Lightwell Survey 'Electric Juicebox' 2024

A blend of 56% Vidal Blanc, 31% Chambourcin, 11% Petit Manseng, and 2% Traminette. Full of life, super exuberant, instant gratification Ocean Spray unsweetened, dry cranberry blast in your face. Herbal, and tart, you can expect a dry fresh wine. On the palate its juicy and refreshing. A true patio pounder for realz. 330 cases produced.

FRUIT SOURCES
Rainbow Hill Vidal Blanc and Chambourcin, Middlebrook Traminette, Chiles Batesville Petit Manseng.

WINEMAKING
This is a wine that changes from year to year. For the past few years, we have been using both white and red grapes to make something that is usually rosé oriented, skin contact adjacent, or vice versa. This year we lean a little harder towards rosé in the way it tastes and feels, but more light red in terms of the depth of color. We continue to stay away from the pale and crisp, simply fruited, provençal style that has come to define industrial versions of this category. We love a rosé with layered flavors and a deeper texture, so we work with a variety of grapes to build nuance and density, and we allow the wine to go through malo, so we don’t have to filter. With a small addition of SO2, we find a wine that is charming, with creamy fruit at bottling and that develops over time, daring us to take it more seriously. You don’t have to do that, but you can!

The winemaker: Lightwell Survey is a Virginia winery shining a new light on the traditional wine-scape. Their small batches of lively reds, dense whites and unique combinations of the two come with no preconceived descriptions or traditional aspirations. They aim for a bullseye yet prefer to land slightly off center. Started in the fall of 2015 with the first harvest in partnership with Early Mountain Vineyards in Madison, VA, their wines will continue to delve into traditional and not so familiar territory as they bring wines to market. Formed by partners Sebastian Zutant, Ben Jordan, Jay Zutant, Julian Caustrita, and John DeNapoli.