Charlottesville Food

by Casey Ireland

  Almost two centuries later, Jefferson’s dreams of melding the taste of Italian wine with American industriousness became a reality on 120 acres of central Virginian red clay. Barboursville Vineyards, established in 1976 by Italian expat Gianni Zonin, is home to many “firsts” of the Virginia wine industry. Gabriele Rausse is also a renowned local vintner, having earned the moniker “father of Virginia wine” during his tenure at Barboursville in the 1970s. Barboursville Vineyards produced the first Virginia wines to be exported to China and provided the Bordeaux-style Octagon blend at the British Embassy’s reception for Prince William’s marriage to Kate Middleton in 2011.110 The New York Times acknowledges that “Jefferson would have cheered” for the successes of Barboursville, finding that “the best of the Virginia wines are fresh, graceful, deeply colored and full of varietal character.”111

  Barboursville Vineyards rests on a picturesque 870-acre plot of land stretching from Albemarle to Orange County. The “romantic” red brick ruins of James Barbour’s Neo-Palladian mansion, designed by Thomas Jefferson in 1822, now belong to the vineyard.112 The octagonal projection of the house and its architectural ties to Jeffersonian innovation have proven clear influences on both owners and managers of Barboursville. Zonin purchased the property after a vacation in Charlottesville, attracted to both the geographic layout and the historical background of Barboursville. Luca Paschina, head winemaker at Barboursville, noted, “The history of the place, the Jefferson connection, the ruins all interested him. He’s an Italian.”113

  It was Paschina’s journey to the vineyard in 1990 as a consultant that marked Barboursville’s ascendance to a higher quality of wine production. Polite and unassuming, Paschina admits that the vineyard has not changed dramatically since his arrival at the vineyard, stating, “The owner was focused since the beginning on producing the best wine we can from this land and therefore defining a wine region which did not exist.”114 Paschina confesses, “I pruned all winter long with the people here. They had no idea how to do it.” Over time, Paschina and the team at Barboursville “built up our knowledge of the conditions here. Gradually better vines became available, and we learned which ones would do best.”115

  Ruins of the Barboursville mansion on the property of Barboursville Vineyards. Courtesy of the Historic American Buildings Survey.

  “Best,” at Barboursville, is more than a relative statement from a modest winemaker. Particular varieties such as viognier and cabernet franc have done well in the red Piedmont soil, breathing New World life into trusty European varietals that had been previously imported. One of the key elements to the success has been the championing over, or at least truce with, Virginia’s clime and wildlife. Dr. Tony Wolf, professor of viticulture at Virginia Tech, has noted that modern winemakers “have more tools in our management toolbox” than did Jefferson in the 1820s or even Zonin in the 1970s. Graelyn Brashear finds that “with pesticides and fungicides, growers can pamper a crop out of the fragile vinifera varieties that consumers know and seek out.”116

  Barboursville’s place at the cornerstone of the Virginia wine industry tells a story of collaboration, the melding of several visions, strengths and histories for the creation of a solid and consistent product. The dreams of Jefferson, Zonin and Paschina have seemingly coalesced into an elegant and well-marketed bottle of cabernet franc, sampled in the large stone tasting room or purchased at the local Whole Foods. The tale of Gabriele Rausse, father of Virginia wine, is, by contrast, one of fierce individuality.

  BIG AND SMALL STORIES OF LOCAL VINTNERS

  Gabriele Rausse’s wines are sold under his name, papered with a simple brown label denoting the variety. His winery holds no tasting room, no area for customers to taste the wine or talk up the wine pourers. He has no website and no Facebook page hosting updates or offering space for enthusiasts to praise his vintages. His is a less accessible brand, a winemaker’s wine intended for serious consumers. Underneath Rausse’s warmth and easy laugh rests a distrust for mainstream food establishments, an almost utilitarian reliance on his own senses—and sensibility. “People are so willing to believe in anything somebody tells them,” Rausse admits. “I believe only what I can see with my eyes and touch with my hands. Words for me don’t mean much.”117

  Aging in oak barrels. Photo by Kevin Haney.

