Davis Valley Winery
by
K.L. Sullivan
Summary: Currently, if you want to enjoy tasting Davis Valley wines, make a visit to their tasting room in Rural Retreat, Virginia or attend a Virginia wine festival. In the future, Davis Valley Winery will distribute their wines to stores. A visit to this winery offers good wines and scenic views.
Davis Valley Winery, located in Southwestern rural Virginia is a delightful winery to visit. A winding gravel road meanders past grapevines with grapes hanging from the vines. The road raises slowly to the top where the tasting room and winery are located. Enjoy the views of the mountains from atop the high hill. While a slight mist was in the air, it didn’t dampen our spirits of the views. Outside the door, tables and chairs on a cement block are available for enjoying a glass of wine and the beautiful landscape.
Upon entering the tasting room and signing the guest book, we stopped to observe the layout of the rectangular room. Wall lights on white walls brighten the interior. Displays of giftware are along the side walls with two tables in the center of the room. When visiting, enjoy browsing the displayed items. Displays include, napkins, olive oil, ceramic wine trivets, jewelry and wine totes. Gift towels were also available – some were labeled “Nice,” “Naughty” and “Some of my best friends are flakes” with images of snowflakes. At the far end of the room is an elegant antique tasting counter. The tasting counter is 100 years old.
Soon we met Dewey Snavely, a congenial person who seems to do every job around the winery that needs to be done. While we toured the tasting room and events area, Dewey gave us details about the winery. The events room has the added ambience of grapevines gracing the walls. Those planning wedding receptions, anniversaries, retirement parties, birthday parties may delight in using the available facilities.
Rusty Cox purchased the property, originally a dairy farm, owned by Dewey’s family. The new owner planted the vineyards in 2000 and today the vineyards consist of Chardonel, Cabernet Franc, Vidal Blanc, Marechal Foch, Norton, Steuben and Corot Noir. Corot Noir is a hybrid cross between Seyve Villard and Steuben. The winery facility was built in 2002/2003 and today produces 6000 cases of wine. Currently bottles are hand labeled. The property has land for more vineyards and the winery has more room for expanding its process.
We enjoyed tasting the wines at the 100 year old ornate tasting counter. The carved wood counter was almost too nice to be used for tastings. The Chardonnay 2005 offered a aroma of apple and tropical fruits with oak and apple on the taste. The aftertaste had butter and fruit. The blush had a strawberry nose and reminded one of a fruit salad mix. The aftertaste had perceived sweetness and fruit that dried on the finish. Virginia Breeze was produced with Vidal Blanc and had a floral nose. The taste was medium bodied and fruity with an finish that began sweet and ended dry. Virginia Breeze Red had an herbaceous nose with a red grapefruit taste. This wine had a sweet finish with a Concord grape aftertaste. There was fruit with a hint of grass on the nose of the Chambourcin while the taste was very fruity and crisp. It finished with a hint of sweetness. Corot Noir 2005 was produced with a unique grape – Corot Noir. The wine had a fruit nose and taste. The aftertaste was crisp with mild tannins and dried on the finish. Cabernet Franc was a silver medal winner with a nose of strawberries and cherries. The taste was of fruit with some a pepper. The finish was crisp and the fruit gave way to earthiness on the aftertaste.
&
Davis Valley Winery offers stunning views of vineyards and distant mountains. Visitors can taste a variety of different wines.
Davis Valley Winery
1167 Davis Valley Road, Rural Retreat, VA 24368
N 36° 90.266' W 81° 36.003'
Visit these Virginia wineries and wine tour groups that partner with Wine Trail Traveler.
 |
 |
 |
 |
