A group of friends decided to visit this place and have a great time, we had big expectations but sadly nobody took care of us, we didn't feel very welcome, honestly a really bad experience compare with another wineries in the area, where customer service is priority. read more

Stopped on our way up 29 with the kids. Had a nice tasting of reds and enjoyed the Cab Franc enough to buy a bottle. Tasting was a little pricey. Server was very nice and had recommendations of what else to do around the area. Unfortunately not much for the kids to do. They ran around outside while we had our wine but there was nothing to entertain them. read more

Always a good time here. Everyone is so nice and it's always clean and inviting. I haven't tried the food (I can't remember if there is any) but the wine is fantastic! The ladies are so nice and welcoming whenever we come in. read more

Come here with a friend who was in direct contact with their sales manager, so our customer service portion may have been a bit skewed. BUT everyone at the bar was super friendly regardless imho. We did the tasting, and fell in love with their fruit wines. In particular the Peach / Blackberry / Raspberry ones (in that order). They tasted like sangrias....except they were just straight alcohol. Doesn't get much better I guess? They also gave every nice tasting pours, needless to say we were nice and buzzed after it. Only thing I would improve would be the snacks that they served during the wine tasting. Some looked fresh while others looked kind of dated (like they were left over from a day or two ago). But hey I was there for the wine not the snacks so, didn't bother me too much. Overall would def recommend a visit especially if you're on the way down to Charlottesville hehe (stop by moothru too!) read more

This is gonna be a review with the bad, good and an happy ending! I organized a girl's weekend in Luray and wanted to visit a new winery. I saw that Prince michel winery had private pod which I always wanted to check out! I made the reservation two weeks in advance. Upon arrival, our pod was not available because there was supposed to be cancelation by another group but our pod was given away to another walk in group ‍.. I was a bit surprised and frustrated but they walked us to another pod and we just settle on that. We then did tasting and order a bottle and just enjoyed the live music. Katie was our waitress and was great, she did apologize a few times for the misunderstanding (which I believe had nothing to do with her but with management and whoever take care of the reservation system) We enjoyed our time on the pod, private, and beautiful has the sun goes down with the lights inside. It reminded me being at a lounge !! The reservation was $25/hr with a minimum of 2hrs and this is just for the pod. The plus about the pod is your own private spot, a waitress so u don't have to move and at night time the lights inside are pretty!! Definitely recommend it for date night or just girls outing! Wine tasting is about $10 and offers 4 choices which I thought were affordable and great! We decided to order a Viognier which was delicious! One decided to do a tasting of cider which she enjoyed! We were charge for the pod again even though I already paid 2 weeks prior. Katie was nice enough to apologize once again (I felt bad cause she had nothing to do with management not being able to keep up with reservations) and she offered 4 free glasses . Will I go back? Yes! Did we have fun even with the small setback? The setback was rectify right away and things were great! Katie was a sweetheart and check on us often! Yes.. did they have great wines? Yes! And do not come at me telling me this is bashing the winery cause it's not! Just pointing out what went wrong and how things were rectify right away and how I handle a situation... Kindness were shown on both sides and we end up having a great time! till next time wine lovers! #melaninonthemovedc #nadjmaqueen read more

Wine is meh and customer service is bad. There are waaaay better wineries in the area. Try Revalation, Ducard or Early Mtn. We had a really negative experience with one of the servers. read more

A great place to relax. We enjoyed a wine tasting and a good lunch. A dog friendly place. Your well behaved dogs can even go inside anywhere the floor is tile. read more

I do love this place. Most the staff is very nice and welcoming. I come here often. The bands are great and offer different styles of music. The wines are great I recommend the peach, for beer the Pilsner and everyone loves the wine slushy but it's a bit pricey. read more

