Area Wineries Bring Home Plenty of Gold in 2025 Governor’s Cup Competition
At the Governor’s Cup Gala last month, Barboursville Vineyards won top honors for its 2023 Vermentino—a white wine with 100% Vermentino grapes grown on the vineyard’s estate. There were more than 600 entries from 140 Virginia wineries, cideries and meaderies this year. The competition, considered one of the country’s most stringent, is usually dominated by the Monticello Wine Region. This designated wine region includes wineries and cideries in and around Crozet, which performed very well, with dozens of gold, silver and bronze medals. The twelve best wines from the gold-medal winners were chosen for the Governor’s case, and local winners included Valley Road’s 2023 Petit Manseng, the 2023 Monticello White from Veritas, and King Family’s 2021 Mountain Plains Red.
A Crozet-area winery was the front runner this year in terms of the sheer number of gold medals. Pollak Vineyards wines won five: its 2022 Cabernet Franc Reserve, 2022 Meritage, 2022 Merlot Reserve, 2022 Smuggler, and 2023 Viognier. King Family Vineyards came away with four gold medals.
Pollak’s winemaker Benoit Pineau grew up in the Loire Valley and began learning winemaking at an early age by the side of his grandfather. He’s had experience in other French regions, Australia, and California. He’s managed the vineyard and winery operations for a decade at Pollak.
Pineau said the conditions for Virginia winemaking remind him of his home in France. “Some wine-growing regions, like California, have consistent weather,” he said. “Virginia and France have changeable climates that require more experience.”
While this means that some years are difficult, it also means that there are wonderful years, like 2019, 2022, and 2023.
He said taking home gold from the Governor’s cup, in addition to being a significant honor, translates to more people coming to the winery, just west of Crozet.
Viognier—one of the gold winners—has its own vineyard block and is appreciated by those who visit: “There’s so much going on in that wine that there’s a lot to talk about in the tasting room,” Pineau said. Originally embraced as a white wine grape with a thick skin that would help it tolerate the bugs and humidity of Virginia summers, it turns out to be a mixed blessing. “That thick skin means there’s less juice when it’s crushed.”
Another block of Pollak’s vineyard grows the grapes for Pollak’s Smuggler, a blend of the Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon, all meritage grapes. The year 2022 is only the second year that the vineyard has judged the yield from that block worthy of the “Smuggler” label. Sure enough, the blend—which in 2022 included only Cabernet Franc and Merlot—came home with one of the five gold medals.
Like all of our area winemakers, Pineau is always hopeful that all the grapes will be picked at the perfect stage of ripeness. After more than a decade in Virginia, he’s philosophical about the reality of that plan. “About 40% of the time, we’re rushing out there to pick them before the rain,” he said.
Other Crozet-area gold winners: Afton, for its 2019 T; Albemarle Ciderworks for its Brut d’Albemarle Harrison and its Brut d’Albemarle Orchard Blush; Chiswell for its 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon and 2022 Cabernet Franc; Grace Estate for its 2021 Tannat, 2022 Chardonnay, and 2022 Cabernet Franc; King Family Vineyards for its 2021 Loreley, 2021 Meritage, 2021 Mountain Plains Red, and 2023 Viognier; Loving Cup Winery for its 2023 Loving Cup White; Stinson for its 2021 Tannat, 2023 Cabernet Franc, and 2023 Mouvedre; Valley Road for its 2020 Petite Verdot, 2022 Cabernet Franc, and 2023 Petite Manseng; Fallen Tree Vineyard for its 2021 Cabernet Franc and 2021 Chardonnay; and Veritas for its 2022 Veritas Reserve and 2023 Monticello White.
Eagles at Home Near Lickinghole Basin
Leslie and Mark Scheuer live near enough to the long-standing bald eagles’ nest at Lickinghole Basin that they can see (with the help of an upstairs telescope) the day-to-day life of the pair presently in residence. Since eagles mate for life and can live for decades, it might be the same pair that Crozet bird lovers have seen for at least the last few years.
Bald eagles return to the same tree at Lickinghole basin every year. Photo: Mark Scheuer.
Eagles don’t use their aerie once their young have fledged, but they’re likely to stay nearby, often roosting with other eagles in a suitable tree, but they tend to be protective of their old home from year to year. When they return to it, they’re not always satisfied with the accommodations, Leslie said. Like human home dwellers, they have a tendency to want to improve their space before the arrival of each spring’s batch of eaglets. The Scheuers have seen them bringing new sticks to the nest and otherwise adjusting the structure. “It’s home improvement,” Leslie said, “Kind of like when we paint the bedroom or renovate the kitchen.” 
Leo Cullimore and his dad, James Cullimore, peek through the holes in the blind, and follow the nest activity through a camera. Submitted photo.
