Barrel Oak Winery and Brewery — Attraction in Marshall

When we first joined Barrel Oak as CRU 4 year members, we were wowed by the hospitality of the staff, several of the excellent servers at the bar inside, and the casual vibe that felt more like home than other comparable wineries in northern Virginia. Jeannine helped us with our membership application and we even recruited another couple friends of ours to join.

That first year was great. We threw a birthday party at BOW and felt like VIPs bringing select friends and family for tastings, during which we always bought bottles and sent friends home with them to share. We attended every event hosted that first year, where it felt like enjoying a day at a friend's house. Cumulatively, we've spent thousands of $$ at BOW, and hundreds of hours shared with friends.

Unfortunately our more recent several visits and interactions with BOW have been subpar and we let our membership expire this month. The new ownership has completely overhauled how the winery and subsequently the treatment of members works.

During COVID, wineries and breweries were booming with business because regular restaurants and weekend activities were limited and scarier than choosing to be outside with loved ones. BOW was no exception, considering we tried to go multiple times and were met with lines to get into the driveway and to get wine. On occasion we chose to go elsewhere rather than wait for parking.

When we did get in and finally get parking, as members, we'd present our cards and get discounted bottles but were told there were no tastings during COVID. After the third such visit, where I felt that our member benefits weren't being met, especially after going to other wineries that were doing tastings, members only parking and areas, and similar events that BOW staff told us "wasn't allowed" because of state COVID restrictions, I called Jeannine, and she told me I was mistaken and that I could've been getting flights for tasting throughout COVID. I suggested maybe her staff had been newly trained and didn't know, but she said absolutely I was wrong and it had been available the whole time.

Since then, every time we've gone to BOW it's been difficult to enjoy our experience. Another time we went was for the CRU members barrel hunting party. The couple we invited to join us as members arrived early and did a tasting flight with their guest before the event. We went with our guests to the event, got two tickets each for BOWhaus red/white, and samples of not-yet-ready wines. Then the event was over and we went upstairs to redeem our member tastings and introduce our guests to the BOW wines. We were told our two glasses counted as our tastings and we couldn't have any more tastings.

Considering the member barrel hunting was cast as a membership recruitment effort, with a free case if our guests joined, it didn't make sense that they couldn't actually taste the wines BOW has to offer, whereas if we'd declined to participate in the member event our guests could have enjoyed the tastings that were promised with our membership.

These experiences with BOW stand out, among others, as feeling like we were being 'nickel and dimed' after investing in a multi-thousand-dollar, multi-year membership. We're disappointed with our overall experiences at BOW and sad that our satisfaction declined so rapidly the last couple years and under...

Gorgeous, gorgeous winery! Barrel Oak Winery (or BOW as they abbreviate themselves) makes for the perfect day or afternoon trip from the hustle and bustle of the city. The grounds are sprawling and spacious, the winery itself is super quaint and beautiful, and you can't beat looking out to miles and miles of spectacular fall foliage in the Piedmont countryside.

Just off of Route 17, BOW is known to be dog friendly. When I read that, I was thinking, "OK, they let you bring your dogs. That's nice." But no, when they say they're dog friendly, they mean super, super dog friendly. The owners are dog lovers and welcome all dogs onto the winery, making the atmosphere even more welcoming and relaxing. They even have a dog on staff! Dogs are allowed everywhere, inside the winery, outside on the grounds, and they even have bowls of water and treats ready for your pooch. There are almost as many dogs as people here! And everyone who comes here is a dog lover too, it seems. We came with friends who own a beautiful Bernese Mountain dog and so many folks came up to say hello and pet the dog. Everyone was friendly and I think that's because they allow Fido here! Not only that, but they also allow children to roam around as well, making it the best family-friendly winery in northern Virginia.

The wine tasting is $11 and you get to taste 11 wines. I personally enjoyed the 2013 BowHaus White, which was very fresh, crisp, and had tropical notes, and the 2010 BowHaus Red, which is a Chambourcin that was slightly dry. They also had two dessert wines that were pretty good, the first being the 2013 Goldie and the other being their popular Chocolate Lab. The Goldie had an aroma of honey and wildflowers and tasted fairly sweet, while the Chocolate Lab was a port-style Chambourcin that was a little bit sweeter. Their wines are decent, although not my favorites.

You can take a self-guided tour of the production area and view the barrel room. They do offer guided tours but only as part of their reserve tasting on Saturdays. They also say that it is possible to visit the vineyards depending on the time of the year, but you have to ask a manager.

The scenery, dog-friendly atmosphere, and spaciousness cannot be beat. It's obvious that the owners and staff took the time to make the winery quaint and homey. There's a fireplace inside with lots of comfy couches as well as high tables for folks to eat and drink. There's an outdoor patio where live music is playing, as well as an adjacent indoor area that looks like it was formerly a garage which also has equally comfy chairs, and plenty of picnic tables outside to drink wine, eat prosciutto, cheese, grapes, etc., and play with dogs. When we went, there was even a BBQ station that served up mean ribs and BBQ pork sandwiches.

Fantastic, beautiful winery! Can't wait to...

Spent June 1st 2024 at Barrel Oak Winery and Brewery enjoying the spectacular weather. Barrel Oak Winery and Brewery is a fantastic venue in Delaplane, VA. with amazing views and phenomenal wines. The management and staff truly love what they do - not just wine making, but also in 1st class hospitality.

We have been going to BOW off and on for a little over 2 years now and have had varying levels of customer service. But recently, with the addition of Adriana as General Manager and Jen as Director of Club Membership, BOW has really taken the entire experience to the next level.

My wife and I have been members of several different "wine clubs" which really only amounted to making a commitment to purchase cases at a discounted rate. But since Jen has taken over club membership at BOW, we really feel as though we are part of something special.

Club members are now included in, and encouraged, to participate in bottling days, treated to exclusive food and wine pairings in the wine cellar with the head wine maker, Jeremy, and much, much more. Since Jen and Adriana have come on board, we feel like close friends anytime we visit.

To illustrate that point, during our visit yesterday, I saw a bottle of 2017 Rkatsiteli. I've never heard of this grape and asked Adriana if it was available by the glass. She told me it wasn't, but then volunteered to chill a bottle so we both could sample the wine.

And let's not forget about Jeremy. As I said before, we have been members of "clubs" at a number of wineries in Virginia, but have never had a head wine maker make himself so accessible to the customers as Jeremy has with the BOW membership. Knowing how long his hours are, we are truly grateful for Jeremy's generosity spending time with his customers; sharing his experience and love of wine making.

If you've never been to BOW, I highly recommend spending a leisurely afternoon on their wonderful patio. If you haven't been in a while, please give them another chance, Jen and Adriana are committed to making sure every customer's experience is...