Grandfather Vineyard 2019 Appalachia Red, North Carolina

A high-elevation wine inspires us to tackle the highest mountain in the East.

North Carolina Wines Elevate Flavor

We recently spent a long weekend in Weaverville, North Carolina, a pleasant drive north from Asheville. It was time to hang out, jam on guitars, catch up with old friends, and open many bottles.

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For someone who lives at an altitude of 315 feet, Ashville is up there, at about 2,200 feet. We would propel even higher with this bottle from Grandfather Vineyard. The wine is from the Appalachian High Country AVA, established in 2016. It is a multi-state AVA, primarily in North Carolina but also with two counties in Tennessee and one in Virginia. This area has been know as High Country due to the higher elevations of the Appalachian Mountains.

Grandfather Vineyard is located along the Watauga River in the shadow of beautiful Grandfather Mountain, which soars to more than 5,900 feet. It was the first wine-producing vineyard in High Country. I  picked up this bottle at the NC Wine Digital Summit held in Dobson back in July. Our trip to the hills of Western North Carolina was a perfect chance to open it up.

The first thing that caught my attention was the label, proclaiming Thirty-Three Hundred Elevation. That’s the elevation of the vineyard where the steep slopes, cool climate, and rocky loam soil produce wonderful reds.

Joyful companions in this wine are two hybrid grapes: Marquette and Chambourcin. Marquette was developed at the University of Minnesota and is known for being cold-hardy. Chambourcin is a French-American hybrid first available in the 1960s. Its resistance to fungal disease makes it ideal for North Carolina.

The mountain reds of North Carolina are quite beautiful. This one is medium-light in body with black raspberry flavor and playful notes of cherry cola. The ABV is 14.5%, but this feels lithe and silky on the tongue. Just perfect as the sun set in Weaverville.

Mount Mitchell Tops Them All

We were inspired by this high-altitude wine to see Mount Mitchell, the highest peak east of the Mississippi. The windy Blue Ridge Parkway through dappled sunshine brought us to Mount Mitchell State Park. At the base, the day was shirt-sleeve sunny. It was quite a different story as we parked at the summit lot. Windy gusts and cold weather caused us to layer up for the hike to the top.

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This wasn’t an attempt to summit Everest, but the walk on a wide, paved path, is rather steep. There are benches along the way in case you need a rest or aren't used to the elevation. A number of people conked out at various points. The observatory is a circular concrete lookout area that lets you check out the 360-degree view at 6,684 feet of elevation. Four annotated photo placards show you what you are looking at, which includes many peaks and lakes in North Carolina and Tennessee. We took a nature trail from the top down to the parking lot. It was great but may be considered strenuous for some with plenty of rocks and ups and downs. It took us about 30 minutes. Food and portapotties are available at the parking lot.

The number one tip is to prepare for cool weather at the top. It was comfortable in the mid-70s below and a windy, chilly 53 degrees on top. Allow plenty of time to get there, too. You'll be driving on the Blue Ridge Parkway, where speeds range from 35 to 45 mph.

Small Wineries Lead The Charge In Craft Wine Movement

Layton’s Chance, Lewis Station, and Tranquil Heart are small, family-owned operations producing limited runs of surprisingly unique wines.

Craft Wine Gains Momentum

Two years ago when we first covered the Craft Wine Association, it was just started to bud. The group had less than a dozen wineries, but unlimited enthusiasm from CEO and founder Carole Lawson. The CWA has now blossomed with more than 55 wineries in locations from coast to coast in the US.

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“Craft wine is distinctly American wine,” said Lawson, who took part in a recent webinar hosted by the International Food, Wine & Travel Writers Association. “Wines we make here in the US are different from wines made in Argentina, South African or any other place considered Old World.”

Certified Craft Wine is a small-production wine made in runs of less than 5,000 cases.For a wine to achieve the designation of Certified Craft Wine, the winemaker must lead production from the process of grape selection through fermentation. Certified Craft Wine must also be produced using grapes from an identifiable vineyard or identifiable vineyards. Wineries whose entire production is most commonly less than 5,000 cases and meet the other criteria qualify as Certified Craft Wineries.

Lewis Station Winery

Rob Lewis was bitten by the wine bug after tasting the perfect glass of Zinfandel. He became a certified sommelier took courses from UC-Davis on winemaking and tried to determine his place in the wine world. He opened Lewis Station in what used to be an old, empty gas station in downtown Lake Mills, Wisconsin. After finding the Wisconsin climate too challenging to grow his chosen vines, he decided to source grapes from vineyards in premium California locations.

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Lewis Station has won many awards, but the best story is the one that got away. We tasted the Dry County “Rejected” Cabernet Sauvignon. The wine is aged in used Jack Daniels whiskey barrels. This is considered the best wine from Lewis Station and so Rob was puzzled when he was informed that the wine didn’t earn a medal at a prestigious wine competition. In fact, it didn’t even get rated.

It turns out the “pre-judge” smelled all the Cabernet and determined that since it smelled different than the others, it must have spoiled. All four bottles went down the drain. It’s a terrible waste, but a great story. This wine has rich, sweet oak flavors mingling dark cherry and toast. The finish is pure velvet.

Layton’s Chance Vineyard & Winery

Jennifer and William Layton also hail from a state not typically associated with wine: Maryland. Jennifer is the general manager of Layton’s Chance Vineyard & Winery and her husband William, is the winemaker. The family grew corn and soybeans for generations until Jennifer and William took over. Layton’s Chance is the first Certified Craft Winery in Maryland.

