Virginia Wine Takeover with Present Company Winemaker Chris Tropeano

Chris fell in love with wine while working as a brewer at Russian River Brewing in Sonoma County, California. Him and his wife Hailey were surrounded by incredible wineries producing clean wines with minimal additives that changed his perspective on what wine could be. Chris went on to co-found Resident Culture Brewing in Charlotte, NC, where he spent seven years as Director of Brewing Operations, helping build the brand into one of the most celebrated breweries in the country. Throughout that time, his fascination with wine and winemaking continued to grow.

In the summer of 2024, the call of wine led Chris and his young family to Charlottesville, Virginia—a place known for some of the best wine on the East Coast and a place where they could build something new. Here, Chris worked under Matthieu Finot at King Family Vineyards while planning his own project. Present Company is the culmination of everything Chris and Hailey have learned and loved from these experiences.

To welcome him the right way, we will be pouring a selection of his Present Company Wines at your discretion for 2 hours! That's right, this is an all-you-can-safely-drink event! Your ticket gets unlimited pours of five Present Company wines, a tasting guided by Chris Tropeano, and elevated snacks from our chef Tony Chittum including house dips, seasonal vegetable crudité, and seasonal arancini.

The following wines will be available for unlimited pours during the event:

1. PRESENT COMPANY, CHENIN BLANC PÉT NAT, MONTICELLO, 2025
2. PRESENT COMPANY, RIESLING, SHENANDOAH VALLEY, 2025
3. PRESENT COMPANY, ROSÉ, MONTICELLO, 2025
4. PRESENT COMPANY, CABERNET FRANC, MONTICELLO, 2025
5. PRESENT COMPANY, CARBONIC-ISH PETIT VERDOT, MONTICELLO, 2025

*The entire Vermilion dinner menu will be available for order during the time of our event, but only a selection of snacks will be covered by the event ticket price