Herndon's Wine Seller Becomes The Vineyard Table on Dranesville

Originally known as The Wine Seller on Elden Street, The Vineyard Table reopened in a new location on Dranesville Road in November.

The local wine shop's first location was in the Kmart Shopping Center, and later in two locations at the BB&T Centre. The new location, originally Herndon’s first grocery store, sells fine wines, gourmet foods, wine related accessories and gift items.

Every Saturday, wine tastings are offered allowing the opportunity to experience flavors from all over the globe.

Owner Lucinda Smith said the complimentary wine tastings have been held since they first opened their door to Herndon over twenty years ago.

Smith said each representative, who is from the Northern Virginia area, works for a wholesale distributor within the state. Each one brings wines from their portfolio that they sell to The Vineyard Table.
During tastings they are available to answer any questions a customer may have including what foods go well with a wine and the history behind them. Each wine is also available to purchase.

One such tasting took place at The Vineyard Table Saturday afternoon with Dale Quesenberry of Williams Corner Wine, in Charlottesville.

Five wines were sampled including Laurent Miquel Pere et Fils Chardonnay, from France, and Empordalia “Sinols Negre,” from Spain.

“We receive samples from all the over the world on a regular basis. Usually unsolicited,” Quesenberry said. "We taste through them. We find things that kind of fit our philosophy, which is natural wine making. Wines that are typically organic.”

Quesenberry said each wine presented during a tasting is usually picked one to two weeks prior to an event.

They are selected based on how well the wine will work the palettes of each customer, he said.

Smith said, “Truly there is no better way to learn about wine then to just try it. And what better way to do it then when its free. We're not insulted if you don't like it. We don't expect you to like every single wine. But it's a great way to learn what you do and what you don't like.”

On Saturday, employee Vaughn Siegenthaler said he enjoyed the samples that were on hand.

“You've got a big mix. Of the whites I like the Riesling the best. The two reds, they're so diverse it wouldn't be fair to choose between one or the other,” Siegenthaler said. “If you try some things that you never had before you might discover something that you like and want to buy,” Siegenthaler said. “Tastings are experiments and you might find something you like.”

The next complimentary wine tasting will be held Saturday, Jan. 22 featuring Dave Bortolin who will pour some wines from his Cobblestone Cellars portfolio.

Complimentary wine tastings are held Saturdays from noon to 4 p.m. at The Vineyard Table, located at 711 Dranesville Rd., in Herndon. Reservations are not required. Call 703-657-0002 or visit http://thevineyardtableva.com for details.