Wonderful, kind, unique! This vineyard highlights the grapes and wines that are authentic to this region. A family owned and operated, you can taste how much they care. The ambience could use improvement but the wine is fabulous. read more

Burnley Vineyards - Outdoor seating area - Wineries Near Me - Barboursville, Virginia

Absolutely amazing wine and friendly staff! This is one of the original wineries in Virginia and it shows. Each wine is a masterpiece on its own and deserves a seat at the table. read more

I'm no wine snob, and Virginia is no Napa. That being said, if you're looking for one of the stereotypical wineries this isn't it. It is a very small family run operation. Their tasting room has been operating since 1985! It was small and kind of set back into the woods, but with a very comfortable, homey feel. Their tasting menu is HUGE! I think close to 15 different wines? And we were able to try all of them. The dessert wine that's similar to a German Glühwein was served to us hot so we could really experience the flavor the way it was designed to be tasted. Most in our group historically prefer dry reds to whites or sweet wines, but no one was terribly impressed by the dry reds. We were, however, impressed enough to buy some of the dessert wines, sweet reds, rose, and whites. We ended up getting a mixed case for well under $200, and the tasting fee ($5) was waived. They've been in the area for a long time and are still a local operation, and none of their wines was prohibitively expensive. I'm definitely not a wine connoisseur, but I really appreciated the simplicity of this place. In warmer weather, it would have been nice to buy a bottle and take it out to the wooded picnic area. Everyone was wearing masks inside, the owner did our tasting and mixed local history and vineyard history with information about the wines and grapes. It was a great time. read more

Although this tasting room needs a good cleanup/refresh, the owners are absolutely a joy to converse with while trying their wines. Most were not to our particular liking but definitely would appeal to a number of folks we know. The land is really pretty. Recommend you go and taste, possibly make a friend - you never know what you might like in the line up. read more

Really more of a 3.5 stars. Pretty decent wines and great hospitality. Very reasonably priced as well. Nothing overly complex but hit the mark when they needed to. Co-owner Dawn was my server. Burnley has 32 acres of grapes, and nearly all of their wines were estate. They are one of the older vineyards in the area, a throwback from an era when wineries were small family owned businesses as opposed to event centers. Their tasting room isn't as fancy as others, but that's OK. The menu had 15 (!) tasting options, ranging from dry to sweet; I did a partial tasting focused on the dry. All their reds trended light to medium bodied. Rather than go down the roster of everything, I'll focus on a handful that I especially enjoyed. The 2012 Cabernet Sauvignon was soft and fruity. The Norton was slap-in-your-face bold. The Barberra - a grape I rarely see - had nice soft plumb notes. But the favorite was the peach wine, which I had a glass of. I wouldn't mind going back. read more

See all

While it may not be your stereotypical fancy winery, it does have the best people! The owners were super nice and personable. They make you feel like family and share the best stories. Do not miss out because of its looks-the wine and family (including the cute pup) became my favorite out of the five we went to in VA wine country. read more

We should have left and judged a book by its cover on this one. I'm really sad we didn't go with our gut and decided to go in. No one working there was wearing a mask. While the lady serving us was "nice" there were comments that did not go unnoticed. I don't appreciate comments about cultures with "multi-generational homes" being used as an insult or that states with a ton of migrant workers are worse off. The racist undertones were apparent. While the wine was not good, the taste left in my mouth by the ignorance was much worse. I'd recommend Chestnut Oak Vineyard just down the road instead. read more

Oh. My. God. My heart sank when we turned into the property and I saw the dilapidated building. Jokingly, I said to my husband, "lower your expectations". When we entered the tasting room, I smelled mold. The tasting was torture. We left before we the dessert wines. Some of the wines tasted like vingar, others were bitter. One was perfumy.... So. Bad. read more

First off, you need to realize that VA is no Napa. Now with that in mind, this is probably my favorite VA winery that I've visited. It's a small, family winery. It's basically a house. They have numerous wines you can taste and for a very small tasting fee. The staff (which were the owners) were incredibly nice and did an ok job of describing the wines. And every wine was enjoyable. While there may not have been any "OMG, I MUST have that" wines, there weren't any "eh" wines either. I was a little irked that they didn't waive the tasting fee when you made a purchase, but they aren't alone in that practice. We went home with one of their very nice dessert wines. And it was nice to see that all of their wines were decently priced. read more

