The Guest House at Bellpine Vineyards

Retrofitted one-room outbuilding with loft on 70+ acres in a gorgeous setting with private, gated driveway. Set back 400' from quiet rural lane. Charming, rustic, cozy, secluded and very private, this country gem is just minutes from 9 local wineries. WiFi, DVD player, Netflix. Friendly dogs welcome, please let us know. Ask about wine touring around the neighborhood, including some opportunities for complementary tasting. Cheers! The space This airy, comfortable, quirky and welcoming space is a true country gem. Originally it was the machine shed from the farm across the lane. Moved onto our property in the mid nineties, it has had several incarnations before becoming the sanctuary it is today. An IMPORTANT NOTE about the KITCHEN: This is an efficiency-style kitchen with a hot plate, microwave, small fridge, coffee maker and toaster. There is a two-burner camp-style stove and a weber with charcoal for outdoor use. There is a modest but complete set of cooking and dining utensils. There is no oven. Guest access Make yourselves at home on our 70+ acre property. While your private drive, cottage and immediate surroundings are all yours to enjoy during your stay you are also more than welcome to wander freely: whether it's the walking trails through forested lands, the vineyard, the developing hazelnut orchard or the wetlands, our property is yours to explore. Other things to note IMPORTANT!!! While cute, quaint and charming, this space is rustic and not without its quirks, so if the luxury 5-star resort with the pool, formal landscaping and all the perks is your thing this place may not be for you! Still reading? Good! Here's the down-home lowdown. PLEASE READ BEFORE BOOKING: *No cel phone service. If you have Verizon or ATT you may be able to send and receive text messages...slowly...but if you need to talk or check messages you will have to use WiFi calling or drive down Ferguson road east until you get a signal, to the Long Tom Grange at most (1.5 miles). *No broadcast TV programming. The 32" television is basically just a monitor for the DVD player, which also streams netflix. There is a limited, yet very interesting, collection of DVDs to watch, otherwise you can bring your own. *ACCESS TO THE LOFT is easy, but does require some stooping, (or crawling, depending on your capacity for physical graffiti), and while the queen bed is very comfy there is no room to stand up fully in the loft. Also there is no railing. If you have balance, mobility or geriatric issues this will be challenging. Side effects of your visit are not limited to, but may include, stooping, crawling, descending stairs backwards, bumping your head and a sense of bemused wonderment: Before booking, ask your doctor if Bellpine Vineyards Guest House is right for you. *You're in the country and yes, you're on wellwater, in our case a 375' deep well. The water is good, pure and safe, but it is hard and slightly calcerous and periodically sulphurous. It may be an adjustment to some folks used to heavily chlorinated municipal water or bottled water. Regardless, we always have a good supply of bottled water for drinking or cooking if you don't like the taste of what comes out of the tap. *There is not a lot of insulation in this building so good climate control takes a little bit of planning. During the hot summer months you will be relying on the little A/C unit, but it can be noisy so you will want to leave the windows open overnight to bring in the cool air, then close things down once the sun is up: you'll have a relatively cool and refreshing space waiting for you after your day's adventure. In the winter build a small fire in the woodstove (need help with this? just ask Alan!) or turn on the propane wall heater and the space will eventually warm up nicely. Managing the fire takes some patience and understanding: Don't get it hot enough and you'll be cold... get it too hot and you'll run yourselves out of the sleeping loft when all the warm air rises. The fire will not last through the night so mornings can be cold until you get the fire going again, depending on ambient temps outside. *Electricity is safe and reliable but also quirky: run too much at once and you'll trip the breaker! *This is a working farm and, while generally idyllic, peaceful, and very quiet there are times when agricultural operations will be heard. During harvest (mid September through October) you may hear the banging of Alan and the boys scaring birds out of the vineyards. In the Spring, during budbreak, you may hear the fan running to protect the tender buds from frost damage (mid April through mid May) This occurs at night and can be quite loud, although the cabin is acoustically less vulnerable than the house, and most folks sleep right through it. Tractors, mowers, chainsaws and other equipment may be heard periodically year-round either from our place or a neighboring farm. This is also timberland: logging operations may be heard from time to time in the surrounding hills. Houseflies and ladybugs: This is an old structure that sometimes hatches out flies under certain circumstances in the spring and fall. They come out and die and are concentrated almost solely in the bathroom window area. We are working with Good Earth Pest control to solve this unpleasant phenomenon in a safe and organic way and are making progress. If you are reading this there is still a possibility of a hatch. Please contact us if you have any questions or concerns about this.