Rich in History, Rich in Wine: The Winery at La Grange Opened September 2006
By
Cultural Resource Survey of The Winery at La Grange by Kristen Bloss, Sean Maroney, and Kerri S. Barile of Dovetail, Curtual Resourse Group I, Inc. View Report
About two years ago, the award winning winemaker and owner of Pearmund Cellars, Chris Pearmund, contemplated the idea to build a high-end winery but this time he looked towards Prince William County where there was no winery at all. In November 2005, Chris found a piece of property that offered a unique venue. The property would support a 10-12 acre vineyard, as well as a fully-operational winery, and an opportunity to turn an existing 1790 Manor House into a unique tasting room. His cursory research into the 20-acre piece of property found that it was rich in history as it had been originally carved out of Robert "King" Carter's Bull Run Tract in the 1600s and later became known as La Grange. The property's ownership changed many times during the past 4 centuries. The estate's acreage size increased and decreased during those years. Fortunately an eye-catching three-and-a-half story solid red brick Manor House built in the 1790s by George Green survived and is about to become alive again after many years of neglect.
"If I brought all of this together," Chris (the 44-year old creative genius thought), "this can be a place where different varietal's can grow as the soil condition is perfect, I can make new and different wines, and this historic venue would attract not only wine lovers but also history enthusiasts and tourists alike to the already rich historic Haymarket area." Once the word got out about Chris' idea to build the winery, Prince William County officials embraced his venture as being very good for the western part of the growing county in Northern Virginia.
Chris' formidable reputation in making award winning wines, building, and operating the successful Pearmund Cellars coupled with his personal charisma and passion for wine, made it easy for him to capture the interest of a unique group of investors to join him in making this project come true. As a result, PWC, LLC was formally launched in December 2005 with the purchase of the property at 4970 Antioch Road, Haymarket, VA. Among the wine loving investors you will find a Corporate Chief Financial Officer, an information systems development engineer, a construction engineer, a winemaker who is versed in wine sales and marketing, a writer and history buff, and a professional webmaster to name a few. The name of the project soon became The Winery at La Grange and work began immediately to prepare for and construct the new winery building. Renovation of the manor house was immediately started as well as cleaning up the debris and overgrowth resulting from lack of care of the last owners.
The stately Manor House at The Winery at La Grange gets ready to assume its new role as a warm host for future visits, wine tasting's and activities. Photo by Ray Olszewski
Each Saturday, many of the investors meet to take on needed tasks such as landscape planning, construction and renovation plans, task scheduling and resource planning, debris removal, etc. The very aggressive schedule is overseen by Chris Pearmund as the limited liability corporation's Managing Partner. To join him in this endeavor on a full-time basis is Chris' great friend, Fletcher Henderson, who continues to implement Chris' plans to build The Winery at La Grange. "Fletch" as he known to some has been there since the onset as its on-site General Manager bringing unique and broad talents in project management. When asked about taking the position Chris had offered to Fletcher, who at the time was the Spanish wines importer for The Country Vintner (TCV), salivated at the opportunity. He and Chris have been close friends since Chris mentored him at Meriwether Vineyard in Broad Run, VA where Pearmund Cellars is located. Together, they made wine at two Virginia wineries for the 1999 and 2000 vintages then worked at TCV. The relationship between the two of them has solidified into one of deep trust and admiration for each other.
Fletcher saw this not only as an opportunity to make great wine with Chris again, but he said of the venue where he now spends twenty hours a day, eight days a week, "The spirit of Benoni is my guide on how to approach the restoration of the stately manor house and property that will be enjoyed by the visitors to The Winery at La Grange."
Benoni, as Fletcher warmly refers to him, is none other than Benoni E. Harrison, who purchased the La Grange property in 1837 and lived there until he died in 1869. Harrison is reported to have been very wealthy and during 1849 and 1850 was Prince William County's delegate to the Virginia General Assembly.
The most significant change being made to the property has been the refurbishment of the three- and-a-half story 1790 Manor house aka the Harrison House built originally by George Green. The Manor House will be made into a tasting room where wine will be served and paired with foods from the region on the first floor. Fletcher also plans to prepare the second floor offering visitors several parlor rooms where customers can relax and drink-in La Grange's rich history. One of the modern conveniences Fletcher has planned includes the installation of Wireless-Fidelity or Wi-Fi in the Manor House to facilitate meetings and/or allow individuals a quiet and relaxing environment to allow them to step electronically outside of the historic La Grange.
To open in August, visitors will be able to taste the wines Chris will bottle under the new La Grange label. Along the Wine Trail in this issue mentions the wines which will carry the La Grange Label planned for the August opening.
Local Artist Robert Fones captured in charcoal the very spirit of the stately La Grange Manor House for use on the Winery's labels.
After their initial tasting experience in the Manor House, customers can meander throughout the building, tour the grounds where they will find rare Japanese Wild Berry growth, and their families and friends will be able to picnic in secluded areas where the quiet, expansive and beautiful views of the area can be enjoyed. The 5,500 Cabernet Sauvignon seedlings planted in the spring grow silently in the foreground of the Bull Run Mountain range.