Virginia rest stops are very distinctive. Situated directly on major thoroughfares. Unassuming, light brick, low-slung buildings. White trim. Long, narrow parking lots. Angled parking. I mistook Prince Michel's tasting room -- fronting its vineyard -- for a Virginia rest stop as we approached. Directly on a major thoroughfare. Light-brick, low-slung building. White trim. Long, narrow parking lot. Angled parking. The interior didn't do much to disabuse me of the notion that we had, in fact, stumbled into a rest stop, either. Restrooms off to the side as soon as you enter. Tchotchkes galore lining the walls and filling the shelves of the shop and tasting room. If it weren't for the [free!!!] wine [17 in all] and frosted, acrylic-ed, spray tanned staff members; if it weren't for the winery visible through the glass wall at the back of the tasting room; if it weren't for the wine for sale; I might never have realized I had made it to Prince Michel. As it was, we had a nice tasting with a hoot of an attendant: "You kids are on the Merlot, riiight?" "Hey, hon, how'd you like that Pinot?" Dry wine tasting included: '09 Pinot Grigio (clean and crisp and highly enjoyable); '07 Chardonnay (part barrel aged, part stainless steel); '06 Barrel Select Chardonnay (mehhh); '06 Rosé (100% Merlot); '07 Cabernet Franc (redolent with cherry notes); NV Merlot (my favorite of all the wines sampled, with a touch of Shiraz grapes); NV Cabernet Sauvignon (mellow and cedar-fragrant); '06 Symbius (a Merlot/Bordeaux blend). Dessert wines were: NV Dry Riesling (1% residual sugar, and pleasing to the dry-lover's palate); NV Semi-dry Riesling (4% and approaching my tolerance threshold); NV Rosé (4%); NV Sweet White Reserve (too sweet at 6%); NV Sweet Red Reserve (6%); NV Peach (6.5%, and yet the fragrance and flavor of peach were subtle and agreeable); NV Blackberry (6.5% but the tartness of the berry balanced the sugars nicely); '06 Très Bien (Petit Manseng grapes, 13% residual sugar, and tasted *just* like drinking crushed raisin juice...if raisins exuded juice); and NV Port (8% -- I rarely meet a Port I like). After the tasting we took the self-guided tour through the winery, a nice touch of the Prince Michel experience. It was informative, interesting, and nice to be able to move exactly at our own pace. Overall, some great wines. But the rest stop lookin' winery itself leaves *much* to be desired. read more

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Pros and Cons of Prince Michel Vineyard: Pro: *gift shop and tastings available every day *huge selection of whites, reds, and sweet wines to sample *tastings are FREE. Yes, there are 15 wines you can taste free of charge in the tasting room. If you want to try the fancier ones, of which there are 7, you only need to pay $1 (total). A complete steal. *The winery self-guided tour. As a teacher, I appreciate these educational opportunities! (cue the nerd sign) Cons: *Character? Charm? Where have you gone? This place feels like it just magically sprung up on the side of some highway...oh wait, it did. *The gal who served us was not very knowledgeable about the wines, nor was she that affable of a person. C'mon, you get to pour wine to happy people! Put on a smile! *Did I mention this place lacks any sort of character? In all seriousness, though, Prince Michel is a great place to stop for a great variety of wines. Here are some notable ones that we tried: From the Complementary list: 1) Prince Michel Pinot Grigio 2008 - forgettable. "Subtle hints of lime and mineral", but all it tasting like was mineral water. 2) Cabernet Franc 2007 - slight taste of coffee beans, yum. Includes 5% merlot. Fragrant and rich. 3) Merlot: blended w/ 3% Shiraz...thick and rich and fruity. Pretty good. 4) Dry Riesling. 1% sugar. If I'm going for a Riesling, I'm going for something bolder and sweeter - this wasn't it. 5) Semi-Dry Riesling. A huge winner with a 4% of residual sugar. We bought a bottle. 6) Port (Dessert Wine) --- this winner smelllllllls like chocolate. Really sweet and almost syrupy in taste - something good to sip and savor. From the non-complimentary list: 1) Ivy Creek Farm Merlot 2007. My fiance really liked it, I didn't. A little overpowering for my taste. 2) Quaker Run Syrah 2006. Normally we both are big Syrah fans -- this was O.K. In all, while the wines were not the best I've ever had, it is a neat little place to stop into if you are in the area (and if you are hitting other wineries). I would not recommend making Prince Michel a focal point of an outing, but rather, a nice quick stop whilst already on the road. If Leon, VA, is too far out of your range, there is a store and tasting room in Alexandria. I believe it is much smaller, but still has the same vast selection to taste from, at the same great prices (or no price at all!). Wines range from around $15 to $30, with port priced differently (a 750 mL bottle for $50). Discounts are given for wine clubs and bulk purchase. read more

