* North Carolina CULINARY TRAVEL
WINE COUNTRY
Eco-Friendly Wineries in the Yadkin Valley By Sherry Jackson
California’s Napa Valley is well-known
Grassy Creek. PHOTO COURTESY
for its world-renowned wineries, but it’s not the only wine-producing region in the United States. The Yadkin Valley in North Carolina is steadily gaining accolades thanks to a robust viticulture program at the Surry County Community College and the fact that its wineries are churning out some mighty fine-tasting wines. Southern wines haven’t had a good following until recently. Admittedly, most just weren’t that good and were made primarily from Muscadine grapes, native to the southeastern U.S. But the 36-plus wineries in the Yadkin Valley are now producing great-tasting, award-winning wines from a surprisingly large variety of grapes, and are eco-friendly in the process. The viticulture program at the Surry Community College sets the stage and is the entry point for many winemakers in the area. The program began in 2004 and has had about 25 graduates in the past five years, most of whom have gone on to run their own vineyards in the area. There’s a bonded winery and vineyard on campus, and program participants learn the grittiness of the job—from getting up at 4 a.m. to check the grapes to the never-ending process of growing, bottling and marketing their products. Here’s a look at some of the Yadkin Valley Wineries and what makes them unique.
GRASSY CREEK
CAROLINA HERITAGE VINEYARD & WINERY This is the first USDA-Certified organic winery and vineyard in North Carolina. Clyde and Pat Colwell wanted to do something active in retirement with a more sustainable, less carbon footprint. So in 2005 they decided to pursue Clyde’s life-long dream of establishing his own vineyard and winery, and make it eco-friendly. The house and wine-tasting room are
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solar powered and Clyde experiments with different animals, such as guinea pigs, to assist with bugs and weeds in the vineyards. Most of their grapes are native to the region and they use several Muscadine varieties. They are currently working on planting an Isabella Grape which was used in the 1800s near Charleston, South Carolina, to make a new table wine label.
ELKIN CREEK VINEYARD AND WINERY Open since 2010, this winery has the hilliest vineyard in the Yadkin Valley. New owners Louis and Carrie Jeroslow, and Nick and Jennifer White, met while working for the Blue Man Group in Las Vegas. The two couples fell in love with the area when the Whites were married at the winery in 2008. The property contains a mill (circa 1896) with all of its original mill equipment, which is now the home of the two families. Nick, who took online viticulture classes from Surry Community College while in Vegas, has gone from drummer to vineyard manager. Jennifer, the head stage manager, now stages weddings and special events. Louis, a special effects engineer and amateur winemaker, is now a professional winemaker, while Carrie, resident director in Vegas, directs a lot of operations and handles wellness and her ministry duties. “We all bring specific talents and skills that fit really well,” Jennifer White said. “We worked together through Blue Man Group for so long that we developed teamwork and communication skills. It’s a pretty incredible team.”
GRASSY CREEK VINEYARD & WINERY This winery is set on what was a family hunting retreat in the 1920s for the Chatham and Haynes manufacturing families, and was where they would bring their corporate guests for wining and dining.