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Upcoming Events

Mother's Day Celebration - May 11th

Treat Mom to a free wine tasting this Mother's Day! Come relax on our covered porch or in our picnic area while enjoying a glass of wine and the beautiful scenery. Light fare is always available at the winery, including a variety of all-natural Amish farmstead cheddar from Goot Essa Cheese, as well as an assortment of crackers and other cheeses.

As a special treat for Mom this coming Mother's Day, Sunday, May 11th,, Keswick Vineyards is offering gourmet picnic boxes prepared by HotCakes in Charlottesville. These are only available to order in advance, and we'll have them delivered and waiting for you here at the winery. Each box contains herbed potato salad, fresh fruit salad, a cookie, and your choice of one of the following sandwiches:
* Tarragon chicken salad
* Smoked turkey with boursin cheese
* Ham & Swiss with honey mustard
* Roasted vegetables with chevre

Picnic boxes are $15 per person, and will be available starting at 12 noon on Mother's Day. Orders must be placed by Thursday, May 8th, by calling Paige Nichols at 434-244-3341.

Spring/Summer 2008

We'll be holding several events here at Keswick Vineyards during the coming months. As more details become available, they'll be posted to the website. Until then, if you'd like more information about the following events, please contact the winery at 434-244-3341.

May 11th - Mother's Day Celebration
May 24-26th - Memorial Day Open House
June 15th - Father's Day Celebration
July 4th - 2nd Annual Red, White, & Bluegrass Festival
July 26th - Barrel Tasting (reservations required)

Ellen Crosby Book Release & Signing - Aug 24th

Mystery author Ellen Crosby will return to Keswick Vineyards this summer for a book signing and area release for her third wine country-themed novel, The Bordeaux Betrayal, on August 24th, 2008 from 12pm - 4pm. She charmed guests and autographed copies of her first two books in this series, The Chardonnay Charade and The Merlot Murders, at our tasting room last October. Ms. Crosby will be at the 2008 Virginia Festival of the Book in Charlottesville as part of a mystery novel panel.

Recent Events

2006 Consensus Release - May 3rd

Keswick Vineyards Wine Club Members are invited to attend our 2006 Consensus Release Reception in the cellar on Saturday, May 3rd, 2008. For the first time, and only during this event, we'll also have our Governor's Cup Gold Medal winners, the 2005 Chardonnay Reserve and 2006 Chambourcin, available for tasting. For more information, please contact our Wine Club manager, Kris Schornberg.

Earth Day Vineyard Tours - April 19th

Enjoy the beautiful Virginia countryside and celebrate Earth Day with a vineyard tour at Keswick! On Saturday, April 19th, Keswick Vineyards will be offering educational tours of our vineyard. Learn about how grapes are grown and how we interact with the land while enjoying a glass of a Keswick wine of your choice. Tours will be available at 11:00am, 1:30pm, and 3:00pm - advanced reservations are required as there is a limit of 15 people per tour. Tickets are $15 per person ($10 for Wine Club members) and include the glass of wine. Please call Paige Nichols at 434-244-3341 for information and to make reservations.

We'd like to offer some inspiration to our visitors to become more Earth-friendly and help lessen our impact on the environment, so if you're coming by for wine tasting or perhaps a picnic on the grounds on April 19th, we encourage you to bring your own glass and receive a free tasting, as well as a 10% discount on purchases if you bring your own bottle carrier.

2006 Viognier Estate Reserve Release

On April 5th, Keswick Vineyards released its 2006 Viognier Estate Reserve. This dry-styled 100% Viognier offers the typical sweet aromas of peach and apricot with hints of hazelnut. Aging in new French Oak barrels has imparted subtle vanilla and toasty oak flavors and a lengthy, creamy finish reminiscent of a Chardonnay.

Semana Santa Verdejo Release Event - Mar 22nd

Join us on Saturday, March 22nd, to celebrate the release of Keswick Vineyards' 2007 Verdejo and Easter weekend in the Spanish style! 2007 marks Keswick's very first vintage of Verdejo, one of Spain's premium white wine grapes. Most commonly associated with the Rueda region of Spain, this crisp, lively wine is making a great showing here in Virginia.

Our Verdejo release coincides with Easter and the festivities of Semana Santa, or Holy Week. This is one of the most important holidays in Spain, and particularly in the Rueda region. The festivals of this region are internationally famous, and so we will bring the flavors of this celebration here to you at Keswick Vineyards. Come spend the day with us and enjoy tasting our brand new Verdejo while we celebrate Easter in the Spanish style - with music, tapas, and cascarones (the Spanish version of Easter eggs)!

2nd Annual Wine Club Cook-Off - March 15th

Please join us for the 2nd Annual Keswick Vineyards Wine Club Cook-Off Event Saturday, March 15th, 2008, beginning at 12:30pm. We want to see what fabulous recipes you can create using your favorite Keswick Vineyards wines as an ingredient. As in our inaugural event last year, we will be holding competitions in the appetizer, entree, and dessert categories. Registration is $15 per person - not per entry, so feel free to bring as many dishes as you'd like! Contact Kris Schornberg by the March 4th registration deadline to enter (please indicate in which categories you'll submit dishes) and for more information. We will bill the credit card that we have on file for you when you RSVP. Entrants will enjoy an additional 15% discount on any wine they purchase for use in their recipes.

