VINEYARD VIEW: Melanie Natoli Makes Wine, and History

VINEYARD VIEW: Melanie Natoli Makes Wine, and History

Story and Photos by Peter Leonard-Morgan

The Virginia Governor’s Cup is a prominent wine competition in the Commonwealth, pitting some 600 plus wines from over a hundred of the state’s wineries against each other in a fierce two-week blind tasting.

This year, its highest honor went to Cana Vineyards and Winery of Middleburg, with a wine developed by Melanie Natoli, the first female winemaker to take the overall top prize at the Virginia Governor’s Cup since its inception forty years ago, a groundbreaking milestone for the industry, and for the state.

The Cana Vineyards and Winery property.

Melanie Natoli in the vineyard.

“We are few,” she said at the time about the dearth of women winemakers in the Commonwealth, “but we are mighty.”

Winemakers from all corners of Virginia select their best and finest vintages, submitting them to the competition organizers for inclusion. Each bottle is subjected to a blind tasting over a ten-day period by seven judges, who are only aware of each wine’s grape variety.

A bronze designation requires between 80 and 84 points (labeled as “good”), followed by Silver, between 85 to 89 points (“very good”), and Gold between 90 and 100 points (“outstanding”). The scores for each wine are then averaged after eliminating the lowest, resulting in an overall score for all of the wines.

Three more days of judging ensue, this time with twelve judges deciding on the twelve best of the best, which are then included in the Governor’s Case. One of those final dozen is the overall Governor’s Cup winner. This year, that would be Cana’s 2019 Unité Reserve, an estate red blend, using grapes only from its Middleburg vineyards.

“There is not a piece of this wine that I don’t know, and it doesn’t know me,” Melanie said in a video she made for the Virginia Wine Marketing office. “I’m so grateful to them (Cana’s owners) trusting me to make their wine. I’m allowed to use my own creativity and create the wine I want to make.”

She arrived at Cana in 2015 following almost a decade under the tutelage of local Loudoun legend, Doug Fabbioli. Yet her path, like so many at the pinnacle of their profession, was somewhat unlikely. It began with a Masters degree in physical therapy, followed by eight years practice in that field.

Over that time, she began to take an interest in wine, an indulgence that had not been remotely present during her formative years at home in New Jersey. On a trip to Rhode Island, she first visited a vineyard, sparking an interest and her initial foray into winemaking education.

Back in Virginia, a chance introduction to Fabbioli led to Melanie lending a hand at the winery. That led to stints as an intern and culminated in attaining the role of assistant winemaker in 2011, which she held for several years before making the break to head winemaker elsewhere.

Melanie will never forget the moment she received the phone call telling her she’d won the highest honor in the 2022 competition. And there was more. Cana’s 2019 Le Mariage, a signature blend of Merlot and Petit Verdot, took a gold, with five other assorted Cana vintages achieving silvers, total medal count of seven.

Their property on John Mosby Highway is an impressive and enjoyable destination for wine aficionados, with its unique Sunset Pavilion. It was constructed in 2019, a year after current owners Lisa and Bryce Petty acquired the property.

As for Melanie Natoli, she obviously has acquired remarkable winning skills. Clearly with more gold to come.

Cana Vineyards and Winery is located at 38600 John Mosby Highway just east of Middleburg.