Sorry for the crappy picture but I took it with my cell phone as I forgot my camera. Today we ran over to the Childress Vineyards, located just 8 miles or so from our campground. We didn't take the tour since we've done several over the years at a variety of wineries, but we spent an enjoyable 1/2 hour tasting a number of their classic and barrel select wines lead by a young lady who is a transplant from Akron, Ohio (and forgive me for not getting her name because she was excellent; the winery is not answering their phones on this busy weekend day to get her name). She followed her parents down who followed their first grandchild down and really enjoys what she does. When I complimented her on her knowledge of all the varieties of wines produced at Childress she told us that she was taught at an all day "boot camp" where they drank wines all day. Let me repeat that; they drank wines all day. Give me an application, I can DO this!
The winery is of course, owned by Richard Childress, the race car driver and is styled after a Tuscany villa. Inside there is an intimate little restaurant with live music on the weekends, as well as tours of the winery itself, along with the separate wine tasting/store area.
North Carolina prides itself on its use of Scuppernong and Muscadine native grapes, which are used to create a sweeter wine with an earthy, grape-y flavor. Denny leans towards these, while I lean towards the drier varieties. My regret is that we are a week too early for the Barbeque festival here, as they will be introducing their "Fine Swine Wine" for that weekend. Dang! That would be worth it for the bottle label alone!
So if you are in the area, stop by, look for the slender blonde from Akron, Ohio to lead you through a very educational and well informed introduction to the Childress wines, and enjoy the scenery that surrounds the estate. It's a great way to spend an afternoon.
1 comment:
Sounds delightful. I have never had the opportunity to visit a winery... but hope to one day.
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