Trump Winery
April 15, 2026. Well, ladies and gentlemen, we now come to a review of our visit to the Trump Winery southeast of Charlottesville in Albemarle County. A number of our friends asked why we’d visit here considering the recent activities of the winery’s namesake. The short answer is that we have a goal of visiting every Virginia winery. The longer answer is that wine should not be a divisive thing separating us into tribal camps; it should bring people together in happy society. Let’s take off our tribal hats and enjoy the vine.
Trump Winery announces itself in symbols even before you arrive. About a quarter mile from the entrance to Trump’s estate, heading south on Carter Mountain Road, you will begin to drive along the nearly 4,000 American flags waving from the fenceline that marks the border of the Trump property. This is quite a sight as the crest of each hill on the winding country road brings a new array of flags into view. I love the flag as much as the next guy, but 4,000 seems to deaden the majesty of the symbol, proving (1) that there can be too much of a good thing, and (2) that more is not always better and (3) the biggest is often not the best. Once past the stone gate entrance, it takes another five minutes to drive up the hill to the Grand Hall and tasting room. A huge American flag flies from high on the lawn in from of the Grand Hall.
It all started in 1981 when Patricia Rose married the richest man in America at the time, media mogul John Kluge. They acquired a large parcel in Albemarle County and built a neo-Georgian residence of 45 rooms and 23,000 square feet and named it “Albemarle House.” By 1990, however, the magic was gone and the couple got divorced, making Mrs. Kluge the richest divorcee in the country. She got Albemarle House in the divorce and land upon which she was to build the Kluge Estate Winery and Vineyard. Patricia poured her substantial resources into creating a world-class vineyard and wine operation. She hired the most expensive international experts, like Michel Roland; she invested big in cellar and vineyard equipment and retained a national sales force. The winery opened in 1999 to much acclaim.
But when the financial downturn of 2008 happened, they found they were grossly overleveraged. Patricia sold off jewels, silver, and eventually had to sell the winery, the vineyard, and Albemarle House as well. The Kluge’s defaulted on a $34.8 Million note secured by the winery that Farm Credit Bank eventually auctioned in 2011. Seeing a good real estate opportunity, Donald Trump paid $6.2M for the winery. (Patricia was friends with Donald from their New York club days.) Separately, Bank of America held a $22.8 Million note on Albemarle House itself while under the terms of divorce, a Kluge Trust owned the land around the house. Not wanting to pay much for the house, Mr. Trump arranged to buy the Trust land which included front lawn of Albemarle House. Buying the lawn made the mansion essentially worthless to anyone but Mr. Trump. And so, at an auction where he was basically the only bidder, he bought Albemarle House for just north of $6 Million.
Mr. Trump used to claim in typical Trumpian fashion that this was the largest winery in Virginia (even the East Coast), as if size denotes quality. It is true that since acquiring these properties in 2011, the vineyard has expanded from 160 acres to its current 227 acres under vine which they claim is the largest in Virginia. I can’t dispute that. However, using production volume as a measure, Trump Winery’s 36,000-case production is around half of Williamsburg and Chateau Morrisette and less than a number of wineries in New York State.
Trump Winery is officially owned by Eric Trump Wine Manufacturing, LLC, a Delaware corporation registered to do business in Virginia as Trump Winery. Eric Trump, the Donald’s younger son from his first marriage, is the president of Trump Winery. We understand from staff that Eric visits the winery two or three times a year. You can read about his trials and tribulations of managing the winery while being persecuted by the radical left in his book: Under Siege: My Family's Fight to Save Our Nation, available at the winery gift shop. I’m not sure his insights are reason enough to buy it.
Normally, management of the whole operation rests with Kerry Wolland the general manager and their esteemed winemaker, Jonathan Wheeler. We spoke with staffers Dave Robertson and Isabel Johnson.
The Grand Hall tasting room used to be the Kluge carriage house museum. Before opening the tasting room in 2021, the outside was repainted from a dull olive-gray that blended into the landscape to a shiny bright white that you can’t miss on the hilltop. Its round turrets resemble the Hotel Coronado in San Diego. You enter the Grand Hall through the gift shop where all kinds of Trump merchandise is on sale. I didn’t see any MAGA merch, just Trump-branded items including the very popular “T” hats and Eric’s book.
A long center hall joins high, open beamed dining rooms at either end with the tasting room in the middle.
For such a large operation, the tasting room itself is fairly small and unassuming, colored in a muted blue or gray reminiscent of the color of the old carriage house. Comfortable seating. No fireplace.
Large windows offer an expansive view of the vineyards and low hills beyond. We had a nice chat with a mother, her one-year-old and his two grandmothers out for a casual afternoon meet-up. No outside food is allowed in the Grand Hall, but visitors may have picnics on the lawn or at umbrellaed Adirondack chairs. Children are welcome, and pets are allowed outside.
