The one unique thing we found on our Tennessee winery visits was at Smoky Mountain Winery where they served each taste of wine in a small plastic jigger, or church communion cup, rather than in a wine glass. I was able to taste several varietals I’d never had before, adding to my Wine Century Club list, even though they were not of notable quality: Niagara, Catawba, Muscadine, and Norton (called Cynthiana in Tennessee).

Heading on down the road to Kentucky, we toured three Kentucky wineries near Lexington. We were told that the first commercial winery in the United States originated in Kentucky in 1798. Later, the wine industry pretty much died in Kentucky before being revitalized mainly by tobacco growers who have switched their tobacco fields to grape vines. We wondered if we might get a hint of tobacco in some of the wines, but we did not.

As in Tennessee, I was able to taste several varietals in Kentucky that I’d never had before, including Chambourcin, St. Vincent, and Traminette. Chambourcin is a grape I wouldn’t mind trying again. Most of the wines we tasted were produced from Kentucky grown grapes, but there were a few made from out-of-state grapes which they were forthright in disclosing.

Our first stop was at Talon Winery and Vineyards. They have a beautiful, apparently well-funded operation, but only five acres of grapes currently in production. They had the best wine we tasted in Kentucky, a 2005 Talon Estate Cabernet Sauvignon, but it was a little pricey at $50. We also tasted their 2004 Talon Cabernet Sauvignon, the 2005 Talon Cabernet Sauvignon, the 2005 Talon Chambourcin, and the 2005 Talon Traminette. Talon sells wine in their tasting room, offers a wine club, and does ship out-of-state.

Our next stop was the Jean Farris Winery. They had a few good wines, but only one was a good value, the NV Jean Farris Marito Red (a blend of Chambourcin and St. Vincent). Other wines we tasted there were the NV Jean Ferris Tempest (a Tempranillo, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc blend), the NV Jean Ferris Syrah, the 2006 Jean Ferris Viognier, and the NV Jean Ferris Marito White (a blend of Vidal Blanc and Viognier).

Our third and final winery visit in Kentucky was at Chrisman Mill Vineyards near Nicholasville. They have been in business about ten years and sell primarily through their tasting room and a few local stores. They had the second best wine we tasted, a 2005 Chrisman Mill First Vineyard Reserve (a blend of Chambourcin and Cabernet Franc) which is a good value wine. We also tasted their 2005 Chrisman Mill Norton, the NV Chrisman Mill Vidal, the 2005 Chrisman Mill Cabernet Sauvignon, and the 2006 Chrisman Mill Ensemble (Vidal Blanc).

In sum, from our limited sample, there appears to be more serious winemaking going on in Kentucky than in Tennessee. The wineries also seem to be working together well in promoting each other. It would be interesting to come back in ten years and see the progress in the wine industry in Kentucky.

Here’s a recap of the wines we tasted in Kentucky, in our order of preference. All prices given are winery/tasting room prices.

2005 Talon Estate Cabernet Sauvignon
Quality: 3.5 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 3 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Price: $50

2005 Chrisman Mill First Vineyard Reserve
Quality: 3.5 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 4 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Price: $18

2004 Talon Cabernet Sauvignon
Quality: 3 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 4 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Price: $22

2005 Talon Cabernet Sauvignon
Quality: 3 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 4 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Price: $22

NV Jean Farris Marito Red
Quality: 3 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 4 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Price: $14

2005 Chrisman Mill Norton
Quality: 3 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 4 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Price: $18

NV Chrisman Mill Vidal
Quality: 3 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 4 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Price: $11

NV Jean Ferris Syrah
Quality: 3 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 2 bangs for your buck (out of 5)
Price: $32

2005 Talon Chambourcin
Quality: 3 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 1 bang for your buck (out of 5)
Price: $20

NV Jean Ferris Tempest
Quality: 3 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 1 bang for your buck (out of 5)
Price: $35

2006 Jean Ferris Viognier
Quality: 3 stars (out of 5)
QPR: 1 bang for your buck (out of 5)
Price: $19

2005 Chrisman Mill Cabernet Sauvignon
Quality: 2.5 stars (out of 5)
QPR: NR (not recommended)
Price: $20

2006 Chrisman Mill Ensemble
Quality: 2.5 stars (out of 5)
QPR: NR (not recommended)
Price: $14

NV Jean Ferris Marito White
Quality: 2 stars (out of 5)
QPR: NR (not recommended)
Price: $13

2005 Talon Traminette
Quality: 1.5 stars (out of 5)
QPR: NR (not recommended)
Price: $13.50

Road Trip: Tennessee and Kentucky was originally posted on Wine Peeps. Wine Peeps - Your link to great QPR wines from Washington State and beyond.