5 Unusual Virginia Wineries

Despite the number of Virginia wineries approximating 275, with the number growing each year, you can be sure of one thing when it comes to wineries in the Commonwealth: No two are alike. Some tasting rooms may be similar (we have friends who still get the tasting room at Pearmund Cellars confused with the one at King Family), but the wine lists will be different, the shape of the tasting building will vary from location to location, and of course the views will be unique to the winery.

We have visited over 210 Virginia wineries (slowly but surely, we are getting to all of them...), and looking through our logs and photo albums, we have pinpointed five that we feel are the most unusual. And we don't mean unusual in a negative context. Every Virginia winery brings a different adventure, whether you're a fan of mountain views, water views, bustling places, quieter places, dry wine, or off dry wine.

Our five most unusual (unique) wineries in Virginia:

5. Maggie Malick Wine Cave (northwest Loudoun County)
The closest in our list to Northern Virginia, Maggie Malick Wine Caves is located in a string of relatively new wineries on Harper's Ferry Road, off state route 9. The wine cave where the tastings are held is a man-made structure using the most economical, and eco-friendly, cooling technique available: Natural. A layer of grass covers the cave, ensuring cool temperatures that the barrel-aging wine needs, and also keeping the customers cool in the hot months (and warm in the colder months).

Maggie Malick Wine Caves entrance:

Guests may feel as if they are walking into the entrance of a place where trolls live. Actually, we'll save the Tolkien references to another winery on this list. Maggie offers an interesting selection, particularly for this section of Loudoun County. The Albariño is crisp and dry and a nice alternative for those who may be tired of Chardonnay or Pinot Grigio. Tannat is a bold red with raspberry notes and will age on your rack nicely.

Inside the cave:

Bring your dog! There is a large pond in the back and dogs are welcome (and highly encouraged) to take a dip. Maggie Malick Wine Cave makes for a very memorable experience in a county rapidly becoming rather choked with wineries (not that that's a bad thing...)

4. Cedar Creek Winery (south of Winchester)
If you're new to the Virginia wine scene, but have been to at least five wineries, you have probably noticed that most in the state offer two varietals: Chardonnay and Cabernet Franc. Cedar Creek Winery, on the edge of the Allegheny range south of Winchester, knows what grapes grow best in this climate and soil. So those are the only two varietals offered. Expect a vertical tasting of these two wines in an extremely relaxed, rec-room like environment (complete with intriguing pictures on the wall and antiques).

Tasting the line up at Cedar Creek:

Most likely, the owner and winemaker, Ron Schmidt, will guide you through an informative and entertaining tasting. What sets this winery apart, besides the "only two varietals" rule, is the lack of live music, weddings, dogs and kids, and general festivities. Not that there is anything wrong with those; Virginia wineries are thriving thanks to the live music and event venues many of them offer. But at Cedar Creek, it's all about the wine, and getting absorbed into the beautiful scenery. Seriously, this is one of the most beautiful locations in the state.

Don't expect food purchases here, aside from perhaps a small bag of Cheez-It crackers. But you are welcome and encouraged to bring your own picnic.

3. Burnley Vineyards (north of Charlottesville)
Burnley is one of the Commonwealth's original wineries; planting started in 1977, the first wines were offered in 1980, and the tasting room opened in 1984. This winery is not far from more famous (and decidedly slicker...again, not a bad thing) Barboursville Vineyards, about an 8 minute drive from Burnley. Visiting the two wineries on the same afternoon will give you two completely different Virginia winery experiences.

Entrance to Burnley:

The entrance to the winery has probably not changed much since 1984. We haven't visited the winery in a few years, so the basketball hoop may be gone, but for some reason, we doubt that. They focus on making wine here, not on window dressing at the winery. That would also explain the interior of the winery, where your group can "unwined":

The wines are all very well-priced. This is an excellent location for those who are just getting into wine, and still like their offerings on the sweeter side. Although dry fans will find a lot to like with their Cab Sauv and Norton.

Vineyards at Burnley:

2. Wisteria Farm Vineyard (Stanley, VA)
This is the only winery in Virginia that offers a red varietal called Carmine, which is a cross of Cabernet Sauvignon and lesser-known Carignan. Carmine is a totally American grape, not even grown in Europe. It fares best in northern California and Pennsylvania, but they grow it at Wisteria.

This is a working farm, so you will be sharing the grounds with animals (mainly roosters, rabbits, and sheep), some of which roam the property freely. Others are inside pens, making this a good choice for the kids.

