The red flight started with a rosé that was dry but fruity.  While I wasn’t in the market for a rosé, this is one I’d consider in the future.  They also offered both the 2008 cab franc and the 2006 cab franc reserve.  The 2008 still needs to age, so I’m not yet sure what to make of it.  I preferred the reserve, although I think it would really benefit from being paired with food (they suggest steak, while I think a rich pork dish).  The 2007 claret was a bit oaky for my taste (have you figured out yet that oak is about a very fine balance for me).  The Vintner’s Reserve blend, also from 2007, was a mellow blend, but it’s lighter than I normally expect form this as it is a Meritage-style.  This flight ended with the 2006 Othello, a port-style wine.  While I do enjoy some ports, this was just too sweet for me.

At the end of the day, we enjoyed our visit.  The location is gorgeous, and the wines were quite good.  The staff was friendly and helpful, and managed to work multiple groups through the tastings very well.  I was particularly impressed to learn that when the tasting bar is full they’ll have people sit at a table or on couches to move them through their own tastings rather than having people mill around while waiting for a space at the bar.  I recommend that you pack a picnic and spend some time here.

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