More shots from the AVA in Yadkin valley

We visited 7 North Carolina piedmont wineries, each of which grew all their own grapes.  This first was called Rag Apple Lassie.  It was named after a cow that the owner of the vineyard raised as a youth.  A sculpture of the cow stands at the entrance

To get to the tasting room you walk past the fermentation and bulk aging vats.  Quite an enterprise

I guess this is the bulk aging area along with the tasting bar.  One of the wines that I liked the best from here was their Kalidoscope Red.  It was a blend of Mourdvedre, Petit Verdot, Merlot, and both Cabernets. All the grapes were grown at this vineyard.  Very nice fruit forward wine with an excellent finish.

Another big vineyard patterned after an italian vineyard, this is Raffaldini.  Some serious money has been invested in this enterprise. 

A view of the grounds and fields around Raffaldini.  It is not only a vineyard and winery, but an event destination as well.  There are about 40 acres under cultivation here.

A good place to eat lunch, this Amish store makes excellent sandwiches and the price is right

The seven vineyards we visited ranged in size from startup operations with about 5 acres of grapes to really big ones like Raffaldini and several others that had nearly 10 times that much in cultivation.  What is clear is that viticulture and winemaking require more work than land.  You can make a pretty big operation and a decent income on 20 or 30 acres of land.