Ever been to a winery that looks like a scene from the Sound of Music? It just so happens that winemaker Jeff White owns one – Glen Manor Vineyards. Luckily there are no annoying Von Trapp moppets skipping around and singing about female deer and drops of golden sun. G2KYW continues with the ever-awesome Jeff White, who even included a photo of him and his assistant pruning the vines:
Where did you grow up?
I was raised in the town of Oakton in Fairfax County, Virginia.
How long have you lived in Virginia?
Except for attending college in West Virginia for four years, I have lived in Virginia all my life.
What brought you to wine?
I was first brought to farming and later in life to wine and wine farming. My family has owned and farmed this land where my vineyards and winery are established, since 1901. Since birth I was brought to our farm to play and explore, visit with my grandparents, celebrate holidays and spend summer vacations helping out with farm chores. Later in life I worked the land with my father, growing Christmas trees and raising cattle. In 1990 I got interested in the possibilities of growing grapes here and began the long journey to learn as much as I could, first by reading grape growing documents produced by Virginia Tech and found at my local county extension office, then working a summer for Dr Tony Wolf, the State Viticulturalist, at Virginia Tech’s Fruit Research Station near Winchester, Virginia and finally by working for Jim Law of Linden Vineyards for 13 years. Within two years of my employment with Linden, I planted my first vineyard in 1995 and left Linden just after the 2005 harvest to establish my own farm winery, Glen Manor Vineyards.
Where else (besides your current winery) have you made wine?
I first made a little homemade wine with fruit, Cabernet Sauvignon grapes, from the Fruit Research Station in 1993. During my tenure at Linden I assisted with winemaking there and in 2001, I made a little Late Harvest Chardonnay dessert wine with fruit from my own vineyard.
What characteristics do you enjoy in wine?
There are so many but mostly I enjoy when a wine speaks purely to me of it’s place of origin, whether it’s the brashness of fruit and power of California, the subtle complexities of fruits, savories and earth of Bordeaux, the lemon drop steeliness of Chablis, or the dusty leather and raisin like fruit of Amarone. I enjoy a wine that keeps my interest and keeps me wanting for more.
If you could have a private tour of any winery in the world, which would you choose?
I guess it would be any and all of Bordeaux’s first growth chateaus.
What is your favorite food and wine pairing?
For white, it would be New England coastal waters raw oysters with Sauvignon Blanc or Champagne. For red, it would be an old left bank Bordeaux with braised young venison shoulder.
What are your favorite wine varietals?
There are many but to start it would be Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot Noir, Syrah, Nebbiolo, Sangiovese, Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc, Riesling, etc., etc., etc.
A lot of wine folks are excited for the 2010 wines. Which of your wines are you most excited about?
2010 was an extraordinary year, especially for the reds so I am very excited about all of my red wines and specifically our Cabernet Sauvignon based blend, labeled Hodder Hill.
Who is your favorite cartoon character?
It’s more was than is but I’d say Bugs Bunny for his abundant confidence and self-actualization and especially for his ability to walk around with his head and ears held high while wearing only gloves.
What is one thing we haven’t asked that you want Virginia wine lovers to know about you or your winery?
What is Glen Manor Vineyards all about? We’re all about making 100% estate grown wines that reflect the soils in our mountainside vineyards and the vintage during which the grapes ripened and were harvested. In a word we are purist. We enjoy working long hard hours in our vineyards all throughout the growing season, so during harvest and crush our labors are easy, straightforward and above all pure. We want our wines to speak of their origin and to compete on the world wine stage.
Swirl, Sip, Snark 
March 2, 2011 at 12:58 pm
Jeff, the idea of terroir fascinates me. It seems that “terroir” is either so pervasive that it is the dominant character in any wine from a region (whether the intent to have it reflected in the wine was made or not), or is so tenuous that only a precious few conscientious producers can “capture” and deliver it to the bottle. What’s your take? And how would you describe the Northern Virginia terroir?
March 2, 2011 at 1:08 pm
I have had oysters with Sauv blanc, it is indeed wonderful, though I prefer ones from Washington State–not that I would turn down NE oysters though.
Great interview! Looking forward to visiting Glen Manor.
March 2, 2011 at 2:47 pm
Still looking forward to visiting Glen Manor on a trip “home” . Besides their excellent reds, I have a few family connections with Jeff’s mom.
March 2, 2011 at 5:40 pm
Hi Jason,
Sorry for this late response but it’s been a beautiful day to be working in my vineyard. In my opinion, a particular region’s or vineyard’s terroir is something that takes decades if not a century to understand. One must possess, through many years of working the land, an intimate knowledge and understanding of the site, it’s soils and weather and how vines respond in both. Many years are first required to properly match site with wine variety. I also think vines need to be at least 10 to 15 years in the ground before an expression of their environment can even begin to emerge. Terroir expressions in wine are not “made” by a winemaker but can be retarded by a winemaker. Inaction rather than action by a winemaker usually facilitates site expression in a wine. Every time something is added to the raw product, whether it’s yeast, acid, sugar, tannin, enzymes, concentrates, water, etc. a little bit of the grape’s home is lost. Northern Virginia terroir, I don’t know, maybe asphalt and carbon monoxide. I can say that because I’m from here, remember. But seriously, I think it’s too early and there are way too many different sites and micro climates to classify as one. I’m concentrated on my little piece of this earth, up on a western flank of the northern most Blue Ridge Mountains. In another hundred years we’ll know and in the meantime I’ll be happy farming and learning.
Cheers!
March 2, 2011 at 7:00 pm
One of the wines we got on our first trip to Linden was a Glen Manor red. We loved it. So naturally we just had to visit the winery when we were in VA last July. It didn’t disappoint. We brought home several bottles and have been very pleased with the two we’ve opened so far. We’ll definately stop by again on the trip in May.
March 2, 2011 at 7:11 pm
Thanks again for participating, Jeff, and thanks to everyone else for the comments. On these posts I feel like I’m at my most useful when I stay out of the way of the conversation.