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CNN Live Today

'Getaways'

Aired September 15, 2003 - 11:48   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: You don't have to visit Napa Valley for a great wine-tasting tour. In our "Getaways" segment today, we're going to explore the surprising vineyards of the South, nestled in the Virginia Blue Ridge.
Kate Greer is editorial director at "Southern Living" magazine, and she is in Baltimore this morning.

Good morning.

KATE GREER, "SOUTHERN LIVING" MAGAZINE: Good morning. Pleasure to be here.

KAGAN: Yes. Let's get behind the wheel which we shouldn't do for wine-tasting, and zoom through as many wineries as we can to give people an idea what's in store for them in Virginia.

Let's start with Barboursville.

GREER: OK, Barboursville -- well, actually let me just back up for a minute and say what I did to make it an easy way to vacation was to draw a circle around Charlottesville, which is the wine capital of Virginia, and kind of limited myself to wineries that were in that 30- mile radius.

KAGAN: So you can make that your headquarters there, your base.

GREER: You could make it your headquarters there. You could stay at different places. You could stay at one place and do it.

KAGAN: All right, fine. So Barboursville -- what did you like about that one.

GREER: Barboursville, I think that's arguably the most beautiful. It's very well established. It's huge. It's so picturesque. It has this wonderful view of the Blue Ridge, and off in the distance.

KAGAN: What about the wine?

GREER: The wines are exquisite. They really are really wonderful. They also have -- the grounds are very interesting, because they have Governor Barbour -- the ruins of Governor Barbour's mansion, which was designed by Thomas Jefferson, which is kind of interesting. And of course, this is Jefferson Country through and through. They also have a wonderful restaurant called Palatio (ph) that's right on the grounds. And I had a lunch there that I think was the best meal I've ever had. And, of course, every course is accompanied by a wonderful wine.

KAGAN: All right. It's going to be hard to top that one, But what about Oakencroft?

GREER: Oakencroft is a really interesting -- that's one of the oldest ones in Ablamorrow (ph) County, and its family owned, as are many of the wineries, and I must say that I enjoyed that tremendously, because it's all the difference in the world visiting wineries there as, say, compared Napa in California, where they are a little bit more snobby, shall we say?

KAGAN: Oh come on, you're digging on my home state now. I'm going to have to stand up for northern California.

GREER: Well, they've been at it a lot longer, and they, you know -- but this is a lot of family stuff, and, well, this is also a place that is very easy for the students from UVA to bring their parents when they're visiting. It's close to town.

KAGAN: Whitehall.

GREER: Whitehall. Ah, that's an interesting one. I thought that was the sleekest of all the wineries. It's -- and they don't have -- they're not into volume, but they're into being very, very fussy about their wines, and it's a gorgeous building and gorgeous out in the country. It's kind of a destination in itself, because it's kind of further out there than in some of the others. But wonderful wines and a wonderful tasting room where -- and incidentally, you can taste or not taste, you know, that's up to you.

KAGAN: To taste or not to taste, that's the question.

To be fair to some of the other Southern states. I know that we have Chateau Elan (ph), just outside of Atlanta, Georgia here, and also The Biltmore, North Carolina. There are other winery areas.

GREER: Every single state, practically, is producing wine. North Carolina has a wonderful, wonderful wine-making area. And Biltmore is just like the, you know, the crown of all of that.

I would say that I'd just like to tell you that because "Southern Living" goes to readers all across the South, we do different editions, so that readers in the western part of the South are going to get a story on Missouri wines, as opposed to Virginia wines, because that's closer to them. And Missouri has a wonderful, wonderful wine-making area as well, too, not very far from St. Louis.

KAGAN: Excellent. Well, Kate, not a bad job, get to go around tasting wines, and then write about it.

GREER: Not bad at all, not hard work.

KAGAN: Thanks for stopping by. Appreciate it.

GREER: It has been my pleasure. Thank you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired September 15, 2003 - 11:48   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: You don't have to visit Napa Valley for a great wine-tasting tour. In our "Getaways" segment today, we're going to explore the surprising vineyards of the South, nestled in the Virginia Blue Ridge.
Kate Greer is editorial director at "Southern Living" magazine, and she is in Baltimore this morning.

Good morning.

KATE GREER, "SOUTHERN LIVING" MAGAZINE: Good morning. Pleasure to be here.

KAGAN: Yes. Let's get behind the wheel which we shouldn't do for wine-tasting, and zoom through as many wineries as we can to give people an idea what's in store for them in Virginia.

Let's start with Barboursville.

GREER: OK, Barboursville -- well, actually let me just back up for a minute and say what I did to make it an easy way to vacation was to draw a circle around Charlottesville, which is the wine capital of Virginia, and kind of limited myself to wineries that were in that 30- mile radius.

KAGAN: So you can make that your headquarters there, your base.

GREER: You could make it your headquarters there. You could stay at different places. You could stay at one place and do it.

KAGAN: All right, fine. So Barboursville -- what did you like about that one.

GREER: Barboursville, I think that's arguably the most beautiful. It's very well established. It's huge. It's so picturesque. It has this wonderful view of the Blue Ridge, and off in the distance.

KAGAN: What about the wine?

GREER: The wines are exquisite. They really are really wonderful. They also have -- the grounds are very interesting, because they have Governor Barbour -- the ruins of Governor Barbour's mansion, which was designed by Thomas Jefferson, which is kind of interesting. And of course, this is Jefferson Country through and through. They also have a wonderful restaurant called Palatio (ph) that's right on the grounds. And I had a lunch there that I think was the best meal I've ever had. And, of course, every course is accompanied by a wonderful wine.

KAGAN: All right. It's going to be hard to top that one, But what about Oakencroft?

GREER: Oakencroft is a really interesting -- that's one of the oldest ones in Ablamorrow (ph) County, and its family owned, as are many of the wineries, and I must say that I enjoyed that tremendously, because it's all the difference in the world visiting wineries there as, say, compared Napa in California, where they are a little bit more snobby, shall we say?

KAGAN: Oh come on, you're digging on my home state now. I'm going to have to stand up for northern California.

GREER: Well, they've been at it a lot longer, and they, you know -- but this is a lot of family stuff, and, well, this is also a place that is very easy for the students from UVA to bring their parents when they're visiting. It's close to town.

KAGAN: Whitehall.

GREER: Whitehall. Ah, that's an interesting one. I thought that was the sleekest of all the wineries. It's -- and they don't have -- they're not into volume, but they're into being very, very fussy about their wines, and it's a gorgeous building and gorgeous out in the country. It's kind of a destination in itself, because it's kind of further out there than in some of the others. But wonderful wines and a wonderful tasting room where -- and incidentally, you can taste or not taste, you know, that's up to you.

KAGAN: To taste or not to taste, that's the question.

To be fair to some of the other Southern states. I know that we have Chateau Elan (ph), just outside of Atlanta, Georgia here, and also The Biltmore, North Carolina. There are other winery areas.

GREER: Every single state, practically, is producing wine. North Carolina has a wonderful, wonderful wine-making area. And Biltmore is just like the, you know, the crown of all of that.

I would say that I'd just like to tell you that because "Southern Living" goes to readers all across the South, we do different editions, so that readers in the western part of the South are going to get a story on Missouri wines, as opposed to Virginia wines, because that's closer to them. And Missouri has a wonderful, wonderful wine-making area as well, too, not very far from St. Louis.

KAGAN: Excellent. Well, Kate, not a bad job, get to go around tasting wines, and then write about it.

GREER: Not bad at all, not hard work.

KAGAN: Thanks for stopping by. Appreciate it.

GREER: It has been my pleasure. Thank you.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com