Besides Carmine, their Seyval is a winner, and perfect for the hot summer days that are in our near future in the Commonwealth. And those views...another eye pleasing location in Shenandoah Valley.

1. Grayhaven Winery (between Richmond and Charlottesville)
Continuing with the farm vibe, Grayhaven winery in central Virginia gets our vote as the most unique winery in the state. What makes it unique to us is the vibe...this is by far the most relaxed winery we've been to. There is even a small playground on the premises. Horses roam freely on the grounds. And the tasting room is housed in a Hobbit-like structure, complete with a koi pond in front.

Like Wisteria, Grayhaven offers a wine that is not found elsewhere in the state: Touriga. This is a variety developed by the Portuguese and often used in the production of Port wines, and goes very well with red meats. Like Tannat, it will age well. Another favorite is Sojourn, a blend of Touriga and Cabernet Franc, with a balanced acidity, soft tannins and a plum notes; perfect for pasta dishes with tomato sauce. The selection of wines here is vast. The owners are originally from South Africa and know what they are doing (South Africa, like Australia, New Zealand, Chile, and Argentina, is a big player in the southern hemisphere wine universe).

This location is miles away from other wineries, so be prepared to stay awhile. You'll feel transported to another world.

What are the most unusual Virginia wineries you've visited?

Monticello AVA Quadrant Series: Northeast

The Monticello AVA is officially "Virginia's Napa." With over 30 wineries (and more to come) surrounding the Charlottesville area, the Monticello AVA contains more vineyards and wineries than most other states.

Those who plan to "hit C'Ville for some wine tasting" should plan their trip accordingly. It's very easy to get lost in the world of Jefferson country wineries. For that reason, we've split the AVA into four quadrants: Northwest, Southwest, Southeast and Northeast.

Each quadrant offers the full spectrum of winery experiences: From industrial, working vineyard vibe, to romantic and intimate, to big event focused spots. With so many wineries in the area, even breaking the AVA down into four sections isn't enough spotlight every location. We'll zoom in on our favorites and also suggest the best route.

We left off in the Southeast quadrant, south of Charlottesville on route 20. Continuing north on route 20, under I-64 and into the city, the highway continues north towards the Northeast Quadrant, the final spotlighted section of the Monticello AVA. This quadrant is the home of two of the most famous, and popular, wineries in the AVA (and the state), and two lower key locations. There are plenty of grape cluster signs in these parts, so focus on the roads and the scenery, vs. looking down at your GPS or Virginia Winery map.

Burnley Vineyards is your first stop. The winery actually looks more like a big country home, and the basketball hoop that adorns the building just adds to that home effect. Burnley, named after the nearby village, is one of the oldest wineries in the state. Walk into their warm tasting room and most likely a member of the Reeder family (and one of their dogs) will greet you. In the winter, the family offers a warm mulled wine and hot soup or chili days. The sitting room in the back of the tasting building contains ramshackle tables and rolling desk chairs that the family must have picked up at office sales. This adds to the quirky appeal to Burnley.

Don't let the quaintness and quirkiness of the location fool you--they make a lot of wine here. In fact many of their selections are offered at retailers like Total Wine. Many of their wines are on the sweeter side, making this an excellent option for those just getting into the Virginia wine scene (it was one of the first state locations one of the blogmasters visited way way back in 2001). Rivanna White (a table white from Vidal Blanc) and Rivanna Sunset (a blush made from Chambourcin) are perfect chili and pizza wines, respectively; the sweetness offsetting the spices of the chili and the pasta sauce of the pizza. On the dry side, they are one of the few Virginia locations that has perfected Cabernet Sauvignon; they offer an unfiltered Cab Sauv full of body and with heavy notes of plum. This is a bold red that will age beautifully, and the price for this sophisticated wine is one of the reasons we urge all Virginia fans to visit the Monticello AVA: $18 a bottle. That's about $10 or $15 less than you would pay for this kind of wine in northern Virginia.

The aforementioned mulled wine is made from their Spicy Rivanna wine. Cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, allspice, anise, orange peel, lemon peel and residual sugar added to their Rivanna Red table wine and can be chilled (for summer imbibing) or steaming hot like tea. We prefer the family-feel of Burnley compared to the next two locations in the Northeast quadrant.

However.....those next two locations, Barboursville Vineyards and Horton Vineyards, are two of the most well-known locations along the east coast. Both tasting rooms can be a bit overwhelming so a bit of warning is needed.

