Annefield Vermentino 2014

This Vermentino is stunning. Think citrus freshness, limes, preserved lemon, a touch of green apple -- racy acidity combined with a robust structure, and finished with a slightly salty tang. Lean and crisp, this wine cries out for seafood.

The Annefield Grape Varietals

AWHITE QUARTZ SAPPONY INDIAN arrowhead was found at the site, so we have christened this vineyard Arrowhead. The first three-acre vineyard planting is on Georgeville silt loam, which produces moderate vine vigor.

With our deep, well drained soils, hot summers, and relatively mild winters, the climate and soil in Charlotte County are perfect for grapevines. We are taking advantage of these great conditions and have selected grape varieties that flourish here and produce the best tasting wines. Our vineyard is situated at 500-ft. elevation in an area with excellent air drainage.

Ripening fruit at Annefield Vineyards
Ripening fruit at Annefield.
We are implementing all necessary vineyard practices to optimize the quality of our fruit. These include the use of the Vertical Shoot Positioning system to train the vines, shoot thinning and leaf pulling throughout early summer, two hedgings per season, and fruit thinning on vigorous varieties.

In April 2006, we planted our first three acres. We started with Viognier, Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon. The Viognier and Cabernet Franc were grafted onto 3309 Couderc rootstock, and the Cabernet Sauvignon grafted onto Millardet et de Grasset 101-14. Both were selected because they are less vigorous than other rootstocks and grow well in our rich Virginia clay:

Viognier – Viognier is a white grape from the Rhone Valley that makes full-bodied, powerfully perfumed, intensely floral, spicy wines. Its rich and complex aroma is like overripe apricots mixed with orange blossoms. Other descriptors are lime, honeysuckle, jasmine, ginger, and melon. Like Chardonnay, Viognier takes well to oak and to malolactic fermentation.
Cabernet Franc – One of the major red wine grapes of the Bordeaux region, Cabernet Franc is the leaner sibling of Cabernet Sauvignon and often blended with it, not only in France but in Meritage-style New World blends. On its own it is less full-bodied, less tannic and less acidic than Cabernet Sauvignon but it may be more aromatic, fruity, herbal, or vegetal. Cabernet Franc’s primary fruit aromas often suggest raspberry, cherry, strawberry and, especially, plum. It almost always shows a distinctive aroma of violets and a slightly spicy flavor. When it shows vegetal characters, they tend toward bell pepper or stems. With oak treatment, smoke, toast, and tar characters emerge. Extended bottle age promotes earth, mushroom, and cedar aromas.

Cabernet Sauvignon – Cabernet Sauvignon is often called the “king” of red wine grapes. In the great wines of the Medoc region of Bordeaux, Cabernet Sauvignon is always blended (with Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and sometimes Petite Verdot and/or Malbec), while elsewhere in the world it may be blended, or bottled on its own. At its best, Cabernet Sauvignon produces wines of tremendous intensity and depth of flavor. It can be firmly tannic and it usually shows dark purple color, firm acidity, full body, and concentrated flavors. It has an affinity for oak and often spends a year or more in barrel, gaining vanilla, toffee, cedar, and/or coconut flavors. Typical fruit aromas of Cabernet Sauvignon are black currant, blackberry, plum, and black cherry with occasional notes of rhubarb or prune. Herbal notes of pepper, asparagus, green or black olive, mint/menthol/eucalyptus and spice notes of ginger, oregano and anise might be found. The particular appeal of Cabernet Sauvignon, however, lies less in its fruit aromas and more in the subtle flavors that develop with years of bottle aging and the complex interaction between the fruit, tannins, fermentation, alcohol and oak.
In 2011, we will plant three additional varietals: Vermentino, Pinot Grigio and Vidal Blanc, all grafted onto Millardet et de Grasset 101-14.

Vermentino – With its bright acidity, aromas of citrus leaf and mineral, and refreshing finish, this grape will most likely become a favorite at Annefield Vineyards. This late-ripening white grape variety is primarily found in Italian wine, though it is thought to be Spanish in origin. Grown in several countries bordering the Mediterranean, its best known examples come from Northern Italy, particularly in the region of Liguria, and the island of Sardinia, where the wines are crisp, citrusy and generally unoaked. It is also the most widely planted white grape on the island of Corsica, where high altitude and hot climate vineyards produce more full-bodied wines with heady floral aromas. On the French mainland the grape is known as Rolle, where it is found in Côtes de Provence and Languedoc. Vermentino is a vigorous grower, resistant to drought, and usually ripens towards the middle of the harvest cycle. The wine is usually a pale straw color and relatively low in alcohol, with crisp acids, citrus-leaf aromatics, and pronounced minerality. Vermentino shows flavors of green apple and lime, heightened by refreshing acidity, good richness and medium body.