  If one is to rely solely on taste, the solidity of Rausse’s wines speaks for itself. According to Margaux and Company, a wine import company that represents Rausse, his wines “bear an unmistakable European stamp,” offering a “clean structure, clear fruit flavors, judicious use of oak and realistic pricing.”118 His vineyard rests on a seven-acre plot, though most of the grapes that Rausse uses come from vineyards he has planted for other growers.119 With his two sons, Rausse is responsible for the entire production of his wines. Easily accessible table blends, rarities such as vin gris and decadent Old World selections like nebbiolo characterize the Gabriele Rausse Winery offerings.

  Well traveled and well educated, Rausse has a degree from the University de Milan in agricultural science, a degree “which trains you to be in charge of a farm with a lot of different crops.” Part of Rausse’s allure to the Barboursville founders was his experience with grape-growing in Italy, coupled with his experience in Australia with raising cattle and sheep. According to Rausse, the original thought behind Zonin’s spur-of-the-moment purchase of Barboursville was that “if grapes don’t work, we will do something else.” He notes, “When the farm at Barboursville started, we bought cows, we bought horses, we started to grow soybeans and corn. We had no clue which direction to go and we were discouraged by VA Tech and USDA over and over.”

  Rausse worked as the general manager of Barboursville until 1981, when he left to help establish Simeon Vineyards, now named Jefferson Vineyards. In 1999, he aided the foundation of Kluge Estate Winery and Vineyard and consulted on Afton Mountain Vineyard, Blenheim, First Colony, Stone Mountain and White Hall.120 In 1997, he left Jefferson Vineyard to come to Monticello “mainly because the offer he had was very attractive,” and so he said, “If I have to work for free, I will do it for a nonprofit organization. The plan was to do something myself.” He obtained his license under the agreement of renting Blenheim; Rausse took care of Blenheim for several years before Dave Matthews purchased the vineyard. He then planted his own vineyard in 1997, and then Kluge came on the scene. Rausse doesn’t worry about planting more vines for himself because of his consulting jobs. The grapes for his wine come from all around Virginia, mainly nebbiolo and pinot noir varieties.

  Rausse’s wines, like the man himself, reveal an equal investment in restraint and pleasure. Rausse abhors commodified and over-branded food products, preferring the freshness of garden-picked figs to the fluorescent aisles of grocery stores. To Rausse, smaller is better, both as a winemaker and consumer. “They have regulations that we have in Virginia that we don’t have in other states, so for me, I feel comfortable in using Virginia wines because I know what is going on in that wine,” Rausse states. “I do prefer always the small grower for the simple reason that if he’s small, he’s not interested in money.” A love of knowledge, distrust of large-scale production methods and constant urge for refinement and development mark Gabriele Rausse and his wines as singular in vision and refreshingly straightforward.

  Rausse exists at one end of the spectrum of winemaking and wine marketing, relying on word of mouth and personal integrity to get the product to its target audience. If Barboursville, with its name recognition and international appeal, offers a glimpse at the potential market that Virginia wine may reach, Trump Winery takes its self-branding one step further. Donald Trump purchased the vineyard and facility of the defunct Kluge Estate Winery and Vineyard from Patricia Kluge in April 2012. Since opening in October of that year, Trump Winery has done a quick business of entrenching itself as a reputable—and lauded—producer of Virginia wine. In March 2013, Wine Enthusiast gave the Trump Winery SP Reserve a 91 rating, “the highest rating the magazine has ev
er given to any Virginia wine, still or sparkling.”121 Sold in three different countries, served at Chelsea Clinton’s wedding and graced with the instant recognition of the Trump family name, Trump Winery offers consumers an entirely different product in a decidedly different package than Gabriele Rausse’s minimalist presentation.

  The tasting room at Trump Winery is almost always packed, filled with everyone from excited college students to well-dressed wine enthusiasts from Washington, D.C. A spacious outdoor patio, stone interiors and dark wood accents give the impression of an expensive mountain cabin. The wine, like the tasting room, is glamorous without ostentation. The only showy qualities on the wines’ labels are the Trump name, just as the wine itself is made remarkable by its own solidity.

