BOOK: The Virginia Table, Celebrates Virginia Food and Wine

Early Mountain Vineyards and Our Local Commons today announced the release of The Virginia Table, a new book celebrating the Commonwealth of Virginia and its emergence as a world-renowned food and wine region.

The Virginia Table examines six culinary traditions in Virginia: wine, cheese, beer, grain, meat, and cider. Through interviews, stories, and recipes from both industry veterans and up-and-coming artisans, The Virginia Table illustrates the energy, innovation, and enthusiasm propelling Virginia to the top of the local food movement. Each feature-length story also includes a sidebar sharing the perspective of veterans, as well as up-and-comers and champions in these industries, providing context for just how far Virginia’s artisan food movement has come in recent years. 

The concept for The Virginia Table originated with Early Mountain Vineyards who are dedicated to elevating Virginia as a world-class wine and food region. From day one, Early Mountain has strived to produce and showcase its own wines, while also highlighting a curated “Best of Virginia” selection of wines that demonstrate the talent and skill of the Commonwealth’s winemakers and the bounty of its land in the vineyard’s tasting room, and in their all-local marketplace, which features products from artisans in the area.

“From day one, a passion for Virginia has guided everything we do at Early Mountain Vineyards. The Virginia Table is a natural extension of our mission to highlight the very best that Virginia has to offer,” says Jean Case. “We take pride in the winemaking traditions in our state, and also in the many talented, local artisans, chefs and winemakers who are fueling innovation and pushing Virginia to the forefront of America’s 'go local' movement."

Throughout its 80 pages, The Virginia Table features intimate profiles of taste-makers from across the Commonwealth — including chefs, writers, and restaurateurs — whose passion for Virginia food paved the way for the state’s rising profile. These taste-makers include Chef José Andrés of ThinkFoodGroup, restaurateur Michael Babin of Neighborhood Food Group, food writer Patrick Evans-Hylton, and wine writer and Washington Post columnist Dave McIntyre, restaurateurs Neal + Star Wavra of FABLE Hospitality and Field & Main Restaurant among other well-respected individuals. To further illustrate the bounty of Virginia, the book features six full-color spreads of Virginia-made products, as well as recipes and pairings created by some of the Commonwealth’s leading chefs.

To create The Virginia Table, Early Mountain Vineyards collaborated with Our Local Commons, a Charlottesville based storytelling team that includes photographers Andrea Hubbell and Sarah Cramer Shields and writer Jenny Paurys. The team hit the road throughout the summer of 2015, interviewing and photographing all the individuals, products, and recipes featured in the book. Just as with its subject matter, The Virginia Table was created entirely in Virginia, with Matt Thomas of Charlottesville based Convoy providing design and layout of the book, and printed in Richmond by Worth Higgins & Associates.

To order the book, visit http://store.earlymountain.com/. It will also be available at select local retailers. For behind-the-scenes images, follow @thevirginiatable and @ourlocalcommons on Instagram. To learn more about Our Local Commons, visit ourlocalcommons.com.

FEATURED TASTE-MAKERS

• Chef José Andrés – ThinkFoodGroup
• Restaurateur Michael Babin – Neighborhood Restaurant Group + Arcadia Center for Sustainable Food & Agriculture
• Food Writer, Editor + Columnist Patrick Evans-Hylton
• Chef Tarver King – The Restaurant at Patowmack Farm
• Restaurateur Kendra Feather – The Roosevelt, Ipanema Cafe, WPA Bakery, and Garnett’s Cafe
• Wine Writer + Columnist Dave McIntyre – The Washington Post
• Restaurateurs Neal + Star Wavra – FABLE Hospitality + Field & Main Restaurant

FEATURED ARTISANS

• Wine | Ben Jordan, Early Mountain Vineyards – Madison, Virginia
• Cheese | HB Hunter, Spring Mill Farm – Concord, Virginia
• Beer | Mary Morgan, Three Notch’d Brewing Company – Harrisonburg, Virginia
• Grain | Brian Walden, Steadfast Farm – Albemarle County, Virginia
• Meat | Matthew Greene + James Lum III, JM Stock Provisions – Charlottesville, Virginia
• Cider | Courtney Mailey, Blue Bee Cider – Richmond, Virginia

INDUSTRY VETERANS AND SPECIALISTS

• Wine | Gabriele Rausse, Gabriele Rausse Vineyard + Monticello – Charlottesville, Virginia
• Cheese | Dany Schutte, Southern Season – Richmond, Virginia
• Beer | Chris Gordon and Gordon Giuliano, Charlottesville Hops LLC – Charlottesville, Virginia
• Grain | Will Brockenbrough, Woodson’s Mill – Lowesville, Virginia
• Meat | John Whiteside, Wolf Creek Farm – Madison, Virginia
• Cider | Diane Flynt, Foggy Ridge Cider – Dugspur, Virginia

RECIPES + PAIRINGS

• Wine: Executive Chef Dylan Allwood, ROCKSALT – Charlottesville, Virginia
• Cheese: Chef + Owner Jason Alley, pasture – Richmond, Virginia
• Beer: Chef + Owner Ian Boden, The Shack – Staunton, Virginia
• Grain: Chef Matt Adams + Chef Becca Norris, The Red Hen – Lexington, Virginia
• Meat: Chef + Co-Owner Harrison Keevil, Brookville Restaurant – Charlottesville, Virginia
• Cider: Chef + Cofounder Megan Kiernan, Forage – Free Union, Virginia