Sharp Rock Vineyards & Cottages

This was an amazing weekend with excellent accommodations and proximity to a couple of the best restaurants we’ve ever eaten at. Jim and Kathy (and their 2 beautiful dogs and cat) are simply wonderful. We loved the wine as well. We have already been recommending this place to our friends. We got so lucky getting the Carriage House at the last minute because of a cancelation. Book early, because they go fast. We had a perfect time away from cell phones and television, and it was quality time together. There are many other wineries to explore nearby and places to hike and fish as well. Lastly, the fruit and muffins (baked by Jim) are out of this world. We ended our trip with a relaxing drive on Skyline Drive and made it back to civilization just in time to watch Steeler football. Thanks for everything!

It doesn’t get more relaxing than the cottages at Sharp Rock. My husband and I stayed two nights to get away from the stresses of work and life and it was exactly what we needed to recharge. We could hear and see the brook from our balcony and walked just up the drive to the beautiful tasting room. Jimm spent a lot of time with us telling us about each delicious wine. It was so nice bringing a bottle back to our quiet, relaxing, quaint, and romantic room, The Carriage House. We woke up the next morning to our fresh breakfast. Jimm is the ultimate host. Thank you Jimm, Kathy, Doc, Wilson, and kitties for making this the most memorable fall trip we’ve done in Virginia. We can’t wait to return — next time to conquer Old Rag.

The wines were really good. The owner did our tastings, he was VERY helpful and patient with our questions. We did purchase a bottle of 2014 Chardonnay. I wish I had enjoyed a glass of wine here.

I’m only reviewing the wine, didn’t stay at the cottages. The setting is attractive — at the base of Old Rag, surrounded by vines, but the tasting room is in a small room with no windows to enjoy any view, it felt crowded with 6 people. The wine was simply mediocre, we wanted to buy something but didn’t find one that tempted us even a little bit. Still, it was a pleasant afternoon spent tasting wines, and the pours were generous.

We stayed in the carriage house given the proximity to Inn at Little Washington. It was absolutely perfect. The setting is completely serene. The hosts are lovely. The wine is delicious. The cottage has everything one needs (but not cell service or wifi, which ended up being a bonus). It’s a 5 minute drive from Old Rag and that was one amazing hike! Hosts made great recommendations. The winery also sells fresh baked bread, cheeses and sausages which makes for a tasty lunch, and the morning breakfasts are simple but delicious. The winery was always filled with visitors enjoying the beautiful tasting room and grounds. All in all this place was a real find and made our weekend away spectacular.

A note first. I am not a wine connoisseur by any stretch of the imagination so I won’t even attempt to review the wines, other than to say that I mostly like whites and I tend to prefer them just slightly sweet. On that front they have at least one variety that delivers.
What really stood out to me about this place is just how great of an atmosphere exists at this winery. The winery sits just at the base of Old Rag Mountain, right outside of Shenandoah National Park. In fact it is right off the road to the trailhead for Old Rag. There is an old barn that serves as the tasting room and some nice seating outside.
If being nestled just below the Blue Ridge Mountains is your idea of an ideal location then this place will fit that need and then some.
They are also dog friendly and actually had two dogs last time I was there. Watch out for Oliver, he is big and he will absolutely try to steal your food! If you are not a dog person, be warned, but if you are, you will love this place.
The owner, Jim is very friendly and has been around, doing some work and talking with guests the two times I was there. It is clear that he loves what he does and that really shows and makes it a nice, intimate, place to visit. You really do feel welcome when you are visiting.
They also offer a bed and breakfast, which I have not stayed at, but if that is something you are interested in, that could certainly be a nice extra.

A great little winery and beautiful B&B! The wines reminded me of why I became interested in tasting wines in the first place — all the wines made have a wonderful bouquet, and are smooth. We stayed in the cottage and pretty much lived either on the porch or on the chairs in the little creek. It was glorious. Breakfast included the most delicious muffins we have EVER tasted. Jimm (the owner) was most hospitable and had great recommendations for food and adventure (we ended up going to Luray Caverns before coming back to sip on wine). The winery «pets» are delightful and well behaved. We had quite the companion in Oliver, and we hope to see them all again soon!

