Meet Your Neighbor: Yianni and Helen Zissios Celebrate Wine and Family at Blue Valley Vineyard & Winery
Written by Heidi Baumstark | Photos by Michael Butcher
At age 16, when most teenagers are celebrating getting their driver’s license, a Sweet Sixteen-themed birthday, or other coming-of-age rites of passage, Yianni Zissios made a journey: immigrating from Greece to America. At that young age, and without knowing English, Yianni had no idea that his family would go on to open Blue Valley Vineyard & Winery in Delaplane, now a favorite destination for many locals and wine lovers from D.C.
Yianni was born in Kozani, a town in northern Greece. In 1969, with his parents and siblings, he left his familiar Greek surroundings to settle in Alexandria, Virginia. “I didn’t want to leave my home country,” he admits. “That was a sad day for me… I remember coming over on a TWA airplane. I couldn’t believe all the big cars here.”
But with determination and a strong work ethic instilled by his parents, he excelled in school, was on the wrestling and soccer teams, and in 1973, graduated from T.C. Williams (now Alexandria City High School).
Yianni & Helen
Yianni met his future wife, Helen, at her father’s Black Angus Steakhouse in Falls Church. “Being a family business,” she says, “of course I worked there, too.”
By day, Yianni worked in the plumbing, heating, and air-conditioning business, and on weekends, he worked at Black Angus. “I always had two jobs,” Yianni recalls. “My plan was to go back to Greece, but I met Helen at the restaurant when she was only 16. And I remember she had braces,” he says with a smile.
Helen would go on to graduate from American University, and in the summer of 1979, the couple married in Yianni’s hometown, Kozani, in the same church where he was an altar boy. Following the wedding, the newlyweds settled in Falls Church, operating a plumbing, heating, and air-conditioning business with, at the time, only $400 to their name.
First the Land, Then Wine
Opening a winery was not part of their plan. However, wine was central to Yianni’s upbringing; making wine with his grandfather at the tender age of 9 and cleaning out wooden barrels for his father’s winemaking, one could say owning a vineyard was in his destiny.
Helen has Greek roots, too. In the early 1950s, her parents immigrated to the U.S. from Karpenissi, in the mountainous region of central Greece. She says, “That’s why we love the mountains here at the winery — it reminds me of home.”
Yianni started making his own wine in the basement of his Falls Church home. “I got 30-gallon wooden barrels, bought California grapes, and had friendly wine competitions with friends.” He adds, “And I always won.”
In spring 1998, the couple bought a 100-acre property in Delaplane with the intent of building a country home. Helen remembers, “I had visions of my kitchen overlooking these mountain ranges.” Yianni got busy planting a small vineyard, just for personal winemaking.
One day in 2012, their son Stergio suggested building a winery. With the beautiful views, they could host weddings and events — a wonderful gathering place for all guests. Helen designed the 20,000-square-foot building herself. “I had three names in mind for the winery and gave the family the options, and Blue Valley was chosen,” she shares. “I got it from the merging of the Blue Ridge Mountains and the Shenandoah Valley.” Yianni crafted the beautiful wooden bar tops seen throughout the winery’s tasting room, made from centuries-old trees.
Stergio designed the cellar, which includes custom-made steel tanks from South Africa for white wines, oak barrels from France for reds, and a wine press machine from Germany. Only grapes grown on their property are used in their 16 wines offered. John Levenberg was brought on as their winemaker and consultant. Adjacent to the cellar is The Cave, where they host special dinners. The property also includes an Airbnb called The Cottage, perfect for wedding parties, families, groups of friends, or business getaways.
Yianni also added sheep and goats to the property, which can be seen roaming the vineyard. “I started with three sheep,” he says, “and now have 200 sheep and goats. And the bells on them are from Greece.”
The winery opened its doors in April 2015, and earlier this year, they celebrated its 10th anniversary.
A frequent visitor to the winery is Father Costa Pavlakos, a priest at Saint Katherine Greek Orthodox Church in Falls Church. Years ago, he helped plant some of the vines. Pavlakos says, “You know in the Bible, in Psalms, it says, ‘The Lord has given us wine to lighten the hearts of men.’ Yianni started a friendly winemaking competition among friends. It went back for decades, and out of that blossomed their winery.”
The Blue Valley Experience
Award-winning wines combined with breathtaking views of the Blue Ridge Mountains and the Shenandoah Valley make Blue Valley Vineyard & Winery a must-visit destination.
Guests can bring food, but the vineyard also offers charcuterie-style bites: cheeses, salami, hummus, olives, and olive oil from 400-year-old olive trees in Sparta drizzled over baguettes that come from a bakery in New York. Canisters of Greek olive oil can also be purchased to take home. Blue Valley offers two wine club memberships with perks, plus its wines are stocked at several local restaurants and hotels.
Blue Valley is the embodiment of the Zissios’ Greek heritage: making memories with those we love, holding close to traditions, and celebrating life’s moments. Yianni says, “I want guests to walk away with a good smile on their faces and think of the hospitality from the owners and staff.”
Pavlakos remembers, “I helped with planting the original vines and did a blessing over them. Yianni came to this country with nothing — it’s the American dream.”
“It was not easy,” Yianni says, “but you have to make a life for your own success.” Built on family values and a robust work ethic, Blue Valley is a reflection of all the traditions that come with the art of winemaking and the importance of gathering together. ML
Blue Valley Vineyard & Winery
5535 Blue Valley Way
Delaplane, VA 20144
bluevalleyvineyardandwinery.com
(540) 364-2347
Published in the October 2025 issue of Middleburg Life.