Michael Shaps Winery

• Feb 24, 2009

  The Virgnia Wineworks, I'm at least convinced, is at the heart of the Virginia Wine Renaissance. Stop by sometime. You'll taste wines off of their "state of the art" (ummm) stainless steel tasting bar, and spit into the drain at your feet. Then, after doing so, you'll realize it... Read moreThe Virgnia Wineworks, I'm at least convinced, is at the heart of the Virginia Wine Renaissance. Stop by sometime. You'll taste wines off of their "state of the art" (ummm) stainless steel tasting bar, and spit into the drain at your feet. Then, after doing so, you'll realize it was a dramatic mistake to let ANY of it go.    (hide)

  Comment by ChipDWood

  
  

• January 2010

  I know I know; high probability that everyone in the group BUT me has already ... of Viticulture, Va Tech) Michael Shaps (The MAN in Virginny vino. Baby.) Jim Law: Owner & Wine Maker at Linden Vineyards (up north) Toby Beard (or is it Tony Baird? my bad for not knowing, but he's a... Read moreI know I know; high probability that everyone in the group BUT me has already ... of Viticulture, Va Tech) Michael Shaps (The MAN in Virginny vino. Baby.) Jim Law: Owner & Wine Maker at Linden Vineyards (up north) Toby Beard (or is it Tony Baird? my bad for not knowing, but he's a Snooth and don't know it.) 50 minutes of pure concentrated knowledge, with a hint at Virginia's grape of the future. !http://scache0.eorezo.com/sitecache/imgarchive--1/http://graperadio.com/blog-images/09bc2main.jpg    (hide)

  Forum post in the topic Great podcast regarding... by ChipDWood

  
  

• November 2009

  East Coast Wine Geeks eh? Color me intrigued ;). Cab Franc is one of the ... examples of it (Veritas, Michael Shaps (at the Virginia Wineworks), and King Family are all high marks for starters. Petit Verdot is the one I'm watching down there with piqued interest. I've had a... Read moreEast Coast Wine Geeks eh? Color me intrigued ;). Cab Franc is one of the ... examples of it (Veritas, Michael Shaps (at the Virginia Wineworks), and King Family are all high marks for starters. Petit Verdot is the one I'm watching down there with piqued interest. I've had a couple examples of that varietal that behaved more like high level California Cults than a seemingly random blending grape that may have found a very real home in Virginny. http://www.veritaswines.com/Admin2/ProductDisplay5.php :    (hide)

  Forum post in the topic Cabernet Franc by ChipDWood

  
  

• August 2009

  An interesting read regarding the oft-underestimated Virginia vino and some ... fifth-place tie between the Michael Shaps 2007 Cabernet Franc ($35) and the Gordon Brothers 2003 Tradition from Washington state ($45). California also scored for value with the white wines. Our top... Read moreAn interesting read regarding the oft-underestimated Virginia vino and some ... fifth-place tie between the Michael Shaps 2007 Cabernet Franc ($35) and the Gordon Brothers 2003 Tradition from Washington state ($45). California also scored for value with the white wines. Our top finisher -- by a hair -- was the Chappellet 2007 Napa Valley Chardonnay, a $32 charmer that fooled the judges into thinking it was French. Only Vanessa Moore, owner of Unwined retail store in Alexandria, identified it as a Napa wine. (Wine Spectator magazine loved it, too, rating it 91 points, about what our judges gave it.) The Chappellet was in a virtual dead heat with the $50 Louis Latour Chateau de Blagny 2006 Meursault-Blagny Premier Cru. Our judges were unanimous that this was French. Two of them, Dominque Landragin, co-owner of the Cork & Fork stores in Gainesville and Bethesda, and Christian Bonny, wine buyer at Circle Wine & Liquor in Northwest Washington, even guessed the correct appellation. Bonny was so excited about this wine that he got tangled in similes, saying that "it keeps coming around, like a snowball rolling downhill," and after the next sip, "like a ferris wheel of stone fruit and cream." Right behind the first two, though, came two Virginia chardonnays: Linden Vineyards 2006 Hardscrabble, which retails for about $26, and the Michael Shaps 2007 ($35). Fewer than 1.25 points separated the first four chardonnays, two of them from Virginia. The judges were unanimous in thinking the Shaps was from Burgundy. "Montrachet!" Landragin wrote, while Benchimol, Moore and Wabeck suspected Puligny-Montrachet. The Linden was mistaken for French by three of the judges, while the others suspected the West Coast. What conclusions can we draw from our exercise? That U.S. wines are the equal of the French is no longer the surprise it was in 1976. Yet it is worth noting that when our judges were asked where they thought a wine was from, they tended to believe the wines they liked most were French. France still holds pride of place in our minds as the benchmark for fine wine. But we cannot ignore that wines produced within a two-hour drive of Washington stood toe-to-toe with highly touted competitors from California and France. This result is a snapshot of what six judges thought about two dozen wines one July afternoon, yet it should send a signal to retailers, sommeliers and consumers that local wines can match the best in the world -- and they are beginning to do so. It's time to put our preconceptions aside and focus on the quality of these wines. Dave McIntyre can be reached through his Web site, http://www.dmwineline.com, or at food@washpost.com. !http://media3.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/photo/2009/08/17/PH2009081702211.jpg! Quick note: I'm fortunate enough to have tasted both the Chappellet '07 as well as the Shaps '06... still got a bottle of the Shaps in the cooler over there, with the former waiting for me at verk to buy & try again. Also of note & irony; I too thought immediately about white burgundy, but more along the lines of "Meursault" when I tried the Shaps back at the Wineworks a year ago. I'm sure I was just bieased from hearing where Shaps was trained. Be a great little blind tasting ;)    (hide)

