Honah Lee is located just off Route 15 between Orange and Gordonsville. Owners Eric and Brandy Hopwood are long-time farmers who have been a top grape supplier to Monticello area wineries, and are now moving into their own small-scale production. The name will ring a bell for all flower children of the 1960s, as the home of “Puff, the Magic Dragon,” and was chosen by Eric’s mother – the purchaser of the farm in 1987. Thanks to the relationships with other area wineries, Honah Lee is one of the few places you can go and enjoy tasting wine from multiple Virginia producers.
Wine. Among the Top 100 wineries of Virginia. Five Honah Lee wines were awarded silver medals at the 2023 Virginia Governor’s Cup state-wide wine tasting competition: the 2018 Malbec, 2019 Petit Verdot and Tannat, 2021 Viognier and “De la Merce” (a Merlot and Chambourcin red blend). The 2019 “Captain” (an unusual blend of Pinotage, Nebbiolo, Malbec and Petit Verdot) received a bronze medal at the event. Their 2019 vintage Captain, Petit Verdot and Tannat were awarded silver medals at the 2022 Governor’s Cup competition. Honah Lee had been awarded gold medals at the 2021 and 2020 Governor’s Cup events, for their Petit Verdot (in 2021) and Petit Manseng (in 2020). For years Honah Lee has been one of the top-quality grape suppliers to some of the big names in Monticello wine, including Michael Shaps and Gabriele Rausse. In 2015 they started pouring under their own label. An advantage of their history is that they serve not just Honah Lee wines, but also wine from other winemakers in the area (many of which use Honah Lee grapes), so one gets an unusually wide overview of Monticello AVA wines here.
Setting. The tasting room is small, but cozy, and the owners are generally doing the pouring. The tasting room has a slight farm-stand feel. Honah Lee also sells homemade jam, pastries and other farm goods in addition to wine.
Stories. The Gordonsville Fried Chicken Festival. When Vera Preddy, Honah Lee owner Eric Hopwood’s mother, ran the farm, for many years chickens were the main business. This fit right into Gordonsville tradition: in 1794, a Gordonsville tavern became known for serving chicken. In the 1840s, a railroad stop was established in the town, and by the 1860s locals sold chicken through the windows of stopped C&O trains – with farmers’ wives carrying platters on their heads to the trains. At one point the town was nicknamed “the chicken-leg center of the universe.” Today Gordonsville’s chicken heritage lives on its annual Fried Chicken Festival, held in May. A must attend for chicken fans, with the winner of the cook-off being awarded $100.