Waters Edge Winery Midlothian opened on Aug. 17 at 2201 Chartermark Drive, off Charter Colony Parkway. Many of its wines carry the names of Midlothian-area neighborhoods. If you live in RounTrey, Brandermill, Woodlake or Tarrington, a bottle with your neighborhood's name on it is sitting on a shelf a short drive away. But the grapes in those bottles come from Armenia, Paso Robles and Monterey County. The neighborhood names are local. As of the September coverage, the wine wasn't. That gap is how this kind of winery works, and it explains how a winery ended up in a retail building near your house.
The Map on the Menu
The current menu has more than 50 options, including reds, whites, rosés, sparkling wines and sangrias. Virginia Hospitality News called the neighborhood naming "a nice piece of local branding." It listed Brandermill, Rountrey, Hallsley, Walton Park, Robious Forest, Queensmill, Otterdale, Winterfield, Woodlake and Founders Bridge among the names. Here is what each one turns out to be, from the winery's posted menu at last check:
| Name on the menu | What's in the bottle | Glass / bottle |
|---|---|---|
| Rountrey | 2021 Vayots Dzor Areni, a red | $13 / $39 |
| Brandermill | 2021 Vayots Dzor Voskehat, a white | $14 / $42 |
| Tarrington | 2023 Monterey County Chardonnay | $13 / $39 |
| Woodlake | Almond Sparkling | $12 / $36 |
| Hallsley | 2023 Cariñena White Grenache | $13 / $38 |
| Otterdale | 2024 Cariñena Grenache Syrah | $16 / $48 |
| Walton Park | 2020 Paso Robles Cabernet Sauvignon | $15 / $45 |
| Robious Forest | 2023 Paso Robles Zinfandel | $14 / $43 |
| Queensmill | 2020 Paso Robles Syrah | $14 / $42 |
| Winterfield | 2021 Miscela Bianca, a white | $14 / $42 |
| Founders Bridge | Pink Moscato | $12 / $36 |
The list keeps going with names like Salisbury, a sweet red; Glenmore, a red the menu calls "Big Daddy Red"; Michaux Creek, Oxford, Hawthorne, Hartley and Tanglebrook. The sangria is called Berkley.
The pairings are fun to compare. The Brandermill and the Rountrey both come from the same Armenian region. Vayots Dzor supplies a white for one and a red for the other. Virginia Hospitality News pointed to the Brandermill bottle as proof that "the grapes behind those names come from appellations around the world." The menu describes the Rountrey as low in tannin and fresh, with "classic cherry and plum aromas." The Tarrington is a Chardonnay with notes of citrus, golden apple and peach. The Woodlake is a sparkling wine with a light almond note, and the menu suggests using it for a sparkling almond mimosa.
Why the Rountrey Comes From Armenia
The far-flung grapes are how the business is built. Waters Edge calls its locations urban wineries. The franchisee buys grapes and juice from growing regions elsewhere and finishes the wine on site, with no vineyard and no crush pad. Virginia Hospitality News quoted the Midlothian site: "we do not grow or crush the grapes, we outsource those functions to a global network of vineyards and growers." The paper said that network includes California, Italy, France, Germany, Spain, New Zealand and Chile.
Without a vineyard, a working winery fits in an ordinary commercial building. Virginia Hospitality News said that's how one ended up in a new retail development off Charter Colony Parkway. The building is 7,400 square feet. Titan Construction Group finished the shell for owner Riverstone Group before Paul and Rebecca Williams signed the lease.
As of early September, winemaking hadn't started at the Chartermark Drive location. The production room was already built at the back of the building, with the equipment where guests can watch. Paul Williams told Richmond BizSense then that production would start "sometime in the near future." In the meantime, the tasting room was pouring wine shipped in from the franchise network. Williams wanted to work through about 5,000 bottles he already had before starting production.
So even after winemaking starts in that back room, the Rountrey will still be made from Armenian grapes. What changes is where the wine gets finished.
What Is Local Is the Room
The Williamses are the local part of this franchise. They have lived in Midlothian since 2014. Paul Williams was chief information officer for Virginia ABC from 2016 until May 2024. He grew up in England and traces his interest in winemaking to his father's fruit farm. The couple found the brand when they visited its Norfolk location, which is the only other Waters Edge in Virginia.
People were buying the wine before the building opened. On July 28, the winery announced that it had received its Virginia ABC license on July 24 and opened online ordering for pickup while construction wrapped up. The announcement said many customers first found the wines at community tastings. By early September, the wine club had about 80 members, according to Richmond BizSense.
Williams describes the space as a place for neighbors to meet more than a destination:
"This isn't really an entertainment space, but it's a social meeting point space. There just isn't anything. The nearest you can get is probably over at Winterfield (Crossing), but … it's not local to here. We have people who walk here regularly … people like that it's in their community."
Winterfield, the place he names as the closest comparison, also has a bottle on his list. It's the Miscela Bianca. The room holds about 250 people, including the event space, and the opening team numbered about 30. Virginia Hospitality News said private events, custom bottle labels, classes and live entertainment are all planned.
Ordering Your Own Neighborhood
If you go to find your neighborhood's bottle, a few details about how the bar runs will help.
- Tasting: $15 gets you five 1-ounce pours from across the list, not including premium wines. Non-club members can't order it on Fridays or Saturdays after 4 p.m.
- Flight: $20 buys four 2-ounce pours picked by the winemaker, available any time.
- By the glass: Glasses run from about $8 to $21. Most bottles start around $30 to $40, according to Richmond BizSense.
- Stock: Some neighborhoods are easier to find than others. At last check, Walton Park was sold out with a reserve coming in November. Tanglebrook, Walton Lake and Rosemont were also listed as returning in November, and Brandermill was marked low inventory.
- Food: The bistro menu has appetizers, charcuterie boards, flatbreads and sandwiches. Examples include potato skins, a mezze platter, a prosciutto fig and goat cheese flatbread, and a three-cheese melt with raspberry preserves.
- Wine club: Memberships cost roughly $40 to $75 a month for two bottles, plus discounts. Reports differ on the exact tiers, so check the winery's club page for current terms.
Hours are worth confirming before you go. The winery's website lists Monday closed, Tuesday and Wednesday 11 a.m. to 7 p.m., Thursday through Saturday 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., and a shorter Sunday ending at 6 p.m. Coverage from September gave shorter hours. Virginia Hospitality News added that hours may change during the soft opening and that no grand-opening date has been set. The phone number is (804) 653-7398.
October on Chartermark Drive
The October calendar is full, and there are no November or December events posted yet.
- Oct. 9 and Oct. 23: Open line dancing with beginner lessons
- Oct. 10: Azaday, playing classic rock, bluegrass, jazz, blues and Americana
- Oct. 16: Singo, hosted by Big Brainz Live
- Oct. 17: Donald Coles, 7 p.m.
- Oct. 22: Fall hat-bar party; the $65 ticket includes a hat and supplies
- Oct. 23: Family Trunk or Treat with The Learning Experience and Commonwealth Dentistry
- Oct. 25: Music with Josh Davidson
- Oct. 30: Trivia with Big Brainz Live
Oct. 23 has two events on the same night: the Trunk or Treat and the second line-dancing session.
When a business names its wine after your neighborhood, it's betting that people who live nearby will make it their regular stop. At Rick Cox Realty Group, we keep track of new places like Waters Edge around Midlothian because they're part of what our neighbors talk about. If you're curious how a new spot off Charter Colony Parkway fits into your corner of Chesterfield, contact us. We're happy to share what we know.