  Forum post in the topic "Glass Acts" (Washington... by ChipDWood

  
  
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  August 2009

  King Family Vineyards Michael Shaps Wines Meritage 2005

  Snoothrank: Starting at $24^.95

  No written review

  Wine review by rss6r

  
  
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  August 2009

  Michael Shaps Merlot Monticello King Family Vineyards 2000

  Snoothrank:

  No written review

  Wine review by rss6r

  
  

• July 2009

  Just some notes from "The Fair Commonwealth" and its growing reputation for ... a GREAT little read about Michael Shaps's (http://www.snooth.com/winery/michael-shaps/) open tasting that took place in late June:... Read moreJust some notes from "The Fair Commonwealth" and its growing reputation for ... a GREAT little read about Michael Shaps's (http://www.snooth.com/winery/michael-shaps/) open tasting that took place in late June: http://www.richardleahy.com/blog/2009/07/13/virginia-wineworks-host-1st-annual-festival-for-their-and-clients-wines/ ...I am SUCH a maroon for not forcing my way to that thing, as it sounds like it was a blast. The mention of the hybrid grape "Chardonel" has me most intrigued. I've always liked the examples of the Seyval Blanc that I've tried- and crossing that grape with Chardonnay sounds like a recipe for greatness. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chardonel Lastly; if anyone gets a crack at tasting that Shaps' “raisin d’Etre”- PLEASE drop us some tasting notes. A Ripasso style wine made from Virginia Petit Verdot. Think about the possibilities. !http://www.virginiawineworks.com/images/shaps.jpg    (hide)

  Forum post in the topic Notes & good news from Virginia. by ChipDWood

  
  

• Jul 21

  Contact information edited for this page.

  Page modification by ChipDWood

  
  

• April 2009

  Re Philip: "$40 VA wine - thats near the top of the spectrum there? I want to ... Mind your wine makers. Michael Shaps (http://www.snooth.com/winery/michael-shaps/), Brad McCarthy (as mentioned, formerly of Blenheim)- and a good handful of others are making some very real stuff.... Read moreRe Philip: "$40 VA wine - thats near the top of the spectrum there? I want to ... Mind your wine makers. Michael Shaps (http://www.snooth.com/winery/michael-shaps/), Brad McCarthy (as mentioned, formerly of Blenheim)- and a good handful of others are making some very real stuff. Stuff that is of a different style than California, with much thanks to the elements of humidity, pests, and rough weather that California and other regions in the US don't need to sweat, pardon pun. It's a more finessed style, and, to my mind- a much more creative one when ya break it down. It's not run of the mill wine making either. Lots of Touriga Nacional is growing very well down there and being made into ports (see: Veritas, "Othello", which is wicked-good: http://www.veritaswines.com/Admin2/ProductDisplay5.php ), roses, and robust red blends. There are a ton of other discoveries being made in the hills too that go well beyond the now ubiquitous praise for Virginia Viognier. It's the experimentation with what they're finding grows happily in the soils. THAT, to me, along with the results to this point (as well as the spirit of it down there- contagious) is what is so exciting. !http://images.snooth.com/location/9/a/3/location_41431_group.jpeg?t=1239166753590! Above: Michael Shaps pops a bottle of the 2007 (a very strong vintage in the 'Fair Commonwealth') Michael Shaps Viognier, with the Virginia Wineworks as the "casual yet uber-productive" backdrop. http://www.snooth.com/winery/michael-shaps/    (hide)

  Forum post in the topic Blenheim Farm Petit Verdot 2005 by ChipDWood

  
  

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