To guide the development of La Grange, historical research has uncovered a few but very helpful photographs showing what the estate looked like in 1958 as well as the Library of Congress records have surfaced photographs that were taken 1937 when the building was remodeled. The prominent English Boxwoods which surrounded the Manor House in earlier years have died from boxwood blight, according to Doyle Culbertson who lived there up until 2004. In their place several American boxwoods have grown to a height of about 20 feet forming a beautiful archway over a well-laid stone path that goes from the Manor House to the new winery building.
Photo of Manor House. In the book titled This Was Prince William by R. Jackson Ratcliffe, a picture shows the Manor House surrounded by beautiful English Boxwoods.
Meanwhile, as the effort moves forward to meet the August 2006 opening, and by the time this issue is publicized, a new and fully-equipped winery building will have been constructed. The Winery at La Grange labels designed, printed, wine bottled, and driveways and parking areas paved. There is a monthly newsletter already being published for the Partners and the general public as well as an operational web site www.wineryatlagrange.com carrying up to date information about the winery.
A linear examination of La Grange's owners has been well underway and a vertical examination of them has surfaced interesting stories. Also, a visit from individuals such as the aforementioned Doyle Culbertson has been invaluable in Fletcher's refurbishing efforts. Another visitor, Pat Summitt, came and said she was a descendant of Jane Rebecca Harrison Foley. To support this further, Benoni Harrison's Last Will and Testament written in 1869 revealed Jane Rebecca Harrison to be a niece who later married a Foley. Other visitors drawn to the ongoing activity at La Grange have stopped by, sharing stories about the place. One in particular is about a piano playing in the abandoned and vacant house.
In early 2006 as La Grange was being renovated into a tasting room, one evening a neighboring family of four walked over to see the changes being made. The house was locked and the mother and father had walked around the back of the house while their two children tried to enter through the front door. As the parents shook the lock they heard piano music playing. Being a musical family, they listened and one of the parents said, "The children must have opened the front door and found a piano." Dad found an unlocked side door and called out to the children as they entered the house. The music stopped! The parents searched for the children and no piano. The front door was double bolted from the inside with their children still outside, trying to open it. "We heard you playing the piano, where did you find one? After the four searched the Manor House three-a half stories and the basement, they found no piano."
To collaborate the story, our writer and historian, Ray Olszewski, found that Benoni E. Harrison (B: Jan 7, 1786 D: Aug 17, 1869) willed to his nephew B.H. Jordan (B: Oct 8, 1820 D: Jan 7, 1891) a number of items to include the Piano which was in the parlor. Pat Summitt, a descendent mentioned earlier has the piano legs in her Manassas home along with other historical papers and furniture that came from La Grange to include engraved silverware, a sideboard, and several leather bound ledgers. When you visit the Manor House at La Grange, you will find two fireplaces; a second one was built by Benoni after an incident described in the insert because Benoni did not want to sit with his wife at the same hearth.
The story is about Benoni being spanked by his wife which offers that at the time Benoni E. Harrison was quite a figurehead in his days, but not necessarily a large man according to uncovered documentation. His wife, Catherine Norvill Harrison was said to be of larger stature and at one social event, Benoni said something to her which she did not like, grabbed him up, and spanked him like a child.
Benoni's prominence in Prince William County was quite known as he served as a delegate to the Virginia General Assembly and was instrumental in establishing a formal Thanksgiving Day in the County. Benoni's and his wife Catherine's grave sites along with B. [Benoni] H. Jordan can both be found nearby on a neighbor's property. But that cemetery is yet another of many stories to unfold!
During a site survey by an engineering firm, Bowman Consulting, a stone was found at La Grange's "Spring House" showing a distinctive date of April 2, 1800 and the initials of W*L.
The Winery at La Grange is the only operational winery today in the County, but it is not the first. Before his investment in La Grange, Olszewski had already uncovered several vineyards and wineries that existed in the County in the 1800 and 1900s. One of these was a vineyard and winery on a 200-acre farm called Batavia near Haymarket, VA founded by Franz Peters. As it turned out, Peters was also a partner with Christian Heineken, who owned Mill Park also near Haymarket. In 1869, The Mill Park Wine Company was founded on Heineken's property where wine was made from the locally "Batavia" grown grapes. In the 1800s, another vineyard that spread over 40 acres on the Annaburg Estate and owned by Robert Portner produced a winning port wine. Documented evidence uncovered by Olszewski reveals a bronze medal was awarded at the 1900 Paris Exposition for a port wine "Pride of Virginia Port" made from Portner's grapes by Washington, DC winemaker Christian Xander. In the 1950s, an Italian immigrant by the name of John Scuitto built and operated a winery from 1949 to 1958 where he produced and sold 4 different wines.
History of La Grange and the County's Wine History continue to be researched by Olszewski and will present his findings in future articles. In the meantime, work continues getting ready to open in August when the Manor's tasting facilities at The Winery at La Grange will offer to visitors its commanding view of the piedmont and take the guard position for the "Gateway to Virginia Wine Country.
The Winery at La Grange is located a short drive from Haymarket, VA where three major routes intersect at I-66, and historic Virginia Routes 15 and 55.
