Yadkin Valley Wine Festival - 2004
The Tribune News Articles
The 3rd Annual Yadkin Valley Wine Festival was held on Saturday, May 15, 2004 at the Elkin Municipal Park in Elkin, North Carolina. The Festival, sponsored by the Elkin/Jonesville Chamber of Commerce, was attended by approximately 12,000 people. Twelve Yadkin Valley wineries and vineyards participated in the annual event. The articles below were published in the Elkin/Jonesville Tribune on Monday May 17, 2004, and are reprinted with permission of the publisher.
"Life is a 'Cabernet'"
"Yadkin Valley Wine Festival touts local vintages to
thousands"
by Carrie Sidener, Staff Reporter
The Tribune
Article ©2004 by The Tribune, reprinted with permission
Sunshine, warm weather and the tastes of the Yadkin Valley
brought about 12,000 people to Elkin Municipal Park Saturday for the
third annual Yadkin Valley Wine Festival. With almost three times
as many wine tasters and visitors as last year's event, the festival
committee is hailing this year's as a great success. Crissy
Branch, special events coordinator for the Yadkin Valley Chamber of
Commerce, said the festival was "incredible, incredible,
incredible. It was a fantastic day. We couldn't have asked
for a better day."
Twelve vineyards and wineries were on hand pouring the product of
the Yadkin Valley Appellation. The festival is designed to
showcase wines produced in the appellation - consisting of Surry, Yadkin
and Wilkes counties, and parts of Stokes, Forsyth, Davidson and
Davie. The appellation, which was approved in 2002, allows
vineyards in the region to bottle their wines under a label saying it
was produced in the Yadkin Valley. Elkin is at the geographic
center of the Yadkin Valley region. The festival drew people from
across the United States and even had some visitors from overseas.
"This is creating a fantastic spotlight on the Yadkin Valley
vineyards," Darrill Rice, festival chairman, said.
"People are very excited about this growing industry as is
evidenced by such great participation."
The festival allowed people to sample the wines produced in the
Yadkin Valley, learn about the process of making wines, shop various
craft vendors and listen to music.
Lestine Hutchens, mayor pro-tem of Elkin, and Rice opened the
day's ceremonies with a few words of praise for the wine industry and
its impact on the area. "It is a wonderful tourism
event," Hutchens said. "It is one of the things that
makes us love to be in the Yadkin Valley Appellation."
A bike ride to benefit the Surry County chapter of the American
Red Cross kick started the festivities. Fifty-two riders bided to
RagApple Lassie and Shelton vineyards before returning to the park to
join the other festival-goers. The ride raised about $1,000.
In preparation for the large crowd, the festival committee
redesigned the layout to span half the park, providing more room for
patrons to enjoy the entertainment and prevent overcrowding at the
vineyard booths. The 80 volunteers are what made the day go
smoothly, Rice said. "The volunteers have been awesome.
Without their tremendous effort the day would not have run so
smoothly. Our biggest challenge was handling the larger than
expected crowd. Other than a few shortages on ice, everything went
smoothly."
Nicole Edmonds and her husband Josh came to the festival from
Raleigh. "This is awesome," Josh Edmonds said.
"I grew up in Surry County and never thought that there would be
anything like this here... We will absolutely come
back."
Hanover Park Vineyards of Courtney solt out of two of its
vintages before the day wa through and had to send workers back to get
more wines. "Yee haw," Michael Helton, co-owner of the
vineyard, said. "It is fantastic. We are very
happy. I have no idea how many bottles we have sold."
Lena Hobson, co-owner of RagApple Lassie Vineyards, said
this year's festival increased sales for the vineyards. "The
crowd is up significantly," she said. "People are here
from everywhere but there is a larger turnout from the Elkin area, which
mens they are really buying into us."
The festival's attendance was great compared to the past two
years, John Donnelly, tasting room manager of Raylen Vineyards in
Lewisville, said. "Everyone seems to be enjoying
themselves," he said. "This has been really good for the
Yadkin Valley... Our wines are getting better each year and as
more wineries come on board there is more competition, which raises the
bar for all of us."
A grape-stomping contest gave festival-goers a feel for the
tradition. Madison Spagnoletti, 11, of State Road, was one of the
victors. "Stomping is really hard," she said.
"It felt all gooey."
During the intermission, a contest was held to see how far people
came to visit the wine festival. Some came from across the
Southeast, Texas and Indiana, but the award went to Anne Moore, of
Huntington Beach, Calif. "We are having a great time,"
Moore said. "We go to Shelton Vineyards every time we have
the chance. I can't believe that they are growing grapes and
making wines in North Carolina."
David Morrison, winemaker at Westbend Vineyards in Lewisville,
said the crowd was enthusiastic. "We have sold a lot of wines
today," he said. "The folks seem to really be enjoying
it. It all begins with the first taste."
The quality of the wines is impressive, Amy Doutan, of North
Wilkesboro, said. "They said the Yadkin Valley was going to
be the next Napa Valley, but I didn't believe it until now."
Lee Martin, of Round Peak Vineyards in Mount Airy, said he was
impressed with the crowds. This was the first year the vineyard
had wines to show at the festival. "We are selling a good bit
of wine," he said. "This is much bigger than I thought
it would be. I'll be excited to see what it will be like next year
with new wineries coming on board all the time."
