Thibaut-Janisson Blanc de Chardonnay (3.5 stars)
This is the wine that helped convince skeptics in the wine and restaurant trade that Virginia could indeed produce world-class vino. Champagne-native Claude Thibaut has also helped spark other wineries in the Old Dominion now producing quality bubbly. This one remains the tête de cuvée for Virginia, with its soft texture and flavors of apples, peaches, ginger and brioche.

Visiting the nation’s capital calls for celebration, and what better way to do so than popping a bottle of regionally produced bubbly? Thibaut-Janisson-Wolfgang Puck private label was created for Puck’s restaurants CUT D.C and CUT Above, located at the Rosewood hotel.

In the podcast, Claude describes how he left and came back to Champagne many times during his career and discusses how Tom Jordan enticed him to take the position at J with pretty much a blank check. He also lends his insight into Virginia wine growing in the early 2,000’s.

Thibaut-Janisson Blanc de Chardonnay NV
Widely considered the father of Virginia sparkling wine, Claude Thibaut is a fifth-generation winemaker from the Champagne region of France. Made from 100% Chardonnay, this sparkling wine is elegant, bursting with white peach, saline, apple butter and hints of hazelnut. It’s zippy with a brioche and baked apple finish. ($30, Westside Produce and Provisions). Also look for Thibaut’s lighter and slightly sweeter FIZZ, perfect for mimosas.

I didn’t know much about these guys during my last trip to the Monticello AVA… I finally took a shot on their Blanc de Chardonnay, and WOW! Ladies and gentlemen, when you get two traditional-method experts working together towards the finest sparkling wine they can possibly produce, you pull the trigger.

The medium-bodied palate shows nice richness and concentration as well as nice linearity in the mouth thanks to a beam of fresh acidity that runs right through the middle. It’s bone dry without being austere in the least.

Afton’s Thibaut-Janisson Winery brings sparkling wine to the forefront.
by Whit Sheppard

Thibaut’s mission has been to bring sparkling wines into the mainstream. His feeling is that sparkling wines are highly versatile, and also appropriate as a quotidian pleasure.

This French-owned winery is the only one in [Virginia] specializing in traditional champagne method sparkling wine.

by Tricia Traugott

The Piedmont region of Central Virginia is an escape from the hectic work week and a get-away … a chance to unpack a picnic basket filled with local artisanal cheeses and a fresh baguette alongside picturesque vineyards and uncork a bottle of Virginia wine or bubbly.

None of the lusher style Virginia Chardonnays blew our mind. In contrast, some of the successful sparkling wines based on Chardonnay seriously impressed us, most notably those from Thibaut-Janisson…