Adam Kirsch is a poet, literary critic, cultural commentator, and senior editor at The Atlantic. He is the author of numerous books, including two books of poetry and several non-fiction books, including The Revolt Against Humanity: Imagining a Future without Us and, most recently, The Z Word: Reclaiming Zionism. His work has appeared in numerous publications, including The New York Times, The Times Literary Supplement, The New Yorker, Slate, Poetry, and Tablet.
Hello, Charlottesville.
Thank you for reading C-VILLE Weekly.
1.21.26
A few months ago, an email landed in my inbox pitching “an interesting, quirky story.” It quickly unraveled—in the best way—into masked wrestlers, velvet paintings, hand-carved tequila taps, UVA babysitting gigs, and Danny McBride. The writer cheerfully admitted the pitch was self-serving and promised to “talk less than I type,” which is a bold claim in any pitch email.
What caught my attention wasn’t the celebrity angle (Charlottesville is famously unimpressed by fame), but the instinct behind it: that something strange and delightful was happening quietly around town. Velvet luchadores appearing on restaurant walls. Bartenders getting nerdy about agave. A local restaurant scene doing what it does best: connecting people, places, and ideas in unexpected ways.
That’s how a slightly unhinged email became this week’s cover story (p.19). It’s a piece about tequila, yes—but also about taste, authenticity, and how trends move from subculture to center stage. In other words, it’s about how Charlottesville eats and drinks now.
Which makes it a fitting way to head into C-VILLE Restaurant Week, beginning January 26. Restaurant Week has always been one of our favorite reasons to linger—to pay closer attention to the people feeding this town and to try something new. If this week’s cover reminds us that tequila can be more than a salt-and-lime punchline, Restaurant Week reminds us that dining out can still be an act of curiosity and community.
This week’s contributors
the country and internationally. Read his work on page 19.
Towns Ackerman
Susan Albert
Mary Allen
Catherine Anninos
Jim & Gwen Baber
Lori Balaban
Timothy Bambury
Catherine Barnes
Julie Basic
Susan Battani
John & Nancy Baum
Josh Baumann
Jennifer Beachley
Mayanna Bean
Terry Belanger
Susan Bender
Denise Benson
Anne Bergamesca
Rebecca Berlin
Kim Biasiolli
Patrick Bird
Paddy Bowman
Olivia Branch
Paul Brewer
Susan Brickman
Claudia Murray
Brindle
Colette Brown
David Brown
Jack Brown
Sumner Brown
Kate Buford
Cathleen Burgess
Carol Burger
Patricia Burkett
David Calhoun
Michael Callahan
Linda & Pat
Canzanelli-Dantona
Brian Carlton
Helen Cathro
Janelle Catlett
James Clark Jr.
Diane Cluck
Karen Collins
Lorraine Collins
Beth Croghan
Margaret Crone
Emily Currier
Genny Dalton
Maria-Eugenia
Dalton
Charles Dassance
Pam & Peter Dennison
Nancy Dettor
Martha Donnelly
Helene Downs
Vincent Draddy
Charlotte Drummond
Louise Dudley
Lee Elberson
Jane Elmore
Karen Emmitt
Ken Engebretson
Elizabeth Engle
Rosa Ellen English
Gail Esterman
Joe Ethier
Tom & Anna Ferrell
M. Fife
Jon Fink
Lavonne Fitts
Kevin Foley
Barbara Fornoff
Joan Forrest
Amy Gardner
Georgia Garrett
Thomas Garrison
Greg Gelburd
Gerald Giammatteo
David & Janna Gies
Donna Goings
Stephanie Goodwin
Trice Gravatte
&rew Greeley
Jennifer Grover
Cara Hall
Kendra Hall
Jeremy HarrisMcDonnell
Wiliam Harvey
Madeleine Hawks
Ann Marie Haynes
Mary Haynes
Elain Heffelfinger
Chris Hellings
Stephen Herrick
John Heyser
Ezra Hitzeman
Katherine Hoffman
JoAnn Hofheimer
Lisa Hogan
Gina Hogue
Laura Horn
Christina Horton
Robert Inlow
Deb Jackson
Garth Jensen
Nina Johnston
Nicole Jones
Diane Jones
Janet Jospe
Jane Kamensky
Brian Kelly
Trish Kenney
Tom & Sue Kirk
Kathryn Kluge
Julie Lacy
Marcia Langsam
Jacalyn LaPierre
Aaron Lawrence
Eric & Diane Lawson
Elizabeth Lawson
Frances Lee-V&ell
David Lemon
Linda Lester
Sean Libberton
Angeline Lillard
Peppy Linden
Jessica Lino
D. Little
Phillip Long
Rob Lynch
Catherine Maguire
Greg Mallard
Jeff Martin
Virginia Masterson
Jeanne & Bob
Maushammer
Erin Mayer
Kieran Mcdowell
Mary McIntyre
Gretchen McKee
Ruth McWilliams
James Mernin
Nicolas Mestre
Tim Michel
Parthy Monagan
Linda Monahan
Vic Monti
Hilary Moorman
Michael Morency
Harold E. Morgan
Michael Moriarty
Catherine Moynihan
Jim Mummery
Karen Myers
Monica Newby
S&y Newhouse
Kathy O’Connell
Dennis O’Connor
Diane Ober
Cynthia Van Osch
Annette Osso
Laila Ouhamou
Annette Owens
Timothy Palmer
Michael Pantano
Dashton Parham
Susan Payne
Am&a Peacock
Joe Peacock
Elizabeth Perdue
Joann Peters
James Peterson
Damon Pettitt
&rew Pevsner
Elayne Phillips
S&ra Pollock
Robin Powell
Anne Price
Ernest Pugh
Harry Purkey
Leslie Quenichet
Frances Racette
T. Radsky
Scott Ransom
Sarah Ratcliffe
Stots Reele
Marjorie Rein
Jonathan Rice
Cindy Richards
Kevin Richardson
David Robinson
Diane Rosin
Julia Rubarth
Tim Ryan
Carol Gilbert Sacks
Audrey Sarate
Claudia Scenna
Joan Schatzman
S&ra Schmidt
Eric Schultz
Karen Schuyler
Wendy Seay
James Seitz
Angilee Shah
Elaine Shaw
Chuck Shelton
Paul Shettel
Vaden Shields
John Smith
Kristina Smith
Rod Smith
Meredith Smoot
Mickey Speck
Maria Spence
Jim Spencer
David Stackhouse
Mariah Steele
Rod Stoner
Robert Strickl&
Deborah Strong
Nichole Taylor
William Terrell
Emily Thiede
Reid Thompson
W. McIlwaine
Thompson Jr.
Prue Thorner
John Titus
Jessica Tobin
Erica Toy
Rose Trapnell
Jill Trischman-Marks
Susan Ul&
Rick Vergot
Christina Walker
Steven Ward
David Waters
Chris Waugaman
Phoebe Weseley
Kelly West
Gary & Anne Westmorel&
Richard Wiedemann
John Whitlow
Jay Wildermann
Marcia Wilds
&rew Wolf
Natalie Yancey
Suzanne Yeaman
Nura Yingling
Kelly Zalewski
Kathleen Zenker
Shea Gibbs is president of public relations and marketing firm Gibbs Communications and has been a working journalist for more than two decades. Gibbs’ work has appeared in trade and consumer publications across
Sarah Lawson is a writer and visual artist living in Nelson County. The child of two librarians, Lawson has always loved books of all kinds. They write about local authors and books that have a connection to the Charlottesville community. Read their work on page 33.
Friday, January 30, 7pm at New Dominion Bookstore
Internationally acclaimed local author Domnica Radulescu will read from her timely new historical novel, My Father’s Orchards followed by an audience Q&A . Free and open to the public. Arrive early for seating!
More information at: https://ndbookshop.com/events/domnica-radulescu-my-fathers-orchards/
NEW DOMINION BOOKSHOP
1&404 E. Main St. on the Downtown Mall 11'434-295-2552 ®ndbookshop.com m staff@ndbookshop.com
ASSOCIATE CULTURE EDITOR CM Turner arts@c-ville.com
COPY EDITOR Susan Sorensen
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Brian Hrozencik brian@c-ville.com
DIGITAL SALES MANAGER
Rob Davis rob@c-ville.com
ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES
Stephanie Vogtman-Say stephanie@c-ville.com
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Tracy Federico designer@c-ville.com
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Faith Gibson ads@c-ville.com
CONTRIBUTORS
Rob Brezsny, Dave Cantor, Matt Dhillon, Carol Diggs, Shea Gibbs, Mary Jane Gore, Maeve Hayden, Andrew Hollins, Erika Howsare, Matt Jones, Sarah Lawson, Lisa Provence, Sarah Sargent, Kristie Smeltzer, Jen Sorensen, Julia Stumbaugh, Jake Solyst, Paul Ting, Eric Williamson
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THURSDAY, JANUARY 22 JON
JANUARY
RITTER
01-29| SUSTO STRINGBAND 01-30| CUMBERLAND ROAD - 90s COUNTRY PARTY
01-31| THE SOUTHERN DRAG SHOW 16+
02-01| TOBACCO ROAD WITH HASH + LAST CALL
02-05| JOE JORDAN
02-06| JACK STEPANIAN WITH MICHAEL & THE MISDEMEANORS
02-07| DOGWOOD TALES/EUPHORIA AGAIN WITH NABEEL PRESENTED BY WNRN
02-09| DAR WILLIAMS WITH SETH GLIER
02-12| TIM 0’BRIEN WITH JAN FABRICUS 02-14| IMMODEST OPULENCE: VALENTINE'S DAY BURLESQUE 18+ EARLY SHOW AND LATE SHOW
02-19| J RODDY WALSTON AND THE AUTOMATIC BAND
02-20| THE JACK WHARFF BAND
02-21| DIRTY GRASS PLAYERS
02-24| BLACKWATER HOLYLIGHT WITH GLASSING
02-25| LAUNDRY DAY WITH SATCHEL
Bassoon Recital Schuyler Jackson
Robert Costa
Speaker Nancy Pelosi
Board room
Resignations portend big Board of Visitors changes as Spanberger takes office BY CATIE RATLIFF
Abigail Spanberger, the first female governor of Virginia, was sworn into office on January 17.
Five members of the University of Virginia Board of Visitors resigned on January 16 and 17, just before and during the inauguration of Gov. Abigail Spanberger.
A university spokesperson confirmed the resignees: former Rector Rachel Sheridan and Vice Rector Porter Wilkinson, as well as Paul Manning, Douglas Wetmore, and Stephen Long. Board members submit resignations first to the governor’s office, not the university; UVA has not received any additional resignations as of January 19.
Spanberger has named 10 nominees for appointment to the BOV, netting her a majority on the 17-voting-member Board. Appointees can serve up to two consecutive four-year terms, but must then wait at least four years before any reappointment to the same Board.
“The appointed members are considered active Board of Visitors members in the time between their appointments and their confirmations,” says Bethanie Glover, deputy spokesperson for UVA. “They will participate in Board meetings as scheduled, and university operations will not be interrupted.”
Spanberger’s first wave of appointments to university boards was split among three schools—UVA, George Mason University, and Virginia Military Institute. The 10 selections for UVA’s Board are: Mike Bisceglia, Carlos Brown, Robert Bryon, Peter Grant, Owen Griffin, Victoria Harker, Elizabeth Hayes, Rudene Mercer Haynes, Evans Poston, and Moshin Syed.
The appointees join seven remaining Youngkin-appointed members on the Board: Daniel Brody, Marvin Gilliam Jr., Paul Harris, John Nau III, Dr. David O. Okonkwo, Amanda Pillion, and David Webb.
It is unclear whether the BOV will name a rector or vice rector before or after the confirmation of its newest members. Glover says the roles are currently vacant, and will be filled “in a special meeting, the date of which is to be announced.”
The resignations follow years of political turbulence at UVA, most recently centered on the university’s agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice, the ouster of former president Jim Ryan, and the selection of new President Scott Beardsley.
Sheridan and Wilkinson’s letters of resignation, submitted on the last day of former Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s term, both cite political pressure and division as the reason for their departure.
“Our efforts to do what is right for UVA have become paralyzed through purposeful political warfare that is destabilizing to the University,” wrote Sheridan. “It is a distressing fact of civic life in the United States that toxic national politics converts every disagreement, even among well-meaning people who share the same hopes and believe in many of the same values, into a pitched battle of competing camps.”
Wilkinson more explicitly tied her resignation to Spanberger. “I regret that Governor-Elect Spanberger does not intend to allow me to finish my term,” she wrote. “I
would love to continue serving our cherished institution, but in deference to the Governor-Elect’s request, I hereby resign. My only wish is that the differences of the present moment will not impair the brightness of this great University’s future and that leadership of the University will be able to build constructively on our accomplishments.”
Spanberger has not publicly confirmed that she asked the five former members to leave the Board. But the raft of resignations follows the BOV ignoring her—and numerous others’—calls for a delay in the university’s presidential search amid inquiries into the circumstances of Ryan’s exit.
The governor’s office had not responded to C-VILLE’s request for comment at press time.
