What District Winery Gallery does

District Winery is an urban commercial winery and event venue operating in Washington, DC's Navy Yard neighborhood along the Anacostia River. Founded in 2009 as the first commercial winery in the District of Columbia, the company produces small-batch wines on-site from grapes sourced from boutique vineyards across the United States, including regions in Finger Lakes NY, Lodi CA, Suisun Valley CA, Paso Robles CA, and Virginia. Winemaking employs traditional techniques including cold fermentation, barrel aging in oak (10-23 months for reds) and stainless steel, and bench-trial blending with precision down to 0.5%. The company is co-founded by Brian Leventhal and John Stires and operates under parent company First Batch Hospitality alongside sister properties Brooklyn Winery and Chicago Winery.

The business operates a multi-revenue-stream model anchored by full-service wedding hosting (capacity up to 200 guests) and corporate events (up to 800 guests), complemented by a waterfront tasting room and restaurant, guided winery tours and themed tasting experiences, a monthly Wine Club subscription, and ancillary services including custom wine labels and gift cards. Customer segments span wedding couples and corporate event planners as primary targets, with secondary segments including social celebration hosts, wine tourists, and corporate team-building clients. The winemaking team includes two dedicated winemakers and a culinary team led by Executive Chef Nicholas Fulginiti and Chef de Cuisine Kevaughn McCray.

Distribution occurs through direct-to-consumer channels including the on-site venue, third-party booking platforms (Resy for tastings, FareHarbor for tours, Tripleseat for private events, Toast Tab for gift cards), and a BentoBox-powered e-commerce site. Pricing ranges from $20-22 per person for tastings and $12-18 per glass for wine to $48 per person for the Chef's Call experience, $110 for the Date Night package, and quote-based pricing for weddings and large corporate events. The Very Important Couple (VIC) program offers wedding clients lifetime discounts, creating an extended customer relationship beyond the initial transaction.

Name

District Winery Gallery

Legal name

District Winery

Website

https://districtwinery.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

District Winery is Washington, DC's first commercial urban winery, producing on-site small-batch wines from grapes sourced nationwide. The waterfront Navy Yard venue hosts weddings, corporate events, tours, and a tasting room serving couples, corporate clients, and wine tourists.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Urban Winery & Event Venue

NAICS

Wineries (312130), Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages) (722410), Beer, Wine, and Liquor Retailers (445320), Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages) (7224)

SIC

Services-Membership Sports & Recreation Clubs (7997)

akta.pro primary industry

Urban Wineries (No/Minimal Vineyard) (THAFALAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Wine Bars (THAFAEAF), Wine Retail (Bottle Shops & Wine Merchants) (CRANABAB), Wine Tastings & Vineyard/Winery Tours (THAJAGAD)

Keywords

• Urban winery
• Event venue
• Wine tasting
• Wedding venue
• Wine production

Headquarters

HQ city

Washington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Wine Sales (Tasting Room & Retail): Direct wine sales by the glass and bottle in the tasting room. Wide portfolio including Riesling, Chardonnay, Rosé, Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Merlot, and specialty reserve wines.
2. Food & Beverage Service: Restaurant and tasting room food service featuring small plates, charcuterie boards, share plates, and desserts designed to pair with wines. Family-style and plated dinner service for private events.
3. Wedding & Private Event Hosting: Full-service wedding packages including venue rental, catering, bar service, event management, and optional enhancements like custom wine labels. Capacity up to 200 for weddings, 800 for corporate events.
4. Wine Tours & Experiences: Ticketed winery tours, guided tastings, themed experiences (Urban Winery After Dark, Taste with the Winemaker, Saturday Sips, Wine & Design Sundays, Wine Dinner Series), and team building activities.
5. Wine Club Membership: Monthly wine subscription program with exclusive perks for members including discounts on experiences, dining, and wine purchases.
6. Custom Wine Labels: Custom wine label design services for wedding and event guests, with minimum order of 5 wine cases.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels7 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

District Winery is an urban commercial winery located in Washington DC's Navy Yard neighborhood that produces small-batch wines on-site from grapes sourced from boutique vineyards across the United States. The company operates a waterfront tasting room and restaurant, hosts full-service weddings and corporate events for up to 800 guests, runs guided winery tours and tasting experiences, and offers a monthly wine club subscription.

