Cliff, one of our readers, asked us to put together a list of Virginia wineries that are wheelchair accessible. We thought that was a great idea, so here’s what we’ve learned. As we hear from more wineries, we’ll continue to build this list. We’re also adding this information to the Virginia Wine in My Pocket app.
Thanks for the suggestion, Cliff!
The wineries marked with * have indicated they are wheelchair accessible “from car to tasting bar,” meaning that a guest in a wheelchair can visit the winery on their own, without needing assistance from the parking area into the tasting area.
Blue Ridge Region
*Abingdon Vineyard and Winery, 20530 Alvarado Rd, Abingdon, 276-623-1255. (Abingdon reports that they have a gravel parking lot which is probably a little difficult for a true wheel chair, but should pose no problem for electric scooters. There are no steps between the tasting room and the parking lot, only a gently sloping ramp. The winery has led winery tours for guests in wheelchairs and found that the biggest impediment is a door threshold.)
Central Virginia Region
Afton Mountain Vineyards, 234 Vineyard Lane, Afton, 540-456-8667
*Bluestone Vineyards, 4828 Spring Creek Road, Bridgewater, 540-828-0099 (Bluestone reports that they have a paved parking lot as well as a ramp to the front door, and that they only thing that would perhaps be an issue would be that the front door does not have an auto open button.)
*Cardinal Point Winery, 9423 Batesville Road, Afton, 540-456-8400 (The tasting room is wheelchair accessible from the handicapped parking space, which is located behind the tasting room.)
*Glass House Winery, 5898 Free Union Road, Free Union, 434-975-0094. (Glass House reports that they are wheelchair accessible from the parking lot into the tasting room and also the restrooms, but notes that the atrium seating is not. Assistance is available to help wheelchair guests into the atrium/conservatory.)
*Keswick Vineyards, 1575 Keswick Winery Drive, Keswick, 434-244-3341. (Keswick has a ramp for wheelchair access to the tasting room, but notes they have a short gravel path from the (paved) parking lot to the ramp.)
*Prince Michel Vineyard, 154 Winery Lane, Leon, 800-800-WINE (9463) (Prince Michel has an asphalt parking lot with wheelchair accessibility from their main entrance to their open atrium, dining room, bath rooms, tasting room, gift shop, and the “walk around” overlooking the barrel cave and winery floor and bottling room. They also have outdoor patio seating with no steps or inclines. Further, the winery also reports that they are happy to move the wine tasting to an area accommodating guests who cannot taste easily at the wine bar.)
Sans Soucy Vineyards, 1571 Mt Calvary Rd, Brookneal, 434-376-9463
*White Hall Vineyards,5282 Sugar Ridge Rd., Crozet, VA, 434-823-8615 (White Hall Vineyards is wheelchair accessible by coming in through the lower level and taking the elevator up to the tasting room. The bathroom is also accessible.)
Chesapeake Bay Region
Good Luck Cellars, 1025 Good Luck Road, Kilmarnock, 804-435-1416 (Good Luck Cellars reports that they have a ramp for wheelchair access with assistance, but that the winery has a gravel parking area.)
General’s Ridge Vineyard & Winery, 1618 Weldons Dr., Hague, 804-472-3172
*The Hague Winery, 8268 Cople Highway, Hague, 804-472-5283 (The Hague reports that that the tasting room bathroom conforms to ADA. They invite disabled visitors to call ahead, so that they can direct the vehicle across the grass so the tasting room can be entered without negotiating any steps. The winery is also able to conduct tastings at a table for those customers who are more comfortable being seated.)
Hampton Roads Region
*New Kent Winery, 8400 Old Church Road, New Kent, 804-932-8240 (New Kent Winery has a paved parking lot with a wheelchair accessible ramp that runs from the parking lot to the winery. The tasting bar is a little tall for a person in a wheelchair, so the winery can place a shorter table at the end of the tasting bar. The winery tour is on the same level as the tasting room, no stairs or ramps required, with a walkway made out of the same wood as the ramp outside.)
Northern Virginia Region
*Barrel Oak Winery, 3623 Grove Ln, Delaplane, 540-364-6402
*Casanel Winery, 17956 Canby Road, Leesburg, 540-751-1776
Desert Rose Winery, 13726 Hume Rd., Hume, 540-635-3200
*Fabbioli Cellars, 15669 Limestone School Road, Leesburg, VA, 703-771-1197
*Gray Ghost Vineyards, 14706 Lee Highway, Amissville, 540-937-4869 (Gray Ghost is wheelchair accessible. No notice is necessary for wine tastings, though if someone would like to schedule a tour, they do request advance notice to accommodate wheelchair needs. Wheelchairs should pass the front entrance, proceed down a ramp, turn left at the end of the building and enter through the second set of doors. Tasting bars will be straight head. Please note: parking lot is gravel.)
