Pizza, Oysters, and Gamay in the Rain

It was time for the quarterly wine club pickup at Ankida Ridge, and so I made plans to head down – and to make it even more enticing – there were two major draws today – the release of their new Verday AND they had pizza and oysters on the half shell. Giddy!

Ankida is fresh off their two Gold Medals in the Virginia Governor’s Cup, one each for their 2022 Chardonnay and 2022 Pinot Noir. It’s their first year entering, as production has ramped up enough that they can do the set aside for the competition. Until I heard Christine explain that this was the reason they had not previously entered the competition, I did not realize the requirements around entering. This particular requirement makes it very difficult for small batch producers to get into the competition – their margins simply don’t permit them to hold back so much of a vintage.

In fact, the Ankida team had just returned from the Gala in Richmond in time for this event! And they had Furnace Pizza present with an Ooni oven, making incredible pizza and shucking oysters.

My friend Maggie and I went down – she had never been to Ankida, but has maybe had some of their wine at my house. She grabbed a flight with Chardonnay, Rosé of Pinot Noir, 2022 Pinot Noir and Gamay, while I grabbed a glass of Gamay. We placed an order for our oysters and pizza and sat on the crushpad under the deck, out of the rain. It was predicted to rain pretty much all day, which obscured the incredible views at the winery and disrupted our plan to drive up to the overlook, but the wine and the food were tremendous. Christine and Dennis both stopped by, and the incredible Melinda and Carmen were there to greet us, and I met Emily for the first time. The team set up a heat lamp and gave us blankets and we were sheltered from the rain and thrilled. Between the wine and food and fresh air, it was fantastic. We were able to hear the music from upstairs and enjoy the vibe and good conversation.

I was also able to grab a glass of the new Verday. While it’s not a blush as it was last year, it is still crisp and acidic. It presents with fresh lemony flavors and is so bright when you sip it. As with last summer, I predict this to be a great back deck or patio wine on a hot evening.

Ankida is very flexible with your club package – I get the 9 bottle shipment and swapped around so I wound up with a sparkling Brut de Noirs, 2 2022 Pinot Noir (I have six now and I’m holding til fall to see how they shift – one year has brought some yummy maturation and changes in these bottles), 2 Rosé of Pinot Noir (I had a splash and it’s bright and crisp and lovely, and again, this will be a refreshing summer sipper) and 4 Verday. I really think I’m set for summer. But you know I will buy more, right?

Tomorrow will be lovely weather – 60 and sunny, but husband pledged me to housework. I understand Ankida will still have Gamay, Verday, Oysters and Pizza tomorrow, and the views will be astonishing. If you can get there, I’d do it.

Ankida’s lovely wooded property is a great place to have wine in the woods. There’s a shirt available that’s perfect to wear for that, in case you forgot. Get one.