It's finally here! We talk about it all year, we can't wait to begin the decorating, we live to plan the big dinner, everyone's buzzing about their costumes...We LOVE it more than anything and it's finally, finally here!!!! If you haven't visited La Grange on Halloween, you have to - you simply MUST - put it on your list of things to do this year. All throughout the year we do our best to honor this beautiful old house for the showpiece of history that she certainly is. We try to show her very best face and we're so proud to share the stories of her rich and elegant past with you. On Halloween however, all bets are off as we showcase her creepier side. Spider webs, bats, skulls and pictures with eyes that follow you across the room. Screams from somewhere upstairs, mist wafting down the staircase and someone with blood dripping down their face is pouring your wine. Yikes! Are those goblins in the bushes? Did you hear that sinister laugh? Is there someone in that coffin? Don't be afraid, we won't let them get you.....we promise.... And this is just during daylight hours. THEN comes the best time of all - our annual Halloween Dinner. You'll be greeted at the door with our best witches brew and offered something savory, like crunchy spiders perhaps, to munch on while we await the arrival of our host for the evening, Dracula himself! (Advice from all of us, watch your neck! He's usually very thirsty from his travels when he gets here.) Come in your creepiest costume and join us for the most fun you'll have all year. The food is frightful...oops, I mean delicious....and the libations are to die for. There are prizes for the best costumes, loads of screams...sorry, I mean laughs....and, if you get out in one piece, you'll leave anticipating doing it all over again next year.
We'll be open for fun and tastings all day on Saturday the 31st, no reservations needed. Come in creepy costume and you just might get a treat!
The dinner begins at 6:30 and reservations are required. Please make yours no later than Monday October 26th to assure your place at the table. See our
happenings page for pricing and menu.
If you're looking for some pre-Halloween fun, join us
Friday evening the 30th. We're selling picnics that include lots of great nibbles and a bottle of wine and we'll be showing the cult film to beat all cult films, "
The Rocky Horror Picture Show". Come dressed as your favorite character and brace yourself for a wild night! We'll be including props with your picnic so you can join in the fun. This is an adult only event and reservations are required. Please call the winery for yours by Wednesday October 28th. Check the happenings page for picnic details and pricing.
We have a movie planned for this coming
Friday, the 23rd, too. It's "
The Philadelphia Story" with Katherine Hepburn and Cary Grant. Bring your comfy chair, don't forget a blanket and spend the evening with us! The picnics are great, the popcorn is free and there's nothing like watching a great old classic under the stars! Call for your reservation today.
In wine news, we've sold out of our 2007 Cabernet Franc but have just released the 2008 vintage which is especially delicious! It's a complex wine blended from four of Virginia's finest vineyards. Notes of fig and berry aromas with flavors hinting of cocoa, blackberry, spice and oak make it perfect for the coming cold months.
We've also released the much anticipated 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon. This Cabernet Sauvignon is blended with harvest from three Virginia vineyards. It has aromas of butterscotch & berries with flavors of rich and earthy brambleberries. All I can say is mmmmmmmm.....
We're down to our last few cases of the 2008 Pinot Gris, what a hit that was!! If you want some, jump in the car and get on over here because it's going fast!
Have you ever noticed that, at The Winery at La Grange, we not only have some of the finest wine around in one of the most magnificent settings imaginable with a gift shop stuffed full of great gadgets and gifts but we also feature some amazing original art by some truly talented artists? Not only is the art here but it's all for sale. Check it out! The photo above is of one of 3 glass windows at the winery that were created by artist Lynn Gillis. She loves to use old window frames for her colorful and imaginative work. We have another glass artist, Lori Strong, who uses some very specialized techniques to create beautiful jewlery and small plates and bowls like the ones below.
Our own Susie Harrover not only provides some of the finest customer service you'll ever experience but she makes exquisite jewelry featuring hand-knotted pearls, wrapped sterling silver and gorgeous gemstones. See what I mean...
We feature some incredible photography by 2 different artists. The work below that shows the corks and the barrels are photos taken from the artful eye of Renae Lupini and the beautiful photo of the cardinal in the wintery tree was taken by local artist Glenn Howell.
Then we have the painters. Lu Harris is another local with a long history in the area. She and her late husband are the founders of The Opera House Gourmet in Manassas, who doesn't love that little place! Well, turns out Lu is a wonderful painter too:
The last painter is one that's near and very dear to me. He's Gerald Stephan and happens to also be my wonderful Dad! Look at his amazing oil paintings featuring 2 of our signature bottles of wine, Cuvee Blanc and Norton.
So, next time you're here don't forget to look around at our walls. Maybe we have something that should be hanging at your house!!
We all hope you're having as much fun this season as we are. The harvest continues to go well and Jef adjusts to winemaking in Virginia with a smile on his face even in the face of the cold snap we've just gone through. (We've assured him that this cold is not typical so early in the year but definitely a taste of what's to come so he better get some warm socks!) We look forward to your visits and can't wait for you to try some of our new stuff so, we'll see you at the winery!!
