Design

Pippin Hill Farm and Vineyards is posed to to be Central Virginia’s most comprehensive boutique winery and vineyard.  Located on Bundoran Farm and just minutes from the University of Virginia and Downtown Charlottesville, Pippin Hill Farm is envisioned as a fresh interpretation of the classic winery through expertise of a collaboration of artisans, winemakers, local farm producers and event designers.  Their design pays homage to the classic American form of farmstead house, barns and fields, and reflects on Pippin Hill and their design team’s vision for an understated structure that blends into the contours of the land, naturally enhancing the beauty of the property.

The design and construction reflects a commitment to their patrons, and equally important, to the environment.  The building incorporates a range of LEED and Green Engineering elements, including resource efficient timber and wood frame construction, cellulose insulation, geothermal heating and cooling system, rainwater harvesting and natural stone and wood finishes.

Wines and Vines

A member of the Monticello Wine Trail, Pippin Hill Farm is a boutique-scale operation defined by their signature wine production.  At its most basic level, their operational philosophy is to preserve and protect the rural agrarian nature of the farm environs.  Their five-acre vineyard is planted with Savignon Blanc, Petit Verdot, and Viognier varietals.  They will supplement their grapes with others from their co-op farm partners through a lease of their vineyard production.

Pippin Hill’s winemaking aims for quality and requires a high level of personal skill, experience and commitment.  It is structured as a unique partnership with recognized winemaker, Michael Shaps with Virginia Wineworks, utilizing their ‘custom crush’ production services for the range of Pippin Hill wines.  Custom crushing is an innovative process that allows individuals, grape growers and wineries to capitalize on an established winemaker’s facility and expertise to create distinctive wines for their own brands.

Pippin Hill sources all of their grapes regionally from Virginia’s finest vineyards.  For their premiere year, they are offering a range of wines including Chardonnay, Viognier, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Meritage blends and seasonal sparkling Blanc de Blanc and Rose Wines.

Pippin Hill’s Tasting Room is open Tuesday through Saturday from 11:00 AM to 6:00 PM and features wine tastings and food pairings with the wines. Group tastings are available by appointment, in their Wine Bar Loft.

Here’s a link to a news clip that appeared on the local NBC affiliate about the opening of the Pippin Hill Farm and Vineyards  - “Finishing Touches for Pippin Hill’s Opening”

Last week we held the on-site, pre-construction meeting with Sandy and Betsy Stuart on their homesite at Bundoran Farm.  Architect Andy Andrews skillfully designed a classical Virginia Farmhouse to sit in around the site of a former farm cottage.  Sandy and Betsy Stuart will be working with DeTuncq Builders, a new member of the Bundoran Farm Guild, to bring their design vision to reality.

Brad DeTuncq, Betsy Stuart, Andy Andrews and Sandy Stuart at the Stuart's Homesite

For more information about the Bundoran Farm’s approach to sustainable design and construction visit – Sustainability at Bundoran Farm.

Click below to see a short video clip of the bridge installation.

Placing a section of the Ballyshannon Bridge – Video Clip

Ballyshannon Bridge

Congratulations to all involved including Sunbiosis Architects, Artisan Construction and most importantly, John and Diane Foraste, Bundoran Farm Stewards and owners of this lovely and sensitive home.

You can read to full story written by Zack Miller in most recent issue of  EarthCraft Virginia e-newsletter.

Last night I took the crew out to a great local restaurant where we had
an awesome time and exquisite food–juts to celebrate the roof
milestone.  Thom and Bruce were sorely missed–and our hearts go out to
Thom and his family after his accident which will require some
significant recovery time.  He was the pivotal guy on the roofing with
Matthew–a formidable pair without whom we would have been hard pressed
to achieve anything close to what we actually did.

Looking forward to the weekend–and while there is no rest for the
weary–it will be a welcome change of pace catching up on the rest of my
life and the business in its many other venues.
george abetti – geobarns

When the sun went down in dropped into the lower 20′s right away and
will hit the mid teens tonight.  This camper has all the insulative
value of a tin can–as Matthew succinctly put it–but once I am in bed
under several quilts I am okay–it is getting up into the 40′s or 50′s
early in the morning that really tests my mettle….but life is also
joyful fulfilling my passion with people I love in building this
project….so there is much to warm my heart…

george abetti – geobarns

One of the crews put in at least a hundred of bolts today–mounting the
saddles onto the posts–while another cut and put on the upper beam and
yet another kept framing toward the other end of the building since the
other side has just been poured and isn’t yet ready for us.  It is a bit
unusual for me to build asymmetrically like this–since we always do a
task until it is complete and move onto the next in sequence.  In this
case–we are all following one another in sequence–with parts of the
building without a foundation–so as much as it kills me–those posts
are just going to have to wait for a place to be set…

I took the crew out for lunch since it was quite cold and a bit breezy
and we all needed to warm up a bit….just perfect at the local
Batesville Store–the gathering place for this part of the local area
south of C’ville…

george abetti – geobarns

We were also very fortunate that that large tasting room basement
foundation was poured last Wednesday since it requires a ten day hiatus
to cure before backfilling–which means we can move northwest to do the
rest of the posts and girders and mirror image kitchen section (opposite
end of the entry/bridal areas)….which will then allow us to start the
roof system….the big goal for before Christmas.

I drove 2000 miles this past Thanksgiving weekend….feeling every bit
of it trying to get my bearings…:-\

george abetti – geobarns

Meanwhile the other crew of Thom, Ben and Kurt worked in the grand
entry/bridal area putting up sills, sisters and bandboards for the floor
system which will go in Monday–and ,managed to get up all the
buttresses before we left at 5:00–just as the sun went down.  After an
OSHA safety talk (with me looking didactically directive in 1046) we
gathered together for a photo only after Pippin Hill Farms’ own Whitney
Walker serendipitously showed up and got us all digitally immortalized
for this email before the sun went down…the end to a perfect day–for
which we humbly thank God.

george abetti – Geobarns