Interested in participating but not in the Wine Club yet? Please click here to learn more about our Wine Club and its membership benefits.

2006 Cabernet Franc Release - March 8th

So many customers have expressed an interest in when we might consider bottling our Cabernet Franc as a varietal - finally that time has come! Stop by the tasting room on Saturday, March 8th for the release of Keswick Vineyards' first ever Cabernet Franc.

'Be Mine with Wine' Valentine's Event - Feb 16th

Wine, strawberries, and sweets... Spoil yourself or someone you love with Keswick Vineyards' special wine and dipped strawberry tasting for Valentine's Day.

From 12 - 5pm, Saturday, February 16th, Keswick Vineyards will go beyond mere wine and chocolate by pairing dipped strawberries with five of our award-winning wines. Discover how these luscious strawberry confections complement each wine - for example, try our Viognier with "Lemon Supreme" or our newly-released 2006 Norton with "Chocolate Bliss". $10/person includes the paired tasting and wine glass.

After your tasting, enjoy the romantic setting while you savor a glass of wine and take a guess at how many candy hearts are in our Rosé bottle to win a free future tour and tasting for you and your sweetheart.

Chocoholic! for CHIP - Feb 7th

Keswick Vineyards will be participating in Chocoholic! this Thursday, February 7th, from 6:00 - 9:00pm at the Troutman Sanders building in Richmond, VA. All proceeds benefit CHIP (Children’s Health Involving Parents), an education and support organization that services low-income families with young children in the Greater Richmond area. Click here for more information. Come treat yourself to the decadent delights of Chocoholic! knowing that every sip and taste helps someone at the same time.

Barrel Owners' Barrel Tasting - Jan 26th

Keswick Vineyards is pleased to announce its first barrel tasting event for its Barrel Owners group this coming weekend, Saturday, January 26th, at 1pm in the winery. Food will be provided and our winemaker, Stephen Barnard, will be hosting this first chance to taste the wines in your barrels. Additionally, participants will receive a 30% discount on anything purchased onsite on the day. Please contact Stephen to confirm your attendance and get more information.

Winemaker's Dinner - Jan 24th

South River Grill & Paddock Wine Shop in Waynesboro, VA, will be featuring Keswick Vineyards at their upcoming wine dinner on January 24th. Each offering of the sumptuous five-course, French-inspired menu will be expertly paired with a different Keswick vintage, and our winemaker, Stephen Barnard, will be on hand to provide information about the wines and winemaking at Keswick in general. Call 540-942-5567 for more information and reservations.

Gold Medal Release Weekend - Jan 19th & 20th

Keswick Vineyards just released its 2007 Virginia Governor's Cup Gold Medal winners on January 19th and 20th, 2008.

Our 2005 Chardonnay Reserve and 2006 Chambourcin, both made in limited quantities, are currently available for purchase by Wine Club members at our tasting room only. (Not a Wine Club member? Please follow this link to learn how to join and what is included with your membership)

2006 Consensus Blending Competition - Dec 2007

Our annual blending competition was held over the weekend of December 1st & 2nd, 2007, and featured more than 100 wine club members fighting it out for the title of Consensus. The 2006 winning blend will consist of 40% Touriga, 33% Petit Verdot, 25% Malbec, and 2% Norton. Congratulations to the winners!

Ellen Crosby Book Signing - Oct 20th, 2007

Mystery author Ellen Crosby held a book signing for her second wine country-themed novel, The Chardonnay Charade, in our tasting room. She charmed guests and autographed copies of both her newest release and her first book in this series, The Merlot Murders. Ms. Crosby will be at the 2008 Virginia Festival of the Book in Charlottesville, and we hope she'll come back to host another book signing event when the next book in her series, The Bordeaux Betrayal, is released later in 2008.

Custom Events

Special Events

Looking for a venue? Keswick Vineyards would be pleased to host your next event - private wine tasting, book or garden club, retirement brunch, office party, rehearsal or benefit dinner, silent auction - whatever your plans, our staff will work tirelessly to bring them to fruition. Click here to contact us about your next event.

Group Events offered by Keswick Vineyards

Private Offsite Tastings with the Winemaker

Blending event (pending availability of wine)

• Participants will be broken down into groups of 3 – 5 team members
• Keswick Vineyards will provide wines and all the tools needed to be able to accurately measure your final blend
• The winemaker will briefly discuss how and why we blend wines
• A short tasting of the various lots will be conducted with a discussion on how they might contribute to a final blend
• Tasting notes and comment sheets will be provided to all team members
• After all the blends are completed and submitted, a tasting of all the blends will take place

Educational Barrel tasting and tour

Group barrel tastings and tours offer a behind the scenes look at how wines are cellared and aged. These include a tour of the wine cellar and detailed information from the winemaker on the art and intricacies of winemaking. The tour ends with a barrel tasting of assorted wines.

Harvest events and tasting (seasonal)

This event consists of a group visiting the vineyard and learning about how grapes are grown and processed and how they are made into different wines.The tasting would be done outside the cellar due to the harvesting process and would have to be coordinated very closely with the winemaker.

For more information, contact Stephen Barnard.