Prince Michel - Prince Michel Vineyard self-guided wine tour - Wine Tasting Room Near Me - Leon, Virginia

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So far this is the best winery I've ever visited in Virginia. The wines were exquisite and much better than the famous Trump Winery. I will definitely be back. read more

This is a beautiful winery with a large tasting room. The woman who did our tasting gave us there options a sweet wine tasting, a regular wine tasting, or a more expensive wine tasting. We went with the sweet wine tasting which was filled with samples of fruit wines including raspberry, apple, and peach. All the wines were delicious! The woman doing our tasting was very friendly and even shared recipes with us for cakes and brownies that use their wine. There is also a self guided tour of the winery which is fun to walk through before or after doing a tasting. read more

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Had a great time wine tasting here. This winery is right off the highway, seemingly in the middle of nowhere. The winery itself is warm and inviting, cute decor and little trinkets to buy. They have a fairly generous wine tasting with diverse set of wines. They also have a brief self-guided tour that you can take which I enjoyed. I would definitely stop by again if I was in the area! read more

A beautiful, sophisticated, delightful, and pristinely maintained winery in the heart of Virginia's wine country. We had a very lovely visit here, and spent several hours at a function. The restrooms were exceedingly clean, the self-guided tour was fun, the staff was 110 percent gracious, and, as a member of two minority groups myself, the reviews suggesting racial profiling at this site are 110 percent chicken droppings. read more

Probably the most convenient winery we hit this weekend. It is right off of the highway and really doesn't look much like a winery at all. I agree with the other reviewer in that you could almost mistake this for a highway rest stop (not at all like those in NJ). Nice gift shop, small tasting area and a nice "self guided" tour. Not sure how much of their wine is estate grown, but the complimentary tasting is quite extensive. Since we favor reds and were on the way home we skipped the whites entirely. Most of their wines are just okay, not great, but we liked the 2008 Symbius and the 2008 Crown Orchard Vineyard Cab Sauv, buying a bottle of each. Visited 12 wineries over the course of 4 days and bought 18 bottles of wine. Not bad at all. read more

I had an amazing experience here! My "wine guide" and I had a great conversation and I really appreciated her honesty about the level of sweetness, etc. She was looking out for my best interest rather than the bottom line, and she was very down to Earth. I tasted the "dry flight" that had a mix of offerings, but I was still able to try some of the sweet wines at the end. The wines were really good. I was able to purchase a glass of the amazing rosé and walk around on a self-guided tour, where there were facts and figures presented throughout the huge room that held steel barrels of wine. I also purchased three bottles of wine and was almost convinced to become a member. I told my guide that I would have to come back a couple times in order to ensure I would visit this winery enough - it is a bit of a journey for me, but it's well worth it! read more

If I were to rate Prince Michel on wine only I would give it 3 out of 5 stars. If I were to rate Prince Michel on friendly and inviting service, great atmosphere in the tasting room, tours of the facilities and overall shopping experience I would give it 10 stars out of 5! We stopped in on our way home from Richmond (we took a super scenic route) and thought this place looks interesting?! We ended up buying a few bottles of Merlot and a Bottle of the Cab Franc and then we started drinking the frozen wine slurpees they were making! OH WOW... what a concept! It was worth the trip in itself. Now with that said... I gave this place 4 stars overall... read more

