“Buy” the Glass

By Doug Fabbioli Forty-one years ago, the first Loudoun County harvest of wine grapes were brought to a crusher machine to be processed into wine. Over the past 4 decades, many more locally grown grapes and other fruits have been picked, crushed, fermented, aged and bottled for our residents and visitors to enjoy. Because wine grapes and other crops have a limited shelf life after picking, the processing of this fruit is often done on the same property where the grapes are grown. Because timing is crucial the grower needs to work closely with the winemaker to ensure a successful harvest. Often this is solved because the grower and the winemaker are the same person. The requirements for a successful vineyard are very specific so we tend to have vineyards clustered together where the conditions are best. All of these pieces together add up to a wine region, where grapes are grown, processed and offered to our customers for tasting and purchase all in the same geographical place. Another

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