Wonderful family winery. Patt, one of the owners, walked us through a true tasting and was super pleasant! Burnley is truly a family who loves their avocation and is one of the earliest Virginia wineries. Well worth the trip and so enjoyable! read more

Hidden among the dozens of wineries outside of Charlottesville is this gem, with its rustic interior and unique variety of tasty wines. My girlfriend and I were attracted to this place by a Living Social deal ($12 for two wine glasses and a cheese plate for two), otherwise we might have missed it. It's off the beaten path a bit and the interior is small with a log cabin feel. It consists of the tasting area and gift shop, a spacious seating area, and a small patio. You can tell it's family-run, and they have two very friendly dogs that mostly lay around on the floor. The tasting costs $3 (you can keep the glass for an additional $3), and you can sample 14 different wines. We were served by an older lady that was friendly, though she didn't give us the usual spiel about each wine (I guess she figured we could read it ourselves on the page). We were given the option of skipping around, which we did a little bit, but I'd recommend starting at the top and just working your way through the flavors. We skipped the Chardonnay and went down the list through the whites, reds, and dessert wines. By the time we wanted to go back to the Chardonnay, our tastes were pretty much altered. Some of the notable wines include: 1. Dog Gone Red - a sweet semi-dry red named after one of the dogs (see the picture below). This was my favorite of the wines, and it only cost $12. 2. Barberra - A dry, medium body wine aged in an oak barrel. 3. Peach Fuzz - A very sweet dessert wine blended with peach juice. 4. Aurora - A sweet red with a blend of chocolate and raspberries. Big hit with the ladies in the group. 5. Spicy Rivanna - This wine has a bunch of flavors in it (cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, etc.) and they recommend serving it warm. This would be a great winter wine and tastes like a hot toddy or boilo. Some negatives - the exterior and interior is old and it shows. The chairs, tables, and patio looks like they haven't been updated since the 1980s. Your tasting experience may also vary - I would try to get with the younger lady or the middle-aged gentleman if you want someone more chatty. As wine novices, we shouldn't be left to skip around the tasting list, as wine flavors build upon each other, and we were allowed to make that mistake here. Overall though, I plan on coming back, and I'm glad they ran a Living Social deal that got my attention to their winery in the first place. It's not flashy like the other larger wineries in the area, but the wine is good and they offer some interesting experimental flavors I haven't seen before. If you want a change-of-pace from the bigger-name wineries, check out Burnley for a more intimate experience. read more

See all

Dawn and Lee were amazing. My wife and I left extremely impressed and satisfied. Forget the aesthetics on the outside. Go on in and enjoy all they have to offer. We will be back!! BTW.... we had planned on getting on bottle we ended up with 7 bottles, 2 branded wine glasses and a Prince vinyl album read more

Very relaxed and friendly. One of the Original Virginia wineries, before the vineyard boom. If you like good wine and good down-to-earth people, this is it. read more

I stopped at Burnley Vineyards with 5 friends for my bridal shower outing. The Good: $2 tastings, read other reviews for the wine -- it was ok. The Sorta-Bad: The décor is ... not décor. The place is badly in need of an update. It's like someone turned their garage loft into a business. I'm not snobby, but it would be nice to feel that the owner cares about how he presents himself to the community. The Awful: To understand this piece, google Hannah Graham. She went missing and was later found raped and murdered. She was a sophomore at UVA. This outing happened soon after she was declared missing; her body had not been found and the community was still reeling. The middle aged/older man serving us asked: "Are you UVA students?" "Have any of you walked downtown that late at night? She should have known there are free cabs ..." It was essentially the same old "Well, what was she wearing? How much had she been drinking? she-asked-for-it speech, slightly altered. From a business owner. Directed at young professional women. At an establishment serving alcohol. We were all shocked into complete silence. The décor may be backwoods, but the owner is far worse. Please do not patronize this establishment while it is operated by this extremely distasteful man. read more

I've spent this fall following the Monticello Wine Trail, and so far, (out of 22 vineyards), Burnley was my favorite tasting. The wine was terrific. Seriously, the Dog Gone Red and Aurora are my all-time favorites, and I plan to return for more bottles of both in the future!!! The tasting room staff were supremely kind and helpful. I can't wait to return with more friends! read more

