Heading to VA for another year of winery hopping, and we ran into traffic….
I rerouted our trip, and got us out of traffic and to the nearest winery, Hartwood Winery.
Mmmmm, our first glasses of the day….
And what a great day it was outside.
And so are Kelli and I.
Next stop of the day, and winery #2 for the weekend, Rogers Ford.
A buddy of mine is named Chris Jacob, and I bought a bottle of his namesake wine.
Kelli just loves posing with wine dogs.
Microsoft Mappoint knows the shortest distance, even if it’s a gravel road.
As in years past, Kelli had the laptop going….
With all the wineries mapped out and ready to guide us.
Winery #3, Old House Vineyards.
I’m a sucker for dumb pictures like this one.
Winery #4 was ready for tours.
Located just off Route 29….
It was a total tourist trap.
Although I must say…
That while they over commercialized the whole process…
They did a good job at making wine.
So we bought a couple cases for the wine cellar.
Winery #5, Barboursville Vineyards.
Kelli made sure to keep good notes of all the wines we drank.
On to Burnley Vineyards, but they were closed. And yes, there was a lot of driving going on.
By 6pm, we were done, so we found a hotel (no reservation, just wingin’ the weekend).
There was a bad smell in the hallway, so we did our best to keep it out.
Ewww, you really can smell something awful!!!!
Yes Kelli, I know it’s only 9:18, but I’m wrecked!!!
For dinner it was across the parking lot to the local Applebee’s.
Then it was back to the room for me to pass out.
The next morning, Kelli and I plan the route for the day based on where we were, and hours of operation.
After we had it all worked out, we headed out down the road.
We saw more than our fair share of these….
And for you city slickers, this is what one looks like.
First one of the day, #6 for the weekend, and one of my favorites, Horton Vineyards.
I think we tried over 30 wines here……..at just past 10am.
Oh yeah, we definitely bought some wine there.
If you ever get a chance to go, please do.
Cooper Vineyards, #7 in our weekend trip.
The current room was down the way a bit, but I wonder when they plan to start the new building?
A sign on the side of the road that I liked.
Grayhaven Winery, #8 on our weekend quest.
There was a small area for children….
And a koi pond for Kelli to feed the fish.
Koi, goes well with white wine.
Like the fru-fru pen I’m using?
The grounds were nice….
And we stopped for a picture with our new friends.
Green Springs winery, #9 and one of the only ones we didn’t buy wine from.
The setup was nice, but….
He was just getting started and things weren’t very good yet.
Look mom, no hands…..
At 60+ mph.
We were going to hit some more wineries, but I wanted to pay a visit to TJ’s crib.
Good thing Kelli has a smaller purse.
I hear it’s the best time to go.
We had some time to kill, so we went to the gift shop.
The view from behind the gift shop.
Inside, it was just as TJ had left things.
Kelli playing a game of yore….
That she did finally get!!!!
We relaxed in the Virginia sun….
And took in the commanding view.
You know I love the flowers.
Just before we headed up to the house, we posed for a quick shot.
There was no photography allowed inside, so this was us going in the front…
And coming out the back.
I love it, I’ll take two!!!
No koi here, just a few pumpkinseeds.
Leaving Monticello, we headed down to…
The Charlottesville historic downtown.
In case you want to visit sometime, this is where we were.
Kelli and I enjoyed a few drinks at one location…..
Then walked to another for dinner.
Clearly I’ve had a few drinks, and I have no idea why I had Kelli take this picture.
Tiramisu anyone?
As in Ashley Grace.
BTW, this was our hotel room in Charlottesville.
Kelli modeled the toilet for me.
Day 3, winery #9, Oakencroft Winery.
Great place, with great wine, but it was time to go to our all time VA favorite…..
Pearmund Cellars!!!!
A nice drive in that begins to immerse you in the wine experience.
The bark from a cork tree.
Chirs Pearmund (the owner) was there to say hello…..
So we bought a bottle of his fantastic wine, and enjoyed the afternoon outside.
Just chillin’!!!!
Find Scott.
Chris joined us outside….
And let us sample the yet-to-be-released wines.
Martin, Aston Martin.
The mock-up of the information sheet for the new winery opening.
We ended up with 16 bottles of wine from 10 wineries.
But before we left, Chris gave us a special treat.
He put Kelli and I on a fork lift….
Then lifted us…..
Ever so carefully…..
To the roof to check on….
The latest batch of vin de sol.
Kelli opened a few…..
And we took a small sample from them….
Combining the samples in one bottle…..
So in the end…..
We had a bottle full of samples that gave an idea of how the process was coming.
Tastes good to me!!!!
Meriwether Vineyard, #11 for the weekend and our last winery before heading to our inn for the night.
Needless to say, I put a few miles on the trip meter.
We pulled into little washington, and went across the street to The Inn at Little Washington.
Our room for the stay….
The entrance hallway….
A vanity area….
A card from the staff…
With a picture of the outside….
And a pleasant note inside.
The bathroom, as you can see…..
Was a little tight….
But very nice.
We relaxed to some of the house music.
Damn, she is hot!!!!!
After that, it was time to get ready for dinner.
I thought that would be a good time have a little fun.
For our 5th wedding anniversary pictures click here.Ah yes, don’t we look nice.
Well enough of that, it’s time for food.
The Inn at Little Washington is well known as one of the best places to stay in the USA….
And nothing we experienced there would lead us to believe otherwise.
Everything was top notch….
And I assure you that the food you’re seeing was melt in your mouth delicious.
Some treats we found waiting for us in our room after dinner….
From the dog, of course.
Breakfast the next morning was heaven…
And like the dinner the night before, did not disappoint.
Happy as a clam at high tide.
So we left the Inn (building on the right), and made our way back home.
The weekend’s trophies.
For the day of our actual anniversary, we went to our favorite local restaurant, Tersiguel’s.
Well, that’s it for this year, thanks for checking us out!!!!!
And as is always the case, the food there was fantastic.