JOHN KENT COOKE, a former owner and president of the NFL Washington Redskins, has announced the construction of his Boxwood Winery in Middleburg, Virginia.

"It is always exciting to form a successful organization," said John Kent Cooke. "Our winery is designed by Hugh Newell Jacobsen, and award-winning architect from Washington, DC whose work I have long admired, and incorporates the knowledge and expertise of Dr. Richard Vine, Head of the Oenology Department at Purdue University. A winning combination."

The winery is a complex of four buildings: a reception building for wine tasting; a fermentation chai with twelve stainless steel tanks ranging from 500 to 2,000 gallon capacity; a bottling building with storage up to 10,000 cases, and a circular underground cave housing French oak barrels. Mr. Jacobsen's design is modern, but he has chosen materials characteristic of the 18th Century rural area of Middleburg - field stone from the historic Boxwood Farm and standing seam metal roofs. The winery is being built by Peterson and Collins of Washington, DC.

The project began over 18 months ago and when finished in 2005 will represent one of the finest facilities on the east coast. Dr. Richard Vine has advised Hugh Jacobsen on the layout of the winery and has carefully selected state-of-the-art equipment from France, Italy, and the United States.

An 18-acre vineyard is contiguous to the winery. It is designed by Ms. Lucie Morton, a viticulturist with international credentials, who has chosen multiple clones of eight varieties of grapes, certified by the French Government: Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Tannat, Petit Verdot, Syrah, Malbec and Carmenere. The grafted vines are being propagated for Boxwood in California for delivery in 2004 and 2005.

Boxwood will produce red wine only and blended in the French Bordeaux tradition. Production will be limited to 5,000 cases each year and the first vintage will be available in 2007.

Boxwood Winery LLC will be managed by John Kent Cooke's daughter, Rachel Martin, who has been working with the winery and vineyard consultants since conception. Ms. Martin is currently continuing her studies of the wine industry at Napa Valley College in California and will attend the University of Bordeaux in France in 2004.