Charlottesville & Points East

Late Summer 2008
by James Putbrese

Charlottesville & Albemarle County Tourism Information

Louisa, Fluvanna, and Orange County Tourism Information

My wife seems to find a reason to visit Charlottesville once or twice a month… I always seem to find a reason to go along with her. Perhaps it is Charlottesville’s blend of distinctive architecture, unique history, southern hospitality, and sophistication, or perhaps it’s just my love of excellent restaurants and antique shops.

The distinctive architecture is certainly part of the appeal. The area is alive with Thomas Jefferson's legacy and structures he designed. The most striking examples, of course, are Jefferson’s University of Virginia and his home, Monticello.

For the history buff, a visit to Monticello is a must-stop. Take a guided tour of the house, the gardens, and the restored slave quarters, and learn more about the life, work, and times of our third president.

Your time in this charming city would not be complete without a visit to the downtown historic district. Here you will find many buildings dating to the time of Jefferson, including the original courthouse where Presidents Jefferson, Madison, and Monroe once practiced law.

Located only a few blocks away from the courthouse is the downtown Pedestrian Mall, more than eight city blocks, lined with locally-owned specialty retail shops, charming boutiques, art galleries, antique shops, and more than 50 restaurants, most with available outdoor seating.

Located on the mall is the recently-restored, elegant Paramount Theater. The Paramount offers an eclectic schedule of first-rate concerts and a performing arts series, year ’round.

If you're a golfer, you'll want to travel just 15 miles west of Charlottesville to scenic Crozet and the Old Trail Golf Club, one of the finest 18-hole regulation courses in the area. After your round, enjoy dining in the Grille Room or take in the spectacular mountain views from the verandah.

Not far from Old Trail Golf, you'll find Rockfish Gap Country Store, built in the 1930s as a packing shed for local farmers to store and sell their fruit. These days, the store still sells jams, jellies, and cider&0151;and a lot more, too. You'll also find Virginia wines and wine accessories, a Christmas room, an old-fashioned toy store, a candy store, and a wonderful selection of antiques.

The Charlottesville area is known as the birthplace of American wines, and for good reason. It was none other than Thomas Jefferson, a true oenophile, who first envisioned vineyards on the Blue Ridge's slopes! Today, the Monticello Wine Trail will lead you to more than 20 great area vineyards and winemakers. Pick up a map of the wine trail at the Visitor Center in downtown Charlottesville. Let me suggest two of the wineries on the tour as excellent places to begin your tasting, touring adventure.

The winery at Horton Vineyards, credited with introducing the Viognier grape to Virginia, specializes in many different types and styles of wines. Their Dom Virginion is the only sparkling Viognier in the world. The winery here is open 10-5 every day.

Barboursville Vineyards offers over 15 wines in their tasting—be sure to sample their 2004 Octagon wine. The Palladio Restaurant here is outstanding; if you'd care to eat here, make a reservation at least a week ahead—it's that good!

Once you've made it to these wineries, you're just a hop, skip, and a jump away from Gordonsville—at first glance, it is just another sleepy little town northeast of Charlottesville, at the crossroads of US33 and US15. If you have not been there lately (or ever), you need to know that Gordonsville is not so sleepy... and it’s well worth a visit!

Here's how I found Gordonsville: A few years ago, my wife and I purchased some English garden ornaments from Country Gardens, on US29 outside Ruckersville. When we recently wanted to make a return visit to the store, we discovered that it had relocated to nearby Gordonsville. So we got back in the car and drove east.

Arriving in Gordonsville, we were pleasantly surprised to see that the town is alive and active. Much of the downtown 'Main Street' area has been purchased by the Gupton family in the past few years, and it is being revitalized in a European manner. Some folks are describing Gordonsville's downtown as 'where old Europe meets historic Virginia'.

If you've been wanting to treat your house and its surroundings to a new look this year, Gordonsville is the place to start! Country Gardens (filled with wonderful antiques, including a large selection of fireplace mantels) is set in an attractive building, with a garden in back, where you'll find English statuary and garden ornaments. Further up Main St. is Old Somerset Gallery, where owner, John Graves, specializes in English prints and paintings, offering oriental rugs and English antiques as well. Housed in the same building is Stokes of England, carrying on a hundred-year family tradition, crafting architectural and ornamental ironworks. Nearby Homespun is filled with lovely antiques and gift items for the home. The Odd Chest offers a unique collection of distinctive antiques, that will delight even those who don’t think they like antiques!

My wife, who has been looking for just the right baby gift for our soon-to-arrive first grandchild, was excited to discover Animal Crackers. What a great place, offering special, tasteful gifts with which doting grandparents can spoil their grandchildren! (They have another location on Grove Ave. in Richmond, too.)

After gathering several bagsful of gifts from Animal Crackers, my wife discovered S. H. Merrick, a fine clothing store, specializing in women’s high fashion and designer clothing. My credit card suggests this may have been a tactical error. However, it did solve the problem of what to buy her for her birthday.

Several of the shop owners suggested that we stop in at the Pomme Restaurant for lunch—and we were glad we followed their advice! The owner/chef, Gerard Gasparini, offers superb authentic French cuisine. My wife had crab cakes with a wonderful French sauce, while I enjoyed the petit filet of beef with Boursin cheese and watercress.

From here, Montpelier, the home of President James Madison, is only a short distance. A complete historical restoration now underway here is returning the mansion to the configuration James and Dolley Madison would have known in the 1820s. As the restoration continues, visitors are able to see Madison furniture, as well as vignettes from the restored house at special exhibits in Montpelier's Education Center, located just beyond the back lawn of mansion. Montpelier is also offering special Restoration Tours of the mansion and guided walking tours of the estate’s landscape as the work progresses.

My wife and I enjoyed our visit, but we only scratched the surface of all there is to see and do here! We'll be back soon, and we'll share our trips with you. Stay tuned in coming issues for more 'side treks' to historic and beautiful Gordonsville and Orange County.

Article text ©2008, Shenandoah Specialty Publishing, LLC.
May be printed for personal use only.

Our Local Advertisers