Edible Blue Ridge Spring 2023

LIQUID ASSETS

the climate in Austria, which is a continental climate, not like the south of France or Spain, which is totally different than here. So there’s more humidity in Austria, more similar growing conditions. EBR: Any other grapes on the experimental side? GVF: We’re working on some experimental plots with new disease-resistant varieties that are bred to be resistant, specifically to powdery and downy mildew — they’re actually Italian varietals. EBR: Where else do you source your grapes? GVF: We do a lot from Rainbow Hill Vineyard in Rockingham County, and Middleburg Vineyard in the Staunton area. Mainly those two. Sourced a little from Rockbridge Vineyards in the past. EBR: Have you ever felt limited in your winemaking with the varietals that you are able to grow and source in Virginia, or have you been pretty satisfied? GVF: We’ve been pretty satisfied so far. A lot of it’s just taking what the year gives you and making the best wine you can. Sometimes you have to do different things; maybe you have to pick a little early before things go south, make a different style of wine than you would have otherwise. 2019 was an exceptional year in the vineyard, so that helped out a lot. [It was our] first time making wine commercially, so not having to deal with those problems in the vineyard that first year was really good and we made some really nice wines. Then in 2020 we had a double frost year, so that was challenging especially after the previous year. Fortunately our grapes bounced back and produced a very good crop even with multiple rounds of frost. Diversifying, trying to keep other sources, helps out a lot too. Because we may have a frost here but 30 miles north in Staunton they may escape by a degree or two, or vice versa. We haven’t bought any grapes from outside [Virginia] — we like the terroir here. The Shenandoah Valley is an American Viticultural Area. EBR: What can you tell us about the beer side of the operation? GVF: We make a variety of styles; I do like Belgian-style beers, so at any one time you’ll see at least 2-3 that are somewhat Belgian-style. EBR: Where do you source your grain? GVF: We do try to source a lot from Virginia and North Carolina, so Riverbend Malt is a big supplier for us; we’re also starting to use Murphy & Rude over in Charlottesville. We really like those two sources for our grain. EBR: What specialty beers do you have scheduled for this year? GVF: We’ve got a barrel-aged dark saison that we used cab franc grapes in. We added those for secondary fermentation with Brettanomyces. [We first] made that beer back in 2017 and it was really really good, barreled it for 15 months and it was very popular. [We] used red wine barrels that had done their duty down in the winery. It’s one of my favorites. EBR: What do you enjoy most about the area? GVF: It’s just a real friendly community. Obviously, coming from Charlotte, we wanted to get out of the hustle bustle of the city and the traffic. This has been a perfect spot for us.

Above: The neighboring property is home to an alpaca farm, Inside the brewhouse at Great Valley Farm, Trellissed grapes grow thick and sweet.

Great Valley Farm Brewery and Winery is open Wednesday through Sunday starting at 12 each day. Please consider supporting them and other locally-owned Rockbridge County small businesses the next time you are looking for a quick trip! 60 Great Valley Ln, Natural Bridge, VA 24578 540.521.6163 greatvalleyfarmbrewery.com

edible blue ridge SPRING 2023 | 19

Grape photo: Great Valley Farm