My wife and I took Friday off to make a long weekend visiting with my daughter who attends college and lives in Asheville, NC.¬ Asheville is located in western North Carolina nestled in the Blue Ridge Mountains.¬ On Saturday we spent the day at the Biltmore House and Estate which is located in Asheville.
The Biltmore Estate is AmericaÄôs largest privately owned home. The 250-room mansion, designed to resemble a French chateau, was built in 1895 by industrialist George W. Vanderbilt (Yes, the W. stands for Washington), and has been faithfully preserved as a monument to AmericaÄôs gilded age. The home is still owned by the family and has been turned into a museum. Most of the homeÄôs original furnishings and artwork have been retained and the house looks today as if the family just stepped out.
The 8000-acre Biltmore Estate, however, is more than just a house. There are beautiful gardens, a working winery, and a luxurious 4-star inn on the grounds.
Surrounding the Biltmore mansion are 75 acres of manicured gardens, originally designed by Frederick Law Olmsted, best known as the designer of New YorkÄôs Central Park. The garden contains over 2300 roses and an amazing collection of more than 100 azaleas. The garden still maintains the original design and many of the original plants and trees survive. George Vanderbilt sought to make the estate self-sustaining and he was ahead of his time in creating managed forests and an extensive kitchen garden. The four-acre garden contains a wide array of culinary and medicinal plants and includes a large greenhouse filled with tropical plants, such as coffee and pineapple.
The Biltmore Estate Winery is the most visited winery in the United States. Housed in the original dairy barn, the state-of-the-art, award-winning winery produces over 15 varieties of wine, including Chenin Blanc, Sauvignon Blanc, and Chardonnay, under the Biltmore Estate and Chateau Reserve labels. All the grapes used are handpicked and grown on the property. We took part in a wine tasting and afterwards enjoyed a good meal outdoors with live music and of course local wine.
We spent most of the day at the estate and had a wonderful time.¬ As you can see from the pictures the weather was perfect.¬ If you’re ever in the area I would highly recommend making time to visit the Biltmore House and Estate.
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