Barboursville Vineyards will shine on Monday night January 19th at the Inauguration Conservation Gala honoring President-elect Barack Obama and Mrs. Michelle Obama at the Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium in Washington, D.C. The Cabernet Franc Reserve 2006 will be served at the reception and the Octagon Eighth Edition 2005 will be the red wine for the formal dinner. Winemaker Luca Paschina will attend and represent the founders and owners of Barboursville, the Zonin family.

Both of the wines are multiple award winners. The Cabernet Franc earned the Critics Gold Medal at this summer’s Critics Challenge International Wine Competition in California. The Octagon, the winery’s flagship production, has earned the state’s Governor’s Cup Gold Medal and the Monticello Cup. It is only produced during excellent growing seasons.

This occasion benefits the global conservation work of the International Conservation Caucus Foundation and ties history together as the winery is on the estate of James Barbour, Governor of Virginia during the War of 1812. The property has been preserved and the land has been agriculturally conserved as a viable wine-producing estate.

Congratulations to Barboursville for bringing further recognition to the Virginia wine industry.