We loved this place! First, we climbed Old Rag Mountain about two years ago, and haven’t been back since, and this vineyard is right at the base of the mountain. In fact, the owner told us that most of his visitors are hikers.
We showed up at 11 a.m. on a Saturday, and the owner greeted us and directed us up to the top of a barn (it used to be a hog barn). First, I love wine tastings in old barns. There’s just something really special about it to me. The commercialized buildings just aren’t as enjoyable.
The owner gave us nine tastings that day. All of the wines were very interesting. I am not a Chardonnay drinker, and I made my husband buy me a bottle. It was very smoky from the oak, and therefore, suitable for this red wine drinker. I also enjoyed the Rose Noir. The bottles were fairly priced, and we left with two bottles. As a side note, the tasting is $ 4 for eight delicious wines normally — a great price!
The owner was very friendly and sociable, and we had a great time talking with him and learning about his wine.
There is some seating inside the barn, but there was quite a bit outside on a covered patio and in the yard, overlooking the vineyards and the Old Rag. There was a little cat running around out there while we were taking some photos, and the cat was almost like a dog. He was running alongside of us and following us around with the loyalty of a dog. I was certain he was going to try to jump in our car with us when we left. My husband really enjoyed this.
We had a great time here, and we have already determined that we will be back in the future. Also, the winery has a bed and breakfast, so it would be fabulous to spend the day hiking Old Rag, and stay at the bed and breakfast/​winery.
Great place. Great owner. Great views. Great wine. A must-​visit Virginian vineyard.

Lovely location in an upstairs barn but needs air conditioning badly. It was such a warm day 100 degrees and felt as hot inside. Wines were ok. Proprietors were friendly but didn’t buy any wines. too distracted by the heat

Had a really lovely time at this winery this past weekend. Stopped in on Saturday and spent some time with Jim, the proprieter, who walked us through a tasting and really made us feel at home. Spent some time with a couple great glasses of wine down by a serene brook. Afterwards we took 15 minutes or so and relaxed in a nearby hammock. It was really perfect — can’t wait to come back here some time and stay in the B&B.

This is a lovely countryside (or mountain side thanks to Old Rag Mountain!) winery near Shenandoah. Whenever I visit Sharp Rock, I just want to sit on their porch, with a bottle and a picnic all day. The setting is peaceful, rustic and completely down-​to-​earth. I only wish I lived a tad bit closer so I could visit more often!
The pourers are usually the owners. Very easy-​going individuals with a lot of knowledge to offer about wine. Some of my favorite wines are their Synergy, a red wine blend of Petite Verdot and and Merlot, and their Chamois Rouge, which blends my favorite varietal, Chambourcin.

This B&B is amazing, the best I’ve ever stayed at. We stayed at the Cottage, which is cozy, romantic and at the foot of Old Rag. Amazing hikes close by, owners are friendly and warm. We will definitely go back!!!

Sharp Rock Vineyards was fantastic! A small group of friends and I went there this past Sunday (October 10) and we had a great time. We arrived about an hour before closing time so the crowd was thinning out.
The tasting room is upstairs in an old barn. The bar was kind of small and I could see people having to wait in peak times but we were able to walk right up and start sampling right away. The staff were very friendly and helpful, willing to talk to you and just enjoy the company rather than push a product. The price to taste their wines was very nice ($ 3) and when you buy a bottle or more, that $ 3 is taken off the overall price.
We all decided on which wine we all liked, bought some bottles as well as a glass of wine to enjoy outside. They have several chairs, tables and picnic tables scattered around a grassy area with some large trees with wonderful views of the vineyards and hills. The winery also sells cheeses, meets, crackers and other foods to enjoy while sipping your wine.
One of the highlights for me were the dogs. Sharp Rock Vineyards has a few rescue dogs on the property and they are quite friendly. We had a nice yellow lab named Bo sit with us while we enjoyed our wine.
Sharp Rock was a wonderful experience. It’s definitely a place we will return to.

Not the friendliest winery… the woman behind the tasting bar seems very stuck up as if I inconvenienced her by asking what the pet policy was. Won’t ever take the drive again.

One of my favorite Virginia wineries. I’ve never had a bad experience here. James (winemaker and owner) is very chatty and informative.
The wines are uniformly excellent. The tasting room is rustic and there is always a joke about finding the stairs to get to it. Plenty of picnic tables and a few hammocks — a great warm weather spot. There is a small barn deck behind the tasting room which would do for cooler weather. No spots to sit inside the tasting room (but that’s a minor quibble). He’s up against Old Rag Mountain so needless to say, the views are great.