Prince Michel - Wine Tasting Room Near Me - Leon, Virginia

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We really enjoyed our visit here. The wines were great. The wine pourer was very knowledgeable. We really loved walking in where they make the wines. Beautiful winery. We wil definitely be returning. read more

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Warm inviting atmosphere with adjacent areas to hang out outside the actual tasting room. They also sell some fun gifts to purchase, which I took advantage of. The staff was friendly and engaging. We tried a flight of wines plus an extra and it was a lot of fun. We each went away happy and with a bottle! read more

The wines were ok, nothing special. We didn't even stay and have a glass of wine despite it being a perfect fall day. The out door seating was in the sun and with a view of the highway and parking lot . Who wants to hear and see all that? The most off putting thing was all the clutter of the "gift shop". They had so much of it. Are you a winery or do you just want to sell a bunch of non wine related junk ?!?! The brewery had just opened and an employee told us that it still had ALOT of kinks to work out. This place seems like they are suffering from an identity crisis, what are you? read more

The treatment my friends and I received here was deplorable. The servers barely paid us any attention and once they did it seemed like we were a total bother to them. Based on how we saw all the other guests seemed to be treated I can only assume it had something to do with the fact that we were a multiracial group of friends. Once they lost our sale which was by no means small, an older woman came over and appeared genuinely concerned. In any case, racism in employees shouldn't be tolerated. read more

My absolute favorite winery. I have been a wine club member for years and it just keeps better. We love this place.

My wife and I have toured numerous wineries, unfortunately Prince Michel seemed more of a "prop" than a winery. Staff seemed and acted like "employees" rather than the wine passionate people you find at other wineries. Not much to see on grounds, just a couple of vines....if you're seeking a scenic rolling hills "wine country" view this isn't it....it's located on the side of Route 29 South on the way to Charlottesville. The wines were mediocre, again, the staff didn't seem interested in them either. The building is fairly ornate with contemporary artwork, and the obligatory gift shop, which seemed to have received more attention than the winery. I would take a more rustic winery, with passionate staff and good wine samplings...drive up a Virginia back road and find one...there a plenty to be found :) read more

This vinery is a little crowded BUT has some really good wine selections. You are given an option to either do a sweet or red tasting. We went with the sweet tasting and really enjoyed all of the wines offered. My personal favorite was the Raspberry! The ambiance is a little cluttered in the tasting room. It's a shop with the bar in the middle. It would have been nice if it was separate so that shoppers weren't in the way. There is however a cool self guided tour you can take around the vineyard to see how the wine is made. read more

Just stopped at Prince Michel winery. This is unequivocally the worst wine I have tried in Virginia. Bitter, flat, and overpriced. Worst yet, these MVA-grown grapes sully the reputation of fine Virginia Wines everywhere. Too bad its the first stop for many tourists coming into the area. Don't bother with this one. Bleh! read more

The best thing this place has going for it is its location right on the side of the highway. When you enter the tasting room, they direct you through a set of doors to take a self-guided tour, which was pretty cool. The tour walks you around above the production room where signs explain the winemaking process. Sadly, the tasting experience and the wine itself fell short. The guy giving our tasting was completely unenthusiastic about the whole process, and kept leaving us with empty glasses so that he could go gossip with his coworkers. The wine itself was unimpressive compared to many of the other Virginia wineries I've experienced. Apparently they have social hours with trivia at night, which may be worth checking out if you're in the area. If you're looking for great wines, though, skip it. read more

My husband and I stopped here on our weekend away for this birthday and were blown away. Everyone was friendly and welcoming. They had a wonderful selection of wines. I love sweet and fruit infused wines and there was not one I did not like. Our biggest issue was trying to decide which ones we wanted to buy as I wanted them all. It was my husband's birthday and when they found out he was given a special drunk-in birthday song. They have a wonderful self guided tour that was packed full of information. The cost for tasting was $5 for 10 tastings - pretty standard. What was nice and good business sense, that fee was removed if you purchased a bottle of wine. You could also purchase a glass of wine and hang out in the bar area. Added bonus - they had a wonderful gift shop and we were told they even had lodging on-site. This place was so good I joined the wine club. I can't wait to go back and highly recommend this place! read more

