The winery originally opened back in 1992. It was eventually sold to different partners and continued operating until a few months ago when the auction was announced. Below is a Facebook post by Tamara Stone announcing the closure to customers.
It is with sadness and regret that I announce that Wintergreen Winery has closed. The decision to close was based on a…
Photo By Tommy Stafford : Ironically, Todd Rath (right) just held an open house on Thursday afternoon for the public to drop by and see his newly opened Rockfish Valley Inn in Afton.Photo By Tommy Stafford : Prior to opening the Rockfish Valley Inn, Rath founded The Blue Toad pub & restaurant on Route 151 in Afton back in 2001. (Formerly D’Ambolas Italian Restaurant) Rath later sold the restaurant and began pursuing hard cider making. He already operates Blue Toad Hard Cider Company in New York and is looking to expand the operation to Nelson.“We have been eyeing the area for months and drafting plans to build on real estate owned by Kim (Rath – Todd’s wife) and I across from Silverback Distillery. Our plans have changed a bit with these developments. We plan on making our front 17 acres into total agriculture growing apples, black cherry’s, strawberries and more, creating an amazing farm at the base of the Blue Ridge,” Rath continued in our Thursday discussion.
Rath went on to say their event center will overlook the farm in its entirety. “Basically anything we can make flavored local ciders out of. Were excited for whats to come here at the former Wintergreen Winery.”
Rath says they expect to begin making changes to the old winery within 30 days pending licensing.
Afton
Nelson County, Virginia
The wait is finally over! Starry Nights kicked off this past weekend at Veritas Winery & Vineyard in Afton. The highly popular and anticipated evening on the lawn brings thousands each summer. Starry nights is held once Saturday a month through the season.
Yes, the evening is about music and food, but the wine is where it all started!
A wonderful buffet awaited people making the first Starry Nights of the 2015 season.
People enjoy the music , food & wines at the first Starry Nights of the 2015 season.
A few garden variety thundershowers moved through early in the evening, but this person was completely ready for it! – Check out the cool raindrops in this photo Paul shot!
Ahhhhh, start to a great evening at Starry Nights.
Dancing into the night at Starry Nights.
Rick and Susan Fuller dance the night evening away this past Saturday at Starry Nights.
Jimi Smooth and the HitTime Band played into the night this past Saturday at Starry Nights.
Jimi Smooth and the HitTime Band played into the night this past Saturday at Starry Nights.
Jimi Smooth of Jimmy Smooth and the HitTime Band sings it up at the opening night of Starry Nights this past Saturday – June 19, 2015.
There is definitely something special about Starry Nights!
The next Starry Nights will be held on Saturday, July 11th, 2015, 7-11 pm featuring Abbey Road – Beatles Cover Band.
On Friday, June 26 from 6 – 9 p.m., Winton Country Club will host Colonial Games Night, sponsored by Amherst County Recreation and Parks and the Amherst County Museum and Historical Society. One of the final stops on the Jefferson’s Virginia Summer Festival tour, this family-friendly event will feature a large selection of traditional games including quoits, sack races, tug-of-war, rolling hoops, battledore and shuttlecock, graces, and ball and cup as well as a drop spinning booth and demonstration by Cynthia Wood Spinner. The Colonial Games Night, which will be free and open to the public, will be held rain or shine on the lawn of the Sarah Henry Manor at Winton. Free parking will be available on site.
“We’re excited to host Colonial Games Night,” said Kelly Crovo, general manager of Winton Country Club. “This event should be a fun step back in time, and the lawn of the Sarah Henry Manor, which was built in the 16th century, is the perfect setting. Collaborating with the Amherst County Recreation and Parks and Museum and Historical Society has been a wonderful experience, and we look forward to partnering on future projects. We hope to see a large crowd ready for an evening of good, old fashioned family fun!”
In addition to traditional Colonial games, which will be free for all participants, food and drinks from Smokehouse Henry’s, Winton’s on-site restaurant, will be available for purchase including burgers, hot dogs, pulled pork sandwiches, chips, cookies, and soft drinks. A cash bar will also be available.
