The title of this post repeats what our friend Lorna Melendy said Saturday as we were selecting wines we were given as a thank-you for pouring Kilaurwen wines at a tasting event. We wholeheartedly agree!

Kilaurwen is the vineyard and winery owned by Doriene and Bob Steeves in Stanardsville, Va., a little way north of Charlottesville.

Doriene Steeves

We first met Doriene and Bob when Robert and Doriene's brother David Melendy were roommates at GW - and when the three Steeves "girls" after whom the winery is named were stairsteps, all still in grade school (or younger). After retiring from federal government jobs Doriene and Bob moved full-time to the vineyard they started in 1994. In the beginning they sold all their grapes to other Virginia winemakers. They began producing their own wine in 2009. 

Saturday's event was a small section - the "Wine Garden" - of the Manassas Fall Jubilee, an annual festival in Old Town Manassas, Va., near where two of the Civil War's early battles were fought. We knew we were in a different world as we drove past tons of Romney-Ryan signs peppering the landscape on our way into town. Not to worry - we knew we would be in foreign territory before we left home - and not because the Confederate Army won both of the Manassas battles. Doriene and Bob have long worked for Bob and Elizabeth Dole, John Warner, and other Republicans. We enjoy their company tremendously but don't talk politics much! When we do, they are thoughtful listeners and reasonable debaters. 

We started the day by changing into our new Kilaurwen shirts, and then Bob poured us samples of each of the wines they were selling that day. We learned to use the pouring caps that measure the "right" amount into each glass, and we learned the composition of each variety in their tasting flight. Most of their wines are dry, with the exception of one white and one red that are "off-dry" - made mostly from dry-wine grapes, with a little concentrate of sweet-grape juice with or without sugar. These Fiesta wines, we were told (and repeated often during the day), make great Sangria, and the Fiesta Red can be served chilled or warm and mulled.

We learned what varieties of grapes each wine is made of - primarily Rkatziteli and Viognier for the whites and Cabernet Franc for the reds. Their stock of Reisling and Rose wines was depleted earlier in the year, so we did not have those to offer. Some visitors came looking specifically for their Reisling, which will be back in stock in the spring when the next group of wines matures. Most of what we were pouring was made in 2010 - the exception was a 2009 Cab Franc that I particularly like.

Lorna Melendy (right) awaits the verdict of her customer.

We had a beautiful sunny morning, and in the afternoon the wind picked up. Before our shift ended at 1:30 we helped Bob take down some of the Kilaurwen banners, which threatened to take our tent for a ride.

Lorna's friend Lynne (left) joined us on our shift.

Doriene and I were remarking Saturday about how long we've known each other, and I do think it's remarkable that we've kept in touch through the years. That's largely because of David and Lorna, our longtime close friends - we've lived near them all but a few years since leaving GW, in Connecticut from 1973-1982 and then here in D.C. We've gotten to know each other's families through the years, and that includes the Steeves clan. We're looking forward to pouring at another festival in the future. As Lorna said, "Will work for wine!"