The modern Virginia wine industry is now about 35 years old. In terms of overall quality, how would you characterize it?
There are beautiful wines made in Virginia, and I am not talking about my wine. I am talking in general. There are wines which are beautiful; there are wines which are good. There are wines which are mediocre; there are wines which are untouchable. Do you know that the same thing happens in Bordeaux, in Burgundy, in Piemonte? Everywhere. I mean it’s unbelievable! You go wherever you want, you will find a wide range of wine.
Jim Law of Linden Winery said a couple of years ago that it takes a decade for a winery to start making “interesting” wines. True?
Well, I have a great respect for Jim Law. He always made good wine. I have to say he focused and tried to improve himself in a way that, for me, is unbelievable, right? There are so many things that you can do with grapes. And I tell you this: You can give the same grapes from the same vineyard to three different winemakers, tell them exactly what you want them to do, and you will have three different wines.
It doesn’t take a decade, but a decade helps you to make a better wine. I tell you a beautiful story. This happened when Jefferson ordered the vines for this vineyard, right? He asked the American consul in Livorno, Italy, to get him the vines. The American consul goes to the Botanical Garden in Florence, and he asked the director to get some vines for him, right? So he makes a list of the vines—half of those vines are of Italian origin—and they send them to Jefferson. So the consul asked the director of the Botanical Garden, ‘Which one of these grapes will make the best wine?’ And he answers, ‘All of them…if you have a good winemaker.’
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