Hillsborough Vineyards
by
Kathy Sullivan
Summary: Hillsborough Vineyards, a family owned and operated winery in Northern Virginia, is about 45 minutes from Washington, DC. The winery focuses on blends produced from grape varieties that originated from the southwestern France region. While visiting notice the artwork decorating the walls including photography and paintings by the Baki family.
Zeynep and Bora Baki purchased the Hillsborough property of 30 acres as a retirement property. Kerem Baki, Bora’s son took oenology classes. After the property was purchased Kerem pursued his studies and eventually earned a Masters in Oenology from Virginia Tech. Impressed with the possibilities for the Hillsborough property, he suggested to Bora that they should plant grapevines on the property. Today the winery has 13 acres under vine. Varieties included Fer Servadou, Tannat, Petit Verdot, Petit Manseng, Roussanne, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. The Bakis’ are dedicated to producing wine based on varieties that grow well in Virginia’s terroir. Thus they created the tag “Experience a Revolution in Virginia Wine.”
Hillsborough Winery Tasting Room
Hillsborough Vineyards is located in the countryside of metropolitan Washington, DC, not far from suburbia. The views from the property are filled with the landscape of Loudon Valley including trees and hills providing a good ambiance to go along with wine. Photographers and painters alike will enjoy the views. The parking area is located across a long driveway. Ambiance begins there with the antique-style and energy efficient streetlights to light the area. Visitors cross the driveway to arches leading to the stone building, originally a hay barn built about 1850 and now a tasting room. The tasting room has stonewalls outside and inside adding a delightful ambiance. A long wood tasting counter with windows behind it provide scenic views while tasting wines. Walls in the tasting room and event room are decorated with artwork created by Bora and Zeynep Baki.
Hillsborough Wines
The wines produced have gemstone names. The tradition began with naming the first two wines after the owner’s grandmothers, Ruby and Opal.
Hillsborough produces eight wines, two of which are single varieties. Four blends are produced with red grapes while two wines are blends of white grapes. Note the back labels on the wine bottles. For the Ruby 2006 the label includes, “The gemstone Ruby is the traditional symbol of divine love.” The Bloodstone 2006 back label has, “The Bloodstone is the traditional stone for courage and wisdom.”
Opal 2008 was a blend of Petit Manseng, Viognier and Chardonnay. This wine was produced using neutral French oak. The result was a wine with a straw color. The wine offered an aroma and taste of floral nuances. In addition there were notes of tropical fruit. The finish had a long floral aftertaste.
Bloodstone 2006 was a blend of Fer Servadou, Cabernet Sauvignon and Tannat. The aroma had jammy black fruit notes with some pepper. The taste was of black fruit. The fruit yields to an explosion of pepper on the finish and aftertaste. Serefina 2008, a rosé, was produced with Viognier and Tannat. There was a tinge of pink color. The taste was of light summer red fruit notes. There was fruit on the lingering finish. Onyx 2007 was 100 percent Tannat. This wine was a dark purple with an aroma and taste of black fruit. The finish offered bold tannins with a fruity finish.
Moonstone, a dessert wine, was a 100 percent Late Harvest Viognier. With a light honey color, the wine offered an aroma of sweetness with honey nuances. The taste was also like honey. The finish dried as it lingered.
Events at the Vineyards
A large room adjacent to the tasting room offers plenty of room for weddings, private events, winemaker’s dinners and conferences. An offsite caterer is available. The room can have up to 140 people. Doors lead from the event room to a large outdoor patio. Anyone who is planning a wedding, private party or business conference should visit Hillsborough to see what the winery has to offer.
From March to November, this spacious room is also used for tasting wines. Visitors are able to enjoy sitting down for tasting wine flights.
Hillsborough Vineyards is a pleasant winery to visit not far from Washington, DC. Consider making a day trip to the winery.
Hillsborough Vineyards
36716 Charles Town Pike
Purcellville, Virginia 20132
GPS: N39º 12.384’ W77º 44.097’
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