Product overview

District Winery is a boutique urban winery and premier event venue in Washington, DC, offering a unified experience combining in-house wine production with full-service event hosting. The core offering centers on its commercial winery producing small-batch wines from grapes sourced nationwide, paired with diverse event spaces and services. Key products include: Wedding Venue Services (full-service weddings for up to 200), Corporate Events & Meetings (20-800 guests), The Tasting Room (waterfront wine bar with flights and small plates), Wine Tours & Experiences (guided tastings and themed activities), The Portrait Room (private dining for up to 40), Team Building Activities, Wine Club Membership (subscription with monthly pickups), Date Night Package ($110 curated experience), Chef's Call (chef-curated group dining at $48/person), Custom Wine Labels (event favor service), Gift Cards ($25-$500), and Holiday Party Packages. All experiences feature wines produced on-site, creating an integrated winery-to-table-and-event offering.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Wedding Venue Services
• Corporate Events & Meetings
• The Tasting Room
• Wine Tours & Experiences
• The Portrait Room (Private Dining)
• Team Building Activities
• Wine Club Membership
• Custom Wine Labels
• Gift Cards
• Holiday Parties
• In-House Wines

Quantifiable outcome

• Guest capacity flexibility: weddings up to 200 guests, corporate events up to 800 guests, intimate dining up to 40 guests
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration7 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• Brooklyn WineryminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSister winery location under First Batch Hospitality parent company. Co-founders Brian Leventhal and John Stires previously opened Brooklyn Winery in Williamsburg, NY before expanding to Washington DC with District Winery.
• Chicago WineryminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerSister winery location under First Batch Hospitality parent company. Part of the First Batch Hospitality portfolio of urban wineries.
• Wedding Vendors (Photography, Flowers, Music)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDistrict Winery allows couples to bring their own vendors for flowers, photography, and music. They have exclusive vendors for lighting and sound, plus preferred vendor recommendations. All vendors must provide valid certificate of insurance.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• The Watergate Hotel: Iconic DC waterfront hotel with event venues including the Moretti Grand Ballroom. Competes for high-end DC weddings and corporate events with full-service planning, similar to District Winery's offerings.
• Hotel Monaco Washington DC: Kimpton-affiliated luxury hotel with event spaces in DC that compete for corporate events and weddings. Different core offering (lodging vs. urban winery) but overlapping event venue customer base.

Regional players

• Tarara Winery: Virginia winery offering wine tastings, tours, weddings, and corporate events — overlapping with District Winery's event venue and tasting room operations, but located in suburban Virginia rather than urban DC.
• Cork & Barrel (DC wine bar): DC-area wine bar concept focusing on curated wine flights and small plates — overlaps with District Winery's tasting room and wine club offerings, though without in-house production.

Others

• Chateau Marmont (events-style hospitality): Representing the broader premium experiential hospitality category — full-service event venues with on-site F&B that command premium pricing for weddings and private events. Adjacent positioning, not direct competition.

Emerging players

• The Winery at The Capital Grille: Capital Grille has piloted in-house winery programs (e.g., at their NYC location). Represents a broader-incumbent approach to restaurant-affiliated urban winemaking, though without a dedicated urban winery venue model.
• Bluestone Vineyard: Mid-Atlantic vineyard and winery operation that overlaps in the wine production and tasting room category, though Bluestone is vineyard-based rather than urban. Comparable in offering wine tastings, events, and tours.

Direct peers

• Brooklyn Winery: Direct sister property under First Batch Hospitality; identical urban winery concept in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Operates the same model of in-house wine production paired with tasting room, events, and tours. Most directly comparable peer by every dimension.
• Chicago Winery: Third sister property under First Batch Hospitality, bringing the same urban winery + tasting room + event venue model to Chicago. Same founders (Leventhal, Stires), same operational playbook, and same product mix.
• City Winery: Multi-location urban winery concept founded by Michael Dorf, operating wine production, restaurants, and live music venues in cities including NYC, Chicago, Atlanta, and Nashville. Closest national competitor and the most established urban winery brand.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/districtwinery
• Instagraminstagram.com/districtwinery
• Xx.com/districtwinery

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about District Winery Gallery