The Commonwealth Collector

Virginia Governor Mark Warner has taken winemaking into his own hands

Ryan Isaac
Posted: January 27, 2004

Governor Mark Warner and his wife, Lisa Collis, spend many weekends at their farm in Dogue, Va.

Governor Mark Warner of Virginia is a leader of his country and of industry. As a politician, he is working with the White House Office of Homeland Security to protect the nation. As an entrepreneur, he was a key figure in the telecommunications revolution of the 1980s. And as a wine collector and vineyard owner, he has become the Virginia wine industry's most prominent advocate since Thomas Jefferson.

"The quality of the winemaking in Virginia has really gone up exponentially, particularly over the last three to five years," Warner says, attributing the success to better winemakers and to the transformation of vineyard owners from hobbyists to serious proprietors. Halfway into his four-year term, Warner has signed legislation allowing Virginia wine to be shipped throughout the country; it will be implemented as soon as the bill clears "bureaucratic hurdles."

Warner's understanding of the wine industry comes from personal experience. In 1989, he planted 15 acres of grapes on his farm in Dogue, Va., about 60 miles north of Richmond.

"When I first put the vineyard in, that was a relatively large vineyard for Virginia standards," he says. The governor estimates there are close to 90 vineyards in the commonwealth today. Virginia also has more than 80 licensed wineries.

On his farm, Warner grows Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Sangiovese and Viognier. Warner sells his grapes to Ingleside Plantation, a neighboring winery, and buys back 40 cases each year. At first, it was a hobby, but as he has invested in better equipment and management, it has become a small business.

"It's given me an appreciation of how tough the wine business is, and how important not only soil and climate are, but also how important it is to have a good winemaker," he says. "That's really what I've been amazed at. I think the quality of Virginia wine in the early '90s and mid-'90s was good, but it paled in comparison to California, Oregon and Washington state. I think we've got some people who've raised the bar and have been much more serious about the business, but it really has gotten exceptionally better in the last three years."

Warner, 49, began his political career in 1993 as chairman of the Democratic Party of Virginia. Prior to becoming governor, he ran Columbia Capital Corp., a venture capital fund that started about 70 companies in the telecommunications and information technology fields. As a wireless communications pioneer, Warner co-founded Nextel Communications.

At the Governor's Mansion -- where his wife, Lisa Collis, and their three daughters spend most of their time -- Warner serves only wines from Virginia. But before he immersed himself in Virginia wine, he was stocking his cellar with Bordeaux and California wines. He still has many Bordeaux bottlings from the 1980s at his Alexandria, Va., home and at the farm. Overall, he has about 1,000 bottles.

He began drinking wine in his mid-20s, after graduating from Harvard Law School. Classmates from the San Francisco Bay area took him through Napa. Today, his collection is in part the result of friendships. "I've got a lot of friends who are very serious collectors," he says. "They do all the research, and I chip in a little bit and get an extra case or two of whatever they're buying."

When it comes to Virginia wine, though, Warner is the expert. "The wine industry is a winner on all fronts," he says, explaining that it preserves open space in the face of growth with a viable agricultural product and helps promote overall tourism.

"It's a wonderful marriage," he says. "If you think about history and winemaking, the combination in Virginia is spectacular. There's no other place in the country where you could visit Monticello in the morning and then see a half-dozen wineries in the afternoon in beautiful rolling countryside."

If Governor Warner's achievements in his other endeavors are any indication, the Virginia wine industry is on the brink of great success.