*Molon Lave Vineyards, 10075 Lees Mill Road, Warrenton, 540-439-5460
*North Gate Vineyard, 16031 Hillsboro Road, Purcellville, 540-668-6248 (North Gate is fully handicap accessible, including the bathroom, back patio, and wine production area. Access is through the front door, and there are no stairs in the building. There is a well-maintained gravel parking lot, but guests may pull up to the brick walkway as well.)
Rappahannock Cellars, 14437 Hume Road, Huntly, 540-635-9398
Tarara Winery, 13648 Tarara Lane, Leesburg, 703-771-7100
Tags: accessible, ADA, disability, disabled, handicapped, Virginia, wheelchair, wheelchair accessible, wine, wineries
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Cardinal Point Winery is wheelchair accessible, as are many others in our region. This information is available on the virginia.org website, but I doubt that there is a winery that is NOT accessible. Please make clear that your list is incomplete.
Nancy Reply:
August 8th, 2011 at 2:33 pm
Hi Sarah – I contacted all the wineries (including Cardinal Point) directly to gather my information, since it’s so important for there to be no mistake on this subject. The list I’ve published is whom I’ve heard back from so far. I’m happy to add Cardinal Point, and of course any other wineries that would like to be included.
When our reader, Cliff (who is disabled), contacted us about this, he indicated that in some cases wineries report they are accessible, but that the access really only begins once you’re inside the front door. A gravel driveway, a steep climb up a rock road – or a grass slope…all of these are challenges to those in wheelchairs.
Rick and I visited 160 wineries personally while developing the Virginia Wine in My Pocket app (including Cardinal Point, which we enjoyed). During our travels, we saw many instances where a winery might identify itself as “handicapped accessible”, but there was really no chance that someone in a wheelchair, traveling on their own, could possibly navigate the space without a lot of help. So, the question we’ve asked the wineries is specifically – are you wheelchair accessible? We’re hoping to build a reliable list through this, so that everyone who needs this information can benefit.
Thanks, Nancy. Did you call or email? I am afraid I did not receive your request.
By the way, just our address in appearing in your list–the name of our winery is missing.
Oh, thanks for pointing that out. I just fixed the html on it.
Re: how we contacted everyone, it was via email. I have info@cardinalpointwinery.com, but if there’s a better email, just let me know. I’m at Nancy@VaWineInMyPocket.com. Thanks a lot.
Nancy, I think this is fantastic, and I’ll be linking to this list off my business blog. Cliff makes a great point about accessibility – a ramp and a wide doorway does not make your winery accessible. There are a lot of small and relatively inexpensive ways of making a space accessible but a lot of my clients just don’t know they exist. Thanks for highlighting an important issue and creating a great resource!
Nancy Reply:
August 8th, 2011 at 7:06 pm
Thanks Dave!
Let’s just hope that reader Cliff isn’t the next George Louie. You really should make sure you follow up with all the wineries to be sure your list is complete.
Nancy Reply:
August 9th, 2011 at 9:11 am
Hi Jan – I hadn’t heard of George Louie before, so you’ve educated me today
We have contacted all wineries, and it’s really their choice whether they want to be included or not, so I can’t (and – you can see in the blog post – don’t) claim this is a “complete” list.
I did just go back to those who’d already responded to gather some more information, though. While, as Sarah points out below, most wineries (at least the new ones) are ADA compliant, what I’d like to be able to share is, first, any additional details the wineries can provide about access (or limitations), and also which wineries are wheelchair accessible “from car to tasting bar” – meaning, which wineries could a customer in a wheelchair visit without assistance of any kind.
Thanks for reading! It was good to hear from you.
Thanks Nancy! I am just a lover of all things Virginia wine and tend to lean toward the worrisome side on things due to my legal background. I think it is a great idea to have this list but wanted to be sure to bring the George Louie thing up since there are a lot of wackos out there.
I love your app and wish you the best of luck!
Jan
Nancy Reply:
August 9th, 2011 at 9:33 pm
Thanks Jan! We’re always up for some free legal advice
Thanks for the app love – we appreciate it!