Collegiate Times

Blacksburg offers numerous ways for the 21-and-older scene to sit back and enjoy a nice cold beverage. However, the town became a little classier with the addition of the new winery at the Beliveau Estate.

Originally called the Madison Beliveau, the Beliveau Estate first opened its bed, breakfast and event center in August 2007. The estate is currently a wedding venue, bed and breakfast, and lavender farm located in the Catawba Valley 12 miles from downtown Blacksburg. However, it was first created to provide individuals and families a perfect way to relax and enjoy all the beauty and nature of the Appalachian
region.

Senior chemistry major Martha Blakely has seen Blacksburg transition throughout her four years at Virginia Tech. She views the addition of a winery in the area as an asset to the region.

“Blacksburg as a town has definitely tried to increase its cultural knowledge with the musical festivals and Fork and Cork, which we’ve recently had,” Blakely said. “A winery would certainly increase our cultural understanding as an area, which I think would really be good for the New River
Valley.”

Originally from Vermont, Joyce Beliveau and her husband, Yvan Beliveau — a professor at Tech — chose Blacksburg as the location of the estate to accommodate Yvan’s job. Yvan served as the director of the Myers-Lawson School of Construction and was the past G.A. Snyder-Falkinham Professor of Building Construction. With this, he specializes in building energy systems. Joyce also got her master’s at Tech, so Blacksburg was certainly not new to
her.

The couple thought building the estate would bring a fresh avenue of recreation and cultural expression to Blacksburg. Upon opening the estate, the Beliveaus saw great interest in their business as a way to escape the stress of reality and to take a nice, relaxing break.

As huge fans of wine, they recently decided that adding a winery would make their estate even better for such relaxing getaways. The winery opened April 27 for business and has since received great interest from the community. Last weekend’s Fork and Cork festival featured a selection of wine tastings and was a hit throughout the community. For a town that has not previously housed a winery, the efforts made by Beliveau Estate of bringing one in seem to be promising.

The Beliveaus hope the winery will boost business and draw in more people to their estate. Joyce sees adding on the winery as a great option for vineyard weddings or simply for family outings.

“Our goal is simple: to make great wine,” Beliveau said. “We consider ourselves to be a boutique winery with an incredible ambiance that will attract people who want to enjoy an afternoon of wine-sipping and relaxation. Our on-site hiking trails are an added attraction to those wanting to blend an afternoon of activity and
wine.”

In addition to casual day visits, the Beliveau Estate offers several special events, such as the upcoming Tech graduation dinners May 11 and 12, Sunday music events beginning in June, and “Wine and Tapas” on Thursday nights starting May 10.

Though wineries are not in the family, the Beliveaus hope applying its long-standing love of traveling and wine tasting will be much appreciated around the Blacksburg community. The couple plans to combine strengths to produce the best winery possible for individuals around the area or for those who are just visiting.

“My husband and I enjoy drinking wine and have visited wineries around the world,” Beliveau said. “He knew that tending a vineyard and making wine would be something that would keep his mind and body active, while being passionate about producing wine. As for me, I enjoy the business side of the winery business, and of course drinking the wine.”

A version of this article appeared in the May 1 issue of the Collegiate Times.