Governor’s Cup wine competition recognizes state’s best wines

A panel of world-class judges recently pushed away from their tasting tables and on February 22 announced the winners of the 2016 Virginia Governor’s Cup wine competition. It will come as no surprise to county wine lovers that five Fauquier County wineries walked away with gold medals.

Toni Kilyk
Granite Heights Winery

While the competition has been held for 34 years, in 2012 it was restructured to represent the highest standards of professional wine evaluation in the Nation. To be awarded a gold medal 432 wines were evaluated in preliminary rounds with 130 finalists scrutinized by 15 professional sommeliers, chefs, writers and retailers; only 38 wines were awarded a coveted gold.

The overall winner of the Governor’s Cup was Keswick Vineyards in Charlottesville for its 2014 Cabernet Franc Reserve.

The Fauquier County winners were:
Delaplane Cellars:
2013 Williams Gap

Granite Heights Winery:
2010 Evening Serenade
2010 Lomax Reserve
2012 humility

Naked Mountain Winery:
2012 Petit Verdot

Pearmund Cellars:
2013 Chardonnay
2013 Petit Verdot

Vint Hill Craft Winery:
2013 Cabernet Sauvignon

Fauquier’s strong showing reinforces the caliber of wine being produced by winery proprietors. Congratulations to the winners—and all county wineries—for their dedication to the vintner’s art.