Hillsborough Vineyards
- In the far northwest of Loudoun County, on Route 9. The Baki family (Kerem, Tolga, Zeynep), from Bursa, Turkey, bought the property in 2001. The family mission statement is “we’re in the happiness business.” The property also includes a brewery.
- Wine: Tier II. Won a silver medal at the 2022 Virginia Governor’s Cup state-wide wine competition, for their 2019 vintage Onyx, a Tannat-based wine. Were awarded a pair of silver medals at the 2022 Best of Loudoun wine competition, for their 2020 Petit Verdot and 2021 Opal (a Petit Manseng). At the 2021 Best of Loudoun event, the Hillsborough 2019 Onyx was voted the co-winner of “best vinifera red” of Loudoun County. Red wines here are unfiltered, a style that winemaker Kerem Baki uses to preserve flavor and aroma. Try the Bloodstone, a rustic red from the hard-to-find Fer Servadou grape.
- Setting: Two stars. Beautiful view from the hillside winery over the fields and hills of Purcellville and Hillsboro. From Washingtonian Magazine: “Route 9 takes you through the onetime mill town of Hillsboro, a picturesque clutch of stone houses clinging to a hillside. The fieldstone look continues as you enter Hillsborough Vineyards. Seated tastings in the French-country-style tasting room can be paired with European cheeses and charcuterie.”
- Stories. (1) Aviation History. The village of Hillsboro is notable not only for its several old stone houses, but also for being the birthplace of the mother of aviation pioneers Orville and Wilbur Wright; marker at the corner of Rte 9 and Gaver Mill Road notes this was the birthplace of Susan Koener in 1831. (2) Colonial Virginia. The vineyard is a small piece of a larger property once owned by George William Fairfax, a member of the wealthy Fairfax family and a close friend of George Washington. (3) Zeynep Baki paints and has a gallery on the property.