WASHINGTON 鈥� The 29th is bringing a month of special events at wineries, restaurants, hotels and wine bars, and dozens of wine festivals across the commonwealth.
This year鈥檚 theme is 鈥淒iscover Your Local Crush.鈥�
You’ll have the chance to do just that at more than 230 events at wineries and restaurants throughout the state, including wine pairings and music festivals and 鈥減op-up pairings鈥� at venues, many of them throughout Northern Virginia.
In case you don鈥檛 get the memos from the Virginia wine industry, here are some current facts about the size of Virginia wine production:
- There are 3,800 acres of winery and vineyard locations in Virginia.
- The state is home to 420 vineyards.
- Virginia wine now generates an estimated $1.37 billion in economic impact.
- Virginia wine sales reached a record 587,500 cases last fiscal year.
鈥淭he continued growth of the commonwealth鈥檚 wine industry, one of Virginia鈥檚 fastest growing agricultural sectors, is a priority for my administration as we work to build a new Virginia economy,鈥� said Governor Terry McAuliffe in a statement.
鈥淚鈥檓 proud that these vineyards are bringing jobs and tourism to many rural localities across our beautiful commonwealth,鈥� he said.
October Virginia Wine Month is called the oldest wine month in the country, starting in 1988 as a way to promote the state鈥檚 wine business. In 1988, there were 40 wineries in the state.
Virginia now ranks fifth in the number of wineries in the nation and, according to the Virginia Tourism Corporation, Virginia鈥檚 wine industry drew more than 2.2 million tourist visits in 2015.
You can find a full list of Virginia Wine Month events 鈥� it鈥檚 a long list 鈥� at the .
