Charlottesville, VA

[protozoa]

DH and I are stopping here on the way to visit his g-ma next month. We'll be staying 2 nights and wine tasting for a day. Any recs for:

Places to stay - we'd like to be wine trail convenient, preferably around $200/night or less

Dining - will want a casual dinner when we arrive since we'll be gross from traveling all day. Anything goes for after wine tasting. We like pretty much everything except for Italian. We'll need to load up on some good foods since the g-ma visit will be filled with IHOP and Golden Corral

Wineries - any favorites that we shouldn't miss?

TIA!

[Deleted]

The Inn at Sugar Hollow Farm is nice if you like bed and breakfasts. It's nearby in Crozet, beautiful setting but easy driving distance to Charlottesville, Monticello, and wineries. The Wildflower room is nice and has a bay window overlooking the mountains (we were there in the winter and chose it for the fireplace...but you won't need that in the summer!). The breakfasts were really good, and the hosts are sort of behind-the-scenes so you get some privacy.

The last time we were in Charlottesville we had a nice dinner at Orzo Kitchen and Wine Bar just off the downtown mall. On the mall itself is a new wine bar (don't remember the name) but it was nice for an after-dinner drink.

I can't recommend any specific wineries because every time we try to go, either something comes up or they are closed (for holidays). I've heard Barboursville Vineyards is awesome, it's probably about 20 minutes from Charlottesville. They have a well-known restaurant Palladio I've been dying to try. They also have an inn there if you wanted to be based in Barboursville. If you are also looking for other things to do, I recommend Monticello if you're into history. It's a beautiful estate and interesting tour. It's a beautiful area altogether, so you won't mind driving around a bit.

[hokiegirl82]

you mean charlottesville, va?

[protozoa]

Jun 21, 2012 12:50:07 GMT -5 hokiegirl82 said:

you mean charlottesville, va?

LOL! Willamsburg is the next town on the itinerary and I must have combined them. Off to edit, duh!

[protozoa]

Jun 21, 2012 11:18:06 GMT -5 @travelbug1210 said:

The Inn at Sugar Hollow Farm is nice if you like bed and breakfasts. It's nearby in Crozet, beautiful setting but easy driving distance to Charlottesville, Monticello, and wineries. The Wildflower room is nice and has a bay window overlooking the mountains (we were there in the winter and chose it for the fireplace...but you won't need that in the summer!). The breakfasts were really good, and the hosts are sort of behind-the-scenes so you get some privacy.

The last time we were in Charlottesville we had a nice dinner at Orzo Kitchen and Wine Bar just off the downtown mall. On the mall itself is a new wine bar (don't remember the name) but it was nice for an after-dinner drink.

I can't recommend any specific wineries because every time we try to go, either something comes up or they are closed (for holidays). I've heard Barboursville Vineyards is awesome, it's probably about 20 minutes from Charlottesville. They have a well-known restaurant Palladio I've been dying to try. They also have an inn there if you wanted to be based in Barboursville. If you are also looking for other things to do, I recommend Monticello if you're into history. It's a beautiful estate and interesting tour. It's a beautiful area altogether, so you won't mind driving around a bit.

thanks!!

[udscoobychick]

Palladio is super-expensive, FYI. But, I've heard awesome things about it.

There are a lot of cute B&B-type places in the area, but they tend to be out in the country. The Omni Hotel is right on the C'ville downtown mall and looks very chic (I've never stayed there, though). The Boar's Head Inn is nearby, and has a well-regarded restaurant.

For good food, you need to be in C'ville itself--a lot of the more rural towns are filled with IHoPs and their ilk, or just mediocre Americanized Chinese or Mexican joints. Downtown C'ville has a great restaurant scene--you really can't go wrong! Belmont (a neighborhood in C'ville) also has some great restaurants. Personal favorites include Zocalo and Mas. There's a bunch of new places with great reviews that I haven't gotten to try yet, including Positively Fourth and Hamilton's. The Corner (another neighborhood) has some good casual places (Littlejohns for sandwiches, Bodo's for bagels, Boylen Heights for burgers).

I've been to Keswick (not my favorite), Veritas (good--will only let you try reds OR whites), Hilltop (good for fruit wines), Cooper (environmentally- and dog-friendly but the tasting room is LOUD), DelFosse (delicious!), Wintergreen (near Hilltop, delicious, good range of wines including fruit, reds, and whites), Horton (makes a staggering number of delicious wines, including fruit wines and Rkatsiteli, a very rare grape), Barboursville (right next to Horton, great range of wines from dry to sweet, reds to whites to blush), Jefferson Vineyards (good), Afton (good), Lovingston (great, the winemaker is super nice, but you'll need an appointment, as it's a small operation, and they don't have a formal tasting room), and Prince Michel (great, again with a good variety of whites, reds, and fruit wines)...that's all I can think of off the top of my head.

I'd recommend staying in C'ville for the food, then pick a direction each day and find some wineries along that route. www.virginiawine.org/ is very useful for finding wineries. There's also a few breweries in the area--South Street on the Downtown Mall (also has good upscale bar food!), Devil's Backbone (out toward Hilltop), and a couple others that I can't think of off the top of my head.

[protozoa]

thanks Scooby! DH will be excited to hear there are breweries too!

[Wanderista]

If you go south on Route 29, my favorite vineyard is Rebec Vineyards. I know the owners personally and I have been to Virginia wine festivals and tried various wineries, Rebec is not to be missed. Their best wine in my opinion is one called Autumn Glow which is their own unique blended wine (red meets rose). Hands down, it's their best seller. They also make decent cabernets as well. The vintner is a really friendly Bulgarian, there are stunning views and they host the annual Virginia Wine and Garlic Festival so it is in a beautiful, historic setting. If you don't want to go that far south then you can pick up Autumn Glow in the Charlottesville Kroger on Barracks Road.

For restaurants, there are a lot of great ones that I haven't tried but I have spent some time there. There's an excellent German restaurant up in Madison (north on 29) called The Bavarian Chef. It's a bit of a drive but with excellent scenic views. The food is really gourmet. I also really like a Himalayan restaurant on the C-Ville downtown mall. It's called Himalayan Fusion. I'd never had that style of food before. It basically isn't like typical Indian food, much lighter and healthier without the heavy sauces. The restaurant has a really cool loungey vibe. For really decent Mexican food, you can go to Aqui Es Mexico. It is not "bucket Mexican", very well done. For ice cream, the downtown mall has great options. There's Chaps and there's a great frozen yogurt place whose name escapes me. You can grab an ice cream and stroll around the mall enjoying the ambience.

You didn't ask about it but there are also some great old-fashioned movie theaters on the downtown mall, the kind with the old billboards and the velvety interiors. It's a great place to catch a film. The drives around the mountains and areas around Charlottesville are really gorgeous, so all of the suggestions of getting out and seeing the scenic little towns in the area are good ideas.

[y4m]

The best wineries (if you're interested in finding some good wines) are Pollak, Blenheim, and King Family. For casual food and beer, you can't go wrong with Blue Mountain Brewery.