Episode 8 Itinerary: Explore Lesser-Known History (Cider and Community)
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More InfoEpisode 9 Itinerary: Explore Lesser-Known History (Craft and Creativity)
In the ninth episode of Founding Footprints: Tracing America’s Journey in Charlottesville & Albemarle County, executive producer Benjamin Bernard talks with Leni Sorensen, a food scholar, historian, author, dinner host, and homesteader. Leni provides insight on the dynamics of everyday cooking and household management during the nation’s founding years. Up until the 20th century, food was very much a product of place – what could be grown, processed, stored, and traded. While today there is renewed interest in a locavore- “Buy Local” lifestyle, we are also generations removed from many of the skills needed to provide for ourselves.
We’ve put together an itinerary that helps you explore American foodways and crafts and how they continue to inspire farmers, makers, and artisans in Charlottesville and Albemarle County.
Listen to the Founding Footprints podcast HERE or on your favorite audio streaming platform.
Itinerary Length: 2.5 – 3 days
Day 1: Experience Western Albemarle County
Leni Sorensen writes, gardens, teaches, and cooks at Indigo House, which sits in the shadow of the Shenandoah National Park, just north of Crozet, in the rural community known as Brown’s Cove. You can learn more about the history of Brown’s Cove through this StoryMap, a project supported by the Albemarle Charlottesville Historical Society.
1. Visit the Montfair Resort Farm and Crozet Artisan Depot
2. Bike or Drive to Take in the Scenery
Bike or drive the Western Albemarle Scenic Route, which leads you past some the most iconic views and country markets near Crozet. For more experienced gravel cyclists, tackle the 21+ mile loop around Fox Mountain.
3. Visit Family Farms
Western Albemarle County remains a hub for farming and agriculture. Savor the bounty at centennial family farms like Chiles Peach Orchard and Henley’s Orchard where you can pick peaches from mid-June into August and apples from late August into November. Check out their farm stores for homestyle sweet treats and seasonal veggies! June is lavender-picking season at Orso Blu Farm. Chiswell Farm and Winery hosts the Virginia Sunflower Fest in July.
4. Visit Our Lady of the Angels Monastery
Have a gouda afternoon at Our Lady of the Angels Monastery, where they make and sell semi-soft, Dutch-style Gouda cheese. Founded in 1987, Our Lady of the Angels is the youngest Trappist-Cistercian order in the United States, and yet one of the few who still makes cheese in-house. You can purchase these 2-lb wheels between 2 pm and 4 pm, Monday – Saturday. Also, visitors are welcome to visit the chapel throughout the day.
5. Spend Time at Nearby Wineries
Taste the terroir at wineries like Stinson Vineyards, Fallen Tree Vineyard, and Grace Estate. Pollak Vineyards and Septenary: The Winery at Seven Oaks Farm are just a couple minutes west in the beautiful Greenwood area. All produce wines that speak to this place, its soil, environment, topography, and each winery’s farming technique.
6. Farm to Table Restaurants
Head into Ivy and Charlottesville for dinner at restaurants where the menus embrace Southern cuisine and regionally sourced ingredients. Duner’s, Maya, The Whiskey Jar, Rapture, Royalty Eats, and Mockingbird are local favorites.
Day 2: Meet Local Makers
1. Eat a Local Breakfast
2. Shop Local
Directly support local craft and food producers at the C’Ville Arts Cooperative Gallery and weekly farmers markets. Watch the calendar for Craft Cville pop-events held throughout the year.
Plan a trip around these annual maker festivals!
- Crozet Arts & Crafts Festival held in May and October
- Artisans Studio Tour in November
- Grace Church Historic Farm Tour held each June
3. Attend a Class
4. Learn While You Dine
Indulge in an intimate, small group food experience (or two!), such as
- Leni Sorensen’s Indigo House dinners and classes
- Tours by C-ville Bites, Charlottesville Guide, and Mili on the Move
- The Cooking School at Pippin Hill Farm and Vineyard
- Craft chocolate tastings at Feast
- Cocktail master classes at Birch & Bloom’s Aspen Bar.
