Thomas Jefferson would completely understand Marc Swedenburg's devotion to the vineyard his mother and father planted at Valley View Farm outside Middleburg. Swedenburg's determination to improve his vineyards at the circa 1762 farm is also reminiscent of Jefferson's dedication to farming and agricultural innovation. It is, in fact, precisely these qualities in a young wine maker like Marc that vintners in the Napa Valley should pay close attention to as the quality of Virginia wines begins to reflect the pleasure and the passion so fundamental to the creation of truly great vintages.

When Juanita Swedenburg, Marc's mother, died earlier this year, the future of the winery and the vintages that now have a serious following, rested squarely in his hands. His commitment to continue her and his father's work is clear and without question.

"My mother was a marvel at making excellent wine," Swedenburg notes. "She could correct for almost anything. I want to focus more in our 15-acre vineyard and attempt to ensure that our vines are producing truly excellent fruit."

Born in Santa Barbara, California during the years his parents spent in the United States, Marc grew up in Khartoum, Sierra Leone and Mogadishu. His memory is vivid about his childhood near the sea in West and East Africa.

"I've been fortunate to see so many beautiful parts of the world. My parents were from Illinois and Kansas but they met in Indo China, and worked in Saigon when it was one of the most beautiful cities in the world. After a few years in the States when my mother taught while my father worked in Fiji and the Sudan, they agreed that we would return to the Foreign Service. They missed the romance of their life abroad."

Marc went to school in Alexandria and took his business degree at Virginia Tech. Today, he is very impressed with the advances the agriculture department there is making in enology or wine making and viticulture or vineyard management.

"It takes the commitment of a university to establish and support a successful wine making industry. In California, it was the commitment of the University of California at Davis that really made the difference when wine making began to evolve in Northern California. I've been very impressed with the strides Virginia Tech is making in this area.

"When my parents began to bottle Swedenburg vintages in 1987, they knew how important individuals like Steve Reader and Tony Wolf had been to them when they planted our vines in the early '80's. Steve helped my parents from the time they began. He went on to become a famous winemaker on the west coast as the head chardonnay maker at Kendall Jackson."

"Tony Wolf, of Winchester and Blacksburg, helped my parents enormously in the area of viticulture."

In the '80's, when his parents were planting their first vines, there were only three of them working the fields. Marc, now an information technology executive who can often work from the farm, arrived at the farm faithfully every weekend to help in every area that needed attention. After his father Wayne died in 2004, Marc and his family moved to the farm to help with the vineyard and their herd of Charolais.

"I wish I could have worked side-by-side with my mother on a more consistent basis," he recalls. I want to continue her commitment to quality and to make certain that the farm continues agricultural production."

Juanita Swedenburg was in the news shortly before her death when she won her case before the Supreme Court that now allows wine makers to accept and fill orders from other states.

"We still have to finalize the shipment details before we can really capitalize on the ruling," Marc explained. "It isn't easy to organize a system that ensures that alcoholic beverages are signed for by individuals who are over the legal age limit every time Federal Express or UPS comes to the door. This is being resolved right now. Customers who cannot visit our showroom will be able to purchase our wines later this year."

The rapid growth and related change in Loudoun County has not gone unnoticed by Swedenburg.

"We have to keep a really sharp eye on Loudoun County, to be certain that Loudoun, Fauquier and Clark counties respect rural enterprise. If we simply respect land owners, we'll protect agricultural enterprise as it changes and evolves to reflect the changing times."

Clark, Fauquier and Albemarle counties already face issues with legislators in Richmond reflecting the Not In My Backyard persuasion. Whether you enjoy a dry and fruity Riesling that recalls a French vintage rather than a German, or Swedenburg's Chest La Vie, a delicious rosé, it is clearly an asset to the Northern Virginia community to have Marc Swedenburg and his family at Valley View Farm.

"Valley View Farm has been in continuous operation for 250 years. The farm has to be self-sufficient, but it is my sincere hope to continue this legacy."