Sabin Wine Journeys

June 11, 2022.  Despite forecasts of persistent rain, we ventured out to Effingham Manor Winery in Nokesville.   As we sat and had a tasting, and then a bottle or two, the sun peaked out timidly at first then gloriously full bore.   Effingham is a child of Pearmund Vineyards and Winery in Broad Run and a sister winery to Vint Hill.   Reportedly managing director Chris Pearmund wanted a property closer to the Washington DC market.   He and his investor group settled on the 16 acres that includes the 1767 Effingham Manor and outbuildings.   He formed Effingham Manor LLC in 2015 but had to overcome a lawsuit by neighboring homeowners in the Alexander Lakes subdivision.   They claimed that the use of the access road to the winery violated the homeowner’s association rules against commercial use.   In 2017, a Prince William County Circuit Court judge ruled in favor of the winery and it opened. The two principal buildings on the estate are the 1767 Manor House, a two story five-bay, Tid

  Pearmund Cellars Kim and I traveled to Pearmund Cellars in Broad Run for an afternoon visit.   We met Chris Pearmund and his first wife, Beryl, who runs the Broad Run facility.   Beryl and I had a nice talk about English Premier League football – she is a Brighton fan, while I support Crystal Palace.  She likes seagulls; I like eagles. Chris Pearmund is founder, winemaker, and managing partner at Pearmund as well as managing partner at Vint Hill Craft Winery and Effingham Winery.   He has a family connection with the new Sunrise Ridge Winery in Gainesville.   He is also a mentor to dozens of wineries in Virginia, among them Paradise Spring and the Winery at La Grange. Chris large and gregarious; a hail fellow, well met. Chris bought the former Meriwether Vineyard in 1996 and began operating Pearmund in 2002 making it the 47 th winery in Virginia, according to the Pearmund website.   The Broad Run facility features some of the oldest Chardonnay vines in the Commonwealth.