I had a similar experience as reviewed by Kim G. My designated staffer was friendly but not as warming and knowledgeable as the other staff on hand. She was able to answer our questions; however, I felt as if I was fishing for answers rather than having an actual conversation. Burnley Vineyards offer tastings of their home-made sauces. Unfortunately the crackers were a bit stale. The best part of the winery was hot baked bread and cheese. The staff offer us extra cheese if we needed some. The grounds were scenic and well laid out. There's a few picnic tables as well to take advantage of on a nice day. read more

If, on your Virginia winery-hopping adventure, you find yourself wanting to stop at Burnley, be prepared. This is NOT your typical upscale, pretentious winery. This is a no frills, rustic, laid back experience. Generous pours, good but not outstanding wines, decent prices and just really nice people. Shout out to the great buzz I got while tasting there! read more

We were visiting from DC, went to 3 wineries, and this was by far our favorite. Dawn was so welcoming, Alice (they're dog) was so cute, and the wine was delicious and inexpensive. A wine tasting (more than 10 wines) was only $4. It was a great family-owned feeling that just made you feel warm and welcome. Dawn explain the back story of some wines and recommended other places to go in the area. We will definitely come back if we're ever in the area! read more

Wine was good but we felt that the two people working ignored us and spent more time with customers they felt were going to be more profitable. Funny thing was, we bought more bottles of wine than the other customers there. We won't be back. read more

Checking out local wineries close to where we live in Greene County, stumbled upon this one. The wine was good, the girls loved their cheese (served with what looked like Ritz crackers, very fancy) but ultimately the space was sorely lacking compared to wineries in the area. The girls didn't have a lot of space to run around. The seating was limited and dirty. read more

Worst winery I have ever visited. My wife and I stopped by on a quiet Thursday afternoon during an impromptu date day. The tasting building has seen better days...that time was sometime decades ago. Run down, dated decor, musty/stale odor. We were the only guests there during our tasting. The woman providing left us to find and talk on her cell phone at the start of the tasting and provided no details on the wine other than what grapes were used. There are over a dozen wines to taste, but most of them are sweet and my wife and I thought most of them were flawed (nose or taste) in some way. With so many other amazing wineries in the area, I can find no reason to stop here. read more

I don't know why this rating for this winery wasn't as high as I thought it should be but my family and I really enjoyed ourselves here. We came here for a wine tasting (4$ to try 10-15 wines say what!?). Dawn was awesome and we loved chatting with her. The wines were pretty good and had some unique sweet wines. Had a lot of fun here! read more

See all

The first thing we noticed driving up (in February) was a mud pit of a driveway. This isn't uncommon in "vineyard visiting" as we visit many each week/month, but this driveway has pot holes, puddles and deep mud. So, be sure to visit on a nice, dry day or in a 4WD/AWD vehicle! Next thing we noticed was the upstairs tasting room and the horribly worn down stairs getting up to it. There was one step that is so loose, you really can fall by stepping on it, so watch your step, especially if you're in heels! Upon entering the tasting room, it smelled a little of sewage, which is odd for wine tasting. But we went forward with the tasting anyway. The ladies giving us the tasting was very pleasant. They didn't seem to know much of anything at all about the wines and were simply pouring, but they were very friendly. They really didn't explain fermentation process, the vineyard, etc... but again, they really were very nice, friendly and smiled and gave generous pours. We really loved the chardonnay and bought a couple. But the wines seemed to get worse, so we actually decided to stop the tasting before trying all the reds and sweets. We just chatted with the lady giving us the tasting and noticed others pouring wine from a microwave, which we found very odd. So, upon reading the description of that wine, their spicy red, we just had to give it a try and we were so impressed, we bought a bottle of that too! Never bought a sweet wine before, but this is unique and very interesting. All-in-all, we really want to love this place. It's got the "local family winery" feel to it, but couldn't get past the mud, smell and poorly-maintained facilities. We might come back though, not sure yet. You should definitely give it a try though, as they do have a nice, diverse selection. Their chardonnay is buttery and oaky, which is hard to find. Their tasting fee is only $3, the cheapest we've seen! And their bottles are equally as low-priced. read more

Go somewhere else. There are dozens of wineries in central Virginia and almost all the others are less depressing. The winery still hasn't escaped the 80's and the few pretty good wines (the Riesling was great) are mixed in with a list full of nasty stuff. If you think Burnley is representative of Virginia wine, please go down the street to Barboursville or Reynard Florence to find much better quality. read more

This was the worst winery across the board that my girlfriend and I have ever been to. One of the wines tasted musty like how an old museum smells and most of them were the sweetest wines we've ever tasted, and not in a good way. Also, when the smell of the wine is described as "movie theater popcorn," you know it's not going to be good. We literally did not finish the tasting because they were so bad. Honestly, you can get better tasting wines at the grocery store. The tasting fee should have given us a clue ($3). If you value good wine, do not go here. Instead, go to Trump Winery, Michael Shaps, Early Mountain, Barboursville, really any other winery in the Charottesville/Ruckersville area. read more

Seems like a time capsule from 1987 here. Vinyard doesn't look vigorous or productive. Wines are mostly blends. A little tired.