Here is another place that we hadn’t been to in a few years. We liked it the last time we were here, but just hadn’t found the time to make it back over here. They have several dogs, all of them very friendly. As several have stated, the tasting is upstairs in an old barn. The facility has a lot of open space if you wanted to bring a blanket and set out a picnic. I think there was also a picnic table as well as some chairs to sit out and enjoy the day with a bottle of wine. The tasting fee was $ 3 but refunded with the purchase of some wine. They are having a Spring Fling on 9 May from 12 – 5. Let’s get onto the wines.
08 Sauvignon Blanc — This is one of their more popular wines. We liked it and thought it had a very crisp-​clean finish.
08 Chardonnay — Here again, this is a different Chardonnay, but we really liked this one. The last time we were here, we bought several bottles of this. This is our favorite wine from here.
07 Chardonnay Reserve — This one is more like your typical Chardonnay. Nice, but we are not normally Chardonnay drinkers, so others would probably like this one more than we did.
06 Cabernet Sauvignon — Here is another lighter than normal Cab. It was nice.
07 Cabernet Franc — we liked this one better than the Cabernet Sauvignon. They say it is one of their best Francs ever. I can’t remember the last time we tried it so we can’t say for sure, but we did think it was very good.
08 Rose Noir — This is a Cabernet Rose. It is a dark Rose with lots of flavor. There aren’t many Roses that I like, but this is one of them. I tasted a lot of strawberry on this one. Definitely a great summertime wine.
07 Chamois Blanc — This is their desert wine (2% residual sugar) made from a blend of Chardonnay and Vidal Blanc. A very nice desert wine that isn’t too sweet.
We probably would have purchase more, but we still have quite a bit of wine in the basement. We ended up purchasing the Chardonnay (already drank it) and the Rose, which will most likely be gone soon. Darn! Looks like we will have to go back for more.

For my friend’s 26^th birthday she wanted to go wine tasting. So five of us packed into a car and headed out 66 to check some of the places Virginia had to offer.
We started here, so i can attest that i actually did like the wines and it wasn’t just the fact that i had been drinking all day. First off, i LOVED the setting. Even if the wines had been pure crap, the winery itself was absolutely beautiful. It is set on a farm with a small bed and breakfast. The tasting room is in the upstairs of a barn and it just feels very homey. After tasting we bought a bottle and went and sat in some of the Adirondack chairs that were spread all around the property. It was the perfect setting to sit back and enjoy a glass
As far as the wines… i will be the first to tell you that for the most part i really don’t like Chardonnay. But their Chardonnay was awesome… not their reserve (it actually tasted like Chardonnay) but their regular old one. Had lots of fruit and other flavors infused in it. I also really liked their Chamay Rouge (Which is what we drank outside!) It was very light and crisp… what I’d call a white drinkers red.
Overall it was a great start to the day. Plus if you buy a bottle the tasting is free :)

The venue is great for sipping wine — an old farmhouse loft area. The tasting room employee seems to be the main man of the whole operation – Jim. He was jovial, congenial and informative.
On to the wines. Mineral. All of them. The cabernets were peppery mineral. This isn’t a bad thing, just a very evident thing in the wines of Sharp Rock. They did have a reserve Chardonnay which I found wonderfully well balanced, and this was the one bottle I bought. I can’t wait to try it outside the winery – so often I find I am «in the moment» at a winery, and this increases the pleasure of the wine; but I am confident this is a very good wine, and will stand up to my critical palate :) I recommend Sharp Rock for the overall experience. The wines will not likely blow you away.

Sharp Rock Vineyards was our first stop on the « Unilocal Virginia Winery Excursion.» Sharp Rock is located in beautiful, scenic, downtown Sperryville, VA. Okay, forget the downtown part — but it is in a beautiful area. For those of you that have hiked Old Rag in Shenandoah National Park — you have driven right by Sharp Rock on your way in.
The tasting house is in an old Barn or farm building — very weather beaten looking from the outside, but very cozy on the inside, although a tad drafty!
We walked in right around 11:00 am — no one was immediately evident when we first arrived. We spent a few minutes looking around — and then Jim — the owner of Sharp Rock, showed up.
We tasted 5 or 6 wines as I recall — but I forgot to snag my tasting notes sheet when we left, so I don’t have all of the names — I’m sure Steve has his! We started off with their 2006 Chardonnay Reserve — which was a nice wine. The red wines they had showed a lot of potential — none of which are really quite ready to drink — they need to age some first. But I saw enough potential in their 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon that I made a note to buy a bottle. We ended the tasting with an after dinner dessert wine of sorts — the 2006 Chamois Blanc. This was a really tasty little wine!
In the end, I bought four bottles of wine — one bottle of the 2006 Chardonnay Reserve, one bottle of the 2005 Cab, and two bottles of the 2006 Chamois Blanc.
The place is really scenic — the tasting room is in the upstairs of this building — there is a recessed patio that is outside that looks out over the vineyard that provides a scenic view. Inside, there is a wall of honor for the many awards and medals that Sharp Rock wines have won in various competitions.
Jim was a fun and knowledgeable host, and was a fountain of local knowledge. We enjoyed our time with him.
The winery has a whole slew of «Wine Dogs» but we only saw one and I forgot to honk the horn as were leaving (per Jim’s recommendation) to get them all to come running.
All-​in-​all — a nice winery and worth visiting once a year!

Wines are good, but the location to Old Rag Mountain is really great.