BERRYVILLE, VA – Despite being located less than an hour away from Old Town Alexandria, Veramar Vineyard provides guests a warm inviting tasting room far from the hustle and bustle of King Street.  Just driving in the tight winding gravel driveway, guests admire the large stand of hard woods surrounding them.  As they pass through the classically styled winery wood gate guests feel transported to a place apart, Veramar.

The foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains provide a breathtaking backdrop to frame Veramar’s fountain courtyard.  Despite the frigid temperatures the day of our visit, I felt compelled to pause on the veranda and take in the expansive vistas.  Though the fountain was not filled or operating, I could imagine the serenity of the gently bubbling fountain accompanying the quiet elegance of this outstanding outdoor “room”.  


The tasting room is both warm and inviting.  The long slate bar easily can accommodate several groups comfortably.  In addition, Veramar offers their reserve tasting at a special tasting area known as “Della’s Corner”.  Reserve tastings are conducted by only the most experienced Veramar team members (including the winemaker) and allow guests the opportunity to share their thoughts on the wines with the very hands that crafted them.     


The winery is a part of an expansive one hundred acre private estate.  First planted in 1999, Veramar is a boutique winery designed to produce hand crafted wines that reflect the unique terroir and microclimate of their Shenandoah Valley vineyard site.  


Loamy clay and overlying limestone shale make up the primary soils in the vineyard.  The East facing hillside vineyards provide great drainage (both water and air) as well as offering the vines the morning sun to dry the evening dew but protecting them from the potentially harmful scorching afternoon sunshine. Due to its location in the thermal belt, Veramar tends to have less rain and a longer than average growing season than the majority of Virginia.  The benefit of the longer “hang time” is more mature fruit whose acid chemistry is kept in balance.


A University of California-Davis trained viticulturalist, Winemaker Justin Bogaty believes the Shenandoah Valley is “the best growing region on the East Coast,” he finds the combination of his vineyards orientation, geologic conditions and climate provides great benefit in retaining the volatile aromatic compounds in Veramar’s fruit.


“Grapes and wine need to be treated with respect,” Bogaty said. “A winemaker can’t create quality – it’s our job to preserve and enhance what comes out of the vineyard.  With appropriate viticultural practices, desired flavor profiles, balance and texture can be developed in the vineyard long before the grapes are brought to the winery”.


While Veramar has a wide range of wines to appeal to many different palates, there is an understated elegance in each of their vintages.  Beyond simple quality control, the more subtle nuances of the Veramar fruit seem to be enhanced by the winemaking style, much like a trainer works to bring out his charges best performances.

Seyval Blanc is a French Hybrid grape well known both for its resistance to cold weather and its unique minerality that compares favorably to white Burgundy styled wines.  Veramar’s Seyval Blanc has a surprisingly fruity nose with melon and citrus highlights leading to a delicately framed mid palate and subtle, clean finish.  This wine would pair exceedingly well with lighter pasta dishes with white sauce.


Veramar’s 2007 Cabernet Franc garnered one of the highest scores ever awarded to a Virginia wine by Wine Enthusiast magazine.  Calling the wine “Seductive” and highlighting the complex layers of blackberry, plum and cinnamon” the tasting panel found the wine to be among the best with a score of 87.


I found the Cabernet Franc to be among the best in this vintage, my notes highlight “strawberry tones on the mid palate and a well balance finish with undertones of black cherry”.  This vintage fared very exceedingly well against significant west coast competition in the 2010 San Francisco Wine Competition.  One of the few East Coast wineries receiving recognition, Veramar’s ’07 Cabernet Franc received a Silver Medal.  

The ’07 Cabernet Franc also received accolades from across the pond.  Finding the wine at a Kensington Whole Foods, British wine writer Jaime Goode remarked on the wine’s “lovely purity of fruit, and real old world elegance”.  He scored the wine as a 90 and called the Veramar Cabernet Franc “really delicious and quite serious”


The expressive fruit character of the Cabernet Franc starts in the vineyard with active vineyard management designed to promote vitality and vigor in the vines.  The Cabernet Franc also benefits from 12 months in French and American oak barrels where the well integrated undertones develop their complexity.   


Winemaker Bogaty said, “My goal is to grow wines that support Virginia as a leading wine region.  Cabernet Franc has a rich history in Bordeaux as a blending grape.  As an independent varietal, especially in our vineyards, the spice undercurrents are more pronounced.  Based on the way the wine matured in the barrel, this profile may become more evident with appropriate bottle aging.  The Veramar Cabernet Franc, like Virginia, is great now but has the potential to be even greater”.


One of the more adventuresome wineries, Veramar also offers a “Wine Camp” where guests can spend 3 days and 2 nights working in the winery and the vineyards.  While the camp may have a kind of Tom Sawyer/Huck Finn painting the picket fence feel to it, campers are provided the rare hands on opportunity to produce high quality Virginia wine.  Whether it’s bottling and labeling in the spring, leaf pulling in the summer, harvest in the fall, or winter racking of the barrels, there is always much work to be done.


With its expansive wine list and expansive vistas, Veramar Vineyard offers visitors a welcome respite from the everyday.  Sitting on the Fountain Court and gazing over the Blue Ridge Mountains with a glass of Cabernet Franc in hand, it’s hard to believe the hustle and bustle of the big city is less than an hour to the east.


Visiting Virginia’s wineries in the winter can be a challenge with great reward.  Plan your trip, allow for at least an hour to visit each winery.  In addition, call ahead if there is any threatening weather in the forecast.  The rewards for winter touring are smaller crowds and more personal attention.


Neil Williamson is the President of The Trellis Group, a marketing consultancy focused on Virginia wineries.  He can be reached at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it