State senators questioned Sheridan January 12, four days before her resignation. Topics ranged from Ryan’s departure to the Board’s communications with the DOJ and Youngkin. Sheridan stood by the BOV’s decisions, and refuted claims she was “a Youngkin point person.”
Texts from Board of Visitors members, released by The Washington Post and obtained via the Virginia Freedom of Information Act, include frequent discussion of Youngkin. Communications with the former governor are not included in the trove of
texts, but allusions to him and former Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares are present throughout the BOV members’ discussion of Ryan and efforts to end diversity, equity, and inclusion programming at UVA.
The General Assembly is currently weighing legislation that would change the way university boards and appointments work. Proposed bills include SB49, which would amend the Code of Virginia to require appointees be confirmed prior to serving on a board or commission.
Other legislation introduced would require each Board of Visitors to include student, faculty, and staff voting members. Among the proponents are local representatives and organizing groups, like the UVA chapter of United Campus Workers of Virginia.
“We’re working with Del. Amy Laufer, Del. Katrina Callsen, [and] Sen. Creigh Deeds on legislation that would reform the Board of Visitors in a number of ways,” says Cecelia Parks, a UVA librarian and UCWVA organizer. “Elected voting representatives from faculty, staff, and students on our [boards would] get more of that worker experience and expertise in the room.”
At press time, the state Senate has not scheduled confirmation hearings for the 10 new UVA Board members.
Spanberger has named 10 nominees for appointment to the BOV, netting her a majority on the 17-voting-member Board.
Former Rector Rachel Sheridan was appointed to the Board of Visitors by then-Gov. Glenn Youngkin in 2023.
UVA MUSIC EVENTS
Date/Time/Place
Sunday, 01/25, 3:30pm
Old Cabell Hall
Friday, 01/30, 7:30pm Old Cabell Hall
Friday, 02/06, 8:00pm Old Cabell Hall
Saturday, 02/14, 7:30pm Old Cabell Hall
Sunday, 02/15, 3:30pm The Paramount
Saturday, 02/21, 8:00pm Old Cabell Hall
Sunday, 02/22, 3:30pm
Old Cabell Hall
Saturday, 03/14, 3:30pm
Old Cabell Hall
Sunday, 03/15, 3:30pm
Old Cabell Hall
Saturday, 3/21, 3:30pm
Old Cabell Hall
Event (* Denotes free events)
UVA CMS: Faculty Chamber Ensemble Works by Mozart, Schulhoff, and Busch
Schuyler Jackson bassoon recital * with Elizabeth Roberts, bassoon & John Mayhood, piano
Special guest, Val Jeanty * composer & percussionist
Subscribe to our music email: music.virginia.edu/events
TRANSPORTATION Spokes people
Charlottesville recharges its e-bike
BY NATHAN ALDERMAN
year, on average, we had about 1,100 applicants per round.
Which of the three tiers has drawn the most applicants thus far? The least? We have about 30 from Tier 3, 20 from Tier 2, and about 200 from Tier 1.
Tommy Safranek, the city’s bicycle and pedestrian coordinator, and Tray Biasiolli, climate program specialist, offer insight on the program.
How many vouchers did you give out last year? How many of those vouchers have been successfully claimed? How many have been cashed in at bike shops?
We allocated funding for 100 vouchers in 2025. For vouchers that were not redeemed, those funds were put back into subsequent rounds, so that we ultimately awarded 112 vouchers. Winners from the fourth-quarter drawing are still able to redeem their vouchers, so we don’t have complete redemption data for the full year.
For the first three quarters, the redemption rate was 81 percent (61 of 75 vouchers redeemed) and as of [January 16], 79 vouchers total [70 percent of the 112 awarded] have been redeemed.
Do you have data on the income levels of applicants last year?
Roughly 40 percent of 2025 applicants had household incomes below $65,000, and 40 percent were above $100,000. [Winners] are evenly distributed throughout the city.
What lessons did you learn from last year’s program?
We heard from several voucher recipients that an e-bike was still out of reach, even with the voucher incentive.
In addition, the voucher redemption rate was lower in the lower-income brackets.
How many people have applied for the February drawing, and how quickly?
[As of January 16], 248 applicants have applied. Last
As e-bikes grow more popular, medical groups, including Sentara, are warning about growing numbers of e-bike- and e-scooter-related injuries. What can riders do to ride more safely on e-bikes?* C’ville is experiencing the same issues as many other places, and e-bikes are rarely the issue, but are getting lumped into the same bucket with e-scooters. E-scooters are harder to balance, so they are more difficult to start, stop, and use hand signals. Our program is set up to promote safe biking and support new riders as they get comfortable sharing the road with cars and pedestrians. For example, we host an e-bike demo every round [that] applications are open, so folks can get comfortable and ask us or the bike shop staff questions. We have one coming up on January 28 from noon1pm at the Ting Pavilion.
*UVA Health Trauma Center data shows that recorded e-bike and e-scooter injuries rose from two visits in 2018 to 27 visits in 2025. UVA did not break out injuries from e-bikes and e-scooters.
Thomas Safranek, Charlottesville’s e-bike and pedestrian coordinator, administers the city’s e-bike voucher program.
Work in progress
Organizers with the United Campus Workers of Virginia met at the state capitol in Richmond January 16, calling on the General Assembly to support two bills that would restore collective bargaining rights for state employees.
“We had some really good conversations, both with allies that we’ve been working with for a long time, and then also with some of our new freshmen delegates,” says Cecelia Parks, a University of Virginia librarian and UCWVA organizer. “And also, you know, folks who maybe we’re not … as ideologically aligned with but we still have some really good, productive conversations with.”
At press time, one of those bills, HB1263, is awaiting committee referral in the House of Delegates. The other bill, SB378, has been referred to the Senate Committee on Commerce and Labor.
Legislation passed in 2020 allows cities, counties, and localities to adopt collective bargaining ordinances. Both Charlottesville and Albemarle have since approved such ordinances, but state employees—including public university staff, faculty, and student workers— are explicitly excluded from the 2020 law.
Former Gov. Glenn Youngkin vetoed an effort to expand collective bargaining rights to all public sector employees last year. But with the January 17 inauguration of Gov. Abigail Spanberger and Democratic control of both state houses, UCWVA is optimistic about the legislation’s odds this year.
“The collective bargaining bill that was introduced really checks all of our boxes,” Parks says. “It explicitly includes higher education. It explicitly includes student workers. And we’re going to be monitoring, really continuing to advocate, throughout the session to make sure that student workers are not compromised or negotiated away, that higher education is still included in the final version of the bill that goes to the governor.”—Catie Ratliff
First round
Planning
Commission recommends approval of small changes to city’s zoning code BY SEAN TUBBS
When Charlottesville City Council adopted a new zoning code in late 2023, it wanted to help developers make it easier to build new places to live. The city’s Department of Neighborhood Development Services is moving forward with changes designed to further that goal.
“We’re jumping into 2026 with lessons learned, and to try to move things quicker,” said Matt Alfele, development planning manager for NDS.
After taking feedback from developers last year, NDS has recommended dozens of changes at three different levels. At a public hearing before the Planning Commission on January 13, Alfele likened the process to taking your car in for service.
“Tier 1 is washing the car,” Alfele said. “Tier 2 is changing the oil, rotating the tires. Tier 3 is the car is making an awful noise and needs a new transmission.”
Tier 3 changes, for example, could include a review of whether the city’s zoning code should be altered to restrict development in some areas. The Public Housing Association of Residents and other groups want Council to once again be able to set conditions for large apartment buildings, such as one planned for 843 W. Main St. and another on Seventh Street SW in Fifeville.
An in-house study of those changes will begin later this winter and into the spring, and will be informed by a work session City Council held on January 20. NDS is reviewing the rules for affordability and whether there should be specific places for student housing.
“Looking at the Affordable Dwelling Unit manual and this question of student housing actually really does represent a Tier 3 study
that we have determined was appropriate to bring forward as a priority on our work plan,” said Kellie Brown, the NDS director.
One of the Tier 1 amendments more clearly states that the Planning Commission gets to review special exception permits, which can be sought for changes to technical requirements such as setbacks. Council has the final say, and Planning Commission Chair Carl Schwarz said special exceptions introduce uncertainty and can take months to process.
“I don’t know if there’s some way that some of these things seem so small,” Schwarz said. “Is there another way to make them go faster and not cost as much?”
Alfele said a potential Tier 3 change would streamline the development review process. That might include a review of whether more special exceptions could be handled administratively.
IN BRIEF
All the news you missed last week (in one sentence or less)
Ross Harness, one of two new appointees to the Planning Commission, said the city should be doing what it can to reduce the burden on developers.
“Three or four or five months doesn’t seem like a long time in the general scheme of things, but it really does have an impact when you’re thinking about building and potentially taking out loans,” Harness said.
The Planning Commission endorsed 63 Tier 1 amendments and 23 Tier 2 changes after the January 13 hearing.
“These are addressing copy edits, scrivener’s errors, legislative updates, and small changes,” said Alfele. “This is to provide clarity, to remove some misunderstandings, and just to provide small changes that do not require much in the way of community engagement.”
Gov love VA-5 candidate Tom Perriello (D) endorsed by Gov. Abigail Spanberger in his race to unseat Rep. John McGuire (R). Quick draw Virginia court declines GOP bid to block state Dems’ proposed constitutional amendment allowing mid-decade redistricting. Dry January With local rainfall totals 8 inches below average, Department of Environmental Quality places Central Virginia under a drought watch. Bad touch If Maxwell H. Mandell, 24, babysat your kids in Crozet, the Albemarle police investigating him for alleged sexual assault want to hear from you. Sally’s turn Charlottesville will no longer make Thomas Jefferson’s April 13 birthday a holiday, instead celebrating the emancipation of enslaved people on March 3. Math lesson Albemarle teachers’ union makes tentative deal with county schools for raises and expanded benefits. Court case John Paul Jones Arena court will be named after former UVA men’s basketball coach Tony Bennett January 24. What the Flock, maker of the AI surveillance cameras the city’s stopped using, partners with Amazon-owned Ring doorbell cameras to share their footage with ICE and others.
The Public Housing Association of Residents and other groups want City Council to once again be able to set conditions for large apartment buildings, such as the one from developer LV Collective at 843 W. Main St.
“Jordan
“Jordan
My name is Jordan Hague and I created Equity Saver USA in 2008 to offer a better, more affordable service to disrupt and challenge what I personally experienced to be an outdated and flawed approach to Realtor compensation at the expense of sellers and buyers.
My name is Jordan Hague and I created Equity Saver USA in 2008 to offer a better, more affordable service to disrupt and challenge what I personally experienced to be an outdated and flawed approach to Realtor compensation at the expense of sellers and buyers.
In 2024 the National Association of Realtors settled a billion dollar lawsuit related to inflated Realtor commission practices. This monumental settlement opens the door for true free market competition and innovation to thrive. I’ve successfully sold homes using a 1% model for nearly 2 decades proving the old “6% legacy” commission model is a waste of money and does nothing to help promote affordable housing. Contact me direct to arrange a no obligation meeting to learn more.
In 2024 the National Association of Realtors settled a billion dollar lawsuit related to inflated Realtor commission practices. This monumental settlement opens the door for true free market competition and innovation to thrive. I’ve successfully sold homes using a 1% model for nearly 2 decades proving the old “6% legacy” commission model is a waste of money and does nothing to help promote affordable housing. Contact me direct to arrange a no obligation meeting to learn more.
Jerry and
Sam
REAL ESTATE NEWS
On Broadway
Albemarle Supervisors approve permit allowing floodplain fill-in BY SEAN TUBBS
The developer of a future industrial building in the Woolen Mills neighborhood has succeeded in a second attempt to convince the Albemarle Board of Supervisors to allow land to be elevated out of the floodplain.
Last June, the six-member BOS deadlocked on a request from Elemental Ecotech to fill in the floodplain. A tie vote in Albemarle means a motion does not pass. Since then, two new Board of Supervisors members have been elected. On January 14, the board voted 4 to 2 in favor of a modified request.
“This has only improved in my eyes from the last go-around relative to the impacts,” said Rio District Supervisor Ned Gallaway.
The seven-acre property is within the scope of an economic development plan called the Broadway Blueprint, which generally encourages industrial uses in a portion of Albemarle on the western side of the Rivanna River that is only accessible via city streets. The property is zoned industrial, but it’s also within a flood hazard overlay district, which requires supervisors to approve a special use permit to fill in the floodplain.
The applicant slightly reduced the amount of area to be filled to 1.3 acres. Rebecca Ragsdale, a planning manager in Albemarle County said the Federal Emergency Management Agency, whose guidelines govern Elemental’s plan for the floodplain, has granted approval conditions on consent of the local governing body.
County staff found that the fill would not worsen flooding and placed several conditions on the permit, including additional treatment of stormwater runoff. There would also have to be an archaeological survey conducted by a third party, and Elemental could only use dirt from the adjacent parcel for the fill.
The property is on Franklin Street, which borders Charlottesville. Several city residents spoke out against the permit. Alana Horning of Franklin Street said there was no guarantee there would be economic benefits because the developer has not specified what will take place in the building. “Without a defined purpose,” she said, “there could be a possibility that the floodplain is filled with no building ever constructed.”
