Valetta Bertrand-Baker’s parents, Alice Bertrand and Glenn Bertrand Sr., were looking for a place to retire after 45 years in the construction business. They found a farm on Owl’s Nest Road, in Nokesville, close to their children, Valetta and Glenn Jr., but once they looked at the barn, the retirement plans went on hold.
“My dad is 73 years old, and he is still going strong,” Bertrand-Baker says. Instead, the family has built Diamond Farm Brewery and Winery, which holds its grand opening on Sunday.
Bertrand-Baker says the family was “just learning about agritourism, and how they’re trying to bring people into Prince William County for that. And we just wanted to be a part of it.”
Thanks to their construction experience, they renovated the barn themselves. For now, they’ll be using it as a venue for weddings and corporate events, with wines provided by their partners at Bull Run Winery.
In roughly five to six months, the tasting room will open, and their own beer will be available to visitors; the wines will take a couple of years to come to fruition. The renovated manor house will open next year.
Diamond Farm would appear to be only the second Black-owned brewery/winery in Northern Virginia, and Bertrand-Baker says the family is glad to contribute to “more representation in that industry.”
Running a business like this is “uncharted territory” for the family, Bertrand-Baker says, but she’s appreciative of the “hand-holding” that the community and the industry have done to help them get started.
And in the end, it’s about contributing to the region’s agritourism — and hosting some good times.
“We’ve always been known to have great parties,” Bertrand-Baker says. “So this is just like an extension of that.”
Feature image courtesy Diamond Farm Brewery and Winery
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