  Kerry Woolard, general manager for the winery, finds that while “wineries in our area are after the same clients, mostly local people as well as the D.C. and Richmond crowd,” the global nature of the Trump name makes the winery’s reach “a little bit broader.” Trump Winery has more success with wholesale business, as it is distributed in sixteen different states and three different countries.122 Woolard acknowledges, “Virginia wine has been spread out further than it had been because of our distribution network.”

  The biggest assets to Trump Winery are its “size and global brand recognition.” Woolard relates flying to various brand meetings, doing demos for distributors, visiting other Trump properties, engaging in staff training and winemakers’ dinners and serving wine at members-only events. “Other wineries in Virginia are more reliant on people buying wine at wineries,” she says. “The Trump wine is in other markets.” Woolard notes that her demonstrations begin with a two-minute description of Virginia before she talks about the wine; to her, the Trump brand provides “a great opportunity to expose people all over the world to Virginia wine that wouldn’t have had it in any other context or exposure.”

  Trump Winery’s position in the heart of the Monticello Wine Trail attracts more serious wine consumers; Woolard finds that Charlottesville lends to that appeal. “I don’t think the wine industry would have developed in the capacity it has if not for the culinary and farm-to-table aspects of Charlottesville,” she states. Woolard believes wine and food to be mutually dependent, as it’s “weird to go to a wine area without a culinary scene.” Given that “the wine-interested traveler has interest in culinary experiences as well,” Trump Winery seeks to provide visitors with a memorable, seasonal menu. The restaurant serves Caromont cheeses, Surryano ham and Monastery Gouda, with pork products coming from the Rock Barn. “I’ve always felt there is a disconnect between wine as a farm product,” Woolard states. “Some of the best restaurants in Charlottesville have local products all over and no local wines.” She sees wine in the bottle as often removed from the farm process but attests that Trump Winery is a local farm as well.

  Trump Winery is “fortunate” to be in the Monticello American Viticultural Area (AVA), which is already known as the premier wine-growing area in the state. This AVA’s general reputation for being serious about wine quality lends the vineyard “more history, more longevity, more wines” and the ability to be “taken more seriously.” In 2012, the Governor’s Cup picked out the top twelve wines to constitute a “governor’s case”; eleven of the twelve were from grapes grown in the Monticello AVA. The prestige of this area provided the initial draw for the Trumps, given that “they like being best in everything.” Woolard has found that for the Trumps, “location is everything, quality is everything.”

  Whether large-scale producers or family-run operations, location and quality are markers of many wineries in central Virginia. Picnics at Veritas Vineyards, cocktails made with Thibault-Jannison sparkling wine, the giggle-inducing labels of Well-Hung Vineyard and short ribs braised in Gabriele Rausse’s Rosso are all experiences and tastes made available by the successes of Virginia’s wine industry. Either for drinking by itself or for pairing with food, a bottle of wine from the Monticello AVA and nearby areas is guaranteed to have a story behind its taste, aroma and production method.

  BREWERIES AND CIDERIES

  One can drink a glass of Virginia Fizz with two slices of cheese pizza from Christian’s—the crisp acidity will help cut the salty, fatty topping—but a cold pint of beer is the more popular and likely choice. While the brewing industry of Charlottesville has not yet reached the levels of distribution and fame accorded to winemaking in the area, a reliable contingent of local brewers has appeared over the last ten years. If wine tastings and vineyard tours appeal to the Charlottesville gourmand, one who shops at Feast! and dines at the C&O, the breweries of the area draw in the festival-loving crowd, the under-thirties who choose the Whiskey Jar and hiking over crossword puzzles and Paramount concerts. The brewers are not European transplants or elegant septuagenarians but the young and the tattooed. Oyster stouts and pizza trucks, concert-friendly six packs and hot wings are the offerings of local breweries, eager to reach out to a demographic that the burgeoning wine industry has not yet enfolded.