“This site has limited road access, it has potential Monacan and cultural
resources, it is adjacent to a low-income residential neighborhood, and it borders an ecological preserve,” said Eli Connell, also a Franklin Street resident.
When the Planning Commission voted to deny the in December, the nay votes included Fred Missel, now the Samuel Miller District Supervisor. At the January 14 BOS meeting, Missel said the county has to balance economic development with environmental stewardship.
“I believe in leaning towards trusting our natural systems to do what they’re designed to do, and in acknowledging we need to do things to help them, especially in areas like this,” Missel said. “Filling more of the floodway is not, in my opinion, something we should consider a help.”
Supervisor Ann Mallek of the White Hall District repeated her opposition, but Supervisor Mike Pruitt of the Scottsville District changed his vote to yes.
“I’m not sure that the justice concern of siting something like this in a working-class neighborhood is entirely convincing because part of how it is able to retain a working-class neighborhood is the proximity of industrial uses,” Pruitt said.
Supervisor Bea LaPisto-Kirtley of the Rivanna District voted yes again and said the industrial building would help with the county’s efforts to diversify the tax base.
Jack Jouett District Supervisor Sally Duncan said she trusted staff’s recommendation. “We have over 2,000 miles of streams and rivers in the county,” she said.
“If we really want to protect the health of our waterways, then we need to keep industrial areas in the development area and maximize their usage.”
Annie Gould Gallery
A unique art gallery located in the heart of historic Gordonsville.
Celebrate a century of stories, songs, and laughter, with The Boogie Kings and many more. JAN. 23 at 7:00 PM
PUPPY
PALS LIVE!
This unforgettable production features adopted and rescued dogs performing incredible stunts, clever tricks, & laugh-out-loud comedy routines. JAN. 29 at 6:00 PM
Relive the legendary sound, spirit, and energy of Fleetwood Mac with RUMOURS. FEB. 6 at 7:00 PM RIVER CITY RADIO HOUR REUNION
The amount of the Woolen Mills neighborhood to be filled in was reduced to 1.3 acres.
$1,860,000
By SHEA GIBBS
An evening with
SongWriter
featuring Bruce Holsinger + The Golden Hours
Where: THE GUILD at Vault Virginia
When: Saturday, February 21, at 6pm
Tickets: www.theguild.social cville
In a live recording of the SongWriter podcast, bestselling author Bruce Holsinger will read a new short story about a troublesome cat, and The Golden Hours (with members of David Wax Museum) will perform a new song written in response. Dr. Jennifer McQuiston will discuss animal intelligence with host Ben Arthur and the artists, and the audience will be invited to interact.
River Hawkins knows tequila. More to the point, he knows mezcal. When you’ve gone deep down the wormhole of tequila’s smokier, more bracing brethren, Hawkins says, tequila is almost too sweet.
“I think of it as a dessert drink,” the Bebedero and Mejicali owner says of the typically 80 proof liquor—without a trace of irony.
For many people, tequila is a party starter, associated with margaritas at Americanized Mexican restaurants and shot glasses rimmed with salt and lime. But for a growing cohort of connoisseurs like Hawkins, tequila is the new bourbon: a complex elixir produced of simple ingredients, sometimes aged in barrels, and intended to be sipped, savored, dissected.
According to global drinks market analyst IWSR, agave-based liquors, known collectively as mezcal and including the tequila sub-genre, entrenched themselves as the third-highest-selling spirit in the United States in 2020, passing rum to settle behind only vodka and whiskey. Indeed, mezcal outpoured whiskey’s largest subcategory, bourbon, that same year, growing sales roughly 20 percent by volume. IWSR projects mezcal will only continue to blossom in the years to come.
One of several drivers behind tequila’s rapid ascent has been celebrity buy-in. George Clooney opened the floodgates when he launched the now ubiquitous Casamigos line in 2013. He later sold the brand, with some reports indicating his payday was close to $1 billion.
Would-be tequila titans like Dwayne Johnson and Kendall Jenner followed. Other actors and entertainers, including Ryan Reynolds and Matthew McConaughey, dipped into the gin and bourbon markets. Today, estimates of the number of entertainer-backed spirits brands range from 150 to 350—though some indications are that the trend is slowing. The celebrity booze e-commerce platform and app GrapeStars launched with a pop in 2020, but went flat just two years later. Hawkins, true to type, says he doesn’t give a whip about celebrities. When he’s considering carrying a new spirit at one of his restaurants, what he’s mostly interested in is quality and price point.
Still, Hawkins admits he’s not completely immune to clever branding. And when a local spirits rep walked into The Bebedero almost two years ago with a new tipple, Don Gato, he was intrigued by the masked Mexican wrestler emblazoned on the label. “I love companies that don’t take things too seriously,” he says. “Spirits are supposed to be fun, and I thought Don Gato was hilarious and brilliant.”
On top of that, a tasting told him what he needed to know: The tequila was delicious.
Hawkins grew up in California in the home of a Mexican mother and Caucasian father. He’s long identified with his Mexican lineage, but it wasn’t until he began working at a resort near Puerto Vallarta in the western reaches of Jalisco that he dug into agave. Tapped to provide vacationers tequila and mezcal classes, he prepared by reading books, touring agave fields and distilleries, and drinking and discussing countless iterations of Mexico’s most revered beverage. Tequila, Hawkins says, is simpler than mezcal. It’s crafted from only Weber blue agave by roughly 150 distilleries in and around Jalisco. The region
is said to produce the world’s best agave—indeed, if a tequila weren’t from Jalisco, it would be no more a tequila than a California sparkling wine would be a Champagne.
The comparisons to wine don’t end there. The conditions in which agave is grown lend tequila much of its flavor. Traditionally made solely of water and agave, tequila can express the sweet succulent’s terroir in delightful ways—green apple, natural vanilla, vegetal notes, earthy tones—all affected both by soil and weather, as well as harvest practices and production methods.
Many agave spirit brands, however, use additives to make their drinks more accessible for inexperienced palates. Hawkins says that even tequilas claiming to be “100 percent agave” can include additives like syrup, caramel coloring, vanilla, or oak extract at a rate of up to 1 percent by volume. The result is a sweet, often artificial-tasting concoction that nevertheless might go down “smooth” for rapid consumption and max intoxication.
Hawkins says a growing movement toward additive-free production has taken hold in the tequila world, but the approach requires intensive care in farming, distillation, and fermentation practices. Plus, it can be more costly than modern methods. Many of the celebrity brands Hawkins has tasted are far from additive free; they’re sometimes saccharine vanilla bombs designed mostly for pop appeal.
“We often equate sweet and smooth with quality,” Hawkins says, “when the reality is that something made with quality in mind typically has more complexity to it.”
As soon as he placed his first glass of Don Gato’s tequila blanco back on The Bebedero bartop, Hawkins knew he had an additive-free spirit in front of him. Given the price point, he signed on to carry the blanco variety, as well as Don Gato’s tequila reposado, a darker, bourbon barrel-aged version of the flagship product.
River Hawkins, owner of The Bebedero and Mejicali, says that when he’s considering carrying a new spirit such as Don Gato, he cares about quality and price point, but he’s also not immune to clever branding.
As it turned out, the rep who’d approached Hawkins was a University of Virginia student, the daughter of Don Gato co-founder and UVA alum Chad Walldorf. Walldorf, a restaurateur now living in South Carolina, had helped launch Don Gato in mid-2024. The tequila quickly earned acclaim. The blanco base won gold at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition that year, while the reposado earned a Best in Show at the New York World Spirits Competition. At the same time, the brand’s distribution expanded rapidly, reaching 13 states (including Virginia) and Washington, D.C., by the end of 2025.
According to Walldorf, Don Gato’s success owes to the painstaking process he and his coowners went through to bring a high-quality, additive-free tequila to market. The group traveled to Jalisco and toured multiple distilleries, eventually deciding to work with Casa Natima, known for making acclaimed additive-free spirits like Tequila Komos, Astral, and Onda. Walldorf says the distillery’s focus on sustainability—using solar power and repurposed agave fibers for construction materials—was also a selling point.
In production, the Don Gato bottlings from Casa Natima use only fully mature agave plants. As in the production of most tequilas, the distillery uses traditional brick ovens to cook the agave—another distinction from mezcal, which is often made using pit-roasted agave to yield the drink’s signature smoky flavor.
The resulting tequila, according to Hawkins, is a spirit with the charm of higher-end brands like Don Julio but a slightly lower price point. No, not everyone loves Don Gato—more than a few reviewers rate the reposado offering lower than the blanco—and the product list remains short. (Walldorf says the company needs to “earn the right to add an anejo.”) But the two current bottles have earned their place alongside the legacy tequila players in at least a dozen bars around town.
CONTINUED ON PAGE 23
“We tend to like the lighter-style tequilas, and their blanco has a lot of character,” Alley Light co-owner Chris Dunbar says. “The way people are drinking tequila now—it is night and day to where it was 10 years ago. I notice people sipping it with their appetizers, and with craft cocktails, there’s so much you can do with tequila.”
Don Gato’s dive from the top rope into Charlottesville has been swift and not without fanfare. As bar owners like Hawkins and Dunbar embraced the tequila’s taste, they also took on the Don’s aesthetic. Traditional Mexican velvet paintings of the cat-loving wrestler began popping up around town—at Continental Divide, Maya, Livery Stable, and other bars and restaurants—in late 2024. More followed throughout 2025. Hawkins took the look further, putting Don Gato blanco on tap with the luchador himself sculpted into a hardwood handle.
For Hawkins, the tap handle was a fitting tribute to a badass brand and tasty tequila. For tequila drinkers around town, the velvets and other artwork were likely little more than a passing oddity. But there was a story behind the Don Gato mask.
Legend has it that the tequila-obsessed Don Gato ended his unparalleled wrestling career after the death of his long-time mentor. First order of business? Avenge his mentor’s death. Second, sell his car and start a pyramid scheme. Third, wager his somewhat ill-gotten gains on a Las Vegas roulette table, hit big, and buy an agave field in Mexico.
The legend, of course, is completely loco—and for good reason. It comes from the mind of Virginia native and oddball comic Danny McBride.
McBride, whose comedy centers around characters like egotistic Kenny Powers from “Eastbound and Down” and indulgent Jesse Gemstone from “The Righteous Gemstones,” was raised in Northern Virginia. After high school, he attended the University of North Carolina School of the Arts and met several of the creatives who’d become his longtime collaborators.
Before the Pineapple Express co-star began making movies in 2003, he spent a year working as a bartender at the funky-but-now-defunct restaurant and music venue Orbit’s in Fredericksburg. Dunbar was cutting his teeth in hospitality at the same time.
“The cocktail game was nothing like it is today—a lot of highballs and gin and tonics,” Dunbar says. “When I first met Danny, I remember him saying he wanted to write movies. At that point, we were in our 20s in Fredericksburg, so I was thinking, ‘good luck with that.’ But I do always remember him being a funny guy, with a sense of humor that involved everyone.”
While making it big in L.A. in the 2000s and early 2010s, McBride fell in love with and married Gia Ruiz, a Mexican-American film and television art director. In 2017, the couple moved to South Carolina along with a group of families comprising McBride’s production company. It was there that the “Vice Principals” creator teamed up with Walldorf.
McBride had been approached several times about doing a celebrity-backed tequila, but the market felt over-attenuated, and besides, doing the Clooney pitchman thing didn’t really fit his personality. Working with Walldorf, whose brother had been at the University of North Carolina
in Charlottesville has been swift and flashy, evidenced by traditional Mexican velvet paintings of the cat-loving wrestler that popped up around town—at Continental Divide, Maya, Livery Stable, and other bars and restaurants—in late 2024. The legend of tequila-obsessed Don Gato comes from the mind of actor, comedian, and Virginia native Danny McBride (above, left).
School of the Arts at the same time as McBride, represented a different opportunity. What if McBride could create a character as a stand-in for the tired Hollywood pitchman?
“I always felt like it was a little cheesy when celebrities were trying to sell you on alcohol,” McBride says. “I wanted to be able to do what I do in my shows and the movies I’ve made—be creative and find a way to capture the audience.”
Worse than being cheesy, some celebrity spirits brands have faced backlash for inauthenticity and cultural appropriation. Keyboard warriors widely panned Jenner’s 818 Tequila after its release in early 2021—not only for capitalizing on a Mexican touchstone, but also for a photo showing her drinking the liquor over ice.
McBride understands the criticism. And despite going all-in on the Don Gato character in a way that few others could, he’s tried to remain respectful of the place where his tequila is made—not to mention the country of his wife’s heritage.
“We’re trying to bring tequila to a broader audience by having fun and paying homage to luchadores, which is a part of Mexican culture that I’ve always been fascinated with,” he says. “I grew up being a fan of wrestling in general, but then getting turned on to Mexican wrestling, I just love the characters, the culture, the fun.”
As McBride has fleshed out the feline-friendly luchador’s legend, the Don Gato team has spread the word through video production, social media, velvets, and even live appearances—inside the wrestling ring and out.
As Don Gato’s biggest fan and—some say—closest confidante, what does McBride think is next for the man, the myth, the legend? “Now that his juice is in America, he’s coming this way to kick some ass for the people.”
