Sadly, I have never been able to participate in harvest in VA wine country because most of the time, they ask for volunteers during the week. Much to my surprise, Fabbioli Cellars in Loudoun County sent out a tweet about helping on a Saturday! Of course, I was in!
I arrived there shortly after 9am, grabbed a bucket and some sheers and starting clipping. This particular day they were harvesting Cabernet Franc, one of Virginia's most popular grapes.
There were quite a few of us out there helping that day, including family and friends of the vineyard. General conversation with fellow wine lovers was a great attribute while working hard! ;) Once we filled up the bins, vineyard workers/volunteers came through with a trailer to empty the bins and then the clusters were headed to the destemmer.
After a few hours of manual labor (I kid, it wasn't bad at all!), we went inside to wash up. While inside, I decided to stick around for a tasting of their wines. There were 8 wines to taste and the tasting fee was $10. This included food pairings! The tasting room was inviting and each tasting table had seats for you to rest your feet. Both the chairs and the food pairings were an added touch.
I'm looking forward to tasting the 2012 Cabernet Franc reserve, knowing I helped out in a tiny way!
Cheers!
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