Hiking and Wining in Deleplane Virginia

Living right off of interstate 66 can have its benefits. The highway often creates a wall of traffic so impenetrable that it feels like I live in a walled city from which there is no escape, but on a beautiful Sunday morning in late June and heading west traffic is not an issue. As escapes out to the country go Sky Meadows State Park is among one of the best. It lacks the majestic waterfalls of White Oak Canyon or the views of Old Rag, but it is less of a drive and still provides a good hike.

It is easy to forget how steep the North Ridge Trail is until you're halfway up it and covered in sweat on a cool 70 degree morning. The entire loop which includes the North Ridge Trail, the AT, and the White House Ambassador Trail is somewhere between four and five miles long. You get some good views of Paris, Virginia and can even see Washington DC on the horizon if you look for it. Sky Meadows provides a good hike to start the day and that was what we were looking for as visiting some of the local wineries was our main goal.



After two and a half hours of hiking we headed back to the car and replenished the fluids we'd lost on the hike. I decided that I wanted to get gas before driving from winery to winery and so we headed to Upperville, Virginia. After filling up we stopped at Hunter's Head Tavern for some Sunday brunch. I had a scotch egg with a side of fried potatoes and a New Castle Brown Ale, and my wife enjoyed herself a hot dog. The food and service were both excellent and eating outback of the British style tavern made me feel like we were going to hunt down the hound of the Baskervilles afterwards.

With brunch it felt like it had already been a full day and we hadn't even started the winery hopping which was our main purpose for our trip. The first winery we went to was Naked Mountain. I am no wine expert and didn't take very good notes while I was there, but I can say that Virginia Chardonnay has been good at every winery I've tasted it at, and I've grown to enjoy the aftertaste of fermented cheese. We ended up purchasing a bottle of a sweet red they call Red Light. It is a blend of Norton, Cabernet Sauvignon, Tannat, and Merlot. Of the reds this is the one my wife and I agreed on the most and as our home was already full of white wine it was the one we took home.

The second winery we went to was Deleplane Cellars and like Naked Mountain they had a balcony that overlooked their vineyards. They also had a couple of gentlemen, one on a guitar and the other on a dobro, playing covers of rock and roll songs from the 50's and 60's. I thought of asking for some blue grass standards, but never did. Aside from the atmosphere Deleplane Cellars stood out for the craftsmanship of their wine. As many times as I've been told wine contains hints of strawberries, plums, peaches, or mild earthy tones all I've ever tasted is grape and alcohol. With this wine I could pick out each and every individual flavor and the wine tasted like it was expertly made.

I enjoyed this tasting to such a degree that I purchased a glass for my wife and myself and we retired to a table near the balcony overlooking a horse barn. The wine we took home from here and the one that stands out to a degree that it might be not just the best wine I had that day, but the best thing I've ever drank, is the Petit Manseng. After thinking about it and what it was about this wine that made it stand out so much I finally put my finger on it. It reminded me of Dogfish Head's Festina Peche which is a beer I crave and look forward to every summer. A truly refreshing brew and like Dogfish Head's beer the pride and craftsmanship comes through in the flavors of Deleplane Cellars' Petit Manseng.

The final winery we stopped at was Three Fox Vineyards. After a beer, two tastings, and a glass of wine I was feeling a little happy, and my wife was still on her feet. This was the one winery we visited that did not have a tasting room. Instead the tastings were done at a temporary bar set up outside among the vines. I am sorry to say but after Deleplane Cellars nothing was going to hold up, and while I did purchase a bottle of a nice hearty red they call Il Volpe what I'm going to remember most about this winery was sitting down at a table between the rows of grapes and smoking a cigar made with Virginia tobacco.

Sitting among the vines on a mild summer day smoking a cigar in the foothills of Virginia is my imagining of heaven. This was the perfect ending to a wonderful day. We ended up with three bottles of wine, which may have been too much, but each one is unique and can only be purchased at small batch local wineries. Once they sell out of their most recent vintage that wine won't be available until they tap the barrels the following season, and in regards to the Petit Manseng from Deleplane Cellars I couldn't let that happen. The other two bottles of wine I ended up with because they are wonderful in their own right. I drank two glasses of the Il Volpe with a steak I fixed myself for dinner that evening, but after drinking so much wine that day I was surprised when the glass of water I poured for myself afterwards didn't taste of wine.

Hiking, brunch, and wine among the foothills of Virginia makes for a fantastic day, and an excellent break from the busy city working life. I suggest it to anyone out there and it may become a more regular thing for myself. Virginia is full of wineries, cideries, and craft breweries and many of them are close to some kind of hiking trail. There is nothing like an afternoon of boozing to complement a morning of hiking. Especially in the countryside of Virginia.