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 21
Don Gato’s arrival
THE WINE DOWN
WHAT’S DELISH AT LOCAL WINERIES?
53RD WINERY AND VINEYARD
A note from Winegrower and Owner, Dave Drillock Wishing you a Healthy and Happy New Year. We were recently rated by JamesSuckling.com on six of our wines. Here are the results.
2022 Petit Verdot 92 points Dark and brooding aromas of blood plums, coffee, tobacco, licorice and tobacco. The palate is structured with a good core of fruit with plenty of structure to reward aging. Drink or hold. Available for purchase.
2023 Romulus 91 points Soft and Supple aromas of dark fruit, spices, earth and dried herbs. The palate is mid-weighted and quite austere, with drying tannins. Needs time to soften, but plenty to like. Drink or hold. Not released.
2023 Cabernet Franc Reserve 91 points Bright, fresh and crunchy, with aromas of cherries, tomato leaves and spices with an earthy undertone. The plate is mid weighted with taut tannins and focused acidity, leading to a drying and quite austere finish that will soften with time. Nicely constructed. Drink or hold. Not released.
2023 Two Springs 90 points Soft and supple aromas of dark fruit, spices, earth and dried herbs. The plate is mid-weighted and quite austere, with drying tannins. Needs time to soften but plenty to like. Drink or hold. Not released.
2024 Chardonnay 89 points Aromas of yellow apples, pears, lemons and vanilla. The palate is medium-bodied with ripe fruit flavors, gentle acidity and a smooth creamy finish. Easy and balanced. Drink now. April Release.
2024 Viognier 89 points Fruity aromas of peaches, apricots and citrus. The palate is medium bodied, fresh and juicy, with soft acidity and a clean easy finish. Drink now. Available for purchase.
Congratulations to our Winemaker Chelsey Blevins! We invite you to visit our serene, meadow-like location in rural Louisa County. We pride ourselves on being genuine and approachable, eager to share our passion for wine without any scripted lines or memorized facts, just a warm and welcome atmosphere. We are a Winery that just wants to be a Winery!
January events
Saturday, January 24th: First Taste: Wine Tasting and Charcuterie
Get a first look at what’s coming next, taste bottled wines before they’re released, paired with a generous charcuterie table to savor alongside. Ticketed event. Go to website to sign up.
For more details, please check our website at www.53rdwinery.com or call us at 540-894-1536. We look forward to welcoming you to the winery, and we truly appreciate your business and support. Cheers!
Open
DUCARD VINEYARDS
2022 Cabernet Franc Vinters Reserve
Grown at our Whetstone Run vineyard, this Cabernet Franc was selected for its depth in color, welcoming mouth feel, well-defined structure. Pairs with French Onion Soup and hearty seasonal stews. 2025 Virginia Governor’s Cup Gold Medal Winner.
We are open 7 days a week throughout the month of January with live music every weekend. Visit our website and our social media pages for the most up to date listings of our upcoming live music and events!
Saturdays - Live music every Saturday in January from 2-5 pm. Come to DuCard for the afternoon with family and friends and enjoy a variety of live music (no cover). Bring a picnic or select some local fare from our lite noshing menu to pair with our award-winning wine for a fun afternoon in our amazing mountain setting.
Open daily
Mon-Thurs. 12-5 pm Fri. 12-9 pm Sat/Sun. 12-6 pm
40 Gibson Hollow Ln Etlan, VA 22719 (540) 923-4206 www.ducardvineyards.com
EASTWOOD FARM AND WINERY
Community Celebrations, January Jubilee and Valentine’s Day. Enjoy Friday night shrimp boils and weekly live music—along with award-winning wines, ciders and beers, and all your favorite menu items, from mulled wine to flatbreads and fondues
to roasting s’mores around our fire pits. Also enjoy a refreshing lineup of non-alcoholic beverages - from vibrant mocktails and mimosas to extensive NA beer offerings.
You won’t want to miss the inaugural January Jubilee on Saturday, January 31st featuring free swing dance lessons, live music from Zuzus Hot 5 and a special Low Country Shrimp Boil. And from now through the end of January, we’ll also be hosting special events for teachers, nurses, first responders, and hospitality industry professionals. Join us in celebrating the people who make Charlottesville such a special place.
Upcoming at the Winery:
Low-Country Shrimp Boil | Every Friday 4-7:30PM (open 12-8PM)
Get ready for a delicious, flavor-packed Shrimp Boil Feast every Friday night this Winter! We’re bringing the best of Southern tradition right to your plate with succulent shrimp, juicy sausage, tender corn on the cob, and perfectly seasoned potatoes – all served hot and ready to enjoy in a relaxed, fun atmosphere with live music from 5-8pm on the stage in our tasting room.
Music Bingo and Nurses/First Responders Appreciation Day| Sunday, January 25th from 2-4PM (open 12-5PM)
Open to the whole community. Nurses and First Responders receive 2 free raffle tickets and 10% off all food and beverages.
Music Bingo and Teacher Appreciation Night| Thursday, January 29th from 6-8PM (open 12-8PM)
Open to the whole community. Teachers receive 2 free raffle tickets and 10% off all food and beverages.
Hospitality Industry Night | Monday, January 26th 5-8PM
(Open for regular business 12-5PM)
Join Eastwood in conjunction with Virginia Women in Wine for an evening of networking, food and wine. Also enjoy a live cooperage discussion with free samples of wine from various types of barrels led by winemaker, Jake Busching. The kitchen will remain open until 7:30 PM. Industry receives a 20% discount on all food and beverages. Free raffle for prizes.
January Jubilee | Saturday, January 31st, 5-8PM (Open 12-8PM)
Join us for our inaugural January Jubilee, a New Orleans–inspired celebration filled with live jazz, swing dancing, and Southern flavor. Also enjoy a low country shrimp boil from 4-7:30PM, free swing dance lessons with Swing Cville from 5-6PM and live music from Zuzus Hot 5 from 6-8PM.
Paint & Sip | Sunday, February 5th
12-2PM, February 22 12-2PM
Grab a glass of wine (or your favorite drink!) and let your creativity flow in our relaxed and fun Paint & Sip classes. Whether you’re an experienced artist or a first-time painter, the talented instructors of Blue Ridge Brushes will walk you through the painting
process as you create your own masterpiece. Ticketed Event - Reserve Your Spot On Our Website
Looking for ways to Enjoy Valentines Day?
White Wine Blending Workshop|Thursday, February 12th 6-8PM (open 12-8PM)
Join us on Thursday, February 12th for a hands-on workshop where you get to be the winemaker! You’ll sit down to a table with beakers, a flask, a large vessel and our winemaking team will walk you through the steps of making a great blend. Plus, there is some friendly competition involved and one of the team’s blends will be deemed the winner!
Ticketed Event - Reserve Your Spot On Our Website
Galentines Market & Live Music | Sundays, February 8th and 15th (12-5PM)
Join us for two special Galentine’s Markets on Sunday, February 8th and 15th along with free tastings of our newly released 2025 Rosé and a great lineup of local makers from Craft Cville! We also have juice flights and cheese boards for the kids and there will be live music from 1-4PM.
Valentine’s Eve|Friday, February 13th (open 12-8PM)
What better way to spend the evening than with a Low Country Shrimp Boil and live music by crowd-favorite, Matthew O’Donnell!
Valentine’s Day|Saturday, February 14th (open 12-8PM)
Enjoy a casual day at the Winery (chocolate fondue, anyone?) or splurge for a guided tasting of award-winning wines paired with a curated sample of chocolates and cheese. Try your hand (or feet!) at a free swing dance lesson by Swing Cville from 5-6PM and enjoy live music with Zuzus Hot 5 from 6-8PM. There will also be special treats and crafts for the kids.
MUSIC AT EASTWOOD!
Join us for the popular Eastwood After Dark featuring upbeat, danceable music on Saturday nights from 5-8pm (in addition to our more mellow Saturday afternoon music program). Eastwood also hosts a range of live performances by talented local and regional musicians every Thursday and Friday night (and Sundays!). See the Winery Calendar on our website for details.
Every Thursday (open 12-8 PM): Live Music 5-8PM
Thursday “Thank You” Community Day at Eastwood— $5 Taps (Beer & Cider)
Every Friday (open 12-8 PM): Live Music 5-8PM Shrimp Boil 5-8PM
Every Saturday (open 12-8 PM): Live Music 12:30-3:30PM + Eastwood After Dark with Live Music 5-8PM
Every Sunday (open 12-5 PM): Live Music or Music Bingo (See the Winery Calendar on our website for details.) Also Open Monday through
Wednesday 12-5 PM
What about the kids?
Kids can share in the experience with their own juice tasting flights and cheese boards!
We look forward to welcoming you to our cozy tasting room, seven days a week. Join us for award-winning wines, beer, and cider, as well as a delicious seasonal menu by Chef Andrew Partridge that is perfect for lunch or dinner. Delight in lounging on our enclosed & heated veranda with a glass of our gold medal 2022 Meritage Reserve. Or, stay inside and enjoy live music with a seasonal toasty flatbread or our scrumptious Cast Iron Baked Brie. Escape to Virginia Wine Country, only five miles from Downtown Charlottesville. Open year-round, seven days a week. Pet friendly and large groups are welcome. Ample indoor and outdoor seating.
Rt 20 near the intersection with Avon Extended (5 mi from Downtown Mall) Charlottesville, VA 22902 (434) 264-6727 www.eastwoodfarmandwinery.com
HARDWARE HILLS VINEYARD
Sparkling Vidal Blanc
Let’s kick off the new year with the most versatile of all wine options: BUBBLES! We are super proud of how our estate grown Vidal Blanc shows up as a delightful sparkling option. Crisp and refreshing, with a hint of mandarin and lime. It is distinguished, delicate and expressive. Pick up a bottle today and find that sparkling wine goes with just about any meal, occasion, and mood!
WE ARE OPEN REGULAR HOURS IN JANUARY! Our event space is now complete and booking for special events in the coming year!
HAVE YOU SEEN OUR REELS YET?? Check us out on all social media channels. All events can be found on our website at www. hardwarehills.com
EVENTS:
January 22nd - 6 - 8:30 p.m. COUNTRY MUSIC DANCE NIGHT! Grab your boots and your dancing pals and come out to boot scoot with us. Line dancing expert Madison Kinney will lead us through new line dance lessons from 6 - 7, then the floor is open for all to enjoy! Must be 18 to attend and there is a $10 cover charge. Wine and food available all evening for purchase.
January 23rd - 5:30 p.m. LIVE MUSIC with Jon Zlock. Coming to us from the lake, we love the incredible songs Jon brings and he is definitely one crowd pleaser!
January 30th - 5:30 p.m. LIVE MUSIC with Pat Anderson -- we can’t wait for Pat to play for us at the Hills. Say goodbye to January with a warm
and welcoming night at the Hills!
DATES TO NOTE:
Feb. 15 -- Valentine’s Dinner -- small and exclusive. Watch for tickets on our website and social media.
Feb. 28 -- DUELING PIANOS Dinner and Show at the Hills -- tickets are on sale NOW
5199 W River Rd, Scottsville, VA 434.286.4710 • www.hardwarehills.com
KESWICK VINEYARDS
Spend Your New Year at Keswick!
Kick off the New Year the Keswick way!!! Great wine, live music, and plenty of reasons to gather with friends. Every Saturday in January, enjoy live music from 12–4 PM, the perfect soundtrack for a relaxing afternoon at the winery.
Looking for a little extra fun? Our mini golf course is open year-round! For just $10 per person, enjoy 9 holes of wine-side fun, no matter the season.
Hungry while you sip? Our own food truck, Barrel & Board, is open Wednesday through Sunday from 12–4 PM, serving up the perfect bites to pair with your favorite Keswick wines.
There’s never been a better time to become part of Virginia’s Most Rewarding Wine Club. From exclusive perks to unforgettable experiences, our Wine Club is designed for those who love great wine and even better memories, ask us how to join!
At the heart of it all are our wines. We’re passionate about what we create, and truly, all we want to do is share them with you. Start your New Year with a glass in hand at Keswick, we can’t wait to welcome you!
January is for fresh starts, lighter pours, and discovering places that feel memorable—and Prince Michel Vineyard & Winery delivers all three. As a woman-owned winery in the heart of Virginia Wine Country, Prince Michel blends tradition with a modern, welcoming vibe that invites you to slow down, sip, and stay awhile.
This month, we’re spotlighting our 2024 Grenache Blanc, a bright, refreshing white made for the new year. With notes of white peach, honeysuckle, and citrus, layered with golden apple and lemon zest, it finishes crisp and clean—perfect for lighter winter meals, healthier choices, and easy nights in with friends.
Pair it with seafood, roasted chicken, fresh veggies, or lighter sauces, or enjoy it during a relaxed visit to the winery. From wine tastings and scenic picnic spots to Tap 29 Brew Pub with craft beer and craveable food, Prince Michel is about more than wine—it’s about the experience.
Enjoy Grenache Blanc all January at 15% off (20% off for Wine Club members) and start the year somewhere worth remembering.
Live Music every Friday–Sunday (lineup on our website)
Trivia every Monday, 6–7:30 p.m.
