Our Family
Butch Hamlet
Butch is first and foremost a businessman, but one with an unusual hobby: professional racecar driving. With 25-plus years on track, he has raced everything from formula cars to prototype sports cars to NASCAR late model stock cars.
He also is a private pilot with more than 4,000 hours in the cockpit. As the Hamlet most at home behind a wheel, Butch handles most of the things in the vineyard that involve heavy equipment. He prepares the soil and does all of the spraying to protect tender vines. In addition to farming, he has been known to orchestrate the sale of NASCAR apparel.
He was president for 19 years of SouthPrint Inc., and also has served on a number of boards.
Virginia Hamlet
Mother to lots of boys and about 4,000 vines
Virginia earned a Bachelor of Science in Architecture at the University of Virginia, an architectural gem in and of itself created by another architect and vintner, Thomas Jefferson.
Many hours of Virginia's days are now devoted to vines, one way or another. During the season, she nurtures them. She plants vines, trains them, pulls their leaves, inspects them for progress and pests, and tends to their daily needs. She also plans and coordinates all of the private entertaining at Hamlet Vineyards.
Since opening Hamlet Kitchen, Virginia also enjoys greeting customers at the wine bar and gourmet-to-go in Martinsville.
She enjoys entertaining, great restaurants, tennis, visits to the mountains and learning everything about wine. She makes a study of viticulture, as well as visiting wineries and other vineyards.
Harrison Hamlet
Harrison is a graduate of Hampden-Sydney College. A need for adventure led him to trek through Patagonia for a semester. The avid golfer is also a talented writer. Harrison has paid his dues in the vineyard during summers at home and is the bird-netting specialist. He manages Resurgence Properties in Martinsville and his dog Enzo is the vineyard's mascot.
Lee Hamlet
Lee graduated from Christ School and Hampden-Sydney College, and is currently finishing pre-med courses at Virginia Commonwealth University. He and his twin Mitchell have played a big part in helping create Hamlet Vineyards. When Lee is not helping in the vineyard, you may find him enjoying a glass of Cabernet Sauvignon or admiring high-performance cars.
Mitchell Hamlet
Mitchell has done everything in the vineyard from marking rows to "harvesting" rocks that emerged when soil was turned. He and Lee have planted vines, pruned vines and, probably cursed vines along the way. Mitchell loves soccer and basketball and is a whiz on the computer. He graduated from Carlisle School and the University of Virginia where he majored in computer science and was the manager of the men's varsity soccer team. He is a technology consultant in Chicago.
Yesid Mosquera Perea
Yesid is from Quibdo, Colombia and has lived with the Hamlet family since 2012. He graduated from Carlisle School and the University of Virginia at Wise where he was an outstanding basketball player. Yesid has learned many vineyard tasks including pruning, crop estimating, and harvesting. He is currently playing professional basketball in Colombia.
And... ENZO
Our vineyard mascot (recently retired).