The Barboursville Vineyards estate is in Virginia, one of the most important states in the U.S.A. from a naturalistic, cultural and historical point of view. Barboursville Vineyards is the original vinifera winegrowing estate in the Monticello viticultural area of Virginia, and has led in proving the viability of Thomas Jefferson’s dream for the production of wines of European derivation and style in this region. In 1976, in an area that history destined for viticulture, Gianni Zonin realized the dream of Thomas Jefferson by creating a large grape-growing estate on the East Coast.

ESTATE

Location: It is situated on the broad, rolling plateau and foothills of the Southwest Mountains in the Virginia Piedmont, running parallel with the Blue Ridge to the west.
Elevation: 180-240 m. above sea level.
Soil: mix of clay and alluvial calcareous deposits.
Climate: Temperate, mid-Atlantic.
Training System: Cordon Spur.
Varietals: Chardonnay, Moscato, Pinot Grigio, Sauvignon Blanc, Viognier, Barbera, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Nebbiolo, Petit Verdot, Sangiovese.

HISTORICAL NOTES

Barboursville Vineyards is the original vinifera winegrowing estate in the Monticello viticultural area of the Virginia Piedmont, and has lead in proving the viability of Thomas Jefferson’s dream for the production of wines of European derivation and style in this region. Originally founded in the 18th Century as a diversified agricultural plantation by the prominent Barbour family, the estate has repeatedly made itself synonymous with leadership in the Commonwealth. As Virginia’s Governor, Senator, Ambassador and Cabinet Secretary, and second-generation heir to the estate, James Barbour exerted an influence in the shaping of early national affairs second only to that of his good friends and close neighbors, Jefferson and James Madison, and was an innovative President of the Albemarle Agricultural Society. With the planting of this vineyard in 1976 by Gianni Zonin, 6th- generation winegrower from Gambellara, Italy, the estate resumed a regional leadership which had been established 200 years before, achieving the viticultural destiny envisioned at the same time.