Tuesday is Beer & Wings Specials Day
Happy Hour every Thursday, 3–5 p.m.
Open 7 days a week at 11 a.m.
154 Winery Lane, Leon, VA 22725
(540) 547-3707
www.princemichel.com
A Woman-Owned Business
REVALATION VINEYARDS
Verj us
Dry January? We’ve got you covered! Revalation Vineyards’ verjus is the perfect mocktail ingredient. This non-alcoholic juice, made by pressing grapes early in the season, has a fresh, tart, and sweet flavor. It is excellent as a spritzer, a tasty toddy with slices of fresh ginger, or it can be enjoyed neat. It also adds zest to sauces, salad dressings, and marinades without overpowering other delicate aromas in the dish. Visit revalationvineyards.com for recipes.
January Hours: Fridays and Saturdays, noon to 6 pm; Sundays, noon to 5 pm. Monday January 19, noon to 5 pm. Mondays and Thursdays by reservation.
Until February 28th - Winter Experience - Looking for something fun and different to enjoy during the gray winter months? Our Winter Experience is exactly what you need. Enjoy our stunning vistas of Old Rag and the Blue Ridge Mountains as you snuggle under our heirloom quilts. Warm yourself by a fire pit, while you enjoy a mug of mulled wine and toast your marshmallows from our very special s’mores kit, which includes Belgian chocolate and homemade waffles.
Until February 28th - Exhibition of art pieces by Chealsea Kirby.
January 23rd - Book Club @ The Vineyard at 6pm: Author Paula Whyman will join us for Book Club this month to discuss her memoir, Bad Naturalist.
January 30th - Words & Wine at 6pm. Poets, novelists, spokenword artists, and storytellers of all sorts are invited to share their work. RSVP to the event by email to info@ revalationvineyards.com.
February 6th - Book World Meets Wine World at 6 pm: author MK England will read from his novel Roll For Love. A benefit for the Literacy Council of Madison County.
February 15th - Français with Françoise at 4pm: Practice your French conversation skills. Feel free to bring your dinner to enjoy during the evening.
February 22nd - Sip & Learn at 4 pm: Historian Jody Lahendro will talk about Historic Black Schools in Central Virginia.
February 27th – Book Club @ The Vineyard at 6pm: We will discuss The Way We Live Now by Anthony Trollope.
2710 Hebron Valley Road, Madison, VA 22727 • 540-407-1236 www.revalationvineyards.com
VIRGINIA WINE COLLECTIVE
Join us at Eastwood Farm and Winery’s new production facility and downtown tasting room every Friday night from 4-9PM for winemaker wine flights and a delicious pairing menu created by Chefs Andrew and Cory Partridge.
Eastwood designed the Virginia Wine Collective to include nine winemaker suites and an incubator alongside the main production area. The suites provide a space where independent winemakers can anchor a license and make their wines. The Collective has been designed to reduce the costs associated with independent winemaking, and thereby support further innovation and talent in the Monticello AVA.
Upcoming at the Collective:
Winemaker Pop-Ups | Select Fridays 6-8PM
Enjoy free samples and tour the facility with some of our independent winemakers on Fridays! Check out events on our website: (https:// eastwoodfarmandwinery.com/virginiawine-collective/) and Facebook page as we will be adding more dates. January 30: Josh Cataldo, Cataldo’s Perfezione
February 6: Jake Busching, Jake Busching Wines
February 20: Chris Tropeano, Present Company Wines
February 27: Erin and Sandy Robertson, Dogwood & Thistle Production Tours and Guided Tastings
We look forward to welcoming guests to the Virginia Wine Collective for tours and guided tastings. Please email our Wine Collective Coordinator, Gabrielle Thomas, if you would like to schedule a tour or guided tasting. She may be reached at gabrielle@ eastwoodfarmandwinery.com
Large Party Reservations
Interested in making a large party reservation for your group? Reach out to mary@eastwoodfarmandwinery. com to book.
Current Winery Hours Fridays 4-9 PM
1585 Avon Street Extended Charlottesville, VA 22902 (434) 264-6727
Solidarity Complete Fitness is a full-service strength & conditioning studio. Our goal is to improve all areas of fitness by providing thoughtful programming, a supportive community, and premium coaching. We are here to help you reach all of your health and fitness goals, no matter what they are.
SERENITY RIDGE RETREAT CENTER
Ancient Tibetan Buddhist Teachings for Modern Times
Join us in the serene foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains and in Charlottesville!
Weekend Silent Meditation Retreat, with 6-Day Option
An invitation to slow down and rest in silence for deep renewal
February 6–8 | February 6–12, 2026
Sherap Chamma Retreat: The Divine Feminine
A Journey into the Healing Power of Wisdom and Compassion
February 12–15, 2026
Calm Abiding (Zhiné): The Medicine of Tranquility
Mindfulness for Relaxation, Clarity, and Everyday Peace
February 12–15, 2026
Location: Serenity Ridge Retreat Center • Shipman, Virginia
LIGMINCHA CHARLOTTESVILLE MONTHLY PRACTICE
Location: Jefferson Memorial Regional Library
Downtown Charlottesville
Date: January 28, 2026
Time: 6:30-8:00 PM
Learn More and Register: SERENITYRIDGEVA.ORG
Serenity Ridge Retreat Center, Shipman, VA
Watercolor
@ McGuffey Art Center Tuesdays, 6:30-9:00 pm 8 weeks, Starting Jan. 20th johnahancock.com 434-939-7445 basics beyond! w/ John A. Hancock &
5 Weeks @ SVAC Wednesdays, 1:30-4:00 pm
Starts on February 18th
Steal our hearts
Enter C-VILLE’s annual Haikus from the Heart contest
Capture the beauty, agony, or mystery of love with your best haiku. The top 10 will be published in C-VILLE's February 11 issue, and the first-place winner will earn a Valentine's Day prize package, including dinner for two at a local restaurant.
Entries must:
❥ Be in haiku format (three lines total, five syllables in the first and third lines, seven in the second line).
❥ Be original and unpublished.
❥ Be PG-13.
❥ Be submitted by February 2.
Sponsored by:
CULTURE
TUESDAY 1/27
RIT LARGE
Renowned singer-songwriter, musician, artist, and bestselling author Josh Ritter brings The Book of Gold Thrown Open tour to town, showcasing more than 20 years and 12 albums of Americana sounds. One of the most thoughtful and prolific voices in American roots music today, Ritter’s empathy, indignation, and penchant for storytelling shine through in songs that captivate and inspire, including tracks from his latest album, I Believe in You, My Honeydew. $38–62, 8pm. The Jefferson Theater, 110 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. jeffersontheater.com
Wednesday 1/21
dance
Weekly Swing Dance. Beginner-friendly swing dance lessons teach the Lindy Hop, Charleston, Balboa, and blues. No partner needed, stay for social dancing after the class. $10, 7pm. The Front Porch, 221 E. Water St. frontporchcville.com etc.
Rapture Karaoke. Hosted by Thunder Music. Free, 9pm. Rapture, 303 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. rapturerestaurant.com
Thursday 1/22
music
Adam Larrabee Quartet. A rich, genre-blurring musical experience filled with soulful melodies and righteous grooves. $10, 7pm. The Batesville Market, 6624 Plank Rd., Batesville. batesvillemarket.com
Berto Sales & Vincent Zorn. Lively flamenco rumba. Free, 7pm. The Bebedero, 201 W. Main St., Downtown Mall. thebebedero.com
Gary Hawthorne. Originals and covers from one of the region’s most enduring voices. Free, 9pm. Rapture, 303 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. rapture restaurant.com
Jack Hardly & Friends. Young jammers play psychedelic throwbacks. Free, 8pm. Dürty Nelly’s, 2200 Jefferson Park Ave. durtynellyscharlottesville.com
Jon Spencer. An innovative force in the independent music scene since the mid-’80s. $25.65, 8pm. The Southern Café & Music Hall, 103 S. First St. thesoutherncville.com
Matt Burridge. A set of covers. Free, 5pm. Eastwood Farm and Winery, 2531 Scottsville Rd. eastwood farmandwinery.com
words
Community MLK Celebration Keynote Event. Dr. Imani Perry delivers the 2026 Community MLK Celebration keynote address. Free, 6pm. The Paramount Theater, 215 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. theparamount.net
Fighting for Freedom: The Declaration of Independence & Its Legacy. Discussion of history and ideas moderated by John Ragosta, Virginia Humanities fellow and faculty director at the summer Jefferson Symposium at UVA. Free, 5:30pm. The Center, 540 Belvedere Blvd. thecentercville.org
classes
Paint + Sip: Glowing Snowy Sunrise. Paint the supplied design in a step-by-step format. No experience necessary, all materials and first drink included. $44, 6pm. Pro Re Nata Farm Brewery, 6135 Rockfish Gap Tpk., Crozet. blueridgebrushes.com etc.
Brewery Puzzle Hunt. An escape room meets a pub crawl. Visit the Preston Avenue breweries,
crack codes, unravel riddles, and sample Charlottesville’s best brews. Players get $1 off pints at each brewery. $15, noon. Starr Hill Brewery, Dairy Market. puzzledbee.com
Film Screening: Honeyjoon. A surprisingly sexy, darkly funny, emotional rollercoaster. Surf the waves of life. A virtual Q&A with the filmmaker Lilian T. Mehrel follows. $10, 6:30pm. Light House Studio: Vinegar Hill Theatre, 220 W. Market St. lighthousestudio.org
Trivia Night with Mike & Miranda. Play alone, or bring a team of up to six to five rounds of trivia. Free, 6:15pm. Potter’s Craft Cider, 1350 Arrowhead Valley Rd. potterscraftcider.com
Vineyard Puzzle Hunt. Like an escape room but at a winery. Crack codes and unravel riddles while sampling Charlottesville’s best wine, beer, and cider. Play when you want and go at your own pace. $15, 5pm. Eastwood Farm and Winery, 2531 Scottsville Rd. puzzledbee.com
Friday 1/23
music
Jimmy Overton. More than 40-years experience singing and performing in Virginia and across the nation. Free, 5pm. Eastwood Farm and Winery, 2531 Scottsville Rd. eastwoodfarmandwinery.com
Kai Crowe-Getty Songwriter Spotlight. Nelson County, Virginia, songwriter shares songs and stories that inspired him. $10, 7pm. The Batesville Market, 6624 Plank Rd., Batesville. batesvillemarket.com
Midnight Buzz. An eclectic blend of acoustic and electric classic rock covers. Free, 6pm. Glass House Winery, 5898 Free Union Rd., Free Union. glasshousewinery.com
West of Wyatt. Jonah Kane-West and Matt Wyatt perform jazzy, soulful grooves. Free, 5:30pm. Potter’s Craft Cider, 1350 Arrowhead Valley Rd. potterscraftcider.com
words
Author Event: Fernando Valverde with Gordon E. McNeer. A bilingual reading celebrating Valverde’s new poetry collection, The Men Who Killed My Mother, translated by McNeer. Free, 7pm. New Dominion Bookshop, 404 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. newdominionbookshop.com
Pursuits of Knowledge: Conversations at Monticello. Scholars and authors explore the enduring legacy of curiosity, innovation, and learning inspired by Thomas Jefferson. $10, 5:30pm. Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello, 931 Thomas Jefferson Pkwy. monticello.org
classes
Paint + Sip: Frosted Pines. Paint the supplied design in a step-by-step format. No experience necessary, all materials included. $40, 6pm. Hazy Mountain Vineyard & Brewery, 240 Hazy Mountain Ln., Afton. blueridgebrushes.com
FRIDAY 1/23 THROUGH SUNDAY 2/15
PLAY BY PLAY
TO-DO LIST CULTURE
SATURDAY 1/31 RESCHEDULED FROM 1/24
POSITIVE ENERGY
The Robert Jospé Quartet performs its distinctive modern jazz in celebration of its new studio album, The Night Sky. Played with the passion and precision the group is known for, the evening’s set features new tunes and old favorites that traverse jazz, blues, funk, Latin, and African rhythms, led by Jospé on drums, Daniel Clarke on piano, Paul Langosch on bass, and Jeff Massanari on guitar. Free, 7:30pm. Piedmont Virginia Community College, V. Earl Dickinson Building, 501 College Dr. pvcc.edu
etc.
Brewery Puzzle Hunt. See listing for Thursday, January 22. $15, noon. Starr Hill Brewery, Dairy Market. puzzledbee.com
Films Talk Back: Georgia O’Keeffe: the Brightness of Light. Feature-length documentary examines the pathway, including through Charlottesville, that led to becoming one of the most influential artists of the 20th century. Free, 7pm. Piedmont Virginia Community College, V. Earl Dickinson Building, 501 College Dr. pvcc.edu
Paramount On Screen: The Red Violin A redcolored violin inspires passion, making its way through three centuries over several owners and countries, eventually ending up at an auction. $11, 7:30pm. The Paramount Theater, 215 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. theparamount.net
Penned by Pulitzer Prize finalist and MacArthur “genius” grant recipient Sarah Ruhl, Stage Kiss is a charming and profound comedy about romance and the theater itself. The narrative follows a play-within-a-play, exploring the lines between professional performance and personal passion. When two actors with a steamy past are cast as lovers in an overwrought 1930s melodrama, an infamous stage kiss blurs the boundaries between their characters’ fictional romance and their own complicated reality. $28–30, times vary. Live Arts, 123 E. Water St. livearts.org
943 Preston Ave. superflybrewing.com
Vineyard Puzzle Hunt. See listing for Thursday, January 22. $15, 5pm. Eastwood Farm and Winery, 2531 Scottsville Rd. puzzledbee.com
Saturday 1/24
music
Cheick Hamala Diabate Band & Corey Harris. The first concert in the 2026 Global Roots series brings traditional music from Mali together with the blues. $25–30, 8pm. The Front Porch, 221 E. Water St. frontporchcville.com
Trivia with Olivia. Get the weekend started with beers and trivia. Free, 6pm. SuperFly Brewing Co.,
READ LOCAL. WEAR LOCAL.
