Wine Country: Virginia - Jump Mountain Vineyard

The Now And Zin Wine Country series started in 2011, with Virginia wine. In the dozen years since then I have sampled wines from 46 states. The last four - Mississippi, Oklahoma, Utah and Wyoming - have proven to be tough nuts to crack, for a variety of reasons. There are fewer opportunities in those states and shipping restrictions, to name two. I'll press on to find wines from those states, but when I get a chance to revisit a previous stop, I'll jump at the chance. Especially when it is Virginia. 

The Old Dominion State has 291 wineries, by Wine America's count. That's good enough for 6th place in the winery count. As far as wine production goes, Virginia lags a little farther behind, in eighth place. 

Jump Mountain Vineyard is in the unincorporated community of Rockbridge Baths, in the southwestern part of the Shenandoah Valley. They admit that the mountain they call Jump is really a sandstone knob, but it protects the estate which has soil and a microclimate that makes vinifera grapes want to grow. 

The 2019 Jump Mountain Vineyard Borderland Red Blend is from the Shenandoah Valley. The grapes are 50% Tannat, 25% Cabernet Sauvignon and 25% Cabernet Franc. They also grow Syrah, Grüner Veltliner and a handful of grapes with an Italian pedigree. Alcohol hits 13.5% abv and the retail price is $26. 

This wine is medium-dark in the glass. The nose provides plenty upon which to ruminate. There is red plum and raspberry abetted by a raft of spices: clove, nutmeg, allspice and anise among them. On the palate there is mainly raspberry and blueberry with enough oak spice to make things interesting but not enough to take over the show. Big tannins make the sip a bit raspy, but this wine is made for pairing with beef. 

The 2021 Jump Mountain Livia Italian Style Red Blend is made with an interesting array of Shenandoah Valley grapes. The blend is 60% Refosco, 20% Cabernet Franc, 15% Lagrein and 5% Sagrantino. Owners Mary Hughes and David Vermillion say the wine was named for Roman empress Livia Drusilla Augusta, who made public her love of the Refosco grape. Alcohol is a low 13% abv and the retail price is $26. 

This wine is a medium-dark garnet in color. Its nose suggests savory aspects of the red fruit which is present. There is a smokiness that hangs over the plum, cherry and raspberry aromas, with some oak spice thrown in for good measure. On the palate are big red fruit notes, but little of the oak influence detected on the sniff. It is a rustic wine, with tannins that lie waiting for a bolognese sauce or a plate of sausage and peppers.

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