Yadkin Valley Wine Festival - 2005
The Tribune News Articles
The 4th Annual Yadkin Valley Wine Festival was held on Saturday, May 21, 2005 at the Elkin Municipal Park in Elkin, North Carolina. The Festival, sponsored by the Elkin/Jonesville Chamber of Commerce, was attended by more than 8,000 people, some 2,000 of whom tasted wine poured by the fifteen wineries and vineyards who participated in the event. The following articles, published in the Elkin/Jonesville Tribune on Monday May 23, 2005, are reprinted with permission of the publisher.
"Applauding Our Appellation"
'Wine festival draws thousands for 4th year of tasty entertainment'
by Kitsey Burns, Staff Reporter
The Tribune
Article ©2005 by The Tribune, reprinted with permission
A more splendid day could not have been ordered for the fourth
annual Yadkin Valley Wine Festival. The May sunshine on Saturday
was the perfect complement for the entertainment and the wines from 15
Yadkin Valley vineyards and wineries.
Derril Rice, the festival's chairman, dubbed the day
"fantastic. We couldn't have asked for better weather,"
he said. "There's great support from the community and lots
of turnout from families from all over."
Organizers were very pleased with attendance, estimating it to be
the highest yet. Last year's festival drew close to 10,000.
An estimate on the number of people at the festival will be calculated
this afternoon.
"I think this is by far the best event ever," said
Teresa Osborne, chamber president. "We exceed our
expectations."
Most of the vineyards reported higher sales than in previous
festivals.
Visitors to the festival hailed from all over North Carolina and
across the country. People from Juneau, Alaska, New York City and
Oceanside, Calif., competed for the Sprint long distance award; they
were outdone by Leo Luyong from Shanghai, China.
Jeffrey Chilcott was another visitor from abroad.
Originally from New Zealand, Chilcott now resides in Barbaresco in the
Piedmont Region of Northern Italy where he works for a vineyard.
Chilcott was impressed with the excitement of the Yadkin Valley wine
region. "You get the feeling everything's so new and it's
just starting off here, but there's a lot of enthusiasm behind the
people, so that's very positive," he said. "There
was potential in all the wines I've tasted. You get the feeling
that everyone around her is having a go at doing a lot of different
things."
He was particularly intrigued by the sweet wines made from
muscadine grapes. "I've tasted your local indigenous varietal,
that was a first-time experience. I know it's not what a lot of
people are planting here and growing, but it was a
curiosity."
For the sweet wine drinkers to those who prefer a drier drink,
there was something for every taste at the festival. Many of the
winemakers and vineyard owners said that people were tasting things
across the board.
"There are sweet wine drinkers as well as those drinkers
that prefer drier products," said George Denka of Shelton
Vineyards. "We seem to have attracted some of everyone here
today."
The tasters at RagApple Lassie were also enjoying a little of
everything. "It's a very diversified crowd. All the
wines have been well received," said winemaker Linda King of
RagApple Lassie. "I think they are going to discover a lot of
really great North Carolina wines here."
Many festivalgoers were also taking the time to learn about the
wine industry by asking questions and participating in the grape stomp.
"People seem to really want to learn about the
industry," said Susan Lyons of Raffaldini Vineyards.
"They're taking their time to really taste the wines. People
are really asking a lot of questions, they seem to have a little more
discerning palettes this year."
The children who participated in the grape stomp squealed with
delight, but later pronounced that the feeling of cold grapes beneath
their bare toes was "gross." Mary Shepherd of Elkin had
a more positive response to the feeling of the grape stomp.
"It's nice and wet and juicy and cold and luscious and
delicious."
Participation in the grape stomp has expanded considerably, said
Rice. "It's a lot of fun for everybody to get their feet
dirty and get a little experience of the wine industry first hand,"
he said.
Festivalgoers of all ages took a little time to shag to the beach
music of The Original Tams. The fool, the cheese tasting booth,
crafts and of course the wine all received high marks from the
guests. "I'm having a great time," said Sadie Bennett of
Greensboro. "I think wine is good for you, I really do."
"Chamber Bestows First
'Promotion' Award"
by Kitsey E. Burns, Staff Reporter
The Tribune
Article ©2005 by The Tribune, reprinted with permission
The Yadkin Valley Chamber of Commerce's newest award -
for promotion of the Yadkin Valley - was presented Friday night to the
two brothers who started Shelton Vineyards. The Chamber named the
award for Rebel Good, publisher of The Tribune, to commemorate his
longtime promotional efforts for the community and the local viticulture
industry.
"He [Good] has just constantly promoted this area, the
community and what we have," said Teresa Osborne, president of the
Chamber. "He has been the guiding spirit behind the Yadkin
Valley Wine Festival."
The Shelton Brothers, Ed and Charlie, were selected for the
inaugural award for their many contribution to the promotion of the
Yadkin Valley, Osborne said. They were instrumental in getting the
Yadkin Valley established as the first American Viticultural Area in
North Carolina and also for their work with gaining grants for the
viticulture program at Surry Community College and establishing a store
in the Charlotte Airport that sells only Yadkin Valley wines.
"It is quite an honor," Ed Shelton said after receiving
the award at the Hugh Chatham Memorial Hospital Foundation's Wine
Auction. "I'm just proud of what everybody is doing here to
make this a better area and bring more people in, and I'm just proud to
be a part of it."
The award is in the form of a large, professional wine bottle
opener and "is emblematic of the Sheltons' efforts to uncork the
economic potential of the Yadkin Valley," Osborne said.
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