CULTURE STAGES
Jon Spencer with Space Saver
Since the mid-’80s, Jon Spencer has been fronting bands and serving as a notable supporting character in what the world used to call alternative music. Despite using the word blues in everything from his group names to song titles to lyrics, he’s been steadily pumping out rock ’n’ roll in the traditionally dirty sense of the term, with varying degrees of faithfulness to the original formula.
By the early 1990s, Spencer’s manic attack became more focused and groove-oriented, suddenly leaning mainstream—hovering above the underground, but not exactly Billboard Top 40 material—in the MTV “120 Minutes” post-Nirvana success. That change came thanks to the formation of the The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, whose relentless recording, touring, and strangely danceable distortion numbers brought the band close to full-on stardom. While he collaborated on a host of projects outside of the Explosion, neither Spencer nor his main band ever enjoyed the arenasized afterglow that later contemporaries like The Strokes or The White Stripes achieved. Yet they managed to find them-
selves as an ongoing part of the conversation, contributing the theme music to Anthony Bourdain’s “No Reservations,” for instance.
In 2001, when I caught the Explosion headlining the Siren Music Festival put on by the now-defunct Village Voice in Coney Island, Spencer hit the stage shining and shaking like a true charismatic icon. Presiding over a sea of drunk hipsters, his schtick hit with the intensity and wackiness reminiscent of an in-his-prime, late-1970s, white-suited Steve Martin doing stand-up: arms outstretched, an ear-to-ear smile, and a goofy lack of logic that was impossible to turn away from.
He never lost that fervor. But by the start of this decade, the Blues Explosion called it quits and Spencer went on to record a few of his own records as a solo artist. His newest, Sick of Being Sick!, sounds less like a departure from the thesis of his bestknown act and more of a continuation.
The Southern Café & Music Hall
Thursday 1/22
FarAway. Singer-songwriter duo Sara Davenport and Brian Franke perform strong and tight harmonies. Free, 12:30pm. Eastwood Farm and Winery, 2531 Scottsville Rd. eastwoodfarmandwinery.com
Melissa Hansen. A blend of blues, pop, country, and soul. Free, 2:30pm. Albemarle CiderWorks, 2545 Rural Ridge Ln., North Garden. albemarle ciderworks.com
modern twist. $5, 7pm. The Batesville Market, 6624 Plank Rd., Batesville. batesvillemarket.com
The Pollocks. Featuring Jason Pollock, Thomas Gunn, Maryline Meyer, Nathan West, and Randy Mendicino. Free, 5:30pm. Potter’s Craft Cider, 1350 Arrowhead Valley Rd. potterscraftcider.com
The Wavelength. Upbeat music to dance to. Free, 5pm. Eastwood Farm and Winery, 2531 Scottsville Rd. eastwoodfarmandwinery.com
dance
January Ballroom Dance. This month: Argentine Tango, taught by David Acunzo of Charlottesville Tango. Beginners welcome, no partner required. Come to the class and stay for the dance. Pay at the door. Cash, checks or Venmo only. $5–15, 7pm. The Center, 540 Belvedere Blvd. thecentercville.org
words
Author Event: A.D. Carson. Carson reads from his new book, Being Dope: Hip Hop and Theory through Mixtape Memoir. An audience Q&A follows. Free, 7pm. New Dominion Bookshop, 404 E Main St., Downtown Mall. ndbookshop.com
New Dominion Storytime. Readings from recent storybooks and the classics kids know and love. Rain or shine. All ages welcome. Free, 11am. New Dominion Bookshop, 404 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. newdominionbookshop.com
classes
Collage in Watercolor and Ink: Winter Botanicals. Discover the possibilities of using collage in loose, expressive mixed media art and create a dynamic watercolor and ink painting of winter botanicals. Ages 15+. $40, 10am. The Scrappy Elephant, 1745 Allied St. scrappyelephant.com
Paint + Sip: Cozy Cabin. Paint the supplied design in a step-by-step format. No experience necessary, all materials included. $40, 2pm. Tasting Room & Taphouse at Mount Ida Reserve, 5931 Blenheim Rd. blueridgebrushes.com
Starting Plants from Seed. Improve your success rates by learning basic seed-starting techniques and the special needs of some seeds. Seed swap event follows class. Free, 10am. James Monroe’s Highland, 2050 James Monroe Pkwy. highland.org
etc.
Brewery Puzzle Hunt. See listing for Thursday, January 22. $15, noon. Starr Hill Brewery, Dairy Market. puzzledbee.com
This year’s single “Come On!,” tracked with his current backing band, reveals the good vibes of a showman still imploring us to love one another—and, of course, to get wild.—CM Gorey
Mike Proffitt. Original and classic acoustic rock. Free, 2pm. DuCard Vineyards, 40 Gibson Hollow Ln., Etlan. ducardvineyards.com
Rescheduled to 1/31 Robert Jospé Quartet. Celebrating its new studio album The Night Sky, the quartet brings its distinctive style to the Main Stage Theatre. Free, 7:30pm. Piedmont Virginia Community College, V. Earl Dickinson Building, 501 College Dr. pvcc.edu
The Inclinators. A danceable, soulful sound that blends the timeless spirit of the ’60s with a fresh,
Nest Building Day. Join Landscape Manager Bridget Curran for a community art project celebrating one of the garden’s most meaningful symbols: the nest. Free, 12:30pm. Botanical Garden of the Piedmont, 950 Melbourne Rd. piedmontgarden.org Vineyard Puzzle Hunt. See listing for Thursday, January 22. $15, 5pm. Eastwood Farm and Winery, 2531 Scottsville Rd. puzzledbee.com
Sunday 1/25
music
Faculty Chamber Ensembles: UVA Chamber Music Series #3. A variety of mixed ensembles comprised of exceptionally talented UVA faculty perform works by Mozart, Adolf Busch, and Erwin Schulhoff. $5–15, 3:30pm. Old Cabell Hall. music. virginia.edu
Music Bingo. Listen to your favorite music, match the songs to the titles on your music bingo cards, and win great prizes. Free, 2pm. Eastwood Farm and Winery, 2531 Scottsville Rd. eastwood farmandwinery.com
Willie DE. A solo acoustic performance of bluesy rock sounds. Free, 2pm. Glass House Winery, 5898 Free Union Rd., Free Union. glasshousewinery.com
dance
BRIMS Ceol agus Céilí: Irish Session & Social Dance. All dances are taught and called by BRIMS dance instructors. All ages welcome, no previous dance experience needed. Free, 3pm. Potter’s Craft Cider, 1350 Arrowhead Valley Rd. potterscraftcider.com
classes
Learn to Knit. Learn the basics of knitting, no experience needed. Leave with a pair of knitting needles, the beginning of a scarf, and enough yarn to finish it. Ages 12+. $25, 11am. The Scrappy Elephant, 1745 Allied St. scrappyelephant.com
Oil Painting for Everybody: Animal Edition. Learn to oil paint an animal composition in an approachable and organized format. Beginner focused, but open to all skill levels. Ages 14+. $45, 2pm. The Scrappy Elephant, 1745 Allied St. scrappyelephant.com etc.
Brewery Puzzle Hunt. See listing for Thursday, January 22. $15, noon. Starr Hill Brewery, Dairy Market. puzzledbee.com
Live-Scored Screening: The Battleship Potemkin
Celebrate the 100th anniversary of this Soviet silent epic, with live musical scoring by Matt Marshall. $9–10, 2pm. Violet Crown Charlottesville, 200 W. Main St., Downtown Mall. charlottesville.violetcrown.com
Paramount On Screen: The Princess Bride. Directed by Rob Reiner from an endlessly quotable script by William Goldman, The Princess Bride reigns as a fairy-tale classic. $9–11, 2pm. The Paramount Theater, 215 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. theparamount.net
Vineyard Puzzle Hunt. See listing for Thursday, January 22. $15, 5pm. Eastwood Farm and Winery, 2531 Scottsville Rd. puzzledbee.com
Monday 1/26
words
Truth Telling as Place Making. Explore how storytelling in the built environment can shape, reimagine, and heal the places we experience. With Swati Janu, founder of the Social Design Collaborative in Delhi, and Monique Verdin, a storyteller and environmental advocate from New Orleans. Free, 5pm. Campbell Hall 153: School of Architecture at UVA, 110 Bayly Dr. arch.virginia.edu
Tuesday 1/27
music
Open Jam with Jeff Massanari & Friends. Bring your instrument and join a core of players for an open jazz session. Free, 6:30pm. Rapture, 303 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. rapturerestaurant.com Open Mic Night. Hosted by the Open Mic Music Exchange and Nicole Giordano. Free, 9:30pm. Rapture, 303 E. Main St., Downtown Mall. rapture restaurant.com
Vincent Zorn. Lively flamenco rumba with a unique percussive technique that incorporates a diverse range of strumming styles, rhythms, and taps. Free, 7pm. The Bebedero, 201 W. Main St., Downtown Mall. thebebedero.com
words
Profs & Pints Charlottesville: Tariffs, Corruption, and Sugar. A look at how capitalism and empire changed the food we eat, with David Singerman, assistant professor of history and American studies at UVA. $13–17, 5:30pm. Graduate Hotel, 1309 W. Main St. profsandpints.com etc.
Geeks Who Drink Trivia. Good trivia, good times. Teams of two to six people compete to win prizes like gift certificates and pint glasses, plus bragging rights. Free, 7pm. Firefly, 1304 E. Market St. fireflycville.com
PAGES CULTURE
‘Conjurers survive conquerors’
Imani Perry examines blue to grapple with Black history
“Those of us who come from people whose past has been deemed unworthy have often found ourselves fighting for preservation in order to be counted,” writes Imani Perry in Black in Blues: How a Color Tells the Story of My People. She continues, “Our preservation commitments insist upon fuller and often more accurate stories than what empires tell about themselves.”
True to this reflection, Perry’s work as a scholar and writer consistently focuses on stories that honor Black humanity and history in America, with roots across the globe. Infused with deep curiosity about the people and places she includes, her books are written for us all—work that is more important than ever in our current political climate, where empire runs unchecked and people across the country are at heightened risk.
In recognition and support of her work, Perry has received a MacArthur “genius” grant as well as fellowships from the Guggenheim and Pew foundations. She is the author of nine books, including South to America: A Journey Below the Mason Dixon to Understand the Soul of a Nation, winner of the 2022 National Book Award for Nonfiction. A journey through the stories, places, and rituals of the American South, South to America, which Perry discussed at the Virginia Festival of the Book, is a deeply researched, personal work that invites readers to deepen our understanding of the history and culture of this region in order to better understand our country as a whole.
Black in Blues builds on the work she shared in South to America, weaving together histories and artifacts to create a magnificent tapestry—this time centering the color blue as a connecting thread through Black culture.
Perry describes the book as more “experimental and expansive” than her past work, but it is also more intimate. In it, she writes, “I wasn’t constructing a story; I was revealing and witnessing, quilting something present. Along the way, I learned much more than I already knew … And that is in this book. In it, loose threads and frayed patches are as important as seamless compositions and straight-stitched stories. Perhaps more so, because life is neither tidy nor done; it is doing.” She adds, “You might be thinking by now that this blue thing I’m talking about is
“I
BY SARAH LAWSON
mere device, a literary trick to move through historic events … But, for real, the blue in Black is nothing less than truth before trope.”
The blues in Perry’s Black in Blues range from blues music and its genre descendants to Black creatives making use of the color blue in their sculpture, paintings, novels, and other artistic work. She finds evidence across time and place, from Webster’s blue-black speller that made Black education and literacy more accessible for many during Reconstruction and Jim Crow, to the blue flowers growing atop the otherwise unmarked graves of enslaved people; from Haiti, Ghana, and the Congo Free State, to the root of the term “crimes against humanity” and the establishment of international human rights. It is a book that embraces linked fates, collective mourning, and shared joy.
forms … But I had to stop to finish this book. And to remember that the point was not to document them all, but to attend to what these artists teach, in sound and color, about the human condition. I think I know: this tradition I’ve devoted myself to exploring and explaining is the place where imagination is excited into faith and deed. Conjurers survive conquerors.”
Black in Blues is also a personal accounting, an expedition of self-exploration, a memorial, and a look to the future. Perry includes her own life, family, and experience in the book, offering personal stories, but also inviting the reader into her meditations on the meaning of this work, the challenges and the strength she draws from the stories she shares.
