EPISODE #17 LEXINGTON VALLEY VINEYARD/RYAN HALE WINEMAKER,OWNER

Fine Wine Confidential Podcast

Lexington Valley Vineyard is a hidden gem in the Virginia lineup of wineries. I virtually got lost the first time I went to check it out. I had to keep checking my Navigation app to be sure I was headed in the correct direction. However, once I found it, I was impressed with the wines I purchased that day back in August of 2022, especially their Marchel Foch along with their Norton.
This is a small family run operation that Ryan Hale the current winemaker father Cal planted the vineyard in 1999 but passed aways in 2021. Ryan and his sister stepped up and have kept the winery and vineyard moving forward despite having full-time day jobs.
Their Norton vines are amongst the oldest in Virginia, now approaching 25 years old. None other than Shep Rouse the owner and winemaker of Rockbridge Vineyard produces his Norton wine from their grapes. If they are good enough for Shep that is all the endorsement I needed to seek them out.
One more note: Ryan Hale was most recently in a documentary film about Dr. Daniel Norborne Norton and the history of the Norton grape here in Virginia. You can watch the film on YouTube. It is titled Norton, The Grape That Change Everything.
Listen to the Episode or read the transcript attached below.

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