Hot but Refreshing Day at Montifalco Vineyards

When the August schedule for Out and About Charlottesville showed up in my email inbox, I was thrilled to see an event at Montifalco Vineyards. I’d seen a little about it in the Virginia Wine Love Facebook group and knew it was well thought of, so I immediately told Husband that he needed to reserve that day so we could join the group there and see what it was about.

We grabbed some sandwiches from Feast with friends and headed over early, knowing there may be limited parking available. The vineyard has truly maintained a boutique feel and has limited parking. While doing so, there are a number of great spaces on the site to enjoy your wine and company and soak in the trees, blue sky and vineyard setting.

In fact, we drove past the winery twice, once because the side road was small and Google Maps said, “You’re here!” and we didn’t see anything. So we turned around and came back and turned down the road at the intersection where Google Maps told us we’d arrived, and drove past the driveway for the winery. It’s nice and secluded and unassuming like that, from the road it almost looks like any other house. When your Nav of choice tells you that you are close to the winery, slow down and take it easy. You have to turn on Fray Road and it’s the first driveway on the left.

When we arrived, the staff greeted us – we were there very early for the event and there was only one other group enjoying wine. We ended up each getting a “Discovery Flight” of four wines, with husband and I getting the mixed flight and our friends getting the white and red flight respectively.

One thing I was excited to see on the menu were the atypical varietals for Virginia. The Rosé was made from Estate grown Rkatsitelli and Saperavi, the white on my tray was Roussanne. The red blend was Petit Verdot and Saperavi. While they also offered Chardonnay, Viognier, and Meritage, these atypical varietals made me happy – I love seeing winemakers taking a different approach than the standard, commercially appealing fare.

I will say this Rosé was very crisp and appealing, and very refreshing on the hot day. We all loved it, and ended up buying a bottle to split. Well, the intention was to split it, but you may be able to guess what actually happened….

Rkatsitelli and Saperavi are ancient grape varietals, and as such in my limited experience with them grown in Virginia do bring forward different characteristics than I typically taste in wine. However, this rosé just presented with no floral quality, pleasantly dry, and thoroughly thirst-quenching. I felt acidity was very balanced and pleasant while no single fruit characteristic really dominated the flavor for me (which I prefer). While the tasting notes offer ginger, I don’t think I picked that up but rather something faint and herbal in the background that fit nicely. We ended up bringing two of these home too, one is just for me (again) and one is heading to the beach in a few weeks.

Next up on my tray was the 2022 Estate Mistral, 100% Roussanne also grown on the property. I still don’t see much Roussanne in Virginia, but have seen few more places doing it lately. Roussanne is a grape that has really grown on me and I always try it when I see it on the tasting menu. This wine was also crisp but it presented with more “mouthfeel” or viscosity that a white grape typically does. I love Roussanne because it can be a “complex” white wine and brings forward things I don’t usually get from a dry wine, especially the notes of honey in it. This was a good example of what Roussanne can do in Virginia, and I brought one home with me to sit next to my one remaining 2022 Arterra Roussane. I am told Roussanne ages well, and my experience with it is that it generally does. Maybe this one will last so I can see how it does. Maybe it won’t.

The first red on the tasting tray was the 2021 Estate Merlot. In my mind, Virginia merlot is either terrible or quite good, with no known examples (to me) in the middle. This one falls into the “quite good” category – with my overall impression being the vanilla and plum flavors coming in strongest. Bear in mind I’ve just inhaled a Chicken, fig and cheddar sandwich with arugula on a baguette, so of course that will influence everything I sip. Even on the hot day, this merlot was a great example of the variety and very pleasing. Two bottles came home with us.

Finally, the last taste was the 2021 Estate Valour, a blend of Petit Verdot and Saperavi. The tasting notes list licorice, sage and dried herbs, and husband did not love this wine at all. I however, did – I generally love everything that has a good Petit Verdot in it, and the herbal qualities gave it a different feel than I usually get from a Petit Verdot. I ultimately had a double serving of this wine thanks to husband, and found it actually really enjoyable. It’s a wine that surprises you the first time you sip it because the fruit isn’t what you pick up first, the herbs are. You have to almost acclimate to it in order to find what is underneath it all. Because of that I can see it pairing with the beef short ribs hubby made a few weeks ago – that could be really interesting. We will try to talk him into that again.

Justin Falco, owner and winemaker stopped by with a cup of coffee that he quickly traded for a glass of Chardonnay, sitting to talk with us for a bit. Because it was a large group, I only got in a few questions for him. He’s growing his grapes on the property (6 acres planted if I remember right), and offsite in Stanardsville and Barboursville. He worked in wine in California before coming to Virginia with his husband, who came to teach at UVA. While he worked in other CVille area wineries at first, the itch to put his own brand forward got to him, and he found this property, bought it, and began the work of sourcing, planting, and planning. Because the crowd continued to grow, he went about socializing with other guests, and we went back to socializing with our friends old and new. Because I got busy socializing and polishing off a bottle of Rosé I didn’t get many photos of the lovely property.

The decor is a bit eclectic, which makes it even more fun, with tables and chairs set up, along with adirondack chairs under umbrellas, rockers, high top tables, and a few platforms with cushioned sofas and chairs to relax on while you enjoy your wine and company.

I saw online that I appear to have missed out on the Sauvignon Blanc, which just recently sold out. I will need to make a note to get back there for it next year. In the meantime I have plenty of other choices to enjoy, and it’s very easy to get back to the winery for a refill and more sampling. I’m going to reach out to hopefully set up some more time with Justin to talk through what his goals are and how he sees this winery fitting into the Virginia Wine landscape.

Boutique and relaxing are probably the best descriptors for the vibe I picked up here. The team is super-welcoming and helpful and work to make sure you have a great time. You can even text your orders to them and they will show up at your table with your wine in a few minutes! The wine club is currently full, so I wasn’t able to evaluate whether it fits into the type of club that I love to join and offers the type of value I seek, but the prices are so reasonable that I’m coming back anyway. This probably isn’t the place for big bridal shower busses and thousands of shrieking tiny humans (the winery is 21+ only, which really adds to the relaxation factor). It’s definitely on my list for a re-visit to try out more wines they offer and get in a little weekend forest-bathing. In the meantime, this place is worth a visit for you to see some different varietals and enjoy the quiet.