While the place is rather dated, the wine was very good. They offer a good variety at a decent price. We purchased several bottles. We really liked their Norton, which I believe is a 100% Norton, not a blend. One of the others we really enjoyed was the Spicy Rivanna. We plan on enjoying this one over the holidays. read more

This star is for the staff. The adorable old lady pouring the wine and wearing one of the glittery t-shirts they sell that say "My doctor told me I need glasses" with wine glasses underneath, and the friendly person who turned the other way when our group was ready to spit wine. When David R. says "on par with Horton" that's only true if you like wine that smells like scratch n' sniff and tastes like urine (or what one would expect it to be). Horton has all the fruity ones too, but at least they can compete with the other grapes. Just because you describe wines with undertones of "peach, chocolate, berries and spice" doesn't mean you have to make wines that are overwhelming to the taste buds in those flavors. One of the wines had the cork in it and it was the first time I've seen a regular refrigerator utilized for the tasting wines and cheeses. She must've had to open the thing a dozen times for us, and then again for every other party that came in. If you can't tell by my description, the whole place was odd. I appreciated the preservation, it really took me back to...actually, I'm not that old. The tastings were $2. They had everything crackers to go with the cheddar cheese and the brie came in a box so we couldn't see it when we asked to take some home. I hate to diss them because they were so welcoming to us, but maybe you're curious and will see for yourself, or you'll take my advice and head over to Keswick or Barboursville. My friends also said the grapes they tasted off the vine were better than the wine. read more

Nice staff and nice wine! This place is small, but they had some nice tasting wines and a great personable staff! We especially enjoyed their unique dessert wines! They also have some nice cheeses and you have to try their hot sauces! read more

We were greeted with a smile upon arrival. Pat was great. She laughed with us and took her time introducing the wines. Awesome experience.

I've always meant to put in my 2 cents here. I haven't been to Burnley for around 6 years so take that into consideration. This is a very small and rustic family winery. The tasting room personnel were nice enough and I left with 2 bottles of a mediocre cabernet sauvignon because it was on sale and I was feeling generous. However, when I eventually opened a bottle a few weeks later it was fizzy! Even worse, I gifted a bottle to a friend and his was also fizzy. Must have underwent malolactic fermentation in the bottle... this is a really rookie mistake for home wine makers and unacceptable for any commercial winery... not to mention it is potentially dangerous depending on how much CO2 has built up. I hope things are better, but I've moved away and haven't had a chance to revisit. read more

We really liked the wine here! The place is not much to look at for sure but the customer service and wine were great! We would much rather have great wine and conversation then a beautiful building and crappy wine like the place we visited right down the street. We would definitely go back! read more

This winery is not much to look at, but the wines were some of the best I've tasted, the prices were amazing (tasting was 3 dollars for 12+ wines, bottles were 12-18 dollars), and the staff were very nice and geniune. I would say this is the most pleasant tasting I've been to (and I've gone tasting in California, Oregon, New York and elsewhere in Virginia) because the wines were very good yet cheaper than all the other tastings and the staff were so pleasant and not pushy. Usually we buy maybe one bottle of wine when we go tasting, but we bought 5 bottles because they tasted so good and were great prices. I bet we will be back in a couple weeks to buy more. If you are looking for a good, inexpensive, friendly tasting experience, I would highly suggest coming here. read more