There are many venue options on the grounds for weddings and other special or corporate events. They have an event barn, a pavilion, and a separate chapel. The highest price for a wedding at Trump is $11,500 for use of the Grand Hall during peak season (May-June and September-November). They advertise a cheaper “Elopement Ceremony” for only $4,500 where you can host up to 20 people to witness your vows. (I didn’t know that “elopement” no longer means running away to get married – it just means a micro-wedding.)
The Trumps also converted Albemarle House, the old Kluge mansion, into a hotel or Bed and Breakfast that is now part of the Trump resort system of properties. We did not visit the mansion, which is on the next hill over from the Grand Hall. But judging from photos online, the place was “Trump-ready” when he bought it and sports an excess of ornamentation, filigreed touches, and gooh-gah all over.
When we last visited Trump Winery in, perhaps 2014, we had a tasting in a modest hut building halfway down the hill from what is now the Grand Hall. Trump Cidery has occupied that hut as its tasting room since 2024.
On to the wines!
Kim elected to try a glass of basic Trump Chardonnay.
2024 Chardonnay. Kim found this 100% estate-grown Chardonnay to be weak. Needs more “umph.” The wine is predominately stainless-steel aged and touches French oak only a bit. Kim gave it a C+ even with the $25.00 bottle price factored it. Sounded like a pretty good value to me.
I sampled a special tasting menu the winery assembled to celebrate their success at the Virginia Governor’s Cup competition where they won six Gold medals this year. The special tasting features four of those six Gold Medal wines:
2019 Blanc de Blanc. A Kluge Blanc de Banc was served at Chelsea Clinton’s wedding in 2010. Trump Winery has carried on that tradition of making sparkling wine through their winemaker, Jonathan Wheeler, a holdover from the Kluge years. I believe Claude Thibaut also consulted here. Sparkling wine is a cornerstone of the Trump Winery inventory. The 2019 edition has some obvious creaminess and yeastiness. Strong legs. The 100% estate-grown Chardonnay is aged 2 years. Off-dry. I rate it a C, but keep in mind that I’m not generally a sparkling wine guy.
2018 Blanc de Noir. I found the Blanc de Noir had an elevated lightness and cleaner mouth feel than the Blanc de Blanc. With the elevation also comes a welcome depth and wider spectrum of flavors. Deeper color. The Blanc de Noir is 96% Pinot Noir and 4% Pinot Meunier, all estate grown. I have to lower my B+ rating to a B when I factor in the $65.00 a bottle price.
While we were at Trump, we spoke with Isabel Johnson, an event coordinator who happened to be staffing the bar. Isabell is an engaging lithesome young lady who shared some of her experiences at the winery: meeting the Donald himself, having to sign a nondisclosure agreement to work there. And enjoying a cool glass of Blanc de Noir on her break. Thanks to Isabel for letting us intrude on her time off and good luck to her and her EMT boyfriend on their future.
2023 Chardonnay Reserve. Trump’s reserve Chardonnay is all French-oak aged according to the winery’s tasting notes. My notes, however, say “metallic.” Some residual sweetness. It underwent complete malolactic fermentation. I gave it a B with its $45.00 price.
2022 New World Reserve. This Bordeaux blend is 42% Cabernet Franc, 33% Merlot, 19% Petit Verdot, and 6% Malbec. Only free-run juice is used; aged 20 months in French oak. Full-bodied, good tannic rush. Bold and ripe red fruit. Looks to age well. A very accomplished wine, but at $80.00 a bottle, I gave it a B.
The Trump Winery is a big operation that needs people like Isabel to keep it human. The wines are very good, especially the sparklers, and the facilities are immaculate, if a little antiseptic and manicured. The winery also benefits from being close to Blenheim Vineyards, Gabriele Rausse Winery, and Jefferson Vineyards. You can get a great sampling of Virginia winery styles in this easily driveable little nook of the world.
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*Details on Mr. Trump’s acquisition of the Kluge properties is taken from: Erin Carlyle, “How Trump Bought a Mansion Once Listed at $100 Million for Pennies on The Dollar,” Forbes (6/17/2015) accessed at https://www.forbes.com/sites/erincarlyle/2015/06/17/how-donald-trump-bought-a-home-once-listed-at-100-million-for-pennies-on-the-dollar/; Morton Hochstein, “Trump Buys Virginia Winery,” Wine Spectator (4/8/2011) accessed at https://www.winespectator.com/articles/trump-buys-virginia-winery-44772; Richard G. Leahy, Beyond Jefferson’s Vines: The Evolution of Quality Wine in Virginia, pgs 133-135. 2nd Ed, CreateSpace, 2014; and Andrew A. Painter, Virginia Wine: Four Centuries of Change, p. 269. George Mason University Press, 2018.
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