While visiting a Virginia winery, I tasted a wine called Claret. Several other Virginia wineries also make wines they label as Claret. It seems fitting to do so. The word Claret was used for hundreds of years in England to describe a wine made in Bordeaux, France. Today the word has no legal definition. Why is it fitting for Virginia wineries to use the term?

Virginia had a strong relationship with England. While a colony, laws were passed stating that every male in the colony had to plant grape vines. People in England liked their wines and were always wary that the French might cut off their supply. So when the new colony was founded, males were required to plant grape vines. The dream that Virginia would become England’s supplier of wine was short lived. Vines quickly died. Even Thomas Jefferson had problems keeping vines alive. Four hundred years later, though, it’s a different story. In 2007, many wineries in Virginia sent their wines to England for a tasting. There were many positive reviews.

The early Jamestown colonists would certainly be aware of the term Claret. So it seems fitting that some Virginia wineries use the word today. Since there is no legal definition of the term, you may want to ask what varietal grapes are in the wine. If it is a Bordeaux-like blend is it made up of at least three of the five Bordeaux grapes? Have you had a Claret recently?