Here's the good thing...the place is cheap, particularly when compared to a lot of other wineries in VA. But damn, you get what you pay for. The grounds are not pretty or bucolic, which is not a big deal. Wineries are really agricultural operations, so it is totally expected that it will sometimes look like a messy farm and all. The rough road, the muddy parking lot, the lack of expansive scenery...that is all okay if the product in the bottle kicks butt. But, the tasting room is no better. It looks like an old, 80s style contemporary house. And you walk up a set of stairs that feel like the old back entrance to a deck. It just isn't inviting or attractive at all. The inside is no better with loads of wood paneling, an anemic retail set up, and terrible music playing. This was probably the worst tasting experience we ever had. It was not busy at all, although that isn't a surprise given the environs. A very nice, older lady ran us through the list. Nice, but she had very little to say about each wine and gave us very simple answers to most of our questions. We are not a pair of well-educated oenophiles who love to just nerd out with winemakers. We just like to learn and always ask questions so that we can become better at understanding what we like. I'll give them credit for bottling up some unique stuff. We don't see Norton or Chambourcin a lot of other places. But, maybe that is because they don't taste very good. Or, maybe they can, but Burnley's efforts aren't up to par. Or, maybe, it is just that even an awesome bottle of Norton just isn't that palatable to most folks. I don't know which is likely true, but I know I'll be fine if I don't go back and drink more of it. They seem to have won plenty of awards, so they clearly do (or did) something right. I just don't know what it is now that they are good at, let alone what would give me a reason to ever go back. Two stars here because I'm not so big of a jerk that I can't give some respect to their business. It isn't easy, I'm sure. read more

This is a really fun, down home winery. It is run by a really friendly family. If you're looking for something fancy - this is not for you. If you're looking for a good time, affordable wine, and nice people, you'll have a great time. This was our favorite place. We bought 4 bottles here. read more

The staff was nice, but not able to handle the crowd very well. They did try, it didn't seem as busy as they made it feel. The tasting room is dark, kind of lodge like. Once again, another winery missing the opportunity for guests to taste wines while looking over the vineyard. The wines themselves were okay, certainly a good price for the quantity of tastings. read more

I am not sure how this is not rated anything less than 5 stars... The wine selection is outstanding. We tried at least 15 wines and our hosts made sure to give us ample attention and instruction about what we were drinking. The whites and Reds were both excellent and unique- but the dessert/ sweet wines were incredible. The owners were absolutely lovely and they were quite dog friendly. We have been to 10 wineries this weekend, this one was without a doubt our favorite. read more

Stopped here over the 2016 4th of July weekend and the wine is excellent!! Prices are excellent. The tasting room is not fancy, therefore I take it you do not have to pay.$22+ per bottle of wine. The owner was there to do the tasting and fortunately we were the only ones there at the time. He is very knowledgeable and we bought about 2 cases total at a great price. I drink mostly reds but his white was also good. I would highly recommend this place. It's not fancy inside..but the wine speaks for itself. I will most likely mail order wine from this place and have it sent to us in new Jersey when we run out of what we bought. I have been to other nearby wineries that were much nicer inside..but their wine wasn't as good as Burnley's wine! read more

We've been to many wineries in the Charlottesville area and were surprised by the poor reception and quality of the wines we encountered at Burnley Vineyards. The service: I'm ready to admit our experience might have been atypical; everyone else in the tasting room seemed to be having a great time, but the person helping us was-- well, she was rude. It seemed like the normal staff asked her away from doing something else to help customers. She seemed actually put off by our questions. The wines: the chardonnays were off. The bouquet was downright unpleasant. Maybe there is something in their aging process that explains this, but we weren't told anything that would frame them differently. The Rivanna White was the best of the lot-- dry but not too acidic (we bought a bottle). The Riesling was also okay. The Zinfandel was undrinkable-- to the point that I wondered if the bottle we tried didn't suffer from a rotten cork. The sip I had was so astringent it overwhelmed any delicate flavor that might have been present in the wines we subsequently tasted. The dessert wines were a mixed bag; some that might have been interesting, in my opinion, crossed the line into gimmick-- lots of spices and sugars crammed in. I might have been more receptive to these on a cooler day. All that said, many of the wines are less expensive than other Charlottesville wineries. There might be some good values depending on the year or personal preference. The facilities are somewhat outdated and there's little provision for lingering with a glass of wine, picnicking, etc. If you are planning a picnic while visiting wineries in the Charlottesville area, you'd do better at a different stop. read more

We had a great time here although it is a unique wine tasting experience (in a good way). The atmosphere and feeling is different than most wineries-especially Barboursville which is very close. It is basically on the complete other side of the spectrum. The wine is decent, highs and lows as you move through the list, the dessert wines were a highlight for us (maybe just because of our tastes). The service was great although they could use marketing/branding help, but the experience was undeniably (and perhaps unapologetically) honest, which we liked. It's nice to go to a winery where the company is as important as the wine. A very low-key, homey experience, we would recommend it and will try to make it back. read more