The North Carolina Wine Trail

When you think of US Wine regions, Napa and Sonoma in California usually come to mind first. Then there's Southern California's Santa Ynez Valley, the Finger Lakes and the North Fork of Long Island regions in New York, Virginia's wineries, Washington state and Oregon wineries and even wineries in Texas. But most people don't know that North Carolina has some 100 wineries, mostly concentrated in the Western and Piedmont regions of the state. And in the Yadkin Valley area there are 36 wineries on the Yadkin Valley Wine Trail. Located near the small town of Elkin, North Carolina - which was one of Budget Travel's "Coolest Small Towns", the Yadkin Valley is a primarily rural area located about 45 minutes south of the Virginia state line.(In fact, North Carolina is said to have the "mother vine" of US wines which was here when the first settlers arrived on Roanoke Island) We visited three of them recently for some wine tasting and beautiful scenery.

RagApple Lassie Vineyard I had seen the sign for RagApple Lassie Vineyard and I was always curious about the name. So we headed to Boonville (about 25 miles north of Winston-Salem) for an afternoon tasting. RagApple Lassie has 15 different wines available for purchase (my favorite was their very unique chardonnay) and all are made from estate grown grapes.Wine tastings are held inside a building designed by students at the University of North Carolina-Charlotte and made to look like a farm building of that area, including a silo. And as to that unique name, well it comes from the owners show calf he owned as a teen who won Grand Champion at the North Carolina State Fair.

Adagio Vineyard Adagio Vineyards and Tasting room, located just outside of Elkin, is brand spanking new. Our tasting was hosted by Douglas, who is a native to Elkin, and he was very helpful in not only identifying what we might like to taste but also in giving us some helpful tips about the area. Adagio has eight wines they are currently pouring (my favorite was the Coda which is a sweet dessert wine that reminded me of ice wine that I tasted in New Hampshire) and most have won medals at nationwide wine shows. After our tasting, we sat outside at their fire pit enjoying the afternoon.

Elkin Creek Vineyard My favorite of the three wineries we visited was Elkin Creek Vineyard. Located an hour north of Charlotte, on yes, you guessed it....Elkin Creek, this winery is a popular spot for weddings - in fact, there was one on the day we visited. Housed in a brick building with an outdoor patio, a picnic shelter and picnic tables by the creek, Elkin Creek is owned by two former members of the Blue Man Group. There are 10 wines currently listed on their website including Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Sangiovese and Viognier. (My favorite was the Mistela which is a mix of whites - Pinot Grigio, Chardonnay and Viognier - I guess I prefer white wine) One of the more popular aspects of Elkin Creek is their kitchen, and specifically their Sunday afternoon made-to-order pizzas from their brick oven. We are told they are to die for and reservations are suggested - unfortunately, we weren't there on a Sunday afternoon so I guess I'll be back!

Now I only have 33 to go to conquer the Yadkin Valley Wine Trail! It's a tall order, but somebody's gotta do it!


This post is part of a link-up with: Travel Photo Thursday at Budget Travelers Sandbox , Weekend Wanderlust at A Brit and A Southerner, The Weekly Postcard at Travel Notes and Beyond and Weekend Travel Inspiration at Reflections Enroute!