Performance in Paris blind tasting event celebrates 'how far Virginia wine has come'

A group of Virginia wines fared quite well in a late June tasting event with French wines, which took place at Le Cordon Bleu Paris.

Frank Morgan and Thomas McCune were co-organizers of ‘Old World, New Roots.’ (Frank Morgan Facebook)

“Old World, New Roots” was a blind tasting that brought Virginia and French wines together at Le Cordon Bleu Paris.

It took place on June 29, a little more than 50 years after the historic Judgment of Paris, a legendary 1976 blind wine tasting where underdog California wines defeated top French selections and forced a re-evaluation of global wine perceptions.

This time, the tasting featured Virginia and French wines. And, this time, it was the Virginia wines that showed off how far they have come, which certainly didn’t surprise those familiar with the growth in quantity and quality of the state’s wine industry.

The tasting was also the cap-stone event that concluded the Art, Science and Wine Management Diploma academic program, according to a press release sent out July 1 by Frank Morgan, one of the organizers who is a longtime respected blogger and observer of the state, its wines and wineries.

He has been the Director of Judging for the Virginia Governor’s Cup competition since 2024.

Joining Morgan as a co-organizer was Thomas McCune, a student in Le Cordon Bleu Paris’s Diploma in Art, Science and Wine Management program.

The event brought together 12 wines from Virginia and twelve wines from France for a blind evaluation by an international panel of Paris-based wine professionals and Le Cordon Bleu students.

The blind tasting took place in Paris on June 29. (Frank Morgan Facebook)

Using the American Wine Society’s 20-point judging matrix, the judges awarded Virginia wines the two highest scores in the Chardonnay flight, all three top Petit Manseng scores, the highest-scoring Cabernet Franc, and the top three Bordeaux-style red blends.

As Morgan noted, the tasting “was never intended” to recreate the Judgment of Paris. “Its purpose was to celebrate how far Virginia wine has come and to demonstrate that it belongs in the international conversation alongside some of the world’s most respected wine regions,” he said in the release. “Holding that conversation at the historic Le Cordon Bleu in Paris made it especially meaningful.”

As he also noted in a July 3 Facebook post, “To see Virginia wines evaluated blind, alongside French counterparts, by an experienced panel of judges in the heart of Paris was meaningful and inspiring. It was awesome to hear one of the judges from Paris (who just submitted his MW thesis paper) say, ‘Wow, these Virginia wines are so good!’”

The French wines were curated by McCune as representative examples of their respective wine regions, according to the press release. Many had been introduced during Le Cordon Bleu’s Diploma in Art, Science and Wine Management program as benchmark wines, while also reflecting independent producers whose vineyard holdings and production more closely mirror those of the participating Virginia wineries.

Barboursville Vineyards’ 2021 Octagon, second from right, was the only wine in the tasting to receive a perfect score. (Frank Morgan Facebook)

Barboursville Vineyards’ 2021 Octagon was the only wine in the tasting to receive a perfect score.

Here are the results:

CHARDONNAY

1. Chardonnay 2023 Michael Shaps Wild Meadow Vineyard AVA Monticello Chardonnay

2. 2023 Pollak Vineyards AVA Monticello Chardonnay

3. Les Chazots 2023 Maison Schaps AOP Bourgogne

PETIT MANSENG

1. Petit Manseng 2023 Michael Schaps Honah Lee Vineyard

2. 2023 Veritas AVA Monticello Petit Manseng

3. 2024 Paradise Springs Vineyard

CABERNET FRANC

1. Valley Road Vineyards Cabernet Franc Estate Reserve 2023

2. PIOU 2023 Daugay AOP St Emilion Ceci n’est pas que Equilibre

3. 2022 Château de Minière AOP Bourgueil

BORDEAUX-STYLE RED BLENDS

1. 2019 King Family Vineyards Meritage

2. 2021 Pollak Vineyards Meritage

3. Octagon 2021 Barboursville Vineyard

Finally, here are the list of judges.

• Xavier Thuizat: Jury Chair; Best Sommelier of France; Meilleur Ouvrier de France

• Tanisha Townsend: Wine Tour Guide and Educator

• Aubrey Morris: Manager; L’arret by the Grey

• Catherine Dulhoste: Paris-based wine author and educator

• Viva Lenoir: CEO, Le Nez du Vin

• Antoine Sfier: Paris-based wine professional and

  winemaker

• Morgan Ipaktchian: Student, Diploma in Art, Science and

  Wine Management, Le Cordon Bleu Paris

• Dr. Kyonghan Shin: Student, Diploma in Art, Science and

  Wine Management, Le Cordon Bleu Paris

• Frank Morgan: Writer; Director of Judging, Virginia

  Governor’s Cup

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