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By Katie Bianco, Stefanie Gans, Rachael Keeney and Michael Balderston
Heading back to Herndon
I moved out of my Herndon apartment a little over two weeks ago and I’m already making my way back for the Labor Day Festival, which features beer and wine tastings for $25, games and live music. Coincidentally, two of my best friends from college just moved there together, so I suspect that I’ll be in the area a little bit longer after all. –RK // Herndon Town Green: 777 Lynn St., Herndon
Summer Camp at 14 Loudoun, through Sept. 23
It’s about this time, the end of August, when I start to panic that I haven’t done enough summer fun stuff. But I will not let another week go by where I don’t check out Summer Camp, the Leesburg pop-up filled with DIY s’mores on Tuesdays (hello Nutty Buddy Reese’s marshmallow), adult Capri Suns and giant pretzels.
But with two kids and a job that demands I eat at a different restaurant (not bar) every night doing research for the 50 Best Restaurants issue, I’m not sure I’ll make it. I might just have to wait for the Halloween pop-up. –SG // 14 Loudoun St. SE, Leesburg
A head-to-head battle
I’ve had a bit of a dilemma in recent months—I can’t decide if I’m more of a wine person or a beer person. Nothing says summer quite like an afternoon out at a winery with a delicious red, but I also enjoy the often more casual, laid-back brewery environments offering a wider range of brews. So let’s settle this in a taste test. Tuscarora Mill—more affectionately known as Tuskies—is hosting a beer vs. wine dinner, comparing how certain brews and grape varieties pair with different dishes. Whether I definitively decide which way I lean or not, I’m sure I’m leaving satisfied (and stuffed). –MB // 203 Harrison St., Leesburg
Bring on autumn
Apple picking, a corn maze and cider doughnuts? Sign me up! Great Country Farms kicks off its annual Apple Gala & Fresh Cider Fest this weekend and welcomes fall fanatics every Saturday and Sunday this September. I’m going to let my 2-year-old try a cider doughnut and then work off her sugar rush with some apple picking. –KB // 18780 Foggy Bottom Road, Bluemont