The weather really helped to increase the crowds, Kam Wehr, of
Black Wolf Vineyards, said. "I think the festival will only
go up from here," she said. "It seems to be getting
bigger and bigger each year. We have participants getting up and
driving hours to get here to spend time at the festival."
Anne and Meghann Clayton decided to come back after the inaugural
festival two years ago. "This one was wonderfully
organized," Ann Clayton said. "There are a lot of people
here, but it doesn't really seem crowded. The Yadkin Valley has
some great wines."
Raffaldini Vineyards' first vintage premiered at the
festival. "This is a great festival that is really well
organized," Susan Lyons, of Raffaldini Vineyards in Swan Creek,
said. "People are happy. They are becoming more
knowledgeable about wines and the industry. We are being really
well received."
Kim Myers, co-owner of Laurel Gray Vineyards in Hamptonville,
said people were coming to the vineyard's tent to buy wine, "[A]nd
that is a wonderful thing. We have had a really good day,"
she said. "People really seem to be enjoying
themselves."
The first festival that the Old North State Winery from Mount
Airy has been involved in generated some great comments about the wines,
winemaker Chris Johnson said. "We had to replenish our wine
supply halfway through the day," he said. "People are
trying some of the best wines in the Yadkin Valley ... Where else
can someone try so many different and interesting wines?"
The festival is expected to bring many into the area wineries,
Sandra Hincher, co-owner of Windy Gap Vineyards in Courtney, said.
"The festival is bringing us quite a bit of business. We are
very pleased."
George Denka, president of Shelton Vineyards, said the festival
was, "[T]he best yet. The Yadkin Valley wines are wowing lots
of customers ... I am just tickled to death."
The Wine Down party at the Foothills Arts Council rounded out the
wine festival weekend. About 150 people came to the arts council
to enjoy an evening of food, wine and jazz.
"It really surpassed our expectations," Beth Dixon,
executive director of the arts council, said. "I have seen a
lot of new faces tonight and the gallery has never looked greater.
We were able to call on some old friends for the music and that,
combined with new friends, makes for a great evening."
The last word on the festival came from Bacchus, the Greek god of
wine (a.k.a. Gary Maxey, president of the Elkin-Jonesville Rotary
Club): "The grapes are grand, the wines are fine, and the
people are sublime."
"Yadkin's Vineyards Reap Grape
Dividends"
by Andy Matthews, News Editor
The Tribune
Article ©2004 by The Tribune, reprinted with permission
Frank Hobson, Jr. found a cool place in the shade,
talking shop with some friends and other vendors. Taking refuge
from the heat was something new for Hobson and the rest of the thousands
of visitors and vineyard owners at Saturday's third annual Yadkin Valley
Wine Festival.
The first two years of the event were marred by frigid
temperatures and inclement weather. A bright afternoon sun and
80-degree temperatures kept workers at Yadkin's three wineries busy
serving up their homegrown products to a diverse crowd looking to please
their palettes.
"It's been awesome today," said Hobson, the owner of
RagApple Lassie Vineyards near Boonville. "It's been like
this since 11 a.m. It's just been a beautiful day."
The same folks who flocked to RagApple Lassie, wine-tasting
glasses in hand, lined up at Hanover Park Vineyard and Laurel Gray
Vineyards. Like Hobson, vineyard owners said they were
overwhelmed, forcing workers at times to return to the vineyards to
restock.
"We brought six cases of Early Twilight and it was gone by
1:15 p.m.," said Hanover Park Vineyard co-owner Amy Helton.
"Needless to say, we've been pouring a lot." Helton said
that she and her husband, Michael, met wine tasters from Winston-Salem,
Greensboro, Charlotte and several beyond North Carolina's borders.
Part of the fun at the festival, she said, is meeting people from varied
backgrounds. "I love to talk to people and just find out
where they are from," Helton said as a group of women approached
their booth.
One of them was Liz Duvall, of Hamptonville, who planned her
bridal shower around the wine festival. Her friend, Lane Kaplan,
of Greensboro, works for a public relations firm in Sanford.
"We support North Carolina wine and industries," Kaplan
said. "We thought this would be a great way to get the day
started."
A few booths away, Benny and Kim Myers, the owners of Laurel Gray
Vineyards in Hamptonville, were busy pouring samples. Benny Myers
said that customers kept demanding more of their newest wine, Scarlet
Mountain. "We've had three crews in here today," Benny
Myers said. "It's a lot of work, but it's also fun."
From Flint Hill Vineyards south of East Bend to Laurel Gray in
western Yadkin, vineyards are sprouting up throughout the county as many
tobacco farmers continue to see their federal quotas reduced.
Jack Loudermilk, director of Yadkin County's Cooperative
Extension Service, said that Yadkin now boasts about 120 acres of
vineyards. Working his way through the overflow crowd, Loudermilk
said that the wine festival has become a popular destination
point. "This is the new tourist attraction. We could
use this to anchor other activities in the area. You've got a lot
of people coming from all over the place - Greensboro, Charlotte and all
points north and south."
Yadkin Chamber Executive Director Bobby Todd said that the
festival showcases the county's vineyards and homegrown agricultural
products. "This is huge," Todd said. "It's
one of the growing industries. It's a chance to support the county
and for people to get behind it."
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