A visit to Cooper Vineyards is a must for Virginia wine lovers, both for the excellent wines they produce as well as the beauty of the landscape and elegance of the facilities.

The award-winning “green” Tasting Room officially opened in 2011 and shortly afterward received the coveted LEED Platinum certification, which goes only to construction projects that meet the highest-rated standards in green building technology. Not only are the construction features “green”, the aesthetics of the design with the surrounding landscape, create the impression that the wine tasting room is an outgrowth of the vineyard itself, similar to the way that the flavors of wines express the terroir of the vineyard soils.

Located in Louisa, Cooper Vineyards is nestled amongst rolling hills in a traditional farming community. It is just a short drive from Richmond, Charlottesville and Fredericksburg. Cooper was licensed as the 53rd Virginia Farm Winery in 1999 and the first block of two acres was planted with Chardonnay, Vidal Blanc and Norton that spring. The original farm covered 36 acres with two natural springs and a pond from which the grapes were irrigated. Over the years, land holdings increased from 36 to 150 acres. Ten different varietals are planted over 15 acres with a goal to achieve quality fruit that will produce world-class Virginia wines.

With an original production of 250 cases, Cooper Vineyards now bottles some 6000 cases per year with over a dozen wines poured for guests visiting the Tasting Room.   All the wines are hand crafted from 100% Virginia grapes, with approximately half estate grown. They offer a number of distinctive wines that appeal to widely varying tastes, including the nationally acclaimed Norton Reserve and Noche, their “almost cult status” chocolate infused dessert wine.

The winery includes a spacious tasting room with custom concrete bar, a large covered deck with wonderful views of the vineyards and pond, outdoor bar, a private tasting room and deck for parties of up to 20 guests, as well as a tented pad for weddings and other events. It is a popular venue for weddings, parties, corporate functions and wine dinners.

Cooper Vineyards is a Heart of Virginia Wine Trail (www.hovawinetrail.com) participant and holds multiple on site events with discounted advance ticket purchasing online. Voted BEST Tasting Room in Virginia for 2012 and 2013, they offer daily wine tastings and weekend complimentary acoustic music on the deck or in the Tasting Room year round. Hours are 11:00 am to 5:00 pm.

Among the popular events at Cooper Vineyards is the upcoming annual Mini-Cooper Rally on September 6. Full details at the website: http://www.coopervineyards.com.

Cooper Vineyards
13371 Shannon Hill Road – Louisa, VA 23093
540-894-5474
http://www.coopervineyards.com

Written by: Frank Britt
Frank Britt is the former co-publisher and co-founder of Virginia Wine Lover magazine and current publisher of the Official Virginia Wine Lover e-Newletter – “THE Source for Virginia’s Wine news”. http://www.vawinelover.com (Complimentary to Old Town Crier readers). Frank also consults with several wine festivals and can be reached at frank@brittmarketing.com – http://www.vawinelover.com