The 2019 Adagio in a Class All Its Own

After a near-perfect growing season three years ago, is it any wonder that the Williamsburg Winery’s 2019 Adagio is worth touting 10 months before its release?

Structure. Depth. Layers. Complexity. Yes, to all of that for the 2019 Adagio, which will be released in October 2022.

Adagio represents the biggest, boldest expression of a vintage for the Williamsburg Winery. The winery only makes Adagio after outstanding vintages; conditions weren’t quite conducive to doing so in 2018 and 2020.

But the weather cooperated in the vineyard in 2019, a year with a decent amount of rain in the spring followed by minimal precipitation from August through October. The summer wasn’t overwhelmingly warm, so the grapes developed on the vine longer to develop their fruit to its potential.

The 2019 Adagio has been aging in the best new French oak barrels in the cellar and “will have a whole extra year of barrel aging to let it really meld and develop further before we bottle it,” said Kenny Bumbaco, Vice President, Direct Wine Sales at the Winery. “That extra time will result in the wine being that much more complex and smoother ultimately. Adagio is what we hang our hat on as our best wine of the vintage, and one that we think can compete as among the best wines in the world.”

Typically, when blending Adagio, Williamsburg Winery Winemaker Matthew Meyer starts with Tannat, Cabernet Franc, and Merlot. The 2019 is a blend that is 69% Tannat, 23% Petit Verdot and 8% Cabernet Sauvignon — no Cab Franc and no Merlot.

“This is the first time we’ve done that,” Meyer said. “The 2019 Adagio has one of the highest amounts of Tannat, a good grape for Virginia that has a lot of depth and a lot of character.”

The Tannat and the Cabernet Sauvignon come from a vineyard in Crozet, while the Petit Verdot is estate-grown.

Guests at the Adagio Vertical Dinner hosted by the Winery at Wessex Hall on Jan. 28 got a preview of the 2019 Adagio that was served along with the 2015 and 2017 Adagios at a four-course meal.

The rest of us can take solace in the fact that fall is on its way, and the 2019 Adagio makes it worth the wait!

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