Printer-Friendly
Email this Story
Post a Comment (0)
From gold medals to ghosts, The Winery at La Grange has its share of stories
People are just dying to be a part of the story that is The Winery at La Grange in Haymarket.Literally.
Or so Chris Pearmund would have you believe, as he and the winery staff recite ghost tales from the property.
Others, whether they be humans, corporations, animals or ghouls, are out either to either eat the crops (deer), disturb the scenic overlook with a 17-story power line (Dominion Virginia Power) or crash company computers and glasses inside the manor house (ghosts).
The wine maker's latest of 11 ventures had more than its share of eclectic happenings even before doors opened to the public in 2006.
The good news was that a 2005 bottle of Meritage wine received a gold medal at the 2007 State Fair of Virginia while a 2005 Cabernet Franc brought in a silver.
On the other hand, deer have decimated the grape vines in the last two years, craving the soft grapes because of the high sugar and nutrient contents.
“We call them 'rats with antlers,'” chimed Pearmund, the occasionally irreverent “wizard” of La Grange.
While the idea of deer on the picturesque property may sound scenic, the animals have actually destroyed the grape crop along the 20 acres of land at La Grange.
“We have a grow tube that's a foot-and-a-half tall,” Pearmund said. “Whatever grows out of that grow tube, the deer come and eat the tops of them. So we have a hard time getting the grapes to grow more than a foot-and-a-half tall.”
And that has forced delays in business.
“We should be able to produce fruit this year if we had no deer. But because of the deer, we won't be able to produce fruit until next year. So, they've stunted one year of growth, basically,” he said.
To keep the deer at bay, there is now an eight-foot high fence around the perimeter of the vineyard.
By next month, there will be only one entrance to the vines. Deer will also lose some incentive to go there when some of the brush they also enjoy eating along the woods is cleared.
A proposed 155-175-foot high power line that may be built by Dominion Power within a half-mile the property is another concern.
“We would be able to see it from here,” Pearmund said as he stood near the vines on the north side of the property.
“This is a 218-year-old property that we've spent a lot of money to protect the heritage, aesthetics and functionality of a beautiful farm. And to have a big power line cut near it [without] logical reason is not what we're looking for.”
As he spoke this past Sunday afternoon, a breeze picked up and blew across the field between the manor house and the farm house where 192 barrels of wine are stored.
“We're trying to make wines that are more European than Californian in style,” he said, adding that the soil types at La Grange allow for unique grape varieties to be grown.
Ghost stories
Walking to the top floor of the manor house, Pearmund reported that the property is full of more than just grapes and wine.
Experts in the field of paranormal activity once noted strange and unexplained happenings twice in one night, Pearmund said.
“They had photographed many what they call 'orbs,'” he said, referring to illuminations of energy.
Computers, phones and the stereo system have “constantly” fried out since renovations to the house were completed in 2006.
“I think that the ghost lived here when there was not the modern conveniences of electricity,” Pearmund said, speculating that the ghost had been a piano player and did not appreciate pre-recorded music.
When asked to respond to the basic accusation that he is, well, crazy, the purveyor of Virginia wine said, “I think there are dozens and dozens of people that have to be called nuts.”
For instance, “In the first two months of having the property, we heard probably a dozen ghost stories from previous owners, ancestors of previous owners and neighbors,” said Pearmund. “And [we have] had many similar encounters and many similar stories again and again and again.”
“One glass went flying across the wine bar,” said winery clerk Ann Adams.
“Bam-bam-bam-bam-bam across the mantle,” Pearmund added, moving his left hand across gold and silver medals hung along a row of bottles as he demonstrated the ghost's disturbance.
Part of the allure for Diana and Bruce Reed, visiting the area from their residence north of San Francisco, was the concept of a haunted building.
The wine, made out of fruit from nearby land in Fauquier but processed at La Grange, was also just to their liking.
“Quite frankly, I can't think of anything I want to improve here,” Bruce Reed said.
You must be logged in to post a comment.