Pinot Grigio – Pinot Grigio, or Pinot Gris, as it is known in France, is a white wine variety that is thought to be a mutant clone of Pinot Noir. We know of it from the Middle Ages in Burgundy, where it was probably called Fromenteau. It spread from Burgundy to Switzerland by 1300. Reportedly the grape was a favorite of Emperor Charles IV, who had cuttings imported to Hungary by Cistercian monks. In Italy, Pinot Grigio is found in Lombardy around Oltrepo Pavese and in Alto Adige, Italy’s northernmost wine region. The grape is also prominent in the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region. The grape was popular in Burgundy and Champagne until the 19th century, but poor yields and unreliable crops caused it to fall out of favor in those areas. The same fate nearly occurred in Germany, but vine breeders in the early 20th century were able to develop clones that would produce a more consistent and reliable crop. For our planting we chose two French clones propagated by the Foundation Plant Services at the University of California, Davis; these are intended to complement each another, for one has a mineral, steely quality (Clone 9), and the other is more fruity and complex (Clone 4). A marriage of the two should produce a wine that tastes strongly of stone fruit and citrus with a flinty, mineral edge.

Vidal Blanc – Vidal Blanc has proven to be among the most versatile varietals in North American viticulture. Vidal Blanc is a hybrid bred from the crossing of the over-productive and under flavored Ugni Blanc (known as Trebbiano in Italy) and an older hybrid, Rayon d’Or. Vidal’s high, natural acidity makes it suitable for a wide range of styles, from light and crisp with racy acid, to slightly off-dry, to Ice Wine. The grape is well suited to cold climates, due to its mid-season ripening and its ability to produce good crops from secondary buds in the event of a late spring frost Vidal produces large clusters of thick-skinned berries, and ultimately, wines with fruity floral characteristics, with grapefruit and pineapple notes. The grape’s thick skin allows this varietal to thrive in Virginia.

Annefield  Vineyard:

MUCH OF THE ROCK AND SOIL AT Annefield derives from weathering of the Precambrian rocks that underlie much of the county. Rocks formed during the Precambrian era are between 4.5 billion and 560 million years old. Eons of weathering of these Precambrian rocks have given rise to the Wissahickon schist and gneiss formations, which merge with rocks composed of volcanic material in the area. These complex formations underlie the Georgeville and Herndon loam soil series that is well represented at the farm.

Annefield Vineyards: The first vineyard block is planted in Georgeville series soil.
The first vineyard block is planted in Georgeville series soil.
Although the farm’s soil appears consistent on the surface, there are actually four different classifications of soil on the property:

Georgeville – The Georgeville series consists of deep, well drained soils that have a red clayey layer in the subsoil. These soils are undulating to hilly and are on uplands. They formed in material weathered from metamorphosed sedimentary rock. These soils are strongly acid or very strongly acid subsoil and are low in natural fertility.

Herndon – The Herndon series consists of deep, well drained undulating and rolling soils on uplands. These soils formed in the weathered products of metamorphosed sedimentary and volcanic rocks. These soils have a strongly acid to very strongly acid subsoil and are low in natural fertility.

Annefield Vineyards: Note the mixture of clay and weathered rock in the Cabernet Sauvignon block.
Note the mixture of clay and weathered rock in the Cabernet Sauvignon block. Orange – The Orange series consists of deep, somewhat poorly drained to moderately well drained soils that have a very plastic, clayey layer in the subsoil. These soils are undulating to rolling and are on uplands. They formed in material weathered from greenstone, slate and other fine-grained basic rocks. These soils have a medium acid to neutral subsoil and are low to medium in natural fertility.

Appling – The Appling series consists of deep, well drained soils that have a clayey layer in the subsoil. These are undulating to hilly soils on uplands. They formed in the weathered products of acid igneous and metamorphic rocks. Appling soils have a strongly acid to very strongly acid subsoil and are low in natural fertility.