The inaugural Jefferson’s Virginia Summer Festival, which kicked off on Memorial Day at Winton and will run until Independence Day, is a six-week celebration following the Jefferson Heritage Trail from Monticello to Lynchburg to showcase central Virginia’s beauty, artisans and historical significance. To learn more about the festival, please visit www.jeffersonvirginiasummerfestival.org.
Opened in 1967, Winton is situated on the registered historical estate of Sarah Henry, the mother of Patrick Henry, with the Blue Ridge Mountains providing a backdrop for its signature 16th century club house. The expansive property features an 18-hole golf course, tennis courts, and a swimming pool in addition to a newly renovated restaurant, Smokehouse Henry’s, and a dedicated banquet facility, the historic Sarah Henry Manor. While Winton maintains a small-town feeling, it is conveniently located within a short drive of Lynchburg and Charlottesville.
Winton Country Club is managed by Up to Par Management, LLC, a Lexington, Va.-based company that manages golf courses, country clubs and hotels throughout the United States. The Up to Par portfolio includes golf and country clubs in Virginia and Maine, a resort golf course in West Virginia and a historic boutique hotel in Virginia.
Map via google.com : Rescue crews worked a call of a person that fell to their death in South Nelson County on Sunday afternoon 6.7.15Crabtree Falls
Nelson County, VA
Updated 12:15 pm – 6.8.15
Lt Billy Mays with the Nelson County Sheriff’s Department tells BRLM the person that was killed on Sunday at Crabtree Falls was 20 year old Franklin Miguel Guevara of Annandale, Virginia. “He was there with a church group and family. Like so many others he, sadly, stepped off the trail to get a better view and a picture and fell down below.” Lt. Mays said Guevara fell about 80 feet and the group was about halfway to the top of the falls. “He was alive after the fall and rescue crews were working on getting him out to a helicopter when he passed away,” Lt. Mays continued.
Updated 7:00 pm
As BRLM was the first to break and report earlier Sunday, authorities have now confirmed the person being rescued at Crabtree Falls has died. The person was being taken from the falls and was enroute to a waiting helicopter when he died. Witnesses told rescue crews the person had “stepped out on the rocks” to take a picture when falling down below.
Updated 6:41 pm BRLM has learned the rescue operation underway at Crabtree is now a recovery. The person was enroute to a landing zone when the status changed.
BRLM has confirmed as of 5:40 PM Sunday afternoon that area rescue crews are currently working a call involving a person that went over the falls at Crabtree Falls.
Nelson EMS Dir @JDMiller42107, call is still rescue, person is alive, rescue continues. Helicopter dispatched. #CrabtreeFalls
Via Bold Rock Bold Rock Hard Cider has announced the launch of its first-ever craft cider in cans. The popular Bold Rock Apple is being released in singles and packs of four 16-ounce cans. The new cans are just right for cider lovers to bring to locations where glass is discouraged or prohibited, including beaches, golf courses and festivals.
All Bold Rock Ciders are made with fresh locally sourced apples, picked at scenic orchards in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Central Virginia and Western North Carolina. Bold Rock Apple has crisp and refreshing character, delivering the fresh taste of green Granny Smith Apples. It’s one of five styles now being made by one of the fastest-growing craft cider companies in the country.
“We’re pleased to expand our growing portfolio by introducing Bold Rock Apple in 16-ounce cans,” said Jeff Liebhardt, Bold Rock’s Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing. “This is something our loyal customers have been requesting, so we’re excited to give them the crisp and refreshing taste of craft cider in convenient cans.”
Opened in 2012, Bold Rock formed out of the partnership between John Washburn and Brian Shanks. Washburn has long owned the picturesque Virginia farmland where the cidery is now headquartered in Nelson County. He contacted Shanks to see if the New Zealand native and world-renowned cider expert would be interested in working his magic with locally picked apples from nearby century-old orchards. In the short time since, these two fast friends have put together a rapidly growing operation, using state-of-the art equipment that is run by a hard-working staff of 32 local Virginia employees to produce delicious craft cider. In June, Bold Rock will open a second production facility in Mills River, N.C., crafting cider with apples picked from nearby orchards in the mountains of western North Carolina.
