Sharp Rock Vineyards

April 17, 2026.  The bumblebees and wasps buzzed lazily around the porch of Sharp Rock Vineyards where it was 90 degrees in the shade.  It felt like summer except for the lack of good old Virginia humidity.  Yet on a day of clear skies at the tail end of a heat wave owner Jimm East could fear for his crops because not four days from that afternoon, weather was predicted to bring a strong frost against his vines.*  Such is the weather in Virginia.

Jimm East, a native of Cleveland and an an athlete at Chapel Hill, opened Sharp Rock Vineyards, or Sharp Rock Vineyards and Cottages as it’s now called, in the western edge of Rappahannock Country near the town of Sperryville.  He and wife Kathy renovated the 1790’s farm house and the 1850’s carriage house for their residence and for the wine tasting room and production plant.  That was 1998.  Since then, children have been born and raised, and the next generation is here, but neither children nor grandkids have an interest in taking over the business. 

Jimm is a compact man with a pleasing round face, and high forehead with a band of closely cropped hair up top and a trim gray beard circling his mouth.  He is a man who seems pleased with his life.   

 

Time was that Jimm had more acreage and a larger production.  He hosted weddings and attended wine festivals.  Lately, however, he has been reassessing what he is doing at his age and making some choices for the future.  Sharp Rock is no longer an entertainment or wedding venue.  It features no music.  Jimm no longer does the festival circuit.  He is the vintner for Sharp Rock’s three acres under vine and makes the wine, too.  Around 80% of his current annual production of only 300 cases come from his own grapes.  His Petit Manseng, for instance, is from another grower.   

But increasingly, Jimm’s time and effort are spent on his Bed and Breakfast business.  Two of the old dependencies on the property may be rented as Bed and Breakfast cottages.  The cottage we saw just down the slope from the tasting room features a deck cantilevered over the burbling Hughes River.  The clientele for these rentals is mostly people who travel from far and wide to climb Old Rag Mountain which backs-up to Sharp Rock.  These comfortable cottages await weary hikers who don’t want to have to immediately drive a long way home. 

The tasting room is on the second floor of a 160-year old barn. 

 

To get there, visitors have to climb some steep stairs, which could well pose an obstacle to mobility-impaired people.  Unfortunately, the restrooms are on the second floor as well.  You will get a view of Jimm’s production area as you go up the steps. 

 

 

 

The tasting room is small, simple affair.  Jimm was holding forth as tasting room manager at the bar, which, of course, is in addition to his jobs as vintner, winemaker, and B&B manager.

Here’s our impression of what Jimm poured for us:

2024 Pinnacle Banc.  This is that non-Estate Petit Manseng.  Floral and melon with some astringency.  12.5% ABV.  We rated it B+ and bought a bottle.

2025 Rosé.  I gave a B rating to this blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot.  Very light and dry product of one day standing on the skins before pressing to stainless steel.  A lilt of floral on the nose.  11.9% ABV.

2023 Cabernet Franc.  I think this wine may have oxidized as it had a Sherry-like taste.  (I wrote “old lady-like.”)  Metallic.  I suppose this could be the result of Jimm hand-corking all of his own bottles.  12.6% ABV.  I gave it a C.

NV Old Rag Red.  Sharp Rock’s most sophisticated wine is this Cabernet Sauvignon-Malbec blend – mostly Cab Sauv.  It was very smooth, with mannered cherry fruit and mild tannins.  Full-bodied red with a hefty 13.4% ABV.  B+

2022 Rosé Noir.  I’ sorry to report that the Rosé Noir also had a hint of oxidation like the Cabernet Franc.  Off dry- with some spice.  I rate it a C.

We thank Jimm East for his warm hospitality and for carrying-on this sweet little enclave of a winery, even as the industry evolves around him.  Pay him a visit if you are in Madison or Sperryville.  You might even spend the night.

  

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In fact, we checked in with Jimm a week later to see how he fared in the frost.  The press reported that grape vines suffered substantial damage from the overnight frost of April 20^th..  The damage was reportedly wide-spread across the state.  See, e.g., Severe frost event causes significant damage to 2026 Virginia Wine Vintage, Shore Daily News April 27, 2026 at https://shoredailynews.com/headlines/severe-frost-event-causes-significant-damage-to-2026-virginia-wine-vintage/  Jimm reported that his small acreage came through the frost fine and that damage in his area of Rappahannock County was hit and miss.