In 2010 Jennifer and William took a chance and planted grape varieties suited to the climate of Maryland’s Eastern Shore. The gambit paid off and the winery in Vienna, Maryland, is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year. They grown Chambourcin, Vidal Blanc, Traminette and Norton at their estate vineyard. We poured the 2018 Vintner’s Reserve, a delectable blend of three of our favorite grapes: Cabernet Franc, Chambourcin, and Norton.

This wine punched all the buttons for us, warming raspberry flavors from the Chambourcin, some peppery attitude from the Cab Franc and the stout backbone from the Norton. It retails for $26 and is a blend I’ve never scene before. Indeed, to find Chambourcin and Norton both grown at the same vineyard is quite rare.

Tranquil Heart Vineyard And Winery

Bill Shinkle, owner of Tranquil Heart Vineyard and Winery, has unwavering determination. How else can you explain how he has launched a successful winery in the most unlikely place, hot and dusty Hemet, California? Bill’s background is horticulture and he grew many of the plants we all bought at places like Home Depot and Lowes before starting his winery.

He spent months studying the climate and soil and which grapes are best suited for the environment. The winery has 15 acres, shaped in a heart, and the climate is Mediterranean. He chose an eclectic mix of mostly Italian varieties: Barbera, Teroldego, Aglianico, Muscat Canelli, Fiano, and Viognier.

Tranquil Heart (and who can’t use that these days?) is a private membership club and isn’t open to the public. The award-winning wines are available via wine club membership or online purchase.

The Craft Wine Association provides a variety of services and support for small wineries. Perhaps the best is Nxtcrush.com, a site where you can purchase bottles from any member of the CWA. The transaction is handled as if the purchase were made directly from the winery.

Feeling crafty? Craft wineries may be small, but the Craft Wine movement and the quality are huge.

Ramulose Ridge Vineyards: A Virginia Winery Visit

A trip to the Blue Ridge Mountains in Virginia provided a great opportunity to enjoy the great outdoors – and Virginia wine!

Time For Hiking – And Drinking

During our recent visit to the Peaks of Otter in Virginia, which is on the Blue Ridge Parkway near Bedford, we hiked. We hiked a lot!

We were staying at the scenic Peaks of Otter Lodge, with beautiful views of Abbott Lake and Sharp Top Mountain, the lodge was a perfect launching spot for great hiking. Green Dragon, my wife, decided we should take an easier hike and so she picked out the Flat Top Mountain trail. It sounded easy enough.

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Unfortunately, at 4,004 feet it turned out to be even higher than the towering Sharp Top Mountain, and unlike Sharp Top, there was no shuttle running to the top. While the top might be flat, the way to that Flat Top was definitely steep. The trail was mostly loose gravel, and unlike some of the other hiking in the area, there were no scenic vistas. Just trees to your left and right and an occasional patch of blue to make you think you were nearing the top.

Whether it was three or four hours of hiking, its hard to recall – but after that hot and sweaty episode, I decided we needed to do a non-hiking activity the next day. That meant a visit to a winery.

A Visit To The Ridge

Happily, we were able to visit a scenic ridge the next day and not hike to it. Ramulose Ridge Vineyards is located in Moneta, a short scenic drive from Peaks of Otter. There was a closer winery, but it specialized in sweet fruit wines, which are not in our zone.

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At the tasting room we met winemaker Sandy Ramaker, who along with husband Jim own the winery. There are five acres planted with nine varieties and all the wine is estate grown. Ramulose has a great line of semi-sweet and sweet wines – and several guests were enjoying them immensely. We decided on the dry tasting for $5 and settled in (including our dog Amber – the tasting room is pet-friendly).

The wines are all non-vintage. We started with an oaked Viognier with floral aroma and crisp finish. French hybrid grapes do well in the changeable Virginia weather and we next enjoyed Chardonel, which is a cross between the French hybrid Seyval and Chardonnay. This was light and oaky.

Traminette is a cross between a a French hybrid and Gewürztraminer. Green Dragon isn’t a Gewürztraminer fan and so she passed while I enjoyed sipping the aromatic wine that has notes of rose water. Vidal Blanc is used to make some good ice wine in colder parts of the country and Ramulose offers a nice off-dry version with a touch of sweetness.

Rambling Reds

Ramulose Ridge has a wonderful deck with outstanding views of the vineyards and the mountains in the distance. This is a timely spot to mention that the winery has suggested cigar pairings for their red and white wines. The deck or pavilion would be outstanding spots to puff on an Azul Cameroon cigar while enjoying Traminette.

For us, however, we were ready to ramble on to the red wines. The Malbec is a lighter style compared with your typical Argentinian version, but delivers nice tobacco and pepper notes. Also on the lighter side of the spectrum is the Cabernet Franc.

Chambourcin is a French hybrid grape that is one of our favorites. Ramulose does a grand job with the grape, with rich raspberry and soft tannins.

The best was saved for last, with an earthy and spicy Syrah (with a tasty $16 price) and the Robusto blend. Robusto is a blend of 60% Cabernet Franc and 40% Chambourcin. It has tart cherry flavors and is the most complex of the Ramulose Ridge lineup.

The wines we tasted range from $15 to $20. We purchased a bottle of Robusto to enjoy later.

While the dry wines were thoroughly enjoyable, we want to mention the Simply Sweet Sippers. With names like Promiscuous Pineapple, Chocolate Orange Obsession and Ravishing Raspberry, they feature eye-grabbing graphics. The wines are packaged in 375 ML pouches, making it perfect for a picnic or cookout. From the exclamations of joy from the other side of the tasting bar, we know this product is a hit with sweet wine lovers.

Ramulose Ridge is a small winery that offers excellent hospitality, a scenic location and unique estate wines. When you need a break from hiking (insert your own excuse here!) be sure to pay this Virginia winery a visit.

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