Barrel Oak Winery (Fauquier) is one of the most popular wineries in the area, and for good reason. They always welcome picnics, kids, and dogs – in fact, dogs are a very important part of Barrel Oak Winery (BOW…get it?). There’s a dog in the logo and many of their wines are named after dogs. They welcome groups of eight+, but ask that you call or e-mail ahead of time for reservations. They have a beautiful outdoor area equipped with picnic tables, a stone patio, fire pits, and one of the most gorgeous views in Fauquier. They feature live music on the weekends and a food menu that might blow your mind. Some wineries are truly lacking in the food department, am I right? Well, not Barrel Oak Winery. They have one of the best food menus of any winery I’ve been to. They offer a pretty wide selection, but I’ll comment on my personal favorites. The Brie Cheese platter (pictured) is by far my favorite. The brie cheese is out of this world, served with crackers, jelly, & grapes. Their baguette is also amazing and they serve a super fresh salsa with chips that is really good!
Now, onto the wine…I’ve been here for tastings a few times and the past two times have been different. Last time, they were offering Tasting Flights to choose from, which is a neat way of doing it but sometimes I want to try them all! The most recent time, we were given the BOW and WOW Tastings. We started with my personal favorite, the 2013 Bowhaus White. It is 1.25% residual sugar and is 100% grapes off their property. It’s also one of their most popular wines, which I can totally understand. We tried two Chardonnays, the 2011 Reserve Chardonnay (fermented in stainless steel and aged in neutral oak) and the 2013 Barrel Chardonnay (aged in new French oak). I’m not a fan of Chardonnay, but I think any Chardonnay lover would be a fan!
The next was the 2011 Bowhaus Red which is .75% residual sugar. For a red, I actually ended up liking this one. The other re I liked was the 2011 Merlot. They served a 2013 Rose (again, with that silly fancy E I can’t find…), which was light but not my favorite. The last of the regular wines on the list was the 2012 Norton, aged in Virginia oak. The two dessert wines are the 2013 Goldie and the 2012 Chocolate Lab. The Goldie is 4.25% residual sugar and 100% Traminette. This was just released and was very good. The Chocolate Lab is 100% Chambourcin infused with cracked cocoa nibs – awesome. Very unique wine, and one of their most popular. It’s aged in American, Hungarian oak and recovered whiskey barrels – very cool! We also tried three other wines as well that were not on the list: Petit Manseng, 2011 Cab Franc, and the Petit Verdot. They also had their 2010 Reserve Cabernet Franc – which won Platinum at the San Diego International Wine Competition – for bottle purchase only.
We each ordered a glass (Bowhaus White for me!) and the Brie Cheese Platter, because you seriously cannot go wrong with that. We sat outside and enjoyed the beautiful weather on the patio. We also each bought a bottle to take home – the Bowhaus White for me and a red for my other half. When purchasing wines, remember their multiple bottle discounts ranging from 5% off 3 bottles to 13% off 12 bottles. They also have the BOW By Mail program where they’ll ship two wines to your house for $39.00 + tax – FREE shipping (say what?!). PLEASE do yourself a favor and check this place out – it’s one of my highest recommendations for wineries in Virginia!!!
~Dawn R.
Virginia Wine Diaries 