A Virginia Valentine's Day Weekend

Happy (late) Valentine's Day, everyone. I hope you had a good weekend. I sure did! Jason surprised me by booking two nights at a traditional country bed & breakfast in Barboursville, Virginia (about 20 minutes outside of Charlottesville). Nestled in the foothills of the Shenandoah mountains, Prospect Hill Plantation Inn consists of a 1732 manor house, with various outbuildings that have been renovated and decorated in an authentic historic style.

We left after work on Friday, and after getting stuck in some nasty NoVa traffic, we finally arrived at the inn around 8:30. As we pulled into the long, tree-lined driveway, I felt as though we'd entered another world. With its winding cobblestone walkways, fountains, and series of quaint yellow clapboard buildings, Prospect Hill Plantation Inn resembles a small village. We were greeted by the proprietor, Bill Sheehan, and immediately whisked into the dining room, where our traffic-frayed nerves were soon soothed by a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon an incredible four-course meal: creamy carrot soup, a mixed greens salad, tender pork tenderloin in a rosemary sauce with asparagus and mashed potatoes, and an amazingly moist tres leches cake. Sated and far more relaxed, we were led to our cottage, the Carriage House (pictured above). It was dark when we arrived, but upon waking Saturday morning, I was delighted to find a perfect view of the surrounding rolling hills, illuminated by a soft orange-pink sunrise.

After a breakfast of blueberry pancakes, bacon, orange juice, and tea (which Bill delivered to our cottage), we set off to explore Charlottesville. We started with the downtown pedestrian mall, which reminded me a little bit of the Ped Mall, in Iowa City, filled with restaurants, shops, and people strolling and enjoying the unseasonably warm weather. I fell in love with a shop called Caspari (pictured at left), which carries a well-edited collection of exquisitely designed paper products, home furnishings, and other sophisticated knick knacks. We also enjoyed getting lost in Circa, a labyrinthine 10,000 square-foot antique store overflowing with a colorful array of treasures, with a great selection of retro 50's and 60's era wares.

My favorite place in Charlottesville was Main Street Market, a collection of nine locally-owned culinary delights all tucked under one roof, including: Feast! (a specialty cheese and grocery store), The Butcher of C-ville (a wide variety of all-organic meats), http://www.sfdatwestmain.com/, Albemarle Baking Company (fresh-baked artisanal bread and pastries), Hedge Fine Blooms (florist), The Seasonal Cook (cookware and kitchen items), Geerharts Chocolates, Orzo (restaurant and wine bar), and Calvino Cafe (coffee shop). It was a true food-lovers' mecca, though I refrained from buying anything, preferring instead to just absorb the loveliness of it all (and absorb some cheese samples at Feast!).

After a quick lunch at Christian's Pizza (a slice of spicy chicken with peppers and a slice of spinach artichoke - both delicious), we decided to check out Barboursville Winery (pictured below) a vineyard set in the gently sloping hills surrounding former governor James Barbour's estate, which still contains the ruins of Barbour's house, designed by his friend, Thomas Jefferson, and gutted by a fire in 1884. Bought by vintners Silvana and Gianni Zonin in 1976, the vineyard now produces Virginia's most award-winning wines, and offers spectacular scenery, tours of the wine-making facilities, and a tasting of 16 wines for a mere $4 per person. The staff at Barboursville's was super knowledgeable, but also very approachable (none of that "Oh, you can't taste the notes of blackberry? You poor plebian...you probably can't even detect the hint of tar either.") I picked out a bottle of the Vintage Rosé, a light berry-flavored blend, and a bottle of the Pinot Grigio, an award-winning varietal with a light, fruity taste. A staff member explained that the Pinot Grigio grape is incredibly tolerant to Virginia's seasonal fluctuations, and so has thrived and produced wonderful wine. Jason also picked up four bottles of red - I believe the Cabernet Franc Reserve, Cabernet Sauvignon, the Octagon Blend, and the Nebbiolo (Jason, correct me if I'm wrong).

For dinner that night, we drove back into Charlottesville and ate at the Blue Light Grill (pictured below), a lively little raw bar and seafood restaurant on the pedestrian mall. We, of course, could not resist the oysters, and started with a sampler plate. Dinner for me was Shrimp Fettucine with ribbons of zucchini in a lemon buerre blanc sauce. Jason ordered the Monkfish and Shrimp Sautee, served with potato sticks, chorizo, spinach and a garlicky-basil sauce. The food was wonderful, and the portions were pleasantly modest, which was good because we decided to stop at Splendora's (pictured below) for gelato afterwards. I had a scoop of Bacio (chocolate and hazelnut) and a scoop of Salted Caramel. Jason ordered Chocolate, Mexican Coffee, and Espresso. It was a delicious way to end a truly delicious day.

Sunday, we ate breakfast at the inn (goat cheese omelettes, sausage, fruit, orange juice, and tea), and bummed around Charlottesville a bit more. Most of the stores were closed though, so after walking around a bit, we decided to just head back to DC.

It was an absolutely lovely weekend, and I must say, I am a very lucky girl.