October is Wino Month: Virginia Wine Month - DC Wine Week - Regional Wine Week

Yes it is, especially if you live in the Washington D.C. metropolitan area. First, it's Virginia Wine Month. And as the Virginia is For Lover's site reminds, "Virginia is a wine destination unlike any other,  with more than 200 wineries surrounded by lavish scenery, breathtaking views, quaint small towns and monumental historic sites."  And you can choose from over a hundred different events throughout the state to enjoy a nice lass of Virginia Wine.

October also coincides with DC Wine Week, scheduled for October 12th-19th, that is a "week long celebration dedicated to enjoying wine, wine education and an opportunity to support the area’s growing number of local wineries, wine shops, wine bars, restaurants and merchants". In preparation the celebration, the organizers are planning the DC Wine Week On the Road: The Grape Escape on October 5th and a visit to The Winery at Bull Run for their Fall Crush Festival on October 12th. The Grape Escape will hit Loudoun County and Fabbioli Cellars, Lost Creek Winery, and 8 Chains North Winery. Like the DC Wine Week 2013 Facebook page to stay updated on the week's activities.

Finally, there's my favorite: Drink Local Wine's Regional Wine Week. From from October 6th to 12th, "wine writers, bloggers and enthusiasts share information about wine from lesser known wine regions throughout the country — providing a one-stop shop to see what’s cutting edge in regional wine. ... Regional Wine Week is open to anyone –- from professional wine writers to wine enthusiasts with Facebook pages or Tumblr sites. You can submit stories about anything related to wineries, winemakers and wines from anywhere in North America (though we prefer not to include areas like Napa and Sonoma, since they already get enough attention)". 

To encourage this effort DLW is Regional Wine Week Photo Contest and encouraging all wine lovers to submit photos, starting now, to their Facebook page."It can be a photo from a visit to one of your favorite local wineries or a bottle of regional wine you recently enjoyed. And since fall is upon us, we would love to see some of your local wine country’s beautiful colors (hint hint). Just snap a picture, describe it in less than 100 words, and post it to our Facebook wall for all of our friends to view, like, share, and comment on. Please include Facebook hash-tag #DrinkLocalWine with each entry so everyone can easily find your post."

My favorite regional wine photo is from the DLW12 Colorado of the view from Canyon Wind Cellars. And for a little marketing, that's why its the first photo embedded in our theCompass mobile app. Cheers.

Update: I also learned that October is Texas Wine Month. Virginia and Texas seem to be side-by-side in all things wine related. For all those in Texas or planning to visit - particularly during ACL Season, here is a list of Texas wine events.

And of course, theCompass Winery & Brewery Locator can guide you to your local winery whether in Virginia, Maryland, Texas, or any other state and province.