Blue Rock and Oasis partner for new winery

Doug Arnold, an assistant at the Hume winery, said Harvey and Salahi plan to break ground on a state-of-the-art wine production facility in the fall and open in 2009. Salahi was not available for comment.

"It's going to be a spectacular new winery devoted to champagne and sparkling wine, along with red and white wines that Oasis makes so well," Arnold said.

A Web site for the new winery has been set up at www.bluerockwinery.com.

"It's the last piece of the puzzle I wanted for Blue Rock," Harvey said.

Harvey has owned the Blue Rock Inn, which is located between the Town of Washington and Sperryville on U.S. 211, since 2005. The 80-acre property also includes a restaurant and bar, a bed and breakfast and an equestrian center. The annual Rappahannock Hunt Point-to-Point Races were held there March 1.

Harvey seemed excited about the new winery, but cautioned that it is not a done deal.

"The details are still to be ironed out by the attorneys, but the fundamentals are there," he said.

Harvey said he has not seen the final plans for the winery, and does not know how large the building will be or how much it will cost. But he did say the building will be designed to blend in with the look of the other buildings at Blue Rock.

"It's going to be on two levels; most of it's going to be buried," he said. "On the ground appearance it will probably look real small."

Harvey said he has been negotiating with Salahi for the past three months. The Blue Rock owner had looked into partnering with different wineries, but nothing worked out. He said Salahi is a "marketing genius" and seems like a good match for Blue Rock.

Harvey also said Salahi has attracted a lot of attention from other investors with the new venture. "The winery business in Virginia is the hottest thing since sliced bread," Harvey said.

History

Salahi and his father, Dirgham, have a long history at the Blue Rock Inn. They planted vineyards there in the early 1980s when the property was under different ownership.

The old vines were not maintained and needed to be replanted last year, Arnold said. The new vines are expected to begin producing grapes in 2010.

Oasis Winery, which the Salahis started in Fauquier County in 1977, was listed for sale in last week's Rappahannock News. The price advertised was $4.75 million. A prior attempt to sell the winery for $4.15 million fell through in January, according to an article in the Fauquier Times-Democrat.

Tareq Salahi and his parents, Dirgham and Corinne, also have faced off in court cases against each other. According to a Times-Democrat article in November, the two parties are battling for control of Oasis's operations. Allegations of fraud and embezzlement of corporate assets had been made by both parties since the litigation began in November 2006.

Arnold said Tareq Salahi still owns the Oasis brand name and distribution rights.

Despite the court cases, Harvey said he does not have any qualms about working with Salahi.

"I don't have that problem, I don't have the family squabbles, this is just business," Harvey said.

In Rappahannock County, no permit or approval is needed to start a winery on properties where grapes are grown, County Administrator John McCarthy said. It is considered a by-right agricultural use.

Rappahannock's zoning code classifies two categories of farm wineries.

A "Category 1" farm winery grows at least 51 percent of the fruit that goes into the wine. Wineries in this category may include facilities for tasting and for the retail sale of wine in closed containers for off-premises consumption. A Category 1 farm winery needs to be located on a parcel of at least 5 acres.

A "Category 2" farm winery grows at least 25 percent of the fruit for the wine produced there. Sale of wine for on-premises consumption is not allowed at this type of winery, except in farm winery retail establishments, eating establishments and bed-and-breakfast facilities. A parcel of at least 25 acres is required for a Category 2 farm winery.

A winery that produces wine from grapes grown off the premises is not considered a farm winery. The Board of Supervisors must approve a special-exception permit for such a facility to be built.

E-mail the reporter at kallen@timespapers.com.