Rogers Ford Farm Winery

(Been there, checked it!)

Step back into the antebellum south as you stroll through our 55-acre historic farm dating from 1825. Wine enthusiasts will discover new favorites in our intimate tasting room and Civil War buffs will appreciate the intriguing history behind Roger’s Ford.

Experience the best of Fauquier County’s genteel countryside as you relax in our gazebo, enjoy a gourmet picnic basket and bottle of our wine on private grounds overlooking the Rappahannock River (prearrangement required; catered group picnics by appointment), or hike through the Phelps Wildlife Area.

Monday 11-5 in the fall and winter months; 11-6 in the spring and summer months. Tastings cost $5 if you want the glass; only $2 if you don’t.

We visited Rogers Ford Farm Winery on 17 July. Here’s a link to Nancy’s post on our visit to Rogers Ford Farm. Carlotta Puckett could not have been more welcoming. You’d think after hosting a group of 70 or so heritage-seeking visitors the day before – at a winery that could fit maybe five very thin women in the tasting area – that she would be a little tuckered out. But no, she was warm and laid back and ready with some great stories about the 30 years of winemaking she and her husband, John, have shared.

All photos from this winery

Rogers Ford is off the beaten track a bit, outside the tiny town of Sumerduck, east of Culpeper, and Rick and I had Carlotta to ourselves. We admired the massive, 200 year old maple tree shading the small front deck of the little white house that served as the tasting room. Even older than that tree was the gorgeous mid-1600s slab of wood serving as the tasting bar – part of an ancient, fallen tree from Hickory Hill, former home of Robert and Ethel Kennedy in McLean, VA. Carlotta had much to share, and us with so little time…one of the disadvantages of taking on such a big project. This is where you want to settle in and just chat for a bit.

The Pucketts started their Virginia winemaking with the now-defunct Dominion Winery in 1985, opening Rogers Ford in 2001. They specialize in classic dry and semi-sweet wines, and their decades of wine-love show – we picked up a bottle of the delicious Jacob Christoper Chardonnay (with its unusual and attractive flavor of cinnamon) AND a bottle of the green apple-scented Vidal Blanc.

Viognier; Jacob Christopher Chardonnay; Sumerduck Rose (Vidal, Viognier, & Petit Verdot); Virginia White (Vidal & Chardonnay); Chloe Cabernet (Cabernet Sauvignon & Cab Franc); Virginia Red Select (Cab Franc blend); First Frost Vidal (Vidal Blanc fermented in Auslese style); Sweet Reserve Desert Wine (Petite Manseng). They were out of the Petit Verdot.

From I-95:
Take Route 17 north 12.5 miles to Sumerduck Road (Rt. 651).
Turn left; continue west 3.7 miles to Rogers Ford Road.
Turn left; continue 2 miles to winery on right.

From Route 15 or 29:
At Remington flashing light, turn right on Sumerduck Road (Rt. 651).
Continue east for 10.3 miles.
Turn right on Rogers Ford Road; continue 2 miles to winery on right.