Page 70 - The Hunt - Fall 2022

TRAVELER
Barboursville Vineyards and Charlottesville’s historic downtown mall (below).
with about 4,000 acres of land devoted to vineyards. Chardonnay, merlot, viognier, petit verdot and cabernet franc (which is said to grow better than cabernet sauvignon on the East Coast) are the most planted grape varieties. Hardier hybrid grapes are generally not as prized for wines, though vidal blanc, chambourcin and traminette are all capable of making good wines in Virginia.
Piedmont wineries are basically
grouped around the university town of Charlottesville, and farther north in the Leesburg and Front Royal area. On our trip, we visited eight. Perhaps the most respected winegrower in Virginia is Jim Law of Linden Vineyards, in the town of the same name just east of Front Royal. Law has made wine there
A half-day’s drive from
the Brandywine Valley,
this part of Virginia has seen dozens of wineries blossom over the past
30 years or so. It offers
a uniquely successful combination of terroir, local and imported talent, capital investment and a captive urban audience.
since 1988, while also helping many other wineries realize their potential. He produces excellent Bordeaux-style reds at his modern hillside facility, with a pristine tasting room overlooking the rustic setting.
Closer to Washington, D.C.,
Boxwood Estate Winery is located
in Middleburg, among the prettiest
and wealthiest towns in the state. An architectural gem set among the horse farms, Boxwood is owned by the Cookes (former owners of Washington’s NFL football team). The Bordeaux blends are very good—but be sure to taste the delicious sauvignon blancs. In nearby Delaplane, RdV Vineyards makes perhaps the most highly rated Virginia wines. Visits are by appointment—and even then you might not be able to taste the wines.
In the Charlottesville area, we hit five more spots. Owned by Italy’s Zonin family, Barboursville Vineyards produces the
largest array of good wines under the master hand of Luca Paschina, who’s been with
the winery since 1990. The winery also has rooms and suites for overnight stays, and the estate’s Palladian restaurant is quite elegant, with some of the most sophisticated dishes in the region.
Early Mountain Vineyards will remind seasoned travelers of the elaborate Napa Valley estates, though without the crowds you’d expect from a place within a day’s drive of 60% of the U.S. population. Everything tastes of money well spent. At Stinson Vineyards, Nathan and Rachel Vrooman Stinson like to continued on page 70
68 THE HUNT MAGAZINE fall 2022
TOP: COURTESY OF BARBOURSVILLE VINEYARDS