Ankida Meet-up

I’m always down for a meet up and pretty much any excuse to go to a winery. I had a club package at Ankida Ridge to collect and they had a limited time batch of Gamay, so I had plans to go anyway. When Kelly proposed a Virginia Wine Love meet up, I was all-in.

Hubby agreed to go and invited two friends of his – he used to work with one and got to know her husband. I’d never met them before, as this was WAY before we met. They joined us at home and we all hopped in the Jeep for the drive to Ankida.

This was really well organized by Kelly – she asked everyone to bring food to share, so we brought hummus and chips and made some chicken salad sandwiches. Christine even offered to welcome everyone with bubbles!

Ankida Ridge, as we are used to, matches fantastic wine with a gorgeous setting and views. They’re decorated for the holidays and it’s beautiful. We were greeted by Christine, Melinda, and Carmen, who helped us set up the food for sharing, made sure everyone had a spot and brought the welcome Blanc de Noir.

The afternoon began with everyone introducing themselves and briefly sharing how they got interested in Virginia Wine. I enjoyed hearing different people sharing their stories, interests and perspectives. I was really happy that Camila and David from Mount Alto joined the group for the afternoon too. Christine shared the story around the Gamay- to her knowledge no one else in Virginia is growing Gamay and no one else is serving it as a “Nouveau.” I haven’t seen or heard much of either, and was excited about having something new here. I’m not aware of anyone else doing a Nouveau-style wine. She has a very small plot of Gamay and has found it to be significantly more productive than her Chardonnay and Pinot Noir vines – to the point where she had to drop half the fruit this year in order to focus on ripening the grapes to the level she wanted! With her soils being a thin layer on top of granite I’m really surprised that a vine can be so productive, but these are younger vines. I’m curious if their productivity will decline as they get a little bit older. Drinking a very young wine like this is really not unlike a barrel tasting – this wine was fermented and left to age for a brief time before serving, and as a 2023 it’s showing the early signs of what this growing season delivered.

Everyone dove into the wines and food – we sat out on the deck and talked with our friends and Camila and David. I’ve met a few of this group at other winery events and had a chance to talk with people about their impressions of other wineries. While our friends shared a flight, Hubby and I went for the Gamay. I had probably three (ok, confession, four) glasses of the Gamay – it’s lovely – light and airy, fruit forward, and very clean. There are hints of the 2023 power that I’ve mentioned in the barrel tastings – but nothing is overwhelming. As a sipping wine, this is amazing. I would see it as great for an afternoon wine with a snack, a wine to greet guests before dinner, and since today is going to be a deluge of rain all day worthy of purchasing an ark, it would be a wonderful wine to have while spending the day by the fireplace with the dogs. They don’t bottle this – Nouveaux (ha, add an x not an s – a trickle of a memory from high school French 40 years ago) really are for drinking right now and aren’t made to age. I almost wish I had brought a growler or something to bring a little bit home. But maybe that’s the point – this experience is right here, right now, and should be enjoyed in the now and let it go. That may be too “woke” for me this morning.

After eating and enjoying the wine, much of the group made their way up to the Overlook for bubbles and views, and with the leaves down the view was even more expansive and impressive. I was enjoying myself so much I neglected to get photos (but a lack of photos is a great excuse to visit again!). Fortunately Lori let me use a bunch of hers.

An event like this, with an opportunity for a more intimate setting, the release of a Nouveau-style wine like the Gamay, and the incredible overlook, is a wonderful way for a place like Ankida Ridge to wind down their season. They will close for the month of January (though I heard about a possible pop-up in the event of great weather-watch their site!) – which makes sense as it’s a bit more remote and safety for staff and guests becomes a real issue in the winter. 

Kelly and Susan both posted some great photo summaries of the event (not sure you can view if you’re not part of the facebook group, but you really should join if you haven’t). If you haven’t made it to a Virginia Wine Love meet-up, watch the feed for new ones and make your way there – good people, great stories, all paired with fantastic wine and fun. Drop a comment about your experiences at these meet-ups, and enjoy the fellowship and wine!

And remember, we have shirts, sweatshirts and hats- they may not arrive in time for Christmas Day, but make amazing gifts for the people you love! Check them out!