Cooper Vineyards

              


Louisa County’s Cooper Vineyards was founded in1988 by Jacque Hogge and Geoffrey Cooper. Situated in the rolling hills halfway between Charlottesville and Richmond, Cooper Vineyards has over eleven acres of grapes planted on site and sources grapes from many neighboring growers.

Cooper Vineyards opened a new tasting room this spring. Beyond being very visitor friendly, the tasting room is also in the process of becoming LEED platinum certified, making them the first winery in that category on the East Coast and the second in the country.

LEED, which stands for Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, validates the construction of a green building and is broken into a four-tier award classification system ranging from Certified to Platinum, the highest level of certification.

Some features of the new tasting room at Cooper Vineyards that adhere to the LEED Platinum qualifications include using rainwater collection and low flow fixtures to reduce water usage by 40%, structurally insulated panels for the roof and walls, geothermal heating and cooling system for the building, low voltage LED lighting coupled with daylight and occupancy sensors, solar panels which provide over 15% of energy needs for the building, and the use of many recycled and locally sourced materials for the construction.

Wine Details

2008 Norton Reserve

The Norton grape was "invented" by Richmond Dr. D.N Norton in 1820. Often called the oldest cultivated America grape, it grew in popularity nationwide through the late 1800s. In 1873, the Monticello Wine Company (located in Charlottesville) won a major international award at the Vienna Exposition for its Virginia Claret wine made with Norton grapes.

Cooper Vineyards 2008 Norton Reserve boldly lives up to this rich heritage. Dark, almost black in the glass, this wine exudes a nose filled with plum and anise. Norton can be a bit of a one note wine but not in this iteration. The attack features sharp acid with strawberry undertones. The mid palate expands to include dark stone fruit and further

strawberry notes. Licorice dominates on the round tannic finish with nice acid balance and a touch of white pepper.

Pairing Norton can be dangerous as it is a big red. I tend to think of big beef dishes the intensity of the fruit contrasts well with the marbled beef.

While my experience cellaring Norton is limited, I believe this has true aging potential. Those with patience to wait even 24 more months will likely find a wine that is more subdued on the finish with even rounder tannic structure on the mid palate. That being said I enjoyed this wine too much to give it a Hold recommendation.

DRINK NOW – Winter 2013


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