
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: WEDNESDAY, September 15, 1993                   TAG: 9309110070
SECTION: VIRGINIA'S FINEST                    PAGE: VF-7   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium

ROOTS OF VIRGINIA'S WINE INDUSTRY RUN DEEP

No other state in the country can boast a longer wine-growing past than Virginia; America's first wine was made by the colonists at Jamestown in 1607. The current success of Virginia's wine industry can be attributed to the efforts of contemporary winegrowers as well as to those of colonial ones, among them Thomas Jefferson. Considered the "father of American wine," Jefferson realized Virginia's wine growing potential.

In 1773, Filippo Mazzei, an Italian physician, agriculturalist and wine merchant, arrived in Virginia with European Vitis vinifera grapevines. While visiting Thomas Jefferson in Albermarle County, he noted the countryside's similarities to the winegrowing region of Burgundy, France, and remarked, "In my opinion, when the country is populated in proportion to its extent, the best wine in the world will be made here."

On a 193-acre tract near Monticello, Mazzei built a house and planted a vineyard. When he returned to Europe in 1779 to raise needed funds for the American Revolution, his tenant's horses trampled the vineyard, ending Mazzei's winegrowing venture.

With European cuttings, Mazzei had given him and with native American varieties, Jefferson planted his own vineyard at Monticello. Unfortunately, like earlier attempts to grow Vitis vinifera in Virginia, including those of the Jamestown colonists some 150 years before, Jefferson failed. The sensitive European vines succumbed to American fungus diseases.

After trying to cultivate vinifera for three decades, Jefferson advised other Virginia wine growers to plant Alexander, a recently introduced American grape which shared the resilience of other native varieties. Wines made from native grapes, however, are characterized by a sweet, strong flavor which limits their appeal as table wines. It also limits their ability to compete with what connoisseurs consider the world's finest wines, those made from Vitis vinifera, a genus cultivated in Europe and Central Asia for thousands of years. For Virginia's winemakers to fulfill the promise Mazzei recognized, they needed a grape variety which combined the quality of European fruit with the hardiness of American vines.

Such varieties did not exist in Jefferson's day. It was not until the late 1800s that first European and then American viticulturalists began to develop French-American hybrids like Seyval Blanc, Chambourcin, and Marechal Foch, varieties able to resist diseases and survive adverse weather conditions.

Despite these viticultural innovations and attempts to revive winegrowing in Virginia after the repeal of Prohibition, a viable industry did not evolve until the 1970s. As Americans adopted the long-familiar European custom of drinking wine with meals, the demand for domestic wines increased, and vineyards and wineries were established throughout the Commonwealth.

But, you don't have to wait 300 years to have an experience worth savoring. Here's a recipe that uses a Virginia wine variety that Jefferson would be proud of: PEACHES WITH VIRGINIA CABERNET SAUVIGNON BLANC

(Serve with Virginia Cabernet Sauvignon Blanc)

Marinating fruit in wine is a European tradition and peaches are a particularly good choice, since they impart a juice of their own during the marinating process. 2 pounds mature peaches 4 T sugar 2 cups Virginia Cabernet Sauvignon Blanc Peel and slice the peaches in a bowl. Add the sugar and mix it with the peaches. Pour wine over the mixture. Refrigerate for 1 to 2 hours before serving. Serves: 4.

Here's a list of Virginia premium wineries that produce Virginia's Finest wines: Oakencroft Vineyard and Winery Corp., Loudoun Valley Vineyard, Barboursville Vineyards, Meredyth Vineyards, Prince Michel Vineyards, Rapidan River Vineyards, Burnley Vineyards, Swedenburg Winery, Montdomaine Cellars, Inc., Piedmont Vineyards, Ingleside Plantation Winery, Hartwood Winery, Willowcroft Farm Vineyard, Shenandoah Vineyards, Oasis Vineyards, Misty Mountain Winery,Tarara, Williamsburg Winery, Linden Vineyards, Ltd., The Rose Bower Vineyard & Winery and Tomahawk Mill Winery.

by CNB