“I was enchanted,” writes Perry. “I continue to be, at each new beautiful blue story in the plethora of Black art pieces and
After all, the work of preservation is one of survival. Through the pages of Black in Blues, Perry returns time and again to the atrocities that have been perpetrated against Black people, to the myriad ways that the pursuits of empire and white people have perpetrated violence and erasure. And still, in the face of it all, Black art, ingenuity, and community continue to evolve and grow, to grapple with the past and dream a better future. Perry writes, “The real question I ask is, how is it that we keep our hearts and souls reaching? Because that is what is worth saving. Black Americans are a people, but a very young one. We are older than the United States … but younger than the Yoruba or Ibo people.” Elsewhere in the book, she writes, “We have no choice but to contend with our past inside our present.”
wasn’t constructing a story; I was revealing and witnessing, quilting something present.”
Imani Perry will deliver the 2026 Community MLK Celebration keynote address on January 22 at The Paramount Theater.
The very first C-VILLE Restaurant Week had foodies buzzing and tables filling up faster than a top chef can slice a ripe tomato. Ditto for this one in winter 2025. Getting in on the fun is easy–but it requires a little planning. Here’s how.
STEP 1:
Mark your calendar for Monday, January 27thSunday, February 2nd
STEP 2:
Peruse the menus from the participating restaurants to decide which ones suit your fancy. With so many participating, you can’t visit one every night!
STEP 3:
Call each restaurant directly to make your reservation, and mention that you’re coming in specifically for Restaurant Week. Reservations are first-come, first-served and chefs report that interest has been running high, so don’t tarry.
STEP 4:
Show up on time, and make sure you’re dressed to make your mama proud, since some of the participating establishments have dress codes.
STEP 5:
Make sure you order off the special “Restaurant Week” menu, as some of the participating restaurants will also offer their regular—i.e. more expensive— menu. (Everyone will be dismayed, and you might end up washing dishes, if you order the $65 flaming surf and turf that’s not part of the special prix fixe menu.)
STEP 6:
Savor your meal, and when paying your bill, please remember that drinks, tax and tips are not included.
Luce Menu
#1 Kale Caesar Salad:
Kale & Shaved Brussels, Confit Cherry
T omatoes, Toast Crumbs, Classic Dressing
#2 Pick a Pasta:
Classics:
Cacio
B olo
P istou Fettuccine & Meatballs
Daily Special:
Monday- Roman Chicken Ragù
T uesday- Spinach Artichoke Tortellini
W ednesday- Short Rib Stroganoff
T hursday- Carbonara
F riday- Butternut Squash Ravioli
S aturday- Chicken Alfredo Sunday- Tuscan Fettuccine
#3 Dessert:
Chocolate Chip Cookie Brownie
Pistachio Chocolate Cannoli
bizoudowntown.com lucepasta.com
MON,JAN 26TH - FEB 1ST 2026
CHOOSE 1 SNACK & BITES
CHOOSE 1 MAIN DISH
CHOOSE 1 DESSERT
SNACK & BITES
WINGS
GYOZA
FRENCH FRIED
SHRIMP TEMPURA
CURRY PUFF
FRIED SPRING ROLL
TAKOYAKI
MISO SOUP
CLEAR SOUP
APPLE SALAD
DESSERT
JAPANESE CREPE CAKE
COCONUT PINEAPPLE
ICE CREAM
CHOCOLATE ICE CREAM
$25 $25
MAIN DISH
PHO TAI
PHO JAE
PHO GA
TOM YUM NOODLE
THAI BOAT NOODLE
PAD THAI
DRUNKEN NOODLE
PAD SEA EAW
JAPANESE CURRY WITH FRIED CHICKEN
KHAO MANN GAI
FRESH GARLIC CHICKEN
KAO MOO DANG
CHICKEN TERIYAKI
BULGOGI BEEF
THAI GAI YANG
SPAM MUSUBI BOWL
TOFU TERIYAKI
STARTERS-
Jumbo Smoked Chicken Wings - dry rubbed, served with Ranch or Blue Cheese GF
Catfish Bites - cornmeal breaded served with house Remoulade GF
Breads - Biscuit and Corn Bread, served with Pimento Cheese GF
MAINS-
Two Meat Plate- your choice of two of our smoked meats, Pork, Smoked Chicken, or Ribs, your choice of two sides GF
“Consuming raw or undercooked meats, poultry, seafood, shellfish or eggs may increase your risk of foodborne illness.”
RESTAURANT WEEK
STARTERS
Conchitas Parmesana (Parmesan Scallops)
Seared scallops topped with melted Parmesan cheese.
Classic Ceviche
Fresh fish marinated in citrus juice, red onion, cilantro and Peruvian spices.
Causa de Pulpo (Octopus Causa)
Layers of seasoned mashed yellow potatoes filled with tender octopus and light citrus sauce.
Gyozas (Gyozas)
$35
Pan-seared dumplings filled with seasoned pork and vegetables, served with dipping sauce..
MAIN DISHES
Seco de cordero (Slow-braised lamb stew)
Slow-braised lamb stew cooked with cilantro, spices, and dark beer, served with rice.
Inka Grill 5th St Station Per person
Tuna Cusco
Quinoa-crusted tuna served with a mushroom-stu ed potato cake and a pisco–ponzu sauce on the side.
Mahi Mahi Relleno de Camarón (Shrimp-Stu ed Mahi-Mahi)
Grilled mahi-mahi fillet stu ed with seasoned shrimp and finished with a light sauce.
Lomito Andino (Andean Beef Tenderloin)
Grilled beef tenderloin served with creamy quinoa riso o, seasoned with Andean spices.
choices!
DESSERTS
Please ask your server about our available desserts.
per person
RESTAURANT WEEK MENU
STARTERS
FRIED CAULIFLOWER & BRUSSELS SPROUTS
SZECHUAN SPICES, FRESH HERBS, AND SRIRACHA AIOLI
CRAB SOUP
OLD BAY AND SHERRY
ENTREES
HOUSEMADE TAGLIATELLI
SAUTÉED SPINACH, KALAMATA OLIVES, AND ARTICHOKE HEARTS
GARLIC WHITE WINE CREAM SAUCE, FINISHED WITH FETA AND PARMESAN
BISON EMPANADA
SALSA FRESCA AND CILANTRO CREMA
RICE PILAF, GARLIC GREEN BEANS, AND
HONEY GOCHUJANG GLAZE
MIXED GREEN SALAD
LOCAL “CAROMONT” GOAT CHEESE, ROASTED PISTACHIOS, AND VIRGINIA APPLES
MAPLE-DIJON VINAIGRETTE
CRISPY FRIED ROCKFISH
RICE PILAF, CRISPY COLLARD GREENS, AND SAMBAL BLACK SESAME AIOLI
BACON-WRAPPED MEATLOAF
LOCAL “ROSEDA” BEEF, VIRGINIA HONEY BBQ SAUCE GARLIC GREEN BEANS, ADOBO GRAVY, AND LOCAL “MOUNTAIN VIEW” MACARONI AND CHEESE
RESTAURANT WEEK MENU MON,JAN 26TH - FEB 1ST
630 RIVERSIDE SHOPS WAY, STE.100 CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA 22911
WWW.MAPLEPINECVILLE.COM
TEL: (434) 266-9733
STEP1: CHOOSE A STARTER
CHIVE CAKE
AVOCADO FRESH ROLL COCONUT SHRIMP
THAI SAMOSA (CURRY PUFF) SPRING ROLL
STEP2: CHOOSE A MAIN
WOONSEN PAD THAI
THAI-STYLE STIR-FRIED GLASS NOODLES TOSSED IN A SAV ORY-SWEET TAMARIND SAUCE WITH EGG, SHRIMP, BEAN SPROUTS, SCALLIONS, AN D CRUSHED PEANUTS. BALANCED WITH A HINT OF TANGY LIME AND CHILI FOR CL ASSIC PAD THAI FLAVOR.
CREAMY TOM YUM SEAFOOD
A RICH AND CREAMY THAI TOM YUM SOUP SIMMERED WITH S UCCULENT SHRIMP, FRESH MUSHROOMS, LEMONGRASS, THAI HERB. BALANCED WITH A B RIGHT CITRUS TANG, GENTLE HEAT, AND SILKY CREAMINESS THAT MAKES EVERY SPOONFU L COMFORTING YET BOLD.
GINGER SALMON
TENDER SALMON STIR-FRIED WITH FRAGRANT FRESH GINGER , SHIITAKE MUSHROOMS, BELL PEPPERS, ONIONS, AND SCALLIONS. LIGHTLY COATED IN A SAVORY, AROMATIC SAUCE THAT ENHANCES THE RICHNESS OF THE SALMON WHILE BALANCING WARMTH, FRESHNESS, AND SUBTLE SWEETNESS IN EVERY BITE.
BEEF RIBS YELLOW CURRY
SLOW-BRAISED BEEF RIBS SIMMERED UNTIL FORK-TENDER I N A FRAGRANT THAI YELLOW CURRY, INFUSED WITH WARM SPICES, COCONUT MILK, AND A GENTLE RICHNESS THAT MELTS INTO EVERY BITE.
Served with a variety of sweet treats and fresh fruits. Choose one chocolate fondue per cooktop.
Candy Bar
The creamy flavor of milk chocolate, caramel and crunchy peanut butter are swirled with butterscotch schnapps and Baileys Irish Cream.
Choose one chocolate fondue to complete your meal.
See our dessert menu for all the decadent details.
Cream Puffs, Macarons, Cheesecake
$3.50 Each | $9.50 For All Three
$35 per person
Tax and gratuity not included.
Dark & Dulce
The rich flavor of dark chocolate is melted with dulce de leche and finished with sea salt
$8 Specialty Cocktails
20% off Bottles of Wine
$35
Before placing your order, please inform a Melting Pot team member if a person in your party has a food allergy.
*Our fondue-style service may result in the undercooking of certain ingredients. Consuming raw or undercooked MEATS, POULTRY, seafood, shellfish, or EGGS, may increase your RISK of foodborne illness.
Sangria Pitchers
From The Bar
Hugo Spritz: Elderflower Liqueur, Prosecco, Soda, Fesh Mint 15
20% service charge will be added to parties of five or more.
Restaurant week Menu
Monday, January 26 - Sunday, February 1, 2026
PINEAPPLES THAI KITCHEN
722 Preston Ave. Ste.103, Charlottesville, VA 22903 434-202-2366, 434-202-1682
Step 1 Choose a Starter Step 1 Choose a Starter
Fried spring roll (V)
Thai samosa (V)
Coconut Shrimp
Moo Sam Chan (Fried Pork Belly)
Step 2 Choose a Main Dish Step 2 Choose a Main Dish
Sweet&Sour Fish : Deep-Fried tilapia with Sweet & Sour Sauce, bell pepper, onion, scallion
KEE MOW : Thai drunken spaghetti, Choice of Seafood, Chicken, Beef, Tofu or Veggie with red bell peppers, green bean, bamboo shoot, tomatoes,basil leaves
TOM YUM FRIED RICE : Made with jasmine rice, shrimp, and flavors of lemongrass, lime and Thai chili paste
THE CURRY : Salmon in Red curry with red bell peppers, butter squash and basil leaves.
Step 3 Choose a Dessert Step 3 Choose a Dessert
Sticky Rice with Mango Bake Taro Custard
Sticky Rice with Egg Custard Green Tea Cheese cake with Vanilla Ice cream
3 COURSE MEAL
$35 PER PERSON
APPETIZER
choice of:
SKILLET CORNBREAD v honey, cracked black pepper, chives, whipped butter
CRISPY BRUSSELS SPROUTS GF V
fresno chili hot honey, ginger, mint, cilantro, roasted peanuts
Chicken breast cooked in butter and tomato sauce garnished with almonds and cilantro. With basmati rice and naan bread
Lamb Curry
Lamb prepared with fresh ginger, garlic, onions, coriander, served over basmati rice
Samosa
Deep-fried filo samosas, potatoes, onions, peas jalapenos, chives, chutney
Filet Mignon
Topped with an onion crisp, served with baby creamer potatoes
Paneer Jalfrezi
Fresh red & yellow peppers, zucchini & yellow squash cooked in tomato and dutch cheese seasoned with fresh ginger, garlic, masala, chili, and coriander. Served over basmati rice with naan bread
Gnocci
Potato dumplings, red onions, mushrooms, red peppers, asparagus, yellow squash, sun dried tomatoes, vodka sauce
Third Course
Tiramisu
Limoncello Marscapone
Gulab Jamun
APPETIZERS
Shrimp & Cheddar Grit Croquette | GF
creole tomato jam
Fried Green Tomatoes
pimento cheese
Goat Cheese Salad | GF, V*
roasted butternut squash, dried figs, spiced pumpkin seeds, pickled red onions, apple cider vinaigrette
20. “___ alone in thinking this?” 21. Capital of Qatar 22. Many “Frozen”-inspired Halloween costumes
24. Period following sunset
26. Queens (one of five)
29. Middle par t of a Shakespeare play
31. Author of the “Goosebumps” series
32. MacGowan of the Pogues
33. Drive an 18-wheeler, say
35. Little bit
36. Michigan (one of five)
40. Pirate’s interjection
43. Invisible rope puller, maybe
44. Hall & ___ (“Maneater” duo)
48. Deemed appropriate
51. “Spill the tea!”
