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Photo courtesy Visit Loudoun
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Photo courtesy Visit Loudoun
Thirty-three miles from the nation’s capital, in Loudoun, the richest county in America, you’ll find Leesburg, the county seat, a place where the average annual household income tops $125,000. This bedroom community off Interstate 66 is home to D.C. lawyers, lobbyists and money, but it’s more than just a place for Washington power players to lay their heads at night: It’s a travel destination in its own right.
It’s an epicenter of agri-tourism, with 24 breweries and 40 wineries in Loudoun, more than any other Virginia county. Local farmers fill the plates at Leesburg’s world-class, locally sourced restaurants. Side streets in Leesburg’s historically protected, Colonial-era downtown retain cobblestone sidewalks, while the main thoroughfare, King Street, offers boutique shopping, dining and sightseeing far from the Interstate 95 corridor.
History
As you’d expect for a county founded in 1757, the area is rich in historic homes and sites. Its Old and Historic District encompasses 247 acres, retaining its early-American pale blue and yellow mansions and clapboard houses, mixed with modern retail.
The Marshall House, the brick manor that was home to Gen. George C. Marshall and his wife, Katherine, is a good jumping-off point to the walkable downtown. Meant to be a retirement estate for the Marshalls, it instead became home base in the 1940s and 1950s for the general, who served under President Truman as U.S. secretary of state and secretary of defense, a man seemingly unable to quit government. A tour speaks to Marshall’s construction of the European Recovery Program (commonly known as the Marshall Plan) after World War II, his tenure as president of the American Red Cross and the Nobel Peace Prize that he won in 1953 for the Marshall Plan. Afterward, step across the street for a slice of homemade apple pie at Mom’s Apple Pie bakery.
Down Route 7, discover the “Central Park” of Loudoun, Morven Park. This 1,000-acre estate possesses both wild and formal gardens, as well as three museums: the Winmill Carriage Museum; the Museum of Hounds & Hunting North America; and Morven Park Mansion, a rambling mix of architectural additions, where Westmoreland Davis, a former governor of Virginia, once resided. The mansion’s meticulously maintained formal rooms stand out in the gloaming of late December days when they’re festooned with lights, glass and greenery.
Also worth a look is the circa-1894, classical revival style Loudoun County Courthouse at King and Market streets (U.S. 15 and State Route 7).
Sunset Hills Vineyard (Photo courtesy Visit Loudoun)
Wine and Dine
The Conche is a chocolate-themed restaurant in the Village at Leesburg, helmed by chef Santosh Tiptur, a first-place winner on Food Network’s “Sugar Dome.” The Conche features sexy low lights and hideaway booths, plus expert mixologists who whip out consummate date-night dining. Cocoa-nib-encrusted diver scallops and a Madagascar chocolate mousse with chocolate creme brulee and salted-caramel ice cream mold a decadent evening.
A few turns away from each other lie Tarara Winery, Fabbioli Cellars and Sunset Hills Vineyard, which produces a fabulously dry viognier. Bring a picnic lunch from South Street Under in downtown Leesburg, which turns out fluffy, chewy ciabatta for their overstuffed sandwiches.
Vanish Farmwoods Brewery, owned by Jonathan Staples of Richmond’s GWARbar, began as a hops farm bent on saving Loudoun’s vanishing farmland. The kid- and dog-friendly brewery serves killer hickory-smoked barbecue on the weekends. Although they have more than 16 beers on tap, the ’cue alone is worth the two-hour drive from Richmond.
Stay
Centrally located for both downtown and the wineries, Lansdowne Resort and Spa makes a relaxing, or busy, home base. The hotel evokes a laid-back wine-country vibe, with a map in the lobby of Loudoun’s wineries, breweries, meaderies, cideries and distilleries.
At the in-house Spa Minerale, woodsy aromas wafted across my temples during a red-wine facial made with area wine grapes. You can also unwind here with a private sauna, steam or soak. Activity-oriented travelers will appreciate the free fitness classes and multiple golf courses along the Potomac.