Barboursville Vineyards is what we call "the Smithsonian winery of Virginia." Visiting their tasting room is akin to visiting one of the more popular Smithsonian museums, complete with busy tours of their barrel room and the ruins that are featured on their labels. Tastings at the wine counters can be three people deep of visitors (for that reason we encourage visiting during the week). The famous winemaker here, Luca Paschina, can occasionally be found behind the counter, pouring wine. Totally unassuming and modest despite his reputation as a first class winemaker in the country, Paschina offers tastings of their most famous wine, Octagon, a Meritage blend that stands up against the world class wines of France and California. At $50 a bottle, a little on the pricey side, but well worth the investment for the serious collector. Their Pinot Grigio is our favorite here, and can be found at most retailers in Virginia. A superb dry Pinot, with notes of apple and pineapple. Another popular delicious, consistent winner here is their stainless steel Chardonnay, crisp and dry with touches of pear and lemon notes.

Horton Vineyards is a short eight minute drive from Barboursville, and like Barboursville Vineyards, is ever-present on shelves in Virginia (and surrounding states) retailers. There are so many wines offered at Horton that two tasting counters have been set up in the tasting room: White and red. The blogmasters were actually monitored at the white tasting station during one visit, which was a little off-putting at first, but given the number of wines here, the staff was simply looking out for us, otherwise we would have stumbled out of their tasting room. Viognier is one of the star varietals here; Dennis Horton was one of the first Virginia winemakers to experiment with the grape, paving the way for future Commonwealth varietal experts like Bernd Jung at Chester Gap Cellars and Mark and Vicki Fedor at North Gate Vineyard. Viognier is such a specialty at Horton that they offer a customized Viognier for Total Wine, part of Horton's "Tower series" of wines.

Perhaps Horton's most intriguing wine is Rkatsiteli, a slightly off-dry varietal from Georgia (Russia, not the U.S.) that is unique and offers notes of honeysuckle and tangerine. Only a few wineries in the U.S. offer "Rkats" (as they call it here); the famous Dr. Konstantin Frank Cellars in the Finger Lakes region of New York is another location, and Rebec Vineyards between Charlottesville and Lynchburg has also offered the wine in the past. Horton's Black Cat Chardonnay is another fixture at retailers, and is one of those rare Chardonnays that really opens up when chilled. On the red side of the spectrum, we're huge fans of Horton's $9 table wine, Route 33 Red. A blend of several red varietals, including Cabernet Franc, Malbec, Touriga, Syrah, and Grenache, you can buy a case of this stuff and not feel broke. It's a great party gift wine.

After enduring the crowds at Barboursville and Horton, if you're ready for a more relaxed and subdued experience, we can't say enough great things about the newest location in this quadrant: Reynard Florence Vineyard. Named after the French word for "fox" (thus yet another fox-themed winery in Virginia) and the owner/winemaker's wife, Reynard Florence boasts an intimate tasting room, a low key patio and views of the rolling foothills northeast of Charlottesville. It's an irresistible location that is hard to leave. Owner Roe Allison, a native to the Monticello area and former student at UVA, drew from his experience in the building business and skill as a carpenter in planning the vineyard’s design: A high cordon wire to minimize frost, proper spacing for optimal growth, and high, layered guide wires that maximize sunlight and canopy management are techniques that ensure fine vintages. And his wine is out of this world good, particularly his Cab Franc, with touches of cranberry and tobacco, and Merlot.

Reynard Florence is one of the few Virginia locations working with Grenache, which was one of the blending grapes found in Horton's Route 33 Red. Grenache is a bold, tangy red popular in Argentina as an alternative to Merlot. Roe's favorite wine growing section of the world, Côtes du Rhône, usually offers over 80% Grenache. It's one of the most grown varietals in the world, but its tight clusters make it particularly susceptible to powdery mildew and fungi in Virginia's humid growing season, making it as difficult to grow here as Pinot Noir. Roe devotes attention to his Grenache, and his passion for the varietal pays off, as this wine is usually sold out a month after it's released.

As for whites, Reynard Florence spotlights another Virginia up and comer, Petit Manseng, which is off-dry and not as "spit out" sweet as some other Mansengs found in the state. Reynard Blanc (translation: Fox White) is an off-sweet table wine that is sure to please new wine fans, particularly females, from UVA. Any conversation with Roe is sure to include the cute winery dog, a corgi. As evidenced from this write-up, Reynard Florence is one of our new favorites in the state.

Exploring the Monticello AVA quadrants makes for countless memorable vacations, or weekend getaways, from the high pressures of northern Virginia. Whichever quadrant you select, endless pleasures and delicious varietals await you.

Snapshots from the Northeast Quadrant:

Burnley Vineyards:

Barboursville Vineyards:

Reynard Florence Vineyards: