winery review: chrysalis
I don’t know if anyone’s noticed, but around here in Virginia, we’ve finally entered real fall weather! I personally wish there was a little bit more of a transition since I’m prone to being cold, but T just loves the sweater weather that’s going on. This past weekend was a long weekend for both T and me (Columbus Day), and we packed it full of stuff as we’re ought to do. We hit up the Renaissance Fair again with some friends who had never been (check out my original review), and also hit up a few wineries with my parents who came to visit! Saturday, Renaissance Fair day, was rainy and ended up being extremely muddy, so we didn’t dress up which was the right plan. But Sunday was beautiful albeit a little windy at times, and beautiful winery weather!
It’s rare that my parents come to visit without us having a ton of stuff planned. Typically it’s the holidays when we’re making big meals, or going somewhere like a show, or the trip is based around some event like a concert. All super fun stuff, but usually a lot of driving and we’re on a schedule. But this time it was a super laid-back and relaxing visit, which made for a great weekend. We hit up Chrysalis first, and then swung by Quattro Goomba’s for another tasting (check out my original review) and their amazing pizza for lunch! I brought my schmancy new camera and we brought our pup Kenichi who had such a blast with all those new smells!
The entire time we were driving the long road to Chrysalis, I was muttering to myself that it didn’t look at all like I remembered. Chrysalis was one of the first wineries I’d been taken to when I moved down here, and it was fun, but in exploring all the other options, I hadn’t been back for I think over two years. Apparently this location in Middleburg is fairly new (opened in the past year), and while they still have the old property, this is their new face. They do not allow dogs in their tasting room, but they are welcome outside on the property. We tried 10 wines here, a good variety of sweet and dry, whites and reds. One of my favorites is the Sarah’s Patio Red, which contrary to the name is actually a white wine because of the way it’s processed.
It is an expensive tasting by comparison to the others in the area, clocking in at $15. Most other’s I’ve found range from $7-10 and often give you a bit more wine. They have the tasting pourers on their bottles, so you’re not really getting more wine for the price, though you can keep the glasses if you want. Honestly not my favorite glasses because they’re slightly shorter and thinner and taller than typical wine glasses, but since I can’t give up anything that’s free/I paid for, we took ’em anyway. It’s a fun change of pace, and their new location (while windy–not their fault) was gorgeous and a beautiful space. And the woman who was pouring our tasting kept telling us how she would bake and cook with each wine, which appealed to the foodie in me! Would definitely go again. Top of the favorites list? Not quite. I’d give them a solid 3.5 chips out of 5 (read: stars).
Chrysalis Vineyards
Chrysalis Vineyards Website
39025 John Mosby Highway
Middleburg, VA 20117
