NoVa wine country & old town Alexandria

Virginia Wine Country: The Winery at Bull Run

Happy Fall Ya'll! Fall is our favorite season and that's not just because of the crisp air, fall foliage, and pumpkin spice everything. Fall is wine season and we love to celebrate the harvest in Upstate NY and Virginia wine country. While most of our wine tasting is usually sipped in the Charlottesville region of VA, this Fall we expanded our taste buds and spent a perfect Saturday in Northern Virginia. Ironically, this cute little town is where Matt spent his high school years and his early 20s and where his parents lived until just last year. It was nice to be back "home" and sample another Virginia winery.

The Winery at Bull Run is extensive and beautiful. There is ample outdoor picnic seating, either out in the warm sun or under a cool awning, as well as vast lawns for lounging on a blanket. Reserve a table ahead of time or walk around to find a location that suits your mood. We visited with a large group of friends from our early days at US Airways (most of them still live in the VA/MD area where we all first met) and reserved a few picnic tables under the pavilion. It was a perfect home base for catching up, sipping wine, wandering the grounds, and to sneak away to listen to the live band on the other side of the lawn. The kids played on blankets nearby while the adults told stories of our old days together and laughed until wine came out our noses. Wine tasting is fun, but seeing friends for the first time since pre-Covid was priceless.

After a day filled with wine and cheese, we were ready for some hardy food to soak up the alcohol. Matt and I stayed in a hotel in nearby Reston Town Center, so added our names to the list at bartaco and walked around the shops of the town center. The area was bustling with locals enjoying the outdoor dining scene and the quaint store fronts. The food at bartaco is always amazing but we especially enjoyed the margaritas. Grilled pineapple honey for me and watermelon mint for Matt.

Old town charm in Old Town Alexandria

Day two of our Northern Virginia adventure was a visit to historic Old Town Alexandria. When I lived in the DC area back in the early 2000s, Old Town was one of my favorite neighborhoods. The city hosts plenty of bars & restaurants and beautiful views of the Potomac River. I can picture myself dancing to live Irish Bands on Friday nights or eating seafood on the rooftop terrace at Fish Market on Saturday nights. We came for the nostalgia but stayed for the historic buildings and river views.

The Old Town Alexandria Waterfront has grown exponentially since we lived in VA. Art, green spaces, and gardens line the river, along side the marina and footpaths. It's the perfect place to enjoy and ice cream cone and take in the view of the marina and Maryland across the river.

Cruise up Prince and King Streets for the most darling shops and restaurants, including the aforementioned Fish Market.

Another favorite area to explore in Old Town, is Market Square. The square is landscaped beautifully and hosts concerts & farmers markets, and is a popular meeting place for a night out of a Sunday brunch. My first job out of college (via a temp agency) was as a receptionist at the Salvation Army headquarters, not far from here :)

No trip is complete without coffee and cast iron skillet cinnamon rolls and there is no better place to chow down on brunch than King & Rye in The Alexandrian hotel. We loaded up on Southern Plates and Proper Whiskey before saying goodbye to our old hometowns and heading back to NYC.