Leslie learned some of the habits of bald eagles when she lived in Pennsylvania, where there was a continuous live broadcast coming from an eagle’s nest in Pittsburgh. Following that camera, she saw the eagles performing their version of house cleaning as well as renovation: “They’d throw out fish bones, or what looked like rodent skeletons in the spring,” she said.
Despite their preparations, the Lickinghole eagles have had mixed luck with offspring in their roost, with some good and some bad years. In 2020 Gwynne Wade photographed two tiny eaglets in the nest; in 2023, the Scheuers counted three. In 2024 they saw the parents bending down as though to feed a baby, but then later saw them leave the nest completely, a sign that the baby had not survived.
Last month, as she has for several years, Leslie led a guided walk for the Crozet Trails Crew to the spot across from the venerable nest. 
In March, one eagle remains on the nest near Lickinghole basin, while the other perches nearby. Photo: Mark Scheuer.
If you missed the tour, it’s easy to find the eagles. To avoid blocking parking in Western Ridge, the trails crew suggests starting the guided walk from Crozet Park, near the dog park, where there’s plenty of parking. The trail goes past the dog park, then turns right to go through the tunnel under Eastern Avenue. Walk over three bridges and past the large beech tree with the sign. Turn left at the intersection and right over the bridge to follow the trail to the basin. Maps are available at crozettrailscrew.org
In this 2020 photo taken at Lickinghole basin, an eagle stands watch over young chicks. Photo: Gwynne Wade
You’ll find a wooden blind across the basin from the nest. “You can’t always spot the nest at first,” Leslie said. It’s a large, sturdy nest in a large white pine. “Once you do see it, you’ll always be able to.” There’s a bench near the blind, for those who want to sit and watch. The trails crew has made the basin easy to reach, with stairs, well-maintained paths and clear signs.
If the eagles aren’t doing much of anything, birdwatchers have a great deal more avian life to observe: In fact, the basin has the distinction of having the largest species total (200 as of February 2023) of any birding hotspot in Albemarle County. You’ll see geese, duck, kingfishers, terns, egrets and cranes as well as snipes, songbirds and owls.
Vegetable, Herbs, House Plants at White Hall Sale
The greatly anticipated annual White Hall Ruritans plant sale will take place this year on April 26 at the Ruritan building in White Hall. The event, which includes a garden-themed rummage sale, will be from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Proceeds from the sale and other events enable the club to fund scholarships. There’s the Dan Maupin scholarship, a $2,000 grant, open to any White Hall area student for post-secondary education. Students apply by April 30, and awards are based on academics, financial need, and community service. 
The popular White Hall Ruritans Plant Sale is April 26, in White Hall from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m
The Walter Perkins scholarship ($2,000) and the Ruritan Club scholarship ($1,000) are both available to students at Piedmont Virginia Community College. The Ruritans award the scholarships to students who match the criteria, as suggested by the college.
Area gardeners should bring their questions and perhaps their problem plants as well as their shopping bags: The Piedmont Master Gardeners will have a mobile help desk and also will offer soil test kits. Last year’s sale took in $8,500 for the Ruritans’ work in the community.
Crozet Farmers Market Opens May 3
The Crozet Farmers Market will open on Saturday, May 3, in the grassy field behind the Blue Goose Building, across from the Crozet Library. Market hours are 8 a.m. to noon, every Saturday through October 11. 
Al Minutolo is the long-time market master for the Crozet Farmers Market. The market opens April 3 in the grassy lot near behind the Blue Goose building and remains every Saturday from 8 a.m. to noon . Photo: Malcolm Andrews.
Market Manager Al Minutolo said most past vendors are returning. He encourages potential new vendors to call him at 434-282-7552 before mid-April to discuss products, space availability and market rules.
The Crozet Market is strictly limited to those who grow, make, or bake their own products as a way to give vendors the chance to sell locally grown produce, homemade baked goods and handcrafted items to the public. In 2024, as in the past, the market made a donation of $1,000 to benefit Grace Grocery at the Crozet United Methodist Church, a shopper’s choice pantry serving hundreds of local families in need.
Take a Track Chair through the Tunnel
Since April 1, track chair rides through the Blue Ridge Tunnel Trail have been offered by Nelson County Parks and Recreation. A track chair is an off-road-capable, electric wheel chair. These chairs are guided by the rider as well as a walk-along volunteer who has the overall control.
This program allows single riders to make their way up the trail and through the tunnel alongside a volunteer from Blue Ridge Packs and Tracks. The rider can have able-bodied guests along, too.
Track chair rides are on Tuesday mornings at 10 a.m. and Sunday afternoons at 3 p.m. by appointment only. Make an appointment at nelsoncounty.va.myrec.com. There’s a weight limit of 300 pounds for the rider.