I love day drinking, especially winery day drinking. This was perhaps the most boring and uneducational wine tasting I have been to. The reviews says this is the 3rd largest vineyard in the state of VA and largess doesn't mean it's any good. Shelby was our tasting guide and she was probably the dullest person alive. I tried my best to ask engaging questions so I could get a feel for the vineyard but it was like milking a sap tree. She couldn't give me anymore info other than what was written on the description. The tasting room was littered with 2nd rate goods. The website stated a restaurant was on premise, however they no longer kept the restaurant open. We drove 2 hours to get here and wish we hadn't. 2 stars are being kind. read more

Prince Michel - So boring the parking lot had more flare - Wine Tasting Room Near Me - Leon, Virginia

For a very touristy winery right off the highway, it actually wasn't bad at all Located 45 minutes north of Charlottesville, Prince Michel looks like a really nice Virginia Rest stop just off Route 29. The facilities are very nice with plenty of indoor and out door seating and a self guided "winery tour" that will take you about five minutes to walk through. The tasting area is in the middle of an expansive gift shop filled with the sort of useless knickknacks you would expect (for example, a tie/scarf with a hidden flask in it or a novelty wine holder shaped like a bear drinking the wine). If you can get over the red neon lights flashing "Tourists Come Here!", you'll be pleasantly surprised by the wine tasting experience. Prince Michel offers two tasting lists with ten wines apiece - a selection of the typical white/red and a tasting of their sweet wines, each for $5 (and no you can't pay $10 and do twenty wine tastings, I already asked). We opted for the typical white/red list, and while none of them knocked my socks off like at other wineries, the wine was actually quite good, most notably the Select Chardonnay 2010, the Viognier, the Merlot, and Merlot-Cab Reserve. We were also able to try two of the sweet wines, the Rapidan River Chocolate (tasted like....well, chocolate wine) and the Tres Bien 2009 (a typical sweet wine that was pretty good, even though I really hate sweet wines). Our pourer was very engaged and had a type AAA+ personality. Also a glass of wine is so cheap ($5-8 a glass) and they fill it to the very top of the glass. A designated driver is a must, otherwise you'll be sitting in the parking lot for a few hours googling the fastest ways to sober up. Overall, I walked out surprised the wine was so good, although it still falls short on the overall quality of wineries I've been to outside of Charlottesville. This is a good first time winery for family and friends not familiar with wine at all, or if you happen to be driving by the place. read more

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Overall. Very good wines. Beautiful property and very large serving area(s). Some nice outdoor seating (when it is warmer). Wine tastings are $7 for a regular flight of whites and reds and $8 for their premium wines including 4 whites and 4 reds. The pours were very small, but our server did offer a re-pour of our favorites to compare... "in consideration of purchase". We attended mid-week in March and it was not busy at all. They were one of a few that offer mid week tastings (see the big wine map of Virginia). We liked the Syrah and Cabernet. As others have said the server pourer makes ...all the difference. I liked the suggestion to hang back...look at all the gift shop items and choose your server carefully. We liked Prince Michel's and would come again, but it wasn't our favorite! read more

Meh. It's small and cluttered. Didn't care for any of their wines on the premium tasting. Not much in the way of outdoor seating, it's all on the road. Decent indoor area with some live music- probably better for a rainy day than if you wanna be outside read more

Wine was good, estate was lovely, gift shop amazing. If they ever have a food/wine pairing - GO! The pairing was phenomenal, and the food was excellently chosen and prepared. read more