Day 3: Family, Food, and History
Leni is an avid collector of historic cookbooks and an expert on Mary Randolph, author of the Virginia House-Wife, first published in 1824 - 25. The Randolphs and Jeffersons were connected through generations of friendship, family, and fortune. Thomas Jefferson’s mother Jane was a Randolph, and he spent his early years at Tuckahoe, an estate on the James River, where his family lived between 1746 and 1751 to foster the orphaned children of cousin William Randolph. Martha, Jefferson’s eldest daughter, married Thomas Mann Randolph, Jr. in 1790. She served as hostess during much of Jefferson’s presidency and ran the household at Monticello during his retirement years, all the while raising and educating her own family of Randolphs! Eleven of whom lived to adulthood.
1. Tour Monticello
Experience Monticello via a Highlights or Behind the Scenes Tour. Be sure to view the upstairs exhibition galleries at Monticello’s visitor center and the ice house and working spaces below the mansion to gain a better understanding of household management at this vast plantation and the intricacies of family relations.
See Monticello through the eyes of a child. Family Friendly tours, designed for kids 5 – 11 years, are offered throughout the summer and on special weekends. All admission options provide access to Monticello’s extensive grounds, mobile scavenger hunts, and hands-on Griffin Discovery Room exhibits. Admission also includes guided walking tours focusing on gardens and slavery at Monticello.
2. Travel with Family
Look for activities that combine STEAM and lots of fun for all ages when you visit Charlottesville and Albemarle County! Build a mini-itinerary from one or more of the following options.
- The Virginia Discovery Museum’s play stations invite little ones to hone motor skills and school-age kids to experiment with basic science. Best for ages 0 – 8 years.
- The 7+ miles of walking trails at Ivy Creek Natural Area are free to visit and encourage bird watching and deeper knowledge of African American history. Ivy Creek regularly hosts programs for Little Naturalists and star gazing.
- Wildrock is a nature play center with outdoor activity zones and a short trail system – all of which promote imaginative exploration for kids 10 and under.
- The Highland Rustic Trails and Blue Ridge Tunnel Trail are manageable for most ages and scalable to ability.
- Children and teens readily relate to art on display at the Kluge-Ruhe Aboriginal Art Collection. Bold colors, interesting materials, depictions of animals and landscapes – this is fresh contemporary work rooted in nature and storytelling. Ask at the front desk for an I-Spy activity and a map of adjacent walking trails.
3. Enjoy Family Friendly Meals
Lunch at Michie Tavern, c.1784, which is famous for its traditional Southern, midday buffet. Young visitors love to walk around the property – ask for a Treasure Map – and shop at the General Store. Pro Re Nata and King Family Vineyards in Crozet, Three Notch’d Craft Kitchen & Brewery in downtown Charlottesville, and Keswick Vineyards and Merrie Mill Farm and Vineyard in Keswick are some of our most welcoming craft beverage spots for families.
4. Find Local Honey
Charlottesville, the University of Virginia, and the town of Scottsville are all official affiliates of Bee City USA. You can purchase hyperlocal honey at James Monroe’s Highland and bath and body products at the Shop at Monticello. Try treats made from Crozet-based honey at Praha Bohemian Bakery and Café and wildflower honey mead at Thistlerock Mead Company. Want to enhance your apiary skills? Sign up for beekeeping classes and shop supplies at Scottsville Supply Co. and Siller Pollinator Company.
5. Discover Women-Owned Restaurants & Food Trucks
Abigail Adams was thinking about civil rights when in March 1776 she famously wrote to her husband, "remember the ladies". But the reality is that entrepreneurship through cooking, catering, and household management often provided a level of autonomy and economic independence, particularly for women and people of color, long before they were granted the vote.
Support the many women in the community who embody this revolutionary spirit today by dining at establishments like Ellie’s Country Club, Fig, FARMacy, Vu Noodles, Tilman’s, Florosa Bakery, Al Carbon, Arepas on Wheels, and Splendora’s.
Virginia is for History Lovers. Listen to all 10 episodes of Founding Footprints and make your travel plans now. Charlottesville and Albemarle County offer a variety of places to stay including resorts, inns, B&Bs, hotels, and vacation rentals – so you can book the lodging that aligns with your travel preferences.