The new 16-ounce cans are available now wherever Bold Rock is distributed, now found throughout the East Coast from Pennsylvania through South Carolina.
Bold Rock Hard Cider is one of the fastest-growing craft cider companies in the country. A winner of more than 30 awards in the past two years, Bold Rock produces five hard ciders, all made from apples locally grown and handpicked in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia and North Carolina. As the nation’s largest independently owned cider company, Bold Rock is quickly ramping up distribution throughout the East Coast, now delivering across the Mid-Atlantic and Southeast from Pennsylvania through South Carolina. Additional company information can be found at www.boldrock.com.
Via Sk8 Nelson
Nelson County’s only skate ramp, located at Rockfish Valley Community Center (RVCC), will be the center of activity for the First Annual “Save SK8 Nelson” party on June 27th, 2015 from 5:00 – 9:00 PM. The event will help to raise the funds needed to keep the double-halfpipe skate park operational, maintained and improved.
Photo courtesy of SK8 Nelson. The ramp has become a very popular attraction for novice and seasoned boarders across the area.
In mid-2014, RVCC’s insurance company handed it a hard choice: either get rid of the skate ramp, or lose its liability insurance. After months of searching, the Center was able to find an insurance provider that would cover the skate park–to the tune of an additional $3000 per year. As anyone who visits RVCC knows, the skate park is perhaps the best-loved and most-used feature of its recreational facilities, and regularly hosts children and adults alike. And, as Nelson County’s only skate park, the management and membership of the Center feel it is worth keeping.
Photo By Tommy Stafford : Back in March of 2009 boarders and volunteers constructed the highly popular ramp. In 2015 the ramp was put in danger of having to close because of high insurance costs.
To the rescue has come the “Save SK8 Nelson” committee, a group of skating aficionados, RVCC members and sponsors who have planned a fundraising party unprecedented in RVCC’s history. Skating demonstrations and contests will dazzle onlookers and challenge competitors alike. Additional activities will include volleyball, corn hole, kids’ soccer and more.
Food and beer that will be sold at the event has been donated by Devils Backbone, and Head Brewer Jason Oliver is brewing a special “Sally Rose Radler” (a mixture of lager and lemon soda) just for the event. Wine that will be offered for sale has been donated by Cardinal Point Winery, and mixed beverages and non-alcoholic drinks have been donated by Trager Brothers Coffee. Additional sponsors include Freestyle, Action for All and Blue Ridge Life magazine.
Sally Rose of ShagWṻf is just one of the bands that will be featured at the fundraiser. Others include, Jaguardini, Orme Storm and John Howard & Friends.
Admission to the event will be $5.00 per car, and live musical entertainment will be provided thanks to the generosity of local favorite bands “Jaguardini,” “ShagWṻf,” “Orme Storm” and John Howard & Friends. For those unable to attend, or who wish to make an additional contribution to “Save SK8 Nelson” an event and donation page can be found on RVCC’s website at rockfishcc.org, under the “Super Saturdays” event listings. Contributions will also be welcomed at the Center’s office, Treasure Chest thrift store or by mail at PO Box 106, Nellysford, VA, 22958. The event is also trending on FaceBook at https://www.facebook.com/SaveSK8Nelson.
“More than 1400 CVEC members served by the Mount Rush Substation in Buckingham County are without power this morning. CVEC has learned that a pole on the delivery line to the substation is broken and must be repaired by Dominion Virginia Power before power is restored.
As a distribution Cooperative, CVEC purchases energy for its members from a variety of sources and then has it delivered via the transmission system of Virginia’s two major utilities. In this instance Dominion delivers power to the Mount Rush Substation.
Dominion reports that the broken pole is in a location that is inaccessible to a bucket truck which will slow restoration work. Dominion has provided an estimate of a minimum of five hours before repairs will be complete and power restored to CVEC and their customers in that area.
Additional details will be provided if and when they become available.