52. Styx (one of five)
55. Equal
56. Purplish color
57. They’re thrown in some bars
59. Coffee, in diner slang
60. Former “All Things Considered” host Shapiro
61. Yellow (one of five)
65. Former Giants pitcher Robb with a palindromic name
66. Home of the Lightning and the Tornadoes
67. “Biography” network
68. 34th U.S. pres.
69. Word after French or Texas
70. “___, what have I done?” (“Once in a Lifetime” lyric)
DOWN
1. Fleets of warships
2. Excessive
3. Cuban ousted by Castro
4. “Alas!,” in Germany
5. Detroit nickname
6. Conspicuously chic
7. “I, Robot” author Asimov
8. Avengers franchise, for short
9. Dem rep. sworn into Congress at age 29
10. Controls the wheel
11. Downhill wear
12. Gar field’s favorite food
13. Didn’t match
18. Pasta ___ (boxed dinner brand)
23. His wife was turned into a pillar of salt
25. Charles, currently
27. Weird “Dr. Steve” in a 2010s Adult Swim show
28. Pueblo cooking vessel
30. -y, comparatively
33. Dominican Republic neighbor
FOR FUN FREE WILL ASTROLOGY
By Rob Brezsny Pisces
(Feb. 19-March 20): Your unconscious mind is extra communicative, dear Pisces. Hooray! Take advantage! Pay attention to weird images in dreams and songs that linger in your head. Be alert for seemingly random thoughts as they surface. Bypassing logic, your deep psyche is trying to show you ripe secrets and provocative hints. Your duty is to be receptive. So keep a journal or recording device by your bed. Notice which memories rise up out of nowhere. Be grateful for striking coincidences. These are invitations to tune in to meaningful feelings and truths you’ve been missing.
Aries
(March 21-April 19): Master astrologer Steven Forrest understands you Aries people well. He says that the riskiest strategy you can pursue is to constantly seek safety. It’s crucial for you to always be on the lookout for adventure. One of your chief assignments is to cultivate courage—especially the kind of brave boldness that arises as you explore unknown territory. To rouse the magic that really matters, you must face your fears regularly. The coming months will be an ideal time for you to dive in and celebrate this approach to life.
Taurus
(April 20-May 20): You are an ambassador from the material world to the realm of spirit—and vice versa. One of your prime assignments is the opposite of what the transcendence-obsessed gurus preach. You’re here to prove that the flesh is holy, pleasure is a form of prayer, and the senses are portals to the divine. When you revel in earthy delights, when you luxuriate in rich textures and tastes and scents, you’re not being “attached” or “unspiritual.” You’re enacting a radical sacred stance. Being exuberantly immersed in the material world isn’t a mistake to overcome but a blessing to savor. May you redouble your subversive work of treating your body as a cathedral and sensual enjoyments as sacraments.
Gemini
(May 21-June 20): Everything that’s meant for you is trying to find its way to you. Here’s the problem: It can’t deliver the goods if you’re in constant motion. The boons trying to reach you are circling, waiting for a stable landing spot. If you keep up the restless roaming, life might have to slow you down, even stop you, so you’ll be still enough to embody receptivity. Don’t wait for that. Pause now. Set aside whatever’s feeding your restlessness and tune into the quiet signal of your own center. The moment you do, bounties will start arriving.
Cancer
(June 21-July 22): Artist Louise Bourgeois said, “I am what I do with my hands.” I will adapt this declaration for your use, Cancerian: You
(Jan 20-Feb. 18): You are a spy from the future. Thank you for your service! I love to see your boldness as you smuggle innovative ideas into a present that may or may not be ready for them. Your feelings of alienation are sometimes uncomfortable, but they are crucial to the treasure you offer us. You see patterns others miss because you refuse to be hypnotized by consensus reality. Keep up the excellent work, please. May you honor your need to tinker with impossibilities and imagine alternatives to what everyone else imagines is inevitable. You are proof that we don’t have
to
accept inherited structures as inevitable.
are what you do with your feelings. You are the structures, sanctuaries, and nourishment you create from the raw material of your sensitivity. It’s one of your superpowers! I understand that some people mistake emotional depth for passive vulnerability. They assume that feeling everything means doing nothing. But you prove that bias wrong. You are potentially a master builder. You can convert the flood waters of emotion into resources that hold, protect, and feed. I hope you will do this lavishly in the coming weeks.
Leo
(July 23-Aug. 22): Admiring writers often say that the Balinese people have no traditional word for “art.” Making things beautiful is woven into everyday life, as if everything should be done as beautifully as possible. I aspire to carry out this approach myself: infusing ordinary actions with the same care I’d bring to writing a story or song. Washing dishes, answering emails, and walking to the store: All are eligible for beauty treatment. I highly recommend this practice to you in the coming weeks, Leo. It’s true that you’re renowned for your dramatic gestures, but I believe you also have an underutilized talent for teasing out glory from mundane situations. Please do that a lot in the coming weeks. For starters, make your grocery list a poem.
Virgo
(Aug. 22-Sept. 22): Some American Indigenous cultures have “potlatch” ceremonies. These are elaborate gift-giving rituals where hosts gain prestige by generously and freely bestowing their riches on others. Circulating wealth, instead of hoarding it, is honored
and celebrated. Is that economically irrational? Only if you believe that the point of resources is individual accumulation rather than community vitality. Potlatch operates on a different logic: The purpose of having stuff is to make having stuff possible for others. I invite you to make that your specialty in the coming months. Assume that your own thriving depends on the flourishing of those around you.
Libra
(Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Sufi poet Rumi wrote about a “treasure in ruins.” He meant that what we’re searching for may be hidden in places where we would rather not look. Your life isn’t in ruins, Libra, but I suspect you may have been exploring exciting locations while shunning mundane ones that actually hold your answers. What do you think? Is that possible? Just for fun, investigate the neglected, ignored, and boring places. Try out the hypothesis that a golden discovery awaits you in some unfinished business or a situation you feel an aversion to.
Scorpio
(Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Your capacity for intensity is your superpower. I love it, I celebrate it, and I hope to keep nurturing it in you for as long as we’re both here. But not everything deserves the full force of your passionate engagement. Some things are meant to be touched lightly, held loosely, and released easily. The question isn’t whether to feel deeply—that’s who you authentically are— but whether to act on every deep feeling as if it were sacred revelation. Some emotions are weather patterns passing through, not
permanent truths requiring upheaval. These are especially key understandings for you to act on during the coming days.
Sagittarius
(Nov. 22-Dec. 21): As I have promised you a million times, I will never exaggerate. And though you may wonder if the statements I’m about to make are excessive and overblown, I assure you they are not. The fact is, dear Sagittarius, that everything you have always wanted to enhance and upgrade about togetherness is now possible to accomplish, and will continue to be for months to come. If you dare to dismantle your outmoded beliefs about love and deep friendship—every comforting myth, every conditioned response, every inherited instinct—you will discover new dimensions of intimacy that could inspire you forever.
Capricorn
(Dec. 22-Jan. 19): In Renaissance painting, chiaroscuro refers to the use of strong contrasts between light and dark. It’s a technique that enhances the sense of depth. I believe your life may be in an intense chiaroscuro phase. As your joys grow bright, your doubts appear darker. As your understanding deepens, your perplexity mounts. Is this a problem? I prefer to understand it as an opportunity. For best results, study it closely. Maybe your anxiety is showing you what you care about. Perhaps your sadness is a sign of your growing emotional power. So find a way to benefit from the contrasts, dear Capricorn. Let shadows teach you how to fully appreciate the illumination. Expanded weekly audio horoscopes and daily text message horoscopes: RealAstrology.com, (877) 873-4888
DEADLINE
SIZES AVAILABLE
PRICING
IXCHEL LLC
TRADING AS: L’ETOILE CATERING
5857 Jarmans Gap Road, Crozet, VA 22932
The above establishment is applying to the VIRGINIA ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE CONTROL (ABC) AUTHORITY
for a Retail Restaurant or Caterer ApplicationCaterer Limited, Wine, Beer, Mixed Beverages, Consumed On Premises Schuyler Cox, Owner
NOTE: Objections to the issuance of this license must be Submitted to ABC no later than 30 days from the publishing date of the first of two required newspaper legal notices. Objections should be registered at www.abc.virginia.gov or 800-552-3200.
STARR HILL BREWERY, LLC
Trading as STARR HILL DOWNTOWN 946 Grady Avenue, Charlottesville, VA 22903
The above establishment is applying to the VIRGINIA ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGE CONTROL (ABC) AUTHORITY for a On & Off Premises Beer & Wine Retail license
Josh Cromwell, President
NOTE: Objections to the issuance of this license must be Submitted to ABC no later than 30 days from the publishing date of the first of two required newspaper legal notices. Objections should be registered at www.abc.virginia.gov or 800-552-3200.
P.S. THE HOTSEAT
Taking care
The staff and volunteer physicians at the Charlottesville Free Clinic helped more than 3,000 patients in 2025—more than 1,600 of them new to the clinic—obtain medical and dental care. Roughly 40 percent of those patients earned less than the federal poverty line of $15,650 for individuals or $32,150 for a family of four. More than three-fourths of the clinic’s patients make less than 200 percent of the federal poverty line, and roughly half make 138 percent or less. As the Free Clinic braces for an increase in patients amid federal cuts to health care assistance, we put Executive Director Willa Barnhardt in the HotSeat to learn more about how it’s coping.
Name: Willa Barnhardt
Pronouns: She/her
Hometown: Los Angeles
Job: Executive Director of the Charlottesville Free Clinic
What’s the one thing you wish everyone knew about the Charlottesville Free Clinic? It provides completely free medical care, dental care, and prescriptions to uninsured and under‑insured adults in our community—no strings attached.
The clinic exists so that people who fall through the cracks of the health care system can still get high‑quality, compassionate care. It’s powered by a huge volunteer network and funded largely by indi vidual donations, which means the community is both giving and re ceiving care through the same place.
This is the piece I think people often don’t realize: It’s not just a safety‑net clinic—it’s a communi ty built model of what equitable, accessible health care can look like.
What percentage of your patients have no insurance at all?
Eighty eight percent of our medi cal clinic patients can’t afford health insurance.
How have your patient counts changed over the past year? Our patient numbers have been grow ing over the last several years.
There was a 19 percent increase in patient visits for our medical clin ic and a 33 percent increase in pa tient visits for our dental clinic between this year and last year. What kind of changes do you anticipate as more of these cuts take effect? As health care be comes increasingly unaffordable, the Free Clinic anticipates serving a growing number of patients. We are a critical health care safety net for this community, and our role is to ensure that our neighbors continue to have access to care so the community as a whole remains healthy and strong.
If people reading this want to help you, what can they do? The Charlottesville Free Clinic is deep ly grateful for the generosity of our community as we look to the fu ture. Support in the form of dona tions has a direct and meaningful impact on our ability to care for more patients who need access to a doctor, dentist, or medications they could not otherwise afford. Community support truly makes this work possible.
How did you get into this line of work? I have a background in mar keting and have worked across a variety of industries. After my daughters were born, I decided to pivot my career. If I was going to spend time away from them, I want ed that time to be spent with an organization that truly serves the community. I found the Free Clinic and was immediately hooked.
What do you do to relax and unwind? Relaxing and unwinding usually involves chasing my 3 year old or cheering on one of my
What’s your proudest accomplishment? My family.
What do you wish you could do better? Honestly, everything. But if I had to narrow it down, I’d say I wish I spoke Spanish more flu ently and played tennis a bit better.
What’s the best part about living in Charlottesville? Charlot tesville has a truly welcoming, community centered spirit. People here genuinely care about one an other, and that sense of neighbor liness makes the city special. I see it every day at the Free Clinic through the generosity of our vol unteers. Doctors, dentists, nurses, and community members freely give their time to care for their neighbors, our patients, and that collective commitment to one an other is a powerful reflection of what makes Charlottesville such a wonderful place to live.
What’s the worst part about living in Charlottesville? Connect ing flights.
What’s your Bodo’s order? If I indulge, it’s bacon, egg, and cheese on a cinnamon raisin, and if I’m being good, it’s a Cleo.
Who’d play you in a movie? Shelley Long would be fun! In one of my first jobs as an NBC page, we were all assigned actors and actresses, and I was given Amanda Peet. But that was about 20 years ago, and I don’t really agree with it.
If you could change one thing about the world for good, what would you change, and how? Everyone should have access to
Snap, sip, swoon.
Calling all singles for a fun, first-date adventure. Each duo starts with a portrait session with a local photographer, capturing those first-date sparks, and then heads to a nearby bar for drinks and conversation. It’s part photo shoot, part cocktail hour— and all about seeing if you…click
Calling all singles for a fun, first-date adventure. Each duo starts with a portrait session with a local photographer, capturing those first-date sparks, and then heads to a nearby bar for drinks and conversation. It’s part photo shoot, part cocktail hour— and all about seeing if you…click