  The name “Starr Hill” has a variety of meanings to residents of Charlottesville. It can refer to the neighborhood of Charlottesville between UVA and downtown, a primarily African American area that has become more integrated recently. It can refer to the old Starr Hill brewery and concert hall, a stretching space on West Main Street that hosted the likes of They Might Be Giants and John Mayer, which closed in 2007. For most people, Starr Hill is the name of the area’s largest and most successful brewery. The music-themed names and labels of Starr Hill brews, its high visibility at concerts and music venues and the foundational status of the brewery mark it as a beer to be reckoned with, a malted monolith of Trump proportions.

  When Mark Thompson founded the brewery in 1999, the market was saturated with imported beer; according to Thompson, it was “a different world.” Starr Hill was one of the first breweries in the commonwealth of Virginia upon taking over a spot called Blue Ridge Brewing Company. Blue Ridge Brewing Company, started by grandchildren of former UVA writer-in-residence William Faulkner in 1986, was the first brewpub in Virginia. Founded by owners who had been influenced by the German model of small hometown breweries, the brewpub was sold to Thompson, who changed the name to Starr Hill to reflect a community investment.

  Not long after beginning, Starr Hill quickly became a music lifestyle brand, aided by the visibility of its West Main location and a music hall upstairs. Thompson, a charming Will Ferrell lookalike with an easy sense of humor, tells of selling T-shirts at Grateful Dead concerts, leading to entrepreneurial skills built in the parking lot. To him, “the music connection was in our DNA.”123 Starr Hill often names beers after music and song titles; some of its product offerings speak to the needs of this lifestyle, such as canned beer’s usefulness for concerts and outdoor activities. Thompson finds the connection between music and alcohol to be “two and two equals five” and refers to the ties between the craft beer scene and the music scene as “a natural progression.”

  Starr Hill’s mission statement includes the provision that “Starr Hill seeks to become the East Coast’s most respected and sought-after brewery.” Thompson has dreams of growing the business and becoming regional, which the brewery can accomplish by “making fresh liquid.” Seasonal flavors do play into the public’s conception of “fresh”; IPAs and seasonal brews, which change by the quarter, are top sellers. Thompson’s research shows that consumers do like a seasonal item; winter beers are stronger, with more alcohol and a darker color. Though Thompson misses having a place for music, he doesn’t miss the headaches. Starr Hill spends considerable time and effort establishing relationships with local music venues, plus Hershey Park and Raleigh. Thompson wants “to touch people with the gift of great beer.”

  While Starr Hill is by no means a business of Anheuser-Busch proportions, its longevity, size and successful expansion make it one of the area’s largest brewing operations. Room has been left available for new operations of smaller scale to step in and fill addi
tional niches. Thompson views the increasing number of local breweries in positive terms, noting that “a rising tide lifts all boats.” The Virginia Craft Brewers Guild displays the ethos that these businesses are stronger when they band together. Each brewery has its own niche and quality; to Thompson, if the area can house two hundred wineries, there can also be room for two hundred breweries.

  Hunter Smith’s Champion Brewery, housed in a strip of businesses between downtown and Belmont, fills one of these niches. Tiny, inventive and highly collaborative, Champion has already distinguished itself within the past year that it has been open. Hunter Smith wanted to “get into the beer business, really ever since [he had his] first craft beer.” Smith has found that his clientele is “all over the place” but are primarily “neighborhood residents or visitors to the Downtown Mall. The age varies from minimum legal drinking into middle-aged customers and older.”

  The variety of offerings at Champion mirrors the diversity in customers; a German-style gose with the name of Face Eater, a seasonal oyster stout and an 8.5 percent ABV Belgian tripel are all available at Champion Brewery. Partnerships with other local businesses, such as Blue Ridge Pizza Company, Taqueria Mi Ranchito and the Clifton Inn, keep the offerings at Champion fresh and eventful. Smith displays similar support to Mark Thompson for would-be competitors in the craft beer scene. “I think it’s great that there’s enough local demand for beer and wine, and it looks like local markets show strong support for growth,” Smith says. “I think the number-one thing that matters is quality product. As long as the beer and wine is good and the most important thing on anyone’s mind, then it’s all good.”