More like 3 1/2 stars here. If you have the time or are just driving by, they are definitely worth a visit. Right off route 29, their tasting room sure does have convenience on its side. Their self-guided museum/winery tour and extensive gift shop nick-knacks are also pluses, as is the complimentary tasting you get with any purchase. Their wines are ok to decent and prices range from reasonable to overpriced. Their Prince Michel Merlot stood out and is well-priced at $15 a bottle (walked away with that). Also good is their Quaker Run Syrah and the Mt. Juliet Petit Verdot (both good but not at $30 per bottle). The '10 Pinot Grigio is also not bad ($19), as was their Prince Michel Sparkling Wine (but not worthy of a $35 charge). They also have wine slushies for those with a sweet tooth! The lady that served us was pleasant and attentive but not the most knowledgeable wine server. Still, it deserves a stop. read more

This was the last of four wineries we hit up on the great jail break adventure (friend - get reckelss driving ticket - somehow hey let her off - who knows why - so we drove back to dc and got drunk ) Um - there was a cool butterfly! I liked this place - we were there towards the end of the day so i read more

We come here often but never stayed on the property. If you are looking for a relaxing and wonderful weekend this is the place. Our suite was amazing. Clean quiet and peaceful. Working fireplace and nice bottle of wine. Great music at winery. Disconnect (no internet) and relax read more

On the way to Ruckersville (after you pass Man-asses, VA towns are predominantly 'burg' or 'ville'), I made DaD stop by here so I could have some fun tasting while he browsed the gift store. Several were sold out, including the Viognier that interested me, but I simply cannot complain if it's free. The tasting menu was extensive and the glasses kept on pouring as I chose Chardonnays, Cab Francs, and Reislings. The employees were friendly and I thought the overall atmosphere was classy yet relaxed (I saw a couple playing checkers in the lobby). I especially liked the self-guided tour of wine making, where you can bring your wine with you to read the 6 displays. read more

Prince Michel - Wine Tasting Room Near Me - Leon, Virginia

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Complimentary Wine Tasting! For those new to the English language...FREE Wine Tasting! They have about 15 different wines as part of this complimentary wine tasting. Enough to get you pretty smashed/buzzed for you winos. If you pay $5 extra, they'll hook you up with samples of their "reserved" selections. Very charming employees who probably have the all the intros memorized, but who cares, it's still entertaining. They also have a restaurant, gift shop, and wine tours if you go at the right time. Great stop for any wine tours you have planned for the area. Their wines range from $15 to $30, it's pretty affordable wines too. read more

I like the variety of wines at Prince Michel - there were a ton of them! I would probably give it 3.5 stars. I really enjoyed the Petit Verdot and my husband and his parents loved the Port. Many of the whites were a bit sweet for my taste, but my mother-in-law, who loves sweet wines, really enjoyed them. It's nice because there is a little something for everyone. The tasting room itself it pretty nice and you can do a little walk around the barrels and learn some facts, but it's not as pretty of a winery as some others. It's on the side of a somewhat bigger road so there was quite a bit of traffic driving by. read more

We weren't planning on visiting this winery, but on our drive down to Stanardsville, we caught sight of advertisements along the highway and went for it. For $5 per person, you could try 10 wines of your choosing. The wines were okay, not the best I've had. The employees were friendly and helpful. After purchasing a bottle of the Crown Orchard Cab Sauvignon, we wandered through the self-guided museum. Overall, we had a great time. The tasting room also included many winery-related items that would be great for gifts, such as wine stoppers, bottle holders, and cheeseboards. I believe you can also purchase cheese there to eat with your tastings. read more

If you happen to be driving by, you really must stop in. They offer $5/person wine tastings and you get to try 15 wines, of your choosing. We really liked being able to choose the wines because we each know what we like and, really, there are some I already know I'm not interested in. The tasting room is really more of a bar atmosphere, which we thought was kind of cool and different. Also, there are wine related knick knacks, jewelry, etc. for sale in the store all around (nice stuff, too!). They were running a 3-for-$30 special on the Merlot (one we had marked as a favorite anyway) so we bought the three, a nice blackberry dessert wine, and a pretty bracelet for me. ;) read more