Veramar Vineyard opened in 2000, but the first round of grapes were planted a few years earlier. Jim Bogaty is the owner.
He says, "I retired from the high tech industry about 15 years ago now and moved here to lovely Clarke County. Started to build a house here and decided what was I going to do with all this land that surrounded me. Cause I wanna preserve it and keep it in agriculture. And with luck and wisdom from my wife, who said you like wine, why don't you plant some grapes and see if you can make wine. So that's how it began."
For the last four years, Veramar has been selected by Decanter World Wine Awards for their best 400 wines in the world list.
"Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, our Chardonnay, our Norton, as well as our Merlot, and some of our blends which we call the Rooster Red," Bogaty says made the list.
The scenery around Veramar is absolutely beautiful, and it's ok to bring the whole family along because there is a large lawn for children to play. Bogaty says, interestingly enough, that a lion statue on the lawn is a very popular feature on the property. Even bridal parties like to have their pictures taken with it. Veramar has a busy events schedule heading into fall. This weekend is La Luna.
Bogaty explains, "that's where we sit on the patio up here, what we call the fountain courtyard, and the harvest moon explodes over the Blue Ridge Mountains. And we sit and celebrate moonrising."
The vineyard is open 7 days a week.
"It is one of the prettiest views, I think, God has made of the Shenandoah Valley and Blue Ridge Mountains," Bogaty concludes.
For more information on other upcoming events at Veramar,
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