Raffaldini & Childress Vineyards – Wines of the Yadkin Valley in North Carolina

North Carolina has been growing grapes for centuries prior to the efforts of the new age winemakers.  As old world grape varieties continue to evolve in the hills of Appalachia, the Muscadine grape has been cultivated for wine since the 16th century.  It is often thought of as a sweet wine or dessert wine, primarily because sugar is added during the winemaking process.

Today, winemakers like Raffaldini and Childress are creating interesting and flavorful dessert wines and sparkling wines using noble grape varieties from Europe: like Raffaldini’s La Dolce Vita made in a Moscato d’Asti style that is smooth and sweet; while Childress incorporates the South’s grape of note, Muscadine, to produce wines that many will find interesting and enjoyable.  While these sparkling and sweet wines have a strong following, it is the dry wines that represent the future of North Carolina vineyards.

The passion and commitment of these vineyard owners and the skill of the winemakers make you believe that it is just a matter of time before North Carolina will join the ranks as an important wine making region in the United States.

Another view of the vineyards at Childress

* The top photo was taken at Raffaldini Vineyards.

This was a guest post written